Oversimplified: Volume 93
Startup studios, the modern data stack, and predictions from Pinterest
Hey there š
Hope everyone is ready for the holiday season! You know, I think thereās some good stuff on the menu today. Oversimplified is a weekly digest of the best links I stumble upon. If this is your first issue, welcome aboard.
User Advocacy and Referral Programs for Growth
Iāve been thinking a lot about user advocacy at startups over the last few months. This post primarily goes over two frameworks that Iāve found helpful for brainstorming new ideas and optimizing previous ones.
Why the Future of Startups are Studios
Startup studios arenāt a new concept, but they do seem to be getting more popular. As someone who plans on being a founder one day, my attention is piqued. At the same time, isnāt every pre-product-market fit startup doing essentially the same thing, validating and iterating on new ideas?
The Modern Data Stack: Past, Present, and Future
This article from Tristan Handy is a must-read for anyone in the data world. Trust me. If you are more into video, check out the talk version from Future Data 2020. I have so many thoughts on this. I might just have to write a response blog post to collect them.
Write Five, Then Synthesize
Love this post. In short: āWhen youāve rehashed the same discussion three or four times, itās time to write another strategy. When the futureās too hazy to identify investments worth making, itās time to write another vision. If neither of those sound like familiar problems ā move on to other work for now and return later.ā
Portals and Flags
I want to get better about opening up portals and planting fewer flags. While itās easier said than done, the upside seems fantastic. Just to start: āThe point of complex debates is not to prove your side right and the other wrong.ā
Pinterest Predicts 2021
This certainly wonāt be the last āpredictionā post you see shared from me ā I love this stuff. For what itās worth, Pinterest seems uniquely positioned to offer some valuable insights here. Some of these caught me by surprise.
Types of Self Care
This summary image of self-care approaches has been making its round. Next time Iām feeling off, Iāll try to remember to take a look at this. Definitely couldnāt hurt.
āBut how easy it is to love people when you understand this. How easy it is to love everyone when you donāt identify with what they imagine you are or they are. It becomes easy to love them, to love everybody.ā ā Anthony de Mello
Thanks for reading Oversimplified this week! Did anything stand out? Iād love to hear about it. Reply to this email orĀ tweet at meĀ and letās chat š
Until next time,
Conor