Modest Operations | Newsletter Volume 1

This email newsletter is a bit of an experiment, but I hope you'll follow along with me. The basic gist is that I'll be sending a list of my favorite things across the web on a (somewhat) weekly basis. I've been doing something similar with my personal blog for the last few years, and am taking it to a new medium (and new name).

I've personally been a fan of email newsletters as a medium for awhile, and I'd be remiss if I didn't mention a few of the great creators, designers, writers, friends, and colleagues I've drawn on for inspiration. Some of my favorites include - Just Another Crowd, Dense Discovery, Hurry Slowly, Startup Resources, Royal Braun, For The Interested, Stay Hipp, and READ.LOOK.THINK.

Finally, you can check the footer of this email for links to the various Modest Operations social platforms. I think that most of the content will be similar across each, so don't feel like you need to go crazy and follow everything.

Without further ado, here are some of the things I've been reading and thinking about lately...  

This Week's Links A list of things I've been reading & thinking about.* “Writing is frightening, and so is life, with its multitude of surprises and disappointments and, too, its overwhelming pleasures. I am a sensitive person, and so I don’t remember a time when, as a defense against life — its terrors and its rich abundance — I did not crave the comfort of smallness.” - Finding Comfort in Small Spaces (Jessica Gross For Longreads) * “Systems aren’t exciting, but they are essential. Create efficient processes and automate as many steps as possible.” - How to Do. One. Thing. At. A. Time (Aytekin Tank for the Jotform Blog) * “I have taught an introduction to organizational behavior class for more than 30 years...For years, the last day felt awkward and forced as I struggled to look back on what the class had learned, provide some closure, and end on an upbeat note. About 15 years ago, I experimented with an ending ritual: I passed out a list of 12 things that I believe, made a brief comment about each one, and thanked the class for their efforts and for putting up with my quirks and imperfections. The list contained many opinions that were related to the class. But they also drew on other work I hadn’t mentioned in class and my general perspective on life” - 14 Things I Believe: Updated for 2018 (Bob Sutton for Medium)