I’ll read anything Leslie Jamison writes. Her memoir Splinters, about the implosion of her marriage and the love of her daughter, is as just engaging as her other writing. Many wonderful insi…| Ben Casnocha
“Be yourself” is common advice. The ode to authenticity. “Change yourself” is also common advice. The ode to personal growth. My reconciliation? Love yourself is what should be the baseline. Self-love is the foundation. And then, from that bedrock of confidence, embrace the dynamism of change yourself. But “change yourself” doesn’t just mean to doContinue reading "Adapting to People in Pursuit of Interpersonal Connection"| Ben Casnocha
From an email from the wonderful meditation teacher Phillip Moffitt, who has led two long silent retreats I’ve attended (and wrote about here), on his new year’s teaching: The theme that I’m going to be exploring this year is the importance of starting where you are and then proceeding with a commitment to starting over again as many timesContinue reading "Starting Over Again"| Ben Casnocha
Freddie deBoer, a brilliant prose stylist himself, in 2013 highlighted non-fiction essayists and bloggers who “throw heat.” His explanation for why he admires these writers, at the sentence level, contain some gems. Below I excerpt the best descriptions from deBoer on what he loves about other writers. The bolding is mine, not Freddie’s. First, fromContinue reading "Non-Fiction Writers Who Throw Heat"| Ben Casnocha
What will someone hear when they reference check you with your previous employers? Research suggests people most remember the peaks and endings of experiences. In other words: the best parts and how an experience ends. By this logic, your ex colleagues will likely remember the best things you did at the company and what youContinue reading "Your Last 90 Days at a Company"| Ben Casnocha
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro is a wonderful novel about a child’s Artificial Friend. Perfect for this current AI moment — even though it was authored before the current AI craze. It’s sensitive and thought provoking. NPR’s review called it “a masterpiece that will make you think about life, mortality, the saving graceContinue reading "Book Short: Klara and the Sun"| Ben Casnocha
I’m pleased to share that we launched Village Global III, our latest $250M seed fund, and that Reid Hoffman is joining as Chairman. Bloomberg News covered the announcement here. Our formal blog post over is over at the Village Global site. It’s been a very busy past couple years for me — working intensively onContinue reading "Village Global III"| Ben Casnocha
Vladimir by Julia May Jones is examines the marital dynamics of a post-menopausal middle aged couple, reveals much about the nature of desire, and casts nuanced judgment on the moral crusading of young people ostensibly upset about on-campus sexual shenanigans. The novel’s protagonist is a woman professor who’s aging and thus losing her powers ofContinue reading "Book Review: Vladimir by Julia Jones"| Ben Casnocha
A young Walter Isaacson in 1992 published a wonderful biography of Henry Kissinger, which I read this week. It’s a sweeping history of Kissinger’s life and his consequential years in public service. Despite its level of detail, Isaacson writes lucidly with the skills of a journalist, so there’s good forward momentum over the course ofContinue reading "Book Review: Henry Kissinger by Walter Isaacson"| Ben Casnocha
The latest Conversations with Tyler podcast features Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok reflecting on the 20th anniversary of writing Marginal Revolution. Longtime readers Jeff Holmes, Vitalik Buterin, and I ask questions and offer our own reflections. Audio and transcript here. Video embedded below. Some history: In the summer of 2006, I saw Tyler post onContinue reading "Marginal Revolution’s 20th Anniversery"| Ben Casnocha
A few years ago I attended a silent “concentration” meditation retreat where we spent many consecutive days examining our breath in microscopic detail. The teachers gave very specific instructions we were to follow from the crack of dawn through to dinner. About halfway through the 10 day retreat, I met with a teacher 1:1 toContinue reading "Relaxed Concentration Unlocks a Secret to Winning: Not Trying Too Hard"| Ben Casnocha
This is the yard of the tour guide who showed us around Angkor Wat yesterday: He has 10 siblings. He’s the only one who graduated from high school and he makes by far the most money in his family. He sends money to his family members — most of whom are tuk tuk taxi driversContinue reading "Fintech Preferences from the Unbanked of Cambodia"| Ben Casnocha
