Tuesday, August 6, 2019
The War on K-cups
K-cups. You know, those single serving coffee cups. And that machine that buzzes and dribbles a single coffee into your mug. The coffee sucks. The cups are wasteful. Everyone loves it.
Seth Godin, Jesus, Nelson Mandela and Walter White walk into a bar
I've been reading and listening to a lot of Seth Godin lately. His worldview strikes me as wholly true. Had he recorded his Startup School podcast 2 years earlier, I probably never would have gone to business school. Pretty much everything you need to know about business is right there. Except for the parts about how you are a slave to shareholders and should drive profits at all costs, you gotta go to business school to learn about that.
The last few days I have been listening to the audiobook of Icarus Deception on my walks and in my car. I think it's an incredibly important book and should be read (listened to) by every parent and every high school student, every college dropout and valedictorian, every fast food worker and Fortune 500 CEO. Everyone should read it except those who aren't interested in understanding the mythology that dominates your life and our society.
Godin talks about ancient mythology as deconstructed by Joseph Campbell. The ancient myths are more about us than they are about gods. They represent what it means to be a human at our very best (and worst). Our modern myths are about conformity and obedience. They routinely show us how things go terribly wrong for those who defy the system and the comforts of the industrial economy. They are full of cautionary examples about those who dare to think differently
The last few days I have been listening to the audiobook of Icarus Deception on my walks and in my car. I think it's an incredibly important book and should be read (listened to) by every parent and every high school student, every college dropout and valedictorian, every fast food worker and Fortune 500 CEO. Everyone should read it except those who aren't interested in understanding the mythology that dominates your life and our society.
Godin talks about ancient mythology as deconstructed by Joseph Campbell. The ancient myths are more about us than they are about gods. They represent what it means to be a human at our very best (and worst). Our modern myths are about conformity and obedience. They routinely show us how things go terribly wrong for those who defy the system and the comforts of the industrial economy. They are full of cautionary examples about those who dare to think differently
Henry Ford hates cars
Odd to think it could be true, but Henry Ford did hate cars. He hated the city. He hated his factory. He hated unions, the middle class, demanding workers, picky customers, and progress. All direct and indirect results of his life's great work. His work was born out of a desire to elevate man and free him from his daily toil.
In the beginning Henry Ford hated the backbreaking work of farming. He hated the inefficiencies he saw in manual labor and the lack of production that seemed to come from the heavy labor of toiling in the fields. He spent his days tinkering with machines, taking apart watches and rebuilding them, all with the desire to create machines that would free man of his human burdens.
One would think that when Henry Ford first began making cars he never could have dreamed he would be so wildly successful. To read his autobiography My Life and Work you realize that not only did he know he would be successful, he was utterly sure of it. He burned bridges and never looked back. He quit his job working for Edison. He fired investors, disbanded his original company and started a new one.
Once he finally made the Model T, he knew that the secret to his success would be to
...................... blah blah blah
driven by a need to elevate the common man from his misery of heavy labor and toiling in the fields, commericalized a revolutionarily cheap automobile and ushered in a new era of american consumerism. His massive Detroit factory at the River Rouge was a testament to modern industrialism. Which he basically invented. He elevated the working man by paying him a handsome wage, The $5 day. He introduced assembly line manufacturing - maximizing production - and creating hundereds of thousands of jobs for the unskilled laborer.
Yet he hated everything he created in a way. Hated the city. Hated modern life, and demanding customers. He loved his Model T and his original buggy, and spent millions recreating his boyhood home in intricate detail. What does this tell us about the nature of invention? Did Ford wish that his life's work could somehow be undone? Like Einstein and the atomic bomb. Had he unleashed something on civilization that would advance humanity but toward a worse way of life.
Today, cars are a necessity of modern life. Without a car you simply cannot compete The driving force of Ford's life created something he didn't want. its a put the toothpaste back in the tubes type of deal.
In the beginning Henry Ford hated the backbreaking work of farming. He hated the inefficiencies he saw in manual labor and the lack of production that seemed to come from the heavy labor of toiling in the fields. He spent his days tinkering with machines, taking apart watches and rebuilding them, all with the desire to create machines that would free man of his human burdens.
