I used to hate reading. Perhaps it was my adolescent distaste for the books teachers assigned. Or maybe it was the fact that I felt like I could never find time to read. For whatever reason, things changed a couple years ago.
Since the beginning of 2021, I’ve read or listened to nearly 50 books. In the Spring of 2021, I set an explicit goal to become a more consistent reader.
My natural inclination is to organize and visualize information to look for patterns and trends. Thus, I created a StoryGraph account in January 2022. I track all of my reading in StoryGraph and am a big fan of the tool.
Some stats that stood out to me:
Apparently, I really enjoy informative and reflective non-fiction books that are medium-paced.
One capability that I wish StoryGraph had is a visualization of fiction vs nonfiction over a period of time, as opposed to as of a point in time. I’ve been reading more fiction recently and will probably end up closer to 50/50 for this year.
My Favorite & Least Favorite Books
Favorite
Shoe Dog by Phil Knight. My favorite book of all time. Sneakers, sport, failure, redemption, and unparalleled success—it’s all there.
The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel. The best personal/behavioral finance book I’ve ever read, and it’s not particularly close. Stop whatever you’re doing and order this if you haven’t already.
Atomic Habits by James Clear. I find the majority of self-help books to be basura, but this one is legitimately life-changing. A surprisingly enjoyable read, too.
Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby. A crime novel set in Appalachia and the American South, this was a page turner from start to finish. Nonstop action and an emotional rollercoaster. Highly recommend.
Liar’s Poker by Michael Lewis. Probably not a huge surprise that work from the best finance writer of our time made the list. I can’t wait for his book about fallen crypto king Sam Bankman-Fried and his FTX empire.
Least Favorite
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman. This book seems to be on every successful and important person’s recommendation list, and I really wanted to like it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s packed with great research on heuristics, biases, and how the human brain works. My main issue was that the book felt repetitive and unnecessarily long.
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. Man, I strongly disliked this one. I think I made it like 30 pages deep before giving up. Something about the writing style and character dialogue just didn’t sit right with me.
How to Be a Better Reader
I’ve found the following tricks to have the greatest positive impact on my reading experience (in order of importance):
Make a reading plan. “I want to read more” is too vague of a goal. Instead, build the action of reading into your daily routine.
Crafting your environment in a way that’s conducive to accomplishing your goals is one of the biggest takeaways from Atomic Habits. I keep a stack of books on the nightstand next to my bed and read for 15+ minutes upon waking and before falling asleep.
Choose the right books—“books” with an s is very intentional here. I used to think reading multiple books simultaneously was a horrible idea. In reality, it’s an excellent method to reduce the risk of burnout and boredom.
Sometimes I’ll fly through a book in a week. Other times, I’ll go weeks or months before re-opening one I already started. Unless you try different genres and authors, you’ll never know what you like best.
Explore different formats. In order of preference, I prefer physical books, Kindle editions, then Audible. It’s always nice to read a physical copy after spending hours staring at a screen for work.
Personally, I almost always buy used copies (thank you, Mr. Bezos and team). The important point is to figure out what works best for you. Some people retain information better through audiobooks than reading, and that’s perfectly fine.
What I’m watching, reading, & listening to
Low Country: The Murdaugh Dynasty (HBO Max) — this 3-part series is nuts. The producers did a great job exposing the links between crime, privilege, and power
China’s EV battle 2022: why BYD is leaving Tesla and Xpeng in the dust (TechNode) — China’s EV space is an area I have limited knowledge on, so this was an insightful read. Fun fact: Berkshire Hathaway has a ~12% stake in BYD
"I have never helped do anything at Berkshire that was as good as BYD and I only did it once," the 99-year-old Munger said today. Berkshire's initial $230k BYD investment is now "worth about $8 billion or 9 billion. That's a pretty good rate of return."Note that Munger misspoke—it was $230 million, not $230k. Still good for an almost 40x return!
The New Gatekeepers (Ben Evans) — Every year, Ben produces a deck exploring macro and strategic trends in the tech industry. This slide really stuck out to me. Barring major anti-trust regulation, I don’t see Big Tech losing much share in the immediate future.
ChatGPT Has Investors Drooling—but Can It Bring Home the Bacon? (Wired). AI, large language models (LLMs), and ChatGPT have been topics du jour on tech/VC Twitter for the last few months. I’ve spent some time playing around with ChatGPT, but it’s still too early to have any strong opinions on it’s implications on business and society more generally.
For those interested in learning more, Stephen Wolfram (yes, from Wolfram Alpha) published a long but excellent post explaining in simple terms how ChatGPT works.
The Luxury Designer Behind Uniqlo U Wants to Help You Chill Out (GQ) — Damn near half my closet is Uniqlo, but them Uniqlo U tees are something else. The quality at that price point is unmatched
How New Balance Reinvented Itself (Complex) — I’ve loved sneakers for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I was mostly a Nike/Jordan head but dabbled with the New Balance 574 back in middle school. It wasn’t until after I graduated from college that I really started adding NB to my collection.
The brand turnaround has been notable, especially as it relates to collaborations:
With a dedicated internal team in place, Grondin began to build his network of collaborators, a who’s who of modern street culture including names like Aimé Leon Dore, Joe Freshgoods, and Salehe Bembury. Lynn and Grondin note how every collaborator brings something different to the table.
Shane Battier - The No-Stats All-Star (Invest Like the Best) — Topics covered include: hoop, analytics, investing, and leadership. Shane is one of the best role players of all time and has a unique life story. It was cool to hear about his time at Duke, playing with Bron in Miami, and the lessons he learned along the way
Dejounte Murray on ALL THE SMOKE — Murray opens up about his trade to Atlanta, dust-up with rookie Paolo Banchero, and time with Coach Popovich and the Spurs. It’s always great to see a Seattle and University of Washington product (go Dawgs) doing well
What Happens Now to All the Laid Off Tech Workers? (Odd Lots) — Patrick McKenzie, the author of the Bits About Money newsletter, who previously worked at Stripe for six years, joins the crew to discuss current trends in tech employment