Mixed Signals: Three years ago today

No. 9 – 31st of May, 2020

Three years ago today, my foster kids came to live with me.

What we're experiencing now feels like calm normality in comparison to where we were three years ago.

I wrote something to mark the occassion. It's a tough one. It's the day my life changed for the better. It's the day they left everything they knew behind.

A party has never seemed like the right response. Even less so now.

We'll do something to remember the date. To think about what the next three years will bring, and share our memories of the last three years.

As a society, we'll need more foster carers now.

There is a perfect storm coming our way. Please share my story and send people my way. I'll be honest about it how tough it is, and clear on how much it will radically change your life for the better.

On with the links...

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👨‍💻 I have been reading...

+ Twitter has finally taken a stand against Trump for spreading false information, and glorifying violence. They also took a stand against racism.
+ Meanwhile, Facebook does nothing.
+ How nudge theory could help ease us out of lockdown.
+ How interiors impact our behaviour?
+ Your twice as likely to die earlier if you grow up in the UK care system, and we should all be ashamed of this.
+ David Perell had a great thread on Twitter (which is also here as a blog post) on his business model and how his 'personal media engine' works.
+ David's thinking above is partly based on the flywheel concept (which I'm currently slightly obsessed with) and also Disney's Synergy Map from 1957.
+ It's interesting to note that the Disney article above was written before Disney Plus existed. Recently, the company very nearly hit their 5-year subscriber target in less than 6 months.
+ As a note-taking fanboy, I was pleased to see how taking notes by hand is often better for you than using a laptop.
+ And also... want a new challenge? Retrain as a swan.

📺 I have been watching...

+ Steve Martin falling in love with a talking brain in The Man with Two Brains (comedy is escapism for me).
+ This week I got a new MacBook, and lockdown is also encouraging me to rethink my productivity processes, and so this video from Junior Doctor/YouTuber Ali Abdaal was helpful.

🎧 I have been listening to...

+ Alexandra Carter on Trend Following Radio talking about negotiation, and how it's a skill that can be useful in more ways than you may think.

📚 Books...

+ A Velocity of Being arrived this week. It is a work of art. Maria Popova (creator of the fantastic Brain Pickings) has produced a collection of illustrated letters to children on why we read.

🧸 I've been playing with...

+ The typing tool that plays jazz as you type. We've all been waiting for this.

📝 From my blog...

+ This weekend, it’s three years since my kids came to live with me.

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Thanks for reading. Have a great week. 👋

Gareth @garethkthomas