Some recent reading. My intro in italics; direct highlights from the book follow. Index of Self-Destructive Acts by Christopher Beha A wonderfully rich novel encompassing “I haven’t thought about it in a long time, but Bill James developed a stat. It adds up balks, hit batsmen, wild pitches, errors—all the things a pitcher does thatContinue reading "What I’ve Been Reading (June, 2023)"| Ben Casnocha
Much of my travel these days takes me back to places I’ve already been. The past couple years I’ve made repeat visits to UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Singapore, Saudi, Germany, Austria, Chile, Mexico. There’s a certain confidence that springs from familiarity: you cross the immigration checkpoint and walk the foreign streets with a comforting foreknowledge. TheContinue reading "Arriving in a New Place: Bolivia"| Ben Casnocha
Superstar actors in Hollywood don’t read scripts and audition. Producers get on their hands and knees and beg Tom Cruise to accept their gig — not the other way around. In business, most of the hiring advice to CEOs presumes a clear power dynamic in favor of the employer. But when you are the oneContinue reading "Hiring Superstars is Different"| Ben Casnocha
How easy is it to separate your experience of someone’s style from their substance? By “style” I mean a person’s personality, work habits, communication patterns, and so on. By “substance” I mean a person’s overall effectiveness, performance, intelligence, etc. in the workplace. Many professionals assert they can work with and respect the performance of peopleContinue reading "Thinking Clearly about a Person’s Substance Amidst Stylistic Differences"| Ben Casnocha
Meditation teacher James Baraz played this video of Ram Dass‘s words at a recent dharma talk, and it’s beautifully done: Sit Around the Fire. When you’re in the right mood, watch it on full screen for 8 minutes. Truth.| Ben Casnocha
“Exactly what he does, and how, is difficult to describe,” Anderson Cooper says about music producer Rick Rubin on 60 Minutes. Cut to interview between Cooper and Rubin. “Do you play instruments?” Cooper asks. “Barely,” Rubin replies. “Do you know how to work a sound board?” “No,” Rubin replies, “I have no technical ability. AndContinue reading "On Intentionally Vague, Mystique-Infused Explanations of Talent"| Ben Casnocha
Andrew Sullivan commented on Kathryn Shulz’s book, in his podcast interview with her, “I know a master at work when I see one, and I saw a master at work when reading this memoir.” I hold Sullivan’s judgment in the highest esteem, so that single sentence led to an insta-purchase of Shulz’s memoir, Lost &Continue reading "Book Notes: Lost & Found by Kathryn Shulz"| Ben Casnocha
Books, books, books. The highlights include Sally Rooney’s newest novel, Lulu Miller’s memoir/history, and Isaacson’s da Vinci biography. Why Fish Don’t Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller A tremendous memoir slash history book about the crazy first president of Stanford University, David P. Jordan, the taxonomyContinue reading "What I’ve Been Reading (September, 2022)"| Ben Casnocha
So many people are turned off by the idea of “networking,” because they think of it as fake, slimy glad-handing. But that’s not how it should be! I’m thrilled that my Startup of You co-author Reid Hoffman and I are launching a career strategy podcast today that discusses how to create authentic human connection, pivotContinue reading "Startup of You: The Podcast"| Ben Casnocha
N.B. I’ve organized all my blog posts on meditation retreats and Buddhist into this one long page. If you’re new, you can read that page for more context on my journey to date, my summary of the Buddhist argument, and my experiences at other long retreats. This post is a dispatch from my latest retreat.Continue reading "“Mindfulness of Consciousness” Meditation Retreat"| Ben Casnocha
The best practical guide on meditation I’ve ever read, as informed by a Buddhist understanding but written in exactingly clear and precise English, is The Mind Illuminated by John Yates and Matthew Immergut. I first read it several years ago at Russ Roberts’ recommendation, and re-read it for a second time recently. There is aContinue reading "Book Notes: The Mind Illuminated"| Ben Casnocha
This week, Reid and I were delighted to release a new edition of our career strategy guide The Startup of You. 10 years since the original publication in 2012, much in the world of work has changed — and the revised and updated edition includes advice on how to survive and thrive in the post-pandemicContinue reading "10 Year Anniversary Edition of Startup of You"| Ben Casnocha
