Weekly Distillation: No. 6
Chasing Bigger Goals; Jobs market; Immunity Passports; Giving Stuff up; Data Theft; A New Civil War?; Al Qaeda; #BlackLivesMatter; Gin
Photo by Koshu Kunii on Unsplash
This newsletter is written for entrepreneurial and organisational leaders and provides insights into the themes and questions that shape the context that they operate in.
“Then came the Zong massacre of 1781. One hundred thirty-two African slaves were thrown overboard by the crew of the English slave ship Zong in hopes of collecting the funds from the insurance policy that had been taken out on the human cargo. The ensuing legal case was decided based on issues of property, profit, and loss—not humanity or morality. The killing of slaves was ruled to be permissible and the insurers liable for payment for loss. That ruling, issued in 1783, birthed the movement against the slave trade that had been slowly germinating.” Karen Swallow Prior’s “Fierce Convictions” on the abolitionist Hannah More #blacklivesmatter
“Not a law firm in the entire city of New York bid for my employment as a lawyer when I earned my degree.” Ruth Bader Ginsburg
”AI is going to be extremely beneficial, and already is, to the field of cybersecurity. It's also going to be beneficial to criminals.” Dmitri Alperovitch
“The Roman Empire was very, very much like us. They lost their moral core, their sense of values in terms of who they were. And after all of those things converged together, they just went right down the tubes very quickly.” Ben Carson
Skim it in a minute
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US job numbers this week were encouraging, with 2.5m people into work in the week but in the UK with over 25% of the UK workforce now being supported by the Government Furlough Scheme (costing £20bn so far), it’s hard to believe that greater job pain is not around the corner for many. Some harsh truths on what the recession means for the job market and why now might not be the best time to quit your job. On the other hand, content creation might be a growth area of employment opportunities (I’d affirm this, as well as digital marketing - two critical skills where there is growing demand). If you can hire, you are about to be able to choose from a massive pool of highly qualified candidates.
Looking for some simple tips on how to navigate home working? [If you have had enough of it I refer you to the bottom section of the newsletter where you may find a drink recommendation]
Photo by Mohamed Ajufaan on Unsplash
How do you feel about an immunity passport, if that is what it takes you to be allowed to have a holiday overseas? Acceptable? But how do you feel about the use of that data and where it is held? Data can be an asset and also a liability to an organisation. Cyber crime remains real, with $1.4bn of crypto assets been stolen in just five months of 2020. How on top of your data security are you?
“In the first five months of 2020, crypto thefts, hacks, and frauds totaled $1.36 billion. The largest contributor to this high number is a billion-dollar Ponzi scheme by Wotoken in China. The scam promised investors unrealistic returns using non-existent algorithmic trading software. Ultimately, one Wotoken operator (with ties to the infamous PlusToken Ponzi scheme) stole an estimated $1 billion in crypto from over 715,000 victims.”
Photo by Thomas Charters on Unsplash
I continue to believe that those that ‘win’ out of the lockdown are those that have taken the time to stop, reflect AND choose to make meaningful change - whether at an organisational, vocational or recreational or relational level.
You might be reflecting on what giving up alcohol could do for you, choosing to talk instead of drive or not even buying as many toys for your children.
The Pareto principle is incredibly useful when you are focused on what to quit as this author recaps his own experience of it.
I love the way this author below just has an approach of quitting one thing every week - a good discipline to remove the noise and keep the focus. I have a quit list currently and I’m regularly adding to it - I’m enthused about what comes from the other side of those choices being implemented. Why not try it individually and as an organisation?
My writing this week
This week I wrote about why you need to go after bigger goals, face your own fear of loss and a few practical tips to help you make those changes. Pushing out your boundaries regularly is a better way to live.
A long read for the weekend
Photo by munshots on Unsplash
“If and when Americans decide that they cannot occupy the same country as their political adversaries, the stage is set for a turn much darker than anything the nation has experienced so far.”
This is a shorter long read than usual, and comes from back in 2017 but is prescient for 2020. Is there a rising threat of civil war in the US? (And as an aside - Al Qaeda is back in the news)
The other weekly distillation
“the action of purifying a liquid by a process of heating and cooling.”
A light and quick look at Spirits that have caught my eye or tongue.
This week’s recommendation is from my good friend Fiona - a freelance actor, writer and director. I love the bottle and the narrative below - [note to self: add to must buy list].
“In recent days I’ve allowed my imagination to wander to the wilderness on numerous occasions, mostly to remote Hebridean islands. Last September I spent a day on Jura with its one road, its uninhabited stretches of moorland and its prescient literary heritage. There I encountered Lussa Gin for the first time, purchased from the community shop on the recommendation of the barmaid in the hotel who told me that she drinks it neat. Island life, I thought, with an urban eyeroll. In fact, this zesty, aromatic spirit, distilled 25 miles up the one road from the ferry from locally sourced botanicals, is so smooth that it’s crossed my mind to go native and drink it straight. I’m only held back by my desire to make the experience last, so I top it with tonic, add ice and a slice of lemon, raise a toast to Alicia, Claire and Georgina, the three entrepreneurial women who make it, and let every sip transport me to the wilderness.”