Weekly Mix #257 - You don't need to be creative to succeed

Execution vs. Innovation, Reversing Aging, Water Recycling & The White Lotus

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Happy Monday!

Lately, in the context of startups and business, I've been thinking a lot about innovation vs. execution.

Some companies must be a good at both: Apple, for example. They have to continue to come up with new products to bring to market, while also improving and shipping their existing ones.

Not all companies are like that. Some companies need to innovate much less: chain restaurants, for example. Their businesses are about execution.

This kind of contrast is interesting to think about at the personal level too. Do you need to innovate to make a change in your life? To come up with a new approach to your work? To come up with a new workout plan?

Or do you already have what you need, and you simply need to execute? To do the work you're assigned more efficiently, or to simply stick with your original plan?

Another way of framing it: are other people succeeding despite what they're doing?

Lots of people get fit with a poor workout plan.

They're simply more consistent.

Have a great week!

Graham

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Links

📖 How to Be 18 Years Old Again for Only $2 Million a Year - Bloomberg - A fascinating look into the life of tech centimillionaire Bryan Johnson, who is obsessed with reversing aging. While we don't all have $2M to spend on reversing aging, there are some good resources linked in this article to help you figure out how you might improve your own lifestyle.

📖 The Next Green Must-Have: Showers That Use Recycled Water - I've spent significant time learning about home construction and related technologies since I'm interested in designing and building my own home or cabin one day.

One of the home systems that is most interesting is water management. It's not often considered, either because there is no choice—like in a town with water and waste management—or because there are few options (like well + septic in most rural areas).

But that's changing some, as counties with limited water supplies need to find better solutions. Recirculating showers are one part of that equation.

​Rainstick is one of the companies I've been following.

🍿 The White Lotus - Season 2 - I watched both Season 1 and Season 2 of this series, and found the second season far more entertaining. The series itself explores the relationships between power, money, and sex, and is very well done.

I realized while watching that I often prefer limited series to recurring ones (Season 1 and Season 2 can be watched by themselves, and most of the characters don't appear in both).

Not only are they less of a commitment to watch, but I think the incentives are different; if one knows they don't have to continue the characters or the series, there's a lot more freedom in the storyline.

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