Lawrence Wright, a writer I’ll read no matter the topic, has new piece in the New Yorker “The Elephant in the Courtroom” that explores whether an elephant in the Bronx zoo should be granted personhood legal rights. It’s a fascinating deep dive into the state of animal rights more generally. And it includes sentences likeContinue reading "The Interdependence of Animals and the Human Kingdom"| Ben Casnocha
There’s a Franzen-sized hole in our reading lives that gets filled about once every eight years — that’s how Dwight Garner put it about Jonathan Franzen’s latest novel Crossroads. What is the hole Franzen fills when he publishes a new novel? Among other things, our desire for piercing insight into all matters of the AmericanContinue reading "Book Review: Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen"| Ben Casnocha
I’m quite interested in the literature on happiness and meaning and yet I usually pass on reading new articles or books on the topics. I liked Paul Bloom’s explanation for why he’s the same, from his new book The Sweet Spot: There is a famous remark by the physicist Wolfgang Pauli, dismissing the work ofContinue reading "Book Reviews: The Sweet Spot and 4,000 Weeks, on Happiness and Meaning and Time Management"| Ben Casnocha
I’ve been as busy as ever and thus delinquent in sharing some highlights from recent books. 1. The Institute by Stephen King. Totally gripping and addictive novel. Outstanding plot premise from a master of the craft. Expect to stay up late while reading. 2. The Outlaw Ocean: Journeys Across the Last Untamed Frontier by IanContinue reading "What I’ve Been Reading (September 2021)"| Ben Casnocha
Richard Hanania, always provocative and interesting, has a great piece up on the TSA and Covid restrictions. If we’re not careful, the overreaction to 9/11 that led to an insane, ineffective, permanent security theater that we deal with to this day — the same could happen with masking, lockdowns, and other restrictions related to Covid.Continue reading "Are Covid Restrictions the New TSA?"| Ben Casnocha
I was delighted to chat with Samir Kaji on his podcast Venture Unlocked about the history and strategy of Village Global, and a range of other inside baseball VC topics like portfolio construction. We launched the firm a few years ago; it’s been an amazing journey. Here’s the Spotify link or in Apple Podcasts. AndContinue reading "The Future of VC and Lessons from Village Global"| Ben Casnocha
I spoke to Brad Feld for an hour about Nietzsche and his new book (co-authored with Dave Jilk) of The Entrepreneur’s Weekly Nietzsche. The audio version is on the Village Global podcast here or YouTube version here. My favorite part of the conversation was about how difficult it is to “see the world clearly.” WeContinue reading "Brad Feld on Nietzsche and Entrepreneurship"| Ben Casnocha
I read and enjoyed Walter Isaacson’s new book The Code Breaker, about Jennifer Daudna, mRNA, and gene editing. Here’s Isaacson’s claim about the importance of this topic: The invention of CRISPR and the plague of COVID will hasten our transition to the third great revolution of modern times. These revolutions arose from the discovery, beginningContinue reading "The Code Breakers"| Ben Casnocha
Freddie deBoer’s short essay Planet of Cops, from 2017, I hadn’t read until now, but it perfectly captures an element of our culture today. It’s also an example of a well written polemical style. The irony of our vibrant and necessary police reform movement is that it’s happening simultaneously to everyone becoming a cop. IContinue reading "Planet of Cops"| Ben Casnocha
I recently interviewed two interesting people on the Village Global podcast (you can find it in any podcast player). Michael Balaoing, founder of Candlelion, is an A+ public speaking and oral communications coach who’s helped me a great deal. Few people have been as instrumental to my ability to deliver speeches or presentations at aContinue reading "Two Podcast Interviews: Michael Balaoing (Public Speaking Coach) and Elliot Shmukler (Legendary PM)"| Ben Casnocha
I read 900 pages about Ulysses S. Grant in Ron Chernow’s authoritative biography. It was extraordinary. It’s hard not to agree with Chernow claims that Grant is the most underrated president in U.S. history. I knew little to nothing about Grant going in, and hadn’t read a full length book about the Civil War before.Continue reading "Book Review: Ron Chernow’s Biography of Ulysses S. Grant"| Ben Casnocha
