This doesn’t portend an imminent decline in housing, and in fact, that is a tough scenario to imagine without an unforeseen increase in interest rates. Still, one can’t help but worry about rising systemic risks.
Marc Andreessen - Making the Future
Marc Andreessen provides a typically insightful interview in this podcast. The theme generally focuses on “where we go from here” – both from the lens of COVID and broader technological progress.
“We are getting better and better at doing more and more with less and less”
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Mental Razors
A quick read filled with some excellent mental models. We think there are a few gems worth taking in as either a reminder or a new concept.
If someone proposes a crazy idea, ask:
- Are they a domain expert?
- Do I know them to be reasonable?
If yes on (1) and (2), you should take the idea seriously, as it may be an asymmetric bet on the future.
Read or Listen to Mental Razors
Why is China smashing its tech industry?
We would be remiss not to include a piece on the current chaos unfolding in the Chinese capital markets (and American markets by virtue of ADRs). This has been a trend over the course of the year, with the entire for-profit education sector being the latest victim.
This thought piece focuses on the differing view of technology companies by the Communist party. If there is a belief that consumer-facing technology (think social media as the easy example) is actually counterproductive to society, why allow those businesses to accrue profit?
There will undoubtedly be opportunities that emerge in China over the coming weeks, but it is likely to be a bumpy ride.
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The Great Resignation
A brief summary of an issue we are following closely – what happens when many companies demand a return to the office this Fall?
We are big believers that flexible working arrangements will be table stakes in talent attraction/retention going forward, but there are also certain activities which are just more effective in person. Businesses will find their cadence over the course of the next year, but this Fall could be particularly messy given the current gap in expectations:
On average, human resources and C-suite leaders expect only 8% of their employees will choose to quit once COVID restrictions are fully lifted, according to the survey. A quarter believe no one will quit…
That stands in stark contrast to other employee surveys. On the high end, career website Monster found 95% of workers are currently considering changing jobs. Separately, Microsoft research found that 41% of the global workforce is weighing leaving their current employer this year.
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