Hey Everyone,
The holidays are upon us, and I hope you’re all taking some time to relax and spend time with family, friends, and loved ones. I’ll be heading home for a few days to spend Christmas with my family and can’t wait for a bit of downtime. Given that many of us have less on our plates this week, I’m including a few longer and more in-depth pieces in the Deep Dives section that I’ve read over recent months. I hope you enjoy them; they’re some of my favorite reads of the year. With that, let’s dive into it.
Quick Bites
Electricity and the Climate Crisis: Moving to EVs: In the US alone, there are 3.25 trillion vehicle miles driven annually. That is a mind-blowing number. Currently, there are less than 2 million electric vehicles (EVs) on the road, which is less than 1% penetration. This quick post from Albert Wenger at USV gives a rough approximation of what it will take, in terms of electricity, to switch all passenger car traffic in the US to EVs. Hint: It’s a lot. (2 min)
Blackstone's Byron Wien Discusses Lessons Learned in His First 80 Years: Byron Wien’s list of 20 lessons he learned in his first 80 years is a piece that I return to and reread annually. It’s a timeless list of great advice that’s worth reading as you start to frame what you want your upcoming year to look like. (7 min)
SEC Proposes Allowing More Investors Access to Private Companies: This week, the SEC announced that it is revisiting its long-held definition of accredited investors. Currently, only a fraction of the population meets their criteria and has access to invest in private companies. The proposed changes would allow for broader access and would be a massive step forward in allowing access to private investments. (2 min)
Deeper Dives
What Really Happened to Malaysia's Missing Airplane: The story of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 is baffling and infuriating—how does a Boeing 777 with 227 people on board just vanish from the face of the earth? This fascinating article in The Atlantic peels back the various layers of the story—and what went wrong—in hopes of bringing some closure to this mystery. (45 min)
The Miseducation of the American Boy: Toxic masculinity has been a prevalent theme throughout 2019, and for good reason. This is an incredibly powerful—and sobering—exploration of masculinity and the forces that shape boys in America into men. I implore everyone to read this, you’ll be thankful you did after finishing it. (34 min)
Is Amazon Unstoppable?: This is an excellent profile on Amazon and Jeff Bezos, from The New Yorker and NY Times bestselling author, Charles Duhigg. This is one of the more in-depth pieces written about the company in recent years and will be a worthwhile read for anyone interested in Amazon or Jeff Bezos. If you enjoy it, I strongly recommend you couple it with this long-form piece in The Atlantic that was released shortly after the New Yorker article. (61 min)
Media
Runnin’ Down a Dream: How to Succeed and Thrive in a Career You Love: This is an inspiring lecture given to MBA students at the University of Texas in 2018 by world-renowned venture capitalist, Bill Gurley. Watch this when you have a bit of downtime over the holidays, you’ll be grateful you did. Slides to follow along can be found here.
Tweet of the Week
Song of the Week
Apple Music Link
Books
Currently Reading
Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life (William Finnegan)
Recently Read
Super Pumped: The Battle For Uber (Mike Isaac): This was a fascinating look into the comeuppance of Uber and the fall of its Founder, Travis Kalanick. I had high expectations for this book, and it didn’t disappoint. Anyone who has followed Uber’s history will thoroughly enjoy this. (4/5)
Iron Gold: Red Rising Series #4 (Pierce Brown): I finally got around to starting the next book in the Red Rising Series—after finishing the 3rd at the end of 2017—and I regret waiting so long. For those unfamiliar with the series, I highly recommend it to any Sci-Fi fans. It’s a more expansive and enthralling R-rated version of The Hunger Games. (5/5)
Parting Thoughts
This Week in History
On December 17th, 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first successful flight of a self-propelled aircraft in history. The flight lasted all of 12 seconds, yet set mankind on an whirlwind journey of pioneering aviation to where it is today. (source)
"I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self." - Aristotle
I hope to hear from some of you with your thoughts on this week’s content and look forward to any conversations that stem from that. If you found something interesting, don’t be shy in forwarding it along to a friend. Safe travels and Happy Holidays.
-Cody