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Stew Fortier

Feb 28 • 8 tweets • 4 min read

Six non-fiction books that have blown my mind:

@nhannahjones

1619 Project (@nhannahjones)

Summary: The legacy of slavery is central to understanding America today; it's not an inconvenient footnote.

My takeaway: Black Americans have played *the* central role in bringing America closer to its proclaimed ideals.

goodreads.com/work/quotes/90…

@SamHarrisOrg

The End of Faith (@SamHarrisOrg)

Summary: Belief drives behavior.

My takeaways: No beliefs should be above questioning. Religions make bizarre truth claims; question them.

goodreads.com/work/quotes/23…

@bethanymac12

Smartest Guys in the Room (@bethanymac12)

Summary: Enron was once a revolutionary company – its demise was gradual, then sudden.

My takeaway: Morality is rarely black and white. Moral dilemmas often boil slowly. Incentives matter, deeply.

goodreads.com/work/quotes/16…

@priyaparker

The Art of Gathering (@priyaparker)

Summary: Birthday parties, conferences, religious rituals – all gatherings share common attributes that can be understood and thoughtfully engineered.

My takeaways:

https://twitter.com/stewfortier/status/1442250322697613313

Goodreads Quotes: goodreads.com/work/quotes/58…

@DavidDeutschOxf

The Beginning of Infinity (@DavidDeutschOxf)

Summary: All progress has resulted from the quest for good explanations.

My takeaway: Knowledge has explanatory power. Anything not forbidden by natural laws is achievable, given the right knowledge.

goodreads.com/work/quotes/15…

@bhorowitz

Hard Thing About Hard Things (@bhorowitz)

Summary: Starting a company is easy! Running one is brutally hard.

Takeaway: Great companies are built on daily hard decisions. Courage is rarer than intellect, and it's key to building anything worthwhile.

goodreads.com/work/quotes/25…

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“Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout with some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.”

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– Toni Morrison

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@every

Over the past two years, I've subscribed to 100+ newsletters.

I'm going to start sharing the best of them here.

First up is a long-time favorite: @every.

A mini-thread with a few pieces I love:

@itsearmstrong

"You probably shouldn't work at a startup" –@itsearmstrong

I am a fanboy of @itsearmstrong's hot takes, especially the ones I disagree with.

This was a humbling, funny one.

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@nbashaw

"Why I love working at startups" –@nbashaw

Every is a writer collective, which means there's no single perspective on a topic.

I.e. @nbashaw can debate @itsearmstrong and defend us startup people ;)

Cognitive dissonance levels: 7/10

Fun levels: 10/10

every.to/divinations/wh…

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I've now asked 30+ successful newsletter writers how they got their first 1,000 subscribers.

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First, the high-level lessons:

1. You have to write good stuff for people to subscribe & stick around.

2. Most growth tactics are simple, not easy.

3. It's easier to succeed with a clear niche, but you can succeed without one.

4. Different wins – make your writing distinct!

Now, the tactics.

Here's what most people did to go from zero subscribers to 1,000+...

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Jan 19

Last year, I met the guy who discovered and advised Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, and just about every other famous comedian.

He utterly blew my mind with how he guided them early on in their careers to find their “signature move.”

Here’s everything he shared 👇

First, the backstory:

In the ‘80s, every comedy club in NYC treated comedians horribly.

They barely paid them. They made them order food off a separate, cheaper menu. They’d let in drunk hecklers to every show.

One of these underpaid, exhausted comics was Bill Grundfest.

Bill thought the whole thing was corrupt.

These clubs were building their businesses off the backs of these comedians.

He decided he’d start a new comedy club that treated comics with respect.

There was just one obvious problem: he was completely broke.

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I find it hard to believe 9 out of every 10 startups fail.

That stat is either a relic of a bygone era, or it includes every LLC somebody spins up on a whim and shuts down.

Here’s some non-exhaustive data on why failure rates are likely lower:

None of these are a smoking gun on their own. I think they mostly point to an overall ecosystem that's less risky than we're led to believe.

First, here's the 🐐 himself on venture returns:

"50% of the companies make money, 50% of the companies lose money."

(he's admittedly highlighting the returns for top firms)