Business operating systems

YouTube

Five biomimicry principles for scaling companies with less drama

Scaling Up with Verne Harnish May 5, 2025

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Business operating systems 9

Management 7

• A $500k prize unlocked $6 billion in gold by crowdsourcing geologists
• Superorganisms choose leaders who share knowledge, not hoard it
• Resilience is the wrong goal — antifragile organisations get stronger from stress

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Deep work & focus

Podcast

Algorithmic vs. non-algorithmic internet: how to use the web well

Deep Questions with Cal Newport May 5, 2025

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Deep work & focus 9

Productivity & habits 7

Processes & SOPs 5

• Attention platforms are engagement mills, not the connection internet promised
• Newsletters, forums, and podcasts deliver the good internet without addiction
• Working backwards from your ideal lifestyle beats following your passion

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Branding

YouTube

How Southwest Airlines failed to manage a brand-defining policy reversal

StoryBrand With Donald Miller May 5, 2025

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Branding 10

Communication 8

Competitive analysis 6

• Letting others define your narrative costs more than the policy change itself
• Humor kills upmarket messaging — drama and honesty do the work
• Customers are loyal to opportunity, not brands; stop being a survival asset and they leave

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Identity & self-belief

Podcast

Treating yourself as a project: a Stoic guide to self-investment

The Daily Stoic May 5, 2025

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Identity & self-belief 8

Resilience & grit 6

• Silence when others face injustice is a failure of courage
• Pros treat personal development as a cost of doing business
• After easy wins, serious growth demands deliberate investment

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Case studies

Podcast

How Brad Baxter built Litter-Robot into a $300M pet tech brand

How I Built This with Guy Raz May 5, 2025

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Case studies 10

Bootstrapping 7

Product-market fit 5

• A rotating globe sifts waste — no raking, no broken clumps
• Twenty years of self-funding through a parallel consulting business
• One influencer campaign doubled sales in a single year

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