Time (or the lack thereof) has haunted me for as long as I can remember.
My husband likes to joke that before I even finish talking about an idea, I'm already working on making it a reality. It's not that I rush through the days, it's that I'm hyper-aware of how few of them we have and how many of them we waste.
I've been thinking about this since Wednesday, when I published a Profile Dossier on Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of the popular musical Hamilton. The play focuses on the life and career of Alexander Hamilton, one of the nation's most prominent Founding Fathers who is credited for developing the U.S. financial system.
Born out of wedlock, raised in poverty in St. Croix, abandoned by his father, and orphaned by his mother as a child, Hamilton moved to New York City as a teen. Determined to make the most of his life, he authored two-thirds of the Federalist Papers, served as George Washington’s aide during the Revolutionary War, and ultimately became America’s first Treasury Secretary.
Miranda says he was struck by Hamilton's impatience and determination to achieve more. "I think what Hamilton had is what I have, which is this thing of 'Tomorrow's not promised; I have to get done as much as I can today.'"
I feel like many of us have lost that sense of urgency. Much of what I see on social media has turned into a mess of deterministic thinking, depicting a world in which we’re all forever bound to the communities we grew up in or the difficult upbringings we endured. It assumes there is no opportunity, no upward mobility, and nothing to strive for. And that's a dangerous way to think.
Hamilton had the opposite view. His belief in free will fueled his work, and he was in a constant race against time. The Hamilton song, "Non-Stop" has a refrain that goes like this:
How do you write like you're running out of time?
Write day and night like you're running out of time?
Every day you fight like you're running out of time
Like you're running out of time
Are you running out of time?
How do you write like tomorrow won't arrive?
How do you write like you need it to survive?
How do you write every second you're alive?
Every second you're alive? Every second you're alive?
Hamilton spent his life educating himself every step of the way. He made sense of the world through extensive reading and elaborate note-taking. But he always knew it wasn't enough to just learn. He knew he needed to immediately put it into action.
Hamilton studied, took, and passed the bar exam after only six months of self-directed education. Time and time again, he would follow learning with swift acton. He translated many of his ideas into proposals, political arguments, and eventually, America's financial system.
Here's how he put it: "Men give me credit for some genius. All the genius I have lies in this; when I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night it is before me. I explore it in all its bearings. My mind becomes pervaded with it. Then the effort which I have made is what people are pleased to call the fruit of genius. It is the fruit of labor and thought."
In other words, what made Hamilton successful wasn't some God-given talent or intelligence. It was constant learning paired with constant deliberate action. Day after day. Year after year. As author Ron Chernow put it, Hamilton was a thinker and a doer; a "sparkling theoretician and masterful executive."
In today's world, we've got way too many sparkling theoreticians and very few masterful executives. Hamilton knew that it took more than a political proposal (...or a tweet) to make a long-lasting difference. It takes consistent, individual action. As I've written before, a true democratic state requires action, and we all have a responsibility to do our part.
Unfortunately, I've felt that many of us have been taking a very passive approach lately. There's been a lot of talk of waiting. Waiting for the election results. Waiting for the pandemic to end. Waiting for the right time to start something new.
The truth is that we're all running out of time. So I want to leave you with the question asked in the Hamilton finale: "Who lives, who dies, and who tells your story?"
It's meant to remind us to be the authors of our own stories by living life like we're constantly running out of time ... because we are. "Your story will be told by those who survive you, you have no control over that. You can only control what you do and what you put into the world,” Lin-Manuel Miranda says.
Learn to operate like Alexander Hamilton: Learning paired with action. There's no time to wait. Whatever you want to accomplish, do it today.
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PROFILES.
— The young investors betting big on crypto[**HIGHLY RECOMMEND**]
— The world's best bureaucrat
— The most powerful executive in social media
— The remote football coach
— Hollywood's outspoken philosopher
— The bangle billionaire who fell from grace
— The man who taught Uber how to apologize
— The cooler company thriving in crisis
PEOPLE TO KNOW.
The young investors betting big on crypto: Combining mainstream pedigrees and pioneering crypto cred, Fred Ehrsam, 32 and Matt Huang, 31, convinced top institutional investors like Harvard and Stanford to give them $750 million to invest in a market they were too blue-blooded to touch directly. The cryptocurrency VC firm Paradigm moved its $400 million of initial capital into Bitcoin and Ethereum in 2018 at burst-bubble discount prices. Bitcoin has tripled in value since Paradigm’s investment, meaning aside from any other bets it has made, Paradigm’s starting bankroll is already worth 3x. (Forbes)
“We think there is leverage in pouring fuel on the fire. But we certainly didn’t create the fire.”
The world's best bureaucrat: Here's something you don't see every day: Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell featured in a New York Magazine cover story. This profile details how Powell's propensity for action has kept the economy relatively stable in the face of the unprecedented crisis that was COVID-19. The Fed flooded the economy with extra cash, cut interest rates to zero, and provided liquidity to keep corporations able to borrow. Although I'm not sure I agree with the story's characterization of Powell as a savior, it's still a captivating look at one of the most powerful figures in Washington. (New York Magazine)
“Because Powell is actually willing to listen to a lot of people in Congress ... that’s kind of why the Fed ended up with a lot of authority under the cares Act.”
