Weekly Mix #227 - The small steps that are required to make progress

Building Friendships, Small Steps, Psilocybin, Vacation Homes & Microchips

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Happy Monday!

One of the sections in one of David Perell's recent newsletters was titled "Have a Consistent Thing."

The gist was: for friends or groups of friends you want to build a deeper relationship with, build a consistent habit.

I have two weekly "things" like this: a Thursday evening virtual bike ride with my brother and some friends, and the Friday evening drinks we have at work.

The bike ride is about an hour, and we get in a group call and chat while we ride.

The Friday drinks are informal; they start around 5, sometimes they go late, sometimes we go out to eat, and the group of people changes frequently.

They both have a few things in common:

A large enough group that there are always enough participants that you can opt in or out

A planned time and place

A core group of people that can be relied upon to participate

In both cases, I see close friends and newer, or more distant, friends alike; the invitation is open, so people bring other friends who become part of the group.

This kind of social interaction is one that's suffered a lot during COVID.

Of course, I don't want all my nights to be scheduled events; but a couple per week is great.

In both cases, my friendships are much stronger for it.

Have a great week.

Graham

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Links

📖 The Small Steps of Giant Leaps - Farnam Street - If you read one article this week, make it this one. Short, direct, timeless advice.

"The ordinary choices that guarantee a strong future go unnoticed. There is no pat on the back for doing the right thing just as there is no slap on the wrist for doing the wrong thing.

Eating a chocolate bar right now won’t make you unhealthy. Just as not eating it won’t make you healthy. Saving money today won’t make you rich, just as not saving it won’t make you poor. Reading a chapter of a great book today won’t solve your problems just as not reading it won’t make them worse."

📖 Healing Magic - Léa Beauchesne, Beside - I first found Beside via their beautiful cabins and their project to bring humans closer to nature here in Quebec.

This particular piece is about Sam, someone searching for a solution to his depression, and the barriers to one of the most promising treatments: psilocybin. It also takes a look at some of the research work being done here in Canada.

If you're interested in the subject, I always recommend How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan.

📖 For These Millenial Homeowners, the Vacation House Is the New Starter Home - Aly Yale, Money - I'm always intrigued when I hear about ideas I myself have considered. I live in a city most of the time, but don't really want to buy here; I would, however, like to buy a cottage/country spot where I could occasionally stay, and earn rental income when I'm not there. Apparently lots of others share the desire.

📖 This 22-Year-Old Builds Chips in His Parents' Garage - Tom Simonite, Wired - I love stories like this because it's a reminder that most invention is the result of tinkering, and many of the things that seem complicated or impossible just require time to understand.

"I wanted to make a statement that we should be more careful when we hear that something’s impossible."

🍿 Reacher on Amazon Prime - I'm a fan of the Jack Reacher book series; I watched the first season of the TV adaptation on Amazon Prime, and thought it was well done. The characters and adherence to the books are better than the Tom Cruise movie versions.

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