Book - Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

This is a very popular and enjoyable book which looks at how humans got to where we are today. It examines our society and our behaviour as a society. It is almost human civilisation summarised into one book. Experts are critical of the book, saying it doesn't actually bring much that is new, and challenging some of the claims in it. I find it accessible and educational. I gained many insights from it. I wouldn't have survived reading equivalent textbooks.

A big part of leadership is understanding human behaviour, not just individual behaviours, but also how we behave as a society and in complex organisations. When we learn to understand people, we get better at leading people.

The Liking Gap

 

At work or in groups, we tend to underestimate how much others like us. People tend to believe that they like their partners more than their partners like them. This can result in less confidence, feeling less included, and being shy to ask for help. Leaders must consciously encourage communication, embrace vulnerability and create psychological safety for their teams. 

- The Liking Gap in Groups and Teams by Adam Mastroianni et al, 2021

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Link: why social media may not be the problem

https://markmanson.net/social-media-isnt-the-problem

Recent thinking on the human brain

“Once you realize how education systems are set up not just to nurture but also to cull,” Sarma and Yoquinto write, “you begin to see it everywhere. We winnow in how we test, and we winnow in how we teach.”

https://hbr.org/2020/11/unartificial-intelligence

social media echo chamber

The social media echo chamber is not as bad as we think.

Echo chamber definition: When you only interact with like-minded people on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp etc, both the platforms and you yourself filter what information reaches you, and you become exposed to only views similar to yours. You lose an objective view of reality and become biased due to this limited and distorted exposure. This article suggests that online disharmony is not caused so much by limited exposure, but by how people react to what they are exposed to. So, not that there is no problem, just that the causes may be different from what we thought. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20180416-the-myth-of-the-online-echo-chamber

Monopoly platforms

Monopoly and near-monopoly platforms like Facebook, Amazon, Google and Apple are scarier than governments. Do you agree? 

If your business is dependent on them (and so many businesses are) it is sometimes their algorithm, or on overworked customer service agent, who decides whether to suspend your ad, disapprove your app or suspend your account. 

Link: 6 reasons smaller companies want to break up Big Tech

How CEO's spend time

CEO's spend 72% of their work time on meetings, having 37 meetings per week (Harvard Business School study, 2018). 

Takeaway 1: You if hate meetings, you can't become CEO. 🙂 

Takeaway 2: On a more serious note, meeting, engaging, negotiating with, discussing with, communicating to and motivating people are important roles CEO's must play.

What % of your time do you spend on meetings?