The Ten Best Things I Read in 2018 + My New Year’s Resolution
2018 has been an interesting year. In particular, it has been defined by two main elements: it’s the year I started living a bit healthier. I discovered a love of hiking and began exercising more; I am also cooking more frequently, eating cleaner, and drinking less. It is also a year during which my intellectual curiosity was re-ignited in a big way. I believe I can thank being back in an academic setting — I am getting my MBA at Yale SOM— for this.
As a result of 2018 being defined by this new health kick and a renewed energy for learning, some of the typical go-to New Year’s resolutions are out the window. It would be pretty disingenuous to resolve to get in shape or read more. So instead, my New Year’s resolution is to channel this intellectual curiosity and love of learning in a new way: by writing more frequently. I want to write more about what I am learning in business school, the books and articles I am reading, and my thoughts on some of my areas of interest: how consumer product companies and consumer technologies grow, what makes entrepreneurs tick, and how to think through career transitions.
I asked [Dr. Nishtar] what her main piece of advice would be for someone like me who wants to leave a mark on the world. And you know what she said? Write.
I do not know how often I will write, but I do want to make it a habit to put my thoughts down on paper (or, in this case, the internet) more frequently. At minimum once a month. I have said I would do this before, but I think what has held me back is a fear that what I write may not be perfect. “I am not an expert at anything,” I would say to myself. “Why should anyone care what I have to say?” I still have those thoughts, but what I realize now is that through reading, reflecting, and then synthesizing my ideas into written form, I can become much more knowledgeable about a wide range of topics that interest me and have something credible to contribute to the conversation. I still am not sure anyone will care what I have to say, but that no longer bothers me.
Many of the people I most respect and admire are diligent about writing frequently, whether via a blog, Twitter, or some other platform. People like Fred Wilson, Ryan Caldbeck, Andrew Chen, Brian Balfour, and Scott Galloway. Not every post is perfect. Not every post leaves the reader with some great epiphany. Not every post is even about their particular area of interest or expertise. But it is clear to me they have grown as people, as thinkers, and as practitioners as a result of their writing. I am not sure I’ll ever join that illustrious group of thought and business leaders, but practicing a little bit of what they preach can’t be a bad thing, right?
Early in my career, I met an incredible woman named Dr. Sania Nishtar. She is a Pakistani cardiologist whom I initially came into contact with because she was receiving an award from The Rockefeller Foundation, a client of mine at my first job. She is an unbelievably accomplished physician and public health leader who was recently a finalist to be Director-General of the WHO. She and I stayed in touch for a couple of years following our initial introduction and on one of her visits to New York City I sat down with her for coffee and asked her for advice. I asked her what her main piece of advice would be for someone like me who wants to leave a mark on the world. And you know what she said? Write.
So without further ado, I am going to kick things off by looking back at what I’ve read in 2018 and share what I think are the ten best books, articles and blog posts (in no particular order). If you have thoughts on any of these, please reach out and let me know. I would love to discuss them!
Books
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou — Yes, I know this book is on almost every “Best Of” book list, but it’s on those lists for a reason; it is a total page-turner that I could not put down. The book recounts the story of Theranos — the highly-acclaimed, venture-backed blood-testing startup that many thought would change the world — and the rise and fall of its founder, Elizabeth Holmes.
The most unbelievable aspect of the story in my view is just how many incredibly smart and successful people were essentially conned into believing that Theranos and its revolutionary technology was real. Folks like Gen. James Mattis, former Secretary of State George Schultz, David Boies, Rupert Murdoch, and the Walton Family. The rise of Theranos is an extreme illustration of how powerful storytelling can be when it is done right. These were savvy people who were drawn in by what was essentially nothing more than a tale about the future of healthcare. It was a story Elizabeth Holmes thought she could speak into reality, but unfortunately for her, her investors, and the healthcare world, it all came crashing down.
Black Edge: Inside Information, Dirty Money, and the Quest to Bring Down the Most Wanted Man on Wall Street by Sheelah Kolhatkar — This is another page-turner about a business gone astray. I guess I have a type. In this case, the company in question is SAC Capital, the hedge fund started by Steven Cohen. Cohen was known as one of the greatest traders who ever lived before the firm was ultimately brought down due to an insider trading scheme. This book does an excellent job of documenting how SAC’s insider trading transpired and is a great reminder of how tempting it can be to cut corners in order to make a quick buck, and why it is important to resist that temptation.
Brotopia: Breaking Up the Boys’ Club of Silicon Valley by Emily Chang — With Brotopia, Emily Chang really opened my eyes to how difficult of an environment Silicon Valley — and tech in general — is for women. The book starts with a recounting of how a photo of a Playboy model became the test image for the creation of the JPEG — not exactly a welcoming product development process to be part of if you’re a woman — and then proceeds to discuss a number of other reasons why women have been mostly left out of the success and wealth-creation story that is Silicon Valley. It ends on a hopeful note, proposing a number of recommendations for how to make it a more welcoming and inclusive place where women can excel. I know I will take the lessons of this book with me wherever I go in my career.
