#79 How Curious! Why the Dutch are Different, Cautionary Tales, & Perplexity.AI
Plus Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t, The City That Sold Itself To Wall Street, Runna, and much more!
Happy December, and welcome to the 79th issue of ‘How Curious!’✌️
Last month felt like a busy one. I had two trips to London for Legal Tech events, which covered GenerativeAI in the industry extensively. London visits always invigorate me. The city’s energy is hard to beat. One of the highlights was a surprise choir rehearsal in a pub, turning a casual drink and chat into a memorable evening of music when the entire pub broke into chorus for the evening. I soon discovered it was the London City Voice choir, who are well worth checking out if you’re in London!
Although I love London, it was nice to return to the relative chill of the Netherlands. We have a few weeks left before heading to Ireland for Christmas and returning to Gran Canaria for the rest of the winter.
💡 Quotes
You can be twice as rich by deciding you need half as much. - Sahil Lavingia
The imperfect project you actually complete is worth more than the perfect project you never finish. - James Clear
Good advice helps you find the solution to your problem. Great advice helps you find you were solving the wrong problem. - Merlin Mann
📚 Books
Why the Dutch are Different: A Journey into the Hidden Heart of the Netherlands
While in Haarlem, I’ve taken the opportunity to learn more about the Netherlands, including reading this great book! The author, a British expat who moved to the Netherlands, shares his experiences and observations, delving into various aspects of Dutch life. The book blends travel writing with cultural analysis, exploring Dutch culture, history, and society.
He discusses the country's unique landscape, political and social systems, attitudes towards work, leisure, and the environment, as well as its rich history and traditions. I particularly enjoyed learning about how they are shaped by the ongoing battle to keep the water out, why they apparently have the best carnival outside Brazil, and how the country is changing fast, with the Dutch now questioning many of the liberal policies which made their nation famous.
Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t
"Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t" by Steven Pressfield is a practical and straightforward guide for writers, emphasising the importance of engaging and valuable content. Pressfield combines lessons from his writing career across various genres, focusing on audience engagement, structure, and character development. The book is both a guide to effective writing and a motivational resource for writers seeking to improve their craft and create compelling work.
Nobody wants to read your shit. What’s the answer?
Streamline your message. Focus it and pare it down to its simplest, clearest, easiest-to-understand form.
Make its expression fun. Or sexy or interesting or scary or informative. Make it so compelling that a person would have to be crazy NOT to read it.
Apply that to all forms of writing or art or commerce.
...writing/reading is, above all, a transaction. The reader donates his time and attention, which are supremely valuable commodities. In return, you the writer must give him something worthy of his gift to you.
Check out my digital bookshelf for a ranked list of all books I’ve read.
🎙️ Podcasts
💸 Cautionary Tales - The City That Sold Itself To Wall Street
When Morgan Stanley offered to lease Chicago's parking meters for $1 billion, the City Council were convinced that they had struck gold. They hastily signed the deal. But they soon learned that they hadn't just traded away parking revenue - they had traded away the streets themselves...
🚀 Inside Colossus - Spilling the Secrets of Our Launch - [Making Media, EP.03]
"‘Making Media,’ brought to you by the creators of ‘Invest Like the Best,’ is a podcast delving into the nuances of building a media business. Each episode features conversations with top media professionals, detailing their journey in creating media and analysing their preferred business content.
This episode focuses on the inception of ‘Making Media,’ offering valuable insights for those contemplating starting their own podcast.
I've been adding audio to my 'Legal Tech Trends' newsletter and am curious to understand the mechanics of producing consistent, high-quality audio.
🏆 Best of the web
🔎 Perplexity.AI - A better search engine
Perplexity.AI is a chatbot-style search engine that allows users to ask questions in natural language. It uses AI to gather information from multiple sources on the web and provides responses.
Large language models (LLMs) like those powering ChatGPT can make things up, so by themselves, they are not suitable substitutes for traditional search engines like Google. But when LLMs are paired with external sources, they can be powerful. I’m increasingly using Perplexity.AI as my go-to search engine rather than Google.
🏃 Runna | Personalised training plans for running
Since returning to Northern Europe, I've shifted my focus from water sports to running. Last year, the Runna app was an excellent tool for preparing for the Copenhagen half marathon. Now, even though I'm not gearing up for a specific race but aiming for a quicker 5km, I've started using the app again.
I'm hugely impressed with the new features they've added. Kudos to my friend Walter, who is the company's CTO. My recommendation, however, isn't based on this connection; the app is genuinely outstanding. For anyone seeking to establish a regular running routine and improve their times, it's a no-brainer to give it a try!
📺 The Playlist | Netlix series
Awesome Netflix series exploring how Swedish tech entrepreneur Daniel Ek and business partner Martin Lorentzon revolutionised the music industry through free and legal music streaming when they launched Spotify.
If you enjoyed this edition, forward this email to a friend who would enjoy it too! ✌️
- Peter Duffy c