Curiosity Chronicle

The story of the last few weeks in finance has been the secretive rise and rapid downfall of Archegos Capital Management. A thread on the underlying mechanics of the Archegos saga and how a $20 billion fortune vanished into thin air... First, let’s set the stage. Archegos Capital Management is the family office of Bill Hwang, a former prodigy of hedge fund legend Julian Robertson. Hwang previously...

Kaizen is a powerful concept for unlocking growth in your career, startup, business, writing, or life. A short thread on what it means and the magic of continuous improvement... Kaizen is a Japanese word meaning “improvement.” In practice, the term is used to convey continuous improvement. It is a dynamic process - ongoing, incremental, compounding daily improvements. The origin of the concept of...

Focus is a competitive advantage. But in a noisy world, it is increasingly difficult to find. 5 tactics for finding focus in your career, startup, or life: #1 - Eliminate Low-Value Decisions Mark Zuckerberg is famous for having only one outfit in his closet. While an extreme example, there is a lesson here: Eliminate decisions that require energy but do not create commensurate value. Redeploy that...

Ikigai is a powerful concept for finding purpose and clarity to unlock growth in your career, startup, business, writing, or relationships. A thread on its meaning and how it can change your life... Ikigai is a combination of the Japanese words “iki” (or “life”) and “gai” (a term to describe value or worth). It roughly translates to “reason for being.” It is all-encompassing - it is not simply abo...

The story of the week in the business world is the blockage of the Suez Canal by a massive container ship. Weighing 200,000 metric tons, dislodging the ship is no easy problem to solve. But while it happened in 2021, the roots of this problem date back to 1937, when a truck driver from North Carolina had a simple idea that would completely change the world. Malcolm Purcell McLean was born in 1913...

To outperform, you need serious competitive advantages. But contrary to what you have been told, most of them don't require talent. 10 competitive advantages that you can start developing today: 1. Intellectual Curiosity Intellectual curiosity is a real-world superpower. We all have it, but most will never embrace it. For the curious mind, anything is possible. Fortune favors the curious mind. 2....