Articles / Blog Posts:
This San Francisco Investor Wants to Revolutionize Private Equity. Is He Crazy? (Christine Idzelis, Institutional Investor, Dec 2018) — Ryan Caldbeck is my absolute favorite person to follow on Twitter. His commentary on venture capital investing and the consumer goods industry is always insightful and thought-provoking. For the last six years, Ryan has been hard at work building CircleUp, a new kind of venture capital firm looking to apply the tactics of traditional quant hedge funds to private markets, starting with early-stage CPG companies. The article offers a fascinating look into how Ryan sees the VC world evolving over the next decade and why he is placing his bets on consumer product companies, which traditionally have lower returns for investors than more traditional investment opportunities like early-stage SaaS startups.
A Restaurant Takes On the Opioid Crisis, One Worker at a Time (Priya Krishna, New York Times; July 10, 2018) — This article tells the incredible story of how a Kentucky couple decided to open a restaurant dedicated to helping its employees recover from opioid drug addiction. In order to help turn people’s lives around, they hire their employees directly out of treatment centers, pay more than the average fast food joint, have a zero-tolerance policy for lateness and absence, limit the amount of cash exchanging hands, and teach cooking skills that are easily transferable to other settings. The model is an interesting example of how business can be a force for good, and I am hopeful it is an approach that can be adopted in other areas around the country.
How an Aspiring ‘It’ Girl Tricked New York’s Party People — and Its Banks (Jessica Pressler, New York Magazine; May 28, 2018) — This piece was absolutely wild. It tells the story of Anna Delvey, who was a high-flying Manhattan socialite…until, all of a sudden, she wasn’t. Why? Because it was all one big lie. Her name is actually Anna Sorokin and she is now at Rikers Island awaiting trial for grand larceny. Shonda Rhimes is set to write the on-screen version of this story for Netflix, but I highly recommend reading this insane piece before the trailer hits the internet.
Driven to Despair (Jessica Bruder, New York Magazine; May 15, 2018) — Technological advancement is an incredible thing; it has the potential to make people’s lives easier, it enables communities to connect in new ways, and it can create completely new job functions that did not exist before. That said, technological advancement can also have very real human consequences for the people whose livelihoods are being upended. This article tells the story of Doug Schifter, a black car driver in New York City who ultimately took his own life in front of New York’s City Hall, largely due to the personal financial pressures he faced as a result of all of the ride-hailing apps that entered the New York market. This piece will make you think twice before opening a ride-hailing app.
The Gambler Who Cracked the Horse-Racing Code (Kit Chellel, Bloomberg Businessweek; May 3, 2018) — Maybe I’m weird, but I love going to the horse track. Sure, it can be a bit seedy. But it’s nice to be outside, the horses are beautiful, and hey, you can even win a little money. I won $50 once after I nailed an exacta bet. But the money I won does not come close to how much Bill Benter has taken home from bets placed on horse races around the world. He developed an algorithm that enabled him to win close to one billion dollars, and he inspired many others to follow his blueprint for success along the way. If you geek out at Nate Silver, or you loved Moneyball, you’ll really enjoy this read.
Everyone Is Going Through Something (Kevin Love, The Players’ Tribune; March 6, 2018) — Mental illness is one of the biggest issues of our time, but shockingly, despite their prevalence, mental health disorders are still stigmatized. Reading this piece by Kevin Love, however, in which he writes openly and honestly about his struggles with mental health, makes me hopeful that we might finally be turning a corner as a society.
Stockade FC in 2017 — The “Open Source Soccer” Approach to Creating a Killer Second Season (Dennis Crowley, Medium; May 19, 2017) — Okay, so this piece was written in 2017, but I read it this year, so I am including it on this list. Dennis Crowley is the Founder of Foursquare and is now its Executive Chairman. He is a soccer fanatic and decided to start a semi-professional soccer club in Kingston, a town in New York’s Hudson Valley. And he is documenting every last detail about the team and its finances for the entire world to see. In this piece — which is one of a handful he has written about the team, Stockade FC — he breaks down his expenses, his revenues, how he is attempting to cut costs, where he can improve operations, etc. It is a fascinating look into starting and growing a business, and if you like sports, it will definitely make you dream about one day doing this yourself. After all, as you’ll see from what Dennis has written, the financial bar you need to clear to start a semi-pro team is surprisingly low.
All right, that’s it. Sorry this post was a bit long, but it was good to just get writing again. I promise my other posts won’t be as long as this one!