One would think that when Henry Ford first began making cars he never could have dreamed he would be so wildly successful. To read his autobiography My Life and Work you realize that not only did he know he would be successful, he was utterly sure of it. He burned bridges and never looked back. He quit his job working for Edison. He fired investors, disbanded his original company and started a new one.
Once he finally made the Model T, he knew that the secret to his success would be to
...................... blah blah blah
driven by a need to elevate the common man from his misery of heavy labor and toiling in the fields, commericalized a revolutionarily cheap automobile and ushered in a new era of american consumerism. His massive Detroit factory at the River Rouge was a testament to modern industrialism. Which he basically invented. He elevated the working man by paying him a handsome wage, The $5 day. He introduced assembly line manufacturing - maximizing production - and creating hundereds of thousands of jobs for the unskilled laborer.
Yet he hated everything he created in a way. Hated the city. Hated modern life, and demanding customers. He loved his Model T and his original buggy, and spent millions recreating his boyhood home in intricate detail. What does this tell us about the nature of invention? Did Ford wish that his life's work could somehow be undone? Like Einstein and the atomic bomb. Had he unleashed something on civilization that would advance humanity but toward a worse way of life.
Today, cars are a necessity of modern life. Without a car you simply cannot compete The driving force of Ford's life created something he didn't want. its a put the toothpaste back in the tubes type of deal.
In praise of Uber: Death to all Cabs (for cutie?)
When Uber first gained traction I started seeing posts on Facebook from friends in early Uber-cities like SF and NYC. Invariably the post would hail Uber as a "god-send", "the future", "best consumer experience of my life". I had no idea what all the fuss could be about. Riding in a stranger's car didn't seem like it could be that great, but I was curious and wanted to try it.
I think I had my first Uber ride in SF in 2013. I remember that it was a game changer. I have almost never taken a traditional cab since - with a few exceptions that I will detail below. What made it so good? It addressed all the pain points of a traditional cab. We'd all been suffering them forever, we just didn't know it, or there was no alternative so we didn't care.
1) Hailing/Calling a cab - perhaps the most obvious.
Uber - the uber app allows you to call a cab, set a pick up point, get an eta of driver arrival, and allows you to track it in real time.
Taxi Cabs- stand on the side of the road and wave your hand as cabs drive by you. some cabs are full. some are empty. some have fare lights lit. some not. no rhyme or reason. eventually one stops... if you're a white male like me. or you can call a cab. they might show up. they might pick up someone else. you have no idea if they are coming or not. call dispatch to see if they are still coming. probably not. you start walking
2) Price transparency -
Uber - you are quoted a price before you even call the car. it's usually very accurate. you can decide if it's worth the price or not.
Cab - get in the cab. watch the meter run. wow it's climbing fast. omg how much is this gonna be. it's $26 and I can still see my house. Let me out!!!!
3) Paying -
Uber - paid through the app. no cash exchanged.
Cab - pay when you get to your destination. credit card machine is down. the cabbie will bring you to the nearest ATM. You hope not to get robbed
4) Driver
I think I had my first Uber ride in SF in 2013. I remember that it was a game changer. I have almost never taken a traditional cab since - with a few exceptions that I will detail below. What made it so good? It addressed all the pain points of a traditional cab. We'd all been suffering them forever, we just didn't know it, or there was no alternative so we didn't care.
1) Hailing/Calling a cab - perhaps the most obvious.
Uber - the uber app allows you to call a cab, set a pick up point, get an eta of driver arrival, and allows you to track it in real time.
Taxi Cabs- stand on the side of the road and wave your hand as cabs drive by you. some cabs are full. some are empty. some have fare lights lit. some not. no rhyme or reason. eventually one stops... if you're a white male like me. or you can call a cab. they might show up. they might pick up someone else. you have no idea if they are coming or not. call dispatch to see if they are still coming. probably not. you start walking
2) Price transparency -
Uber - you are quoted a price before you even call the car. it's usually very accurate. you can decide if it's worth the price or not.
Cab - get in the cab. watch the meter run. wow it's climbing fast. omg how much is this gonna be. it's $26 and I can still see my house. Let me out!!!!
3) Paying -
Uber - paid through the app. no cash exchanged.
Cab - pay when you get to your destination. credit card machine is down. the cabbie will bring you to the nearest ATM. You hope not to get robbed
4) Driver
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