The most powerful executive in social media: You've probably never heard of Vijaya Gadde. That's because she flies under the radar in a world that worships tech CEOs. Gadde is Twitter's top lawyer, who has helped drive the company to more heavily regulate what users can say and post. Here's how some of the changes Gadde helped drive within Twitter have rippled through Silicon Valley. (Politico)
“I don’t really see an easy solution for how you moderate content at scale around the world. There’s going to be errors, and there’s going to be corrections, and there’s going to be inconsistencies.”
The remote football coach: What if you could coach a high school football team in Alaska while eating dinner at home in California 2,000 miles away? Turns out you can. Coach Justin Zank has expanded what coaches around the country thought was possible while locked down amid a generational pandemic. Here's how Zank unintentionally presented the nation with its first Zoom football team — and how he and his team finished the season as conference champions. (Sports Illustrated)
“It’s weirdly normal. The new normal. Me strangely yelling at my computer screen.”
Hollywood's outspoken philosopher: Matthew McConaughey has become something of a philosopher in the last few years. In this profile, we learn that McConaughey does not merely let life happen to him. “It’s always been obvious to me that I do not have a laissez-faire attitude,” he said. “It’s a state of being that I work at, continuously, daily, and I break a sweat to get it.” Everything he does, it's with focused intent. (The New York Times)
"You’ve got your hands on the wheel. You’re making choices. They matter.”
The bangle billionaire who fell from grace: It’s been a really bad couple of years for Carolyn Rafaelian and her celestial jewelry brand, Alex and Ani. The company's lender cut off its line of credit, sales tumbled, and at least two lawsuits have been filed. Rafaelian was forced to give up one third of her stake in the jeweler. It’s a dramatic reversal of fortune for the entrepreneur who became a media darling. Here's how the tables turned. (Forbes)
“I believe there is no such thing as coincidences: Everything is strategically and divinely coordinated."
The man who taught Uber how to apologize: It turns out there's a science to saying sorry. Social scientists have studied what kinds of apologies work. But John List had a unique vantage point as the chief economist of Uber — he could actually measure the impact. Here's what he learned: An apology coupled with a $5 coupon kept many people loyal. Meet List, the economist who can test his theories out in the real world. (BBC)
"What's the best way to keep Uber customers loyal, even when they've had a miserable experience?"
COMPANIES TO WATCH.
The cooler company thriving in crisis: Yeti, the Texas-based brand, has catapulted your regular old portable cooler into a full-blown premium brand. Nothing about what Yeti sells should have poised it well for a pandemic-induced recession: Its signature product is a $300 luxury cooler, and its most profitable one is an insulated cup used by commuters on the way to the office. But somehow, Yeti has been thriving and its stock price is soaring. This is a fascinating case study of how to grow your company in an irrational and unpredictable economy. (Medium)
“We faced a unique challenge. How do we remain relevant and connect with consumers when the world is on lockdown?”
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AUDIO TO HEAR.
John Arnold on giving it all away: When John Arnold was in his 30s, he had a thriving career as a natural gas trader with his hedge fund Centaurus Advisors. And then one day, he decided to walk away from it all and focus 100% of his time on philanthropy. Arnold and his wife have decided to give away most of their wealth in their lifetime and are already doing so at a staggering pace of nearly a half billion dollars a year. Here's how Arnold re-structured his life and financial success to focus on far-reaching and long-lasting social impact. (Link available to premium members.)
Mellody Hobson on building a better future in the midst of crisis: Ariel Investments co-CEO Mellody Hobson believes Americans are resilient. Even in the midst of nationwide protests and a global pandemic, Hobson remains optimistic about our country. “My point about telling people you can be or do anything: I understand all the obstacles that will be in your way. The hope is America,” she says. “It's quintessentially who we are. We think tomorrow will be better than today. I know I wake up that way every single day. Even in our darkest hour, we always believe that things will improve.” Here’s why she says people shouldn’t give up on building a better future. (Link available to premium members.)
Ryan Holiday on life in moderation: Author Ryan Holiday explains that the great stoic philosophers believed that a life in moderation was a life well-lived. But in today's world, if you say you're more moderate in your political beliefs, for example, you get condemned by both political parties. Holiday says, “Instead of admiring people who can effectively stand in the middle, we’re almost mad at them for not taking sides." Here's why it's so hard to pull away from the mob. (Link available to premium members.)
VIDEOS TO SEE.
America's never-ending election: As you prepare for the upcoming election, it might be a good idea to watch this documentary about the closest race in modern political history. The 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore resulted in a night of "volcanic chaos" when the election was deemed to be "too close to call." As the debate over the Electoral College surfaces in the days before the 2020 presidential election, go back in time 20 years to the election in which the integrity of the American electoral process seemed to be in jeopardy. (Link available to premium members.)
The AI arms race: Advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning bring opportunity and also peril. AI could bring forth a new industrial revolution that benefits certain parts of society, but it could also lead to an extreme version of a surveillance state. This free documentary explains that the United States and China are locked in a heated rivalry, each seeking a generational advantage in AI. As famed computer scientist Kai-Fu Lee says, "In the age of AI where data is the new oil, China is the new Saudi Arabia." This is a must-watch. (Link available to premium members.)
Sara Blakely’s life of persistence: Sara Blakely is the founder and CEO of Spanx, a brand of hosiery that eliminates panty lines. In this interview at Stanford, she discusses her journey from inventing Spanx to becoming the world’s youngest female self-made billionaire. Here’s how she built a massive company with no business background, no connections, and no outside funding. (Link available to premium members.)
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