Weekly Mix #176 - Radical Candor, Meta-Skills, Boosting Happiness & High-Quality Inputs

Weekly Mix #176 - Radical Candor, Meta-Skills, Boosting Happiness & High-Quality Inputs

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Happy Monday!

This week flew by, mostly due to a busy week at work for me.

I published some short essays that I was happy with, including one about giving good feedback, another about how to take feedback well, and when you should say yes or no.

If you'd like to build a daily writing habit, the next Ship 30 for 30 cohort starts in a week. You can get $20 off with this link.​

Also a reminder that if you'd like to get the free email course about mastering Twitter, you can sign up here. The first emails will go out soon.

In this week’s newsletter:

Book Notes: Radical Candor by Kim Scott​

Book I'm Reading: Ultralearning by Scott Young​

Article: The Feynman Technique: The Best Way to Learn Anything​

Article: 100+ Hacks for Boosting Your Happiness Chemicals​

Article: Cultivating High-Quality Inputs for High-Quality Outputs​

Article: Mental Models I Find Repeatedly Useful​

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Have a wonderful week!

Graham

Book Notes: Radical Candor by Kim Scott​

Radical Candor is about giving better feedback.

The book is written for managers giving feedback to those around them, but the principles can be applied to all our relationships, work or personal.

Book I'm Reading: Ultralearning by Scott Young​

One of my aims this year is to spend more time on "meta-skills"—skills that help in multiple other areas.

Learning is one of those, and Ultralearning has been full of lessons so far.

The biggest takeaway so far: learn in a context where you are forced to apply things immediately. If you want to learn a language, start speaking immediately and don't give yourself another choice.

Article: The Feynman Technique: The Best Way to Learn Anything - Farnam Street​

The Feynman technique is another method of learning I'm revisiting.

Specifically: how can I force myself to teach the concepts I'm learning? Writing is one way. I'm trying to figure out others.

Article: 100+ Hacks for Boosting Your Happiness Chemicals - Steven Handel​

Long lists like this one are great to save for later, when you need a little inspiration.

This one is full of ideas to boost your happiness, from striking a power pose to cradling a baby.

Article: Cultivating High-Quality Inputs for High-Quality Outputs - Nat Eliason​

One of the overwhelming things in today's world is the sheer number of sources of information. They can cause anxiety, give us conflicting advice, and be a drain instead of a boost.

Nat explores why and how to cultivate better inputs.

Article: Mental Models I Find Repeatedly Useful - Gabriel Weinberg​

Being able to recall key mental models is another meta-skill that I want to get better at this year.

This is a long list of some of the most useful mental models. I'm currently reading Gabriel's book as well.

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​Animals interrupting wildlife photographers (guaranteed to improve your day)

​James Clear on excuses​

​A list of beautiful writing - Julian Shapiro​

​A new framework for writing - Ellen Fishbein​

​My thread on the Mike Maples Farnam Street podcast​

​Podcasts to check out​

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