Thoughts + Things from Jackson returns! - 10/12/20
Oops, that was a long hiatus. But we are back. A narrative podcast, poetry, and the most obvious rec yet.
Hey there. Apologies for the lack of consistency. It was a busy summer despite COVID and this newsletter took a hit. I’m glad to be back, and I hope you enjoy this edition. I’ve put together some recommendations across various content I enjoyed over the summer. There’s a wide range here so hopefully there’s at least one thing you find interesting and dive deeper with. Let’s get to it!
Listen 🎧🎼
Day by Day Podcast - Big Nights In
Day by Day is a narrative podcast from producers Adam Faze and Jamie Dolan that tells short, simple, and deeply human stories of people experiencing the shift in our world that has come with COVID-19.
To be honest, I'm not exactly looking forward to the torrent of content we're likely to get in the coming months and years about this period of time. In general, I think the subject will be overplayed and remind us too much of how everything has changed. That said, Day by Day is a fresh breath of humanity and emotional depth that seeks to remind us that we're all experiencing this thing together.
One of my favorite episodes features Lucy Hale and Hero Fiennes Tiffin as two newly acquainted roommates in NYC, dealing with the pandemic and an unexpected amount of time with each other. The acting and writing are brilliant, especially for an audio format, and the short story is a strong reminder that you can connect with anyone within the right context and with the right mindset. Or in the characters' case, enough time stuck in an apartment together.
I'm excited about audio content broadly and I've seen (heard?) very few do fictional narrative storytelling this well.
Read 📖📄
inward by Yung Pueblo
A friend gave me this short book earlier this summer, and I read it on a single plane ride on my way back to LA from Portland (which was a lovely break during my summer spent mostly in my bedroom). I bought a few copies for some friends after finishing it, and plan to return to it frequently.
It's a brief book of poetry and other thoughts focused mainly on self, ego, power, love, and freedom. A few favorite excerpts:
If you are far away from yourself, how could you ever be close another?
There is not a single moment when change is not present. The constant of the universe, the motion of impermanence, is observably evident in the world around us and the world within us.
Releasing, learning, expanding -- I am happily a work in progress.
Real love began when we both stopped expecting and instead focused on giving.
Love is not: I will give this to you if you do this for me.
Love is: I will give this to you so that you may shine.
Wanting always interrupts being.
Some of this might sound a bit on the spiritual or hippy side of things, as it did to me as I first dove in. It's easy to look for analytical and rational answers to our problems, especially for someone like me. I'd encourage you to check this one out, especially if you're initially skeptical. I don't think you'll regret it.
Sriram Krishnan's Interview with Spotify CEO/Founder Daniel Ek for The Observer Effect
I'm fascinated by exceptional people and by what makes them so. Sriram brilliantly navigates a wide-ranging conversation with a figure I previously knew nearly nothing about, and this interview is as entertaining as it is educational. Daniel has clearly spent a great deal of his time learning how to lead in his nearly 15 year run as the founder of Spotify. If you're at all interested in company building, management, vision, strategy, or Spotify, I'd highly recommend it.
Sriram and Daniel cover inspirations, great meetings (I'm taking notes...), decision making, and more. One of my favorite ideas that Daniel shares is related to nature vs. nurture with the world's most successful founders:
Right now, the essence of the idea [venture capital] is, “Hey, it's a really great time in the world because we have all these founders and it's our job to back them because they really have these mythical powers....”
Well, the flipside to that argument would be, “Maybe founders aren't really that mythical.”
There’s no doubt that there are certainly amazingly talented founders. That said, I have heard people argue: is Jeff Bezos amazing because he's Jeff Bezos or is he amazing because he's been the CEO of Amazon for twenty years and he’s gained experience growing one of the largest companies in the world? I would say that yes, he's amazing, but this is due, in part, to that experience.
This is a profound, yet obvious idea to me. Yes, of course, it's true, but I think the core principle of this notion is remarkably inspirational and useful in evaluating ourselves and our own growth. It's so easy to compare and self-doubt, especially when studying extraordinarily successful people. But I suspect that many of them would have felt the same way I do when looking at their future selves. Grow, be self-aware of your own naïveté, and don't be afraid to get in the mud.
Watch 🎥 📺
Hamilton
I'll keep this section short, as I'm about as late to the party on this one as humanly possible. Until a couple of months ago, I'd never seen or listened to any part of Hamilton. With excellent COVID-related timing, the film version of the show arrived on Disney+ this summer and some friends pushed this musical theatre-skeptic into watching it.
In a completely un-shocking turn of events, I felt the way the world does about this masterpiece. I don't use that word lightly and I truly believe this work of art will be remembered and revisited for generations. It combines invention within its medium and incredible talent and music with an under-told story of one of our founding fathers. It is emotional, accessible, and powerful.
If you have also been living under a rock or have been kept at bay by a disinterest in theatre, please watch this show. It's not short, and it might take a bit to get into, but if you're not captivated by the intermission, you can write to me and call me a liar.
A personal favorite moment: 'Dear Theodosia,' a song by the two leads that speaks to the incredible, unknowable, and mystical love that comes with being a parent. I'm not there yet in my life, but it's hard to think of any art I've enjoyed that better seems to encapsulate that emotion.
Play 🎮 🃏
Among Us
A new section of the newsletter! I do work in video games, after all. I'm certainly preaching to the choir for many of you, but if you haven't tried this phenomenon yet, check it out. It takes some of my favorite elements from in-person party games like Mafia or Werewolf and brings them to a ten-person online game where you and your friends attempt to suss out which of you is actually sabotaging your space mission.
Grab your phone or PC (no Macs, sadly -- it's available on steam) and let hilarity (and probably newborn feuds) ensue.
That’s it for this one. I hope you are well, finding joy in the days amidst this new world, and finding ways to see or speak with people you love. Until next time!
Jackson