One week in 2021

[defn] Boketto: To gaze vacantly into the distance without thinking about anything specific.

That’s exactly what we all need after the first week of 2021. Instead of getting stressed about all the things not done, choose to enjoy the mindless wandering, this little moment to clear your head and appreciate your surroundings. Well, for a while, at least.

Now that your mind is calm and open, let’s see what we’ve got in today’s newsletter :)

Let’s start with something I find very true and also useful/practical (a rare combination):

Don’t confuse ‘doing a thing because I like it’ with ‘doing a thing because I want to be seen as the sort of person who does such things’

The Science That Explains Trump’s Grip on White Males

I don’t mean to get political, but this is something we all need to understand. That research, and decades of subsequent scholarly work, suggest that if you want to understand the Trump phenomenon, you’d do well to first understand the science of risk perception.

Moral Competence

If you want to do good, you actually have to help people. Merely attempting to help people is not enough. That doesn't mean that trying to help people is bad. It's not, but moral good comes from moral competence.

The Now Habit

Procrastinate a little and read this article about … procrastination. I promise you it’s actionable, short and sweet.

How to stop winning arguments

My article from last September about ways we mess up arguments - now that the world is super polarized finding better ways to come to common grounds is more important than ever.

Being Vulnerable Is the Boldest Act of Business Leadership

Hell yes. I wouldn’t call it bold, but one of the most important things so so many leaders don’t practice at all. The article is a good intro / overview but I find it’s lacking depth - read it nevertheless, it’s not long.