“If I had to limit my advice on healthier living to just one tip, it would be simply to learn how to breathe better.” — Dr. Andrew Weil Noticing your breath is the foundational skill of every meditation practice I’ve been exposed to. No matter the ultimate instruction — body scans, mantras, visualizations, etc. —Continue reading "Breath Work and James Nestor’s “Breath”"| Ben Casnocha
Anytime a new social app like Clubhouse captures millions of people’s attention and skyrockets to a supposed billion dollar valuation in a matter of months, I wonder: What is this activity replacing? Which app has been shoved aside for the new kid on the block? The obvious answer is that Clubhouse listening time is replacingContinue reading "Clubhouse and Continuous Partial Attention"| Ben Casnocha
I read a bunch of books over the Christmas break. First, I read all three editions of Rachel Cusk’s “Outline” trilogy. It’s really something. Very little plot. But a ton of …| Ben Casnocha
For investors, conviction—the depth of your belief in an investment opportunity—is the most important compass. And talking about your conviction with your colleagues is something that happens on ev…| Ben Casnocha
Over the holidays, I experienced searing, acute physical pain related to a tooth/dental issue. I cut short a visit to Barcelona (an amazing city!) to return home to have it dealt with, and luckily …| Ben Casnocha
Glenn Loury’s memoir is remarkable. One of the finest economists of his generation dishes on his own addiction to porn and drugs, rampant infidelity, endless lying, and all sorts of other misdeeds that most people would go out of their way to cover up — not publish. In the opening chapter, one of the mostContinue reading "Book Review: Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black Conservative"| Ben Casnocha
Here are Kindle highlights from two books that cover themes of friendship, love, and grief. The first is Love Undetectable: Notes on Friendship, Sex, and Survival, a collection of essays and musings that Andrew Sullivan published in 1999 essays. Some great passages about friendship. Anything Andrew writes, I read. The second is Stay True byContinue reading "Book Notes: Love Undetectable and Stay True"| Ben Casnocha
I recently sat with Auren Hoffman for an hour on his World of DaaS podcast. We covered a range of topics — from talent spotting to the future of work to what’s happening in venture capital to lessons learned from Reid. Fun convo and the YouTube embed is below. Also, separately, on the Village GlobalContinue reading "Recent Appearances and Interviews"| Ben Casnocha
Day two of a ten-day silent meditation retreat, and my mind was a fireworks display on the Fourth of July. Thoughts exploding with obsessions and cravings and aversions. Inner monologues chattering away unabated. Each bright flash capturing flickers of my attention. So much for the serene state I’d imagined achieving by now. As I satContinue reading "Vipassana Meditation Retreat July 2024 with Joseph Goldstein and Kamala Masters"| Ben Casnocha
Is there a level of early success in a career or firm that’s the optimal foundation for long term sustained success? Are there fields where too much success too early means a level of scrutin…| Ben Casnocha
I read and enjoyed both of Freddie DeBoer’s books. Freddie is a Marxist by self-identification — a rabid anti-capitalist who wants to redistribute all wealth. He’s simultaneously …| Ben Casnocha
Many years ago, as a 15 year old, I snuck into a tech and business event in San Francisco. My basketball-ready height masked my age at events like these. (Or if it didn’t, no one ever bothered to v…| Ben Casnocha
On a collaborative team, a great employee should be a team player: helping their colleagues hit *their* individual priorities. Do favors for them, offer feedback when asked, build social capital. W…| Ben Casnocha
I was fortunate to spend bunch of time working from Tokyo recently. After visiting three times prior for 1-2 week trips, spending extended time there deepened my understanding and appreciation for …| Ben Casnocha
I spent a bunch of time in Singapore this summer. What a wonderful city state. And a remarkable achievement by its founders to build such a thriving metropolis over the 58 years it has been indepen…| Ben Casnocha
The most consequential purchase in my life in 2020? Installing a Finnish barrel sauna in my backyard in the Bay Area. Over the past few years, I’ve been enjoying sauna more and more: Relishing hote…| Ben Casnocha