Sup friends 👋,

This week’s been a sprint - i’m off next week for work, so I can finally look at the tasks i’ve been putting off for far too long e.g. teaching my mum how to use FaceTime, disassembling my existing desk + installing a new standing desk (hello productivity unlock!), and finally figuring out a plan to solve a long-standing shoulder issue.

I also wrote a couple of LinkedIn posts - one with my thoughts about the disbanding of the Adobe - Figma acquisition (which seemed to pop!), and another with a few lessons learned from the past weeks in a full-time crypto role over at OP Labs.

No newsletter next week (back on 7th January!) , so I’ve packed a couple of extra bonuses in this one 🙂

Let’s get it :)

#1: 👫 How to Plan Your Year as a Couple

Loved this structure - here are some of the key points:

1. Vision and values

• What do we want our family to represent to the world?

• What do we want our lives to be about?

• What values do we want to instil into our kids?

2. Goals

• What do we want our life to look like in 10 years?

• What needs to happen next year to make that happen?

3. Finance

• Project income, identify rocks you want to allocate to (investments, savings, health etc), design a budget and update this monthly to adjust in real-time

There’s a few other sections, but i’ll let you explore for yourself 🙂 

#2: 🔮 10 Crypto Predictions for 2024

Seen enough of these lists till next year, but this was a good one. Highlighting a few predictions:

1. Bitcoin will trade above $80k (reasons: anticipated launch of a spot Bitcoin ETF and the halving of new bitcoin supply (which historically always sends the price 🆙)

2. AI assistants will start using crypto to pay for things online

3. Taylor Swift will launch NFTs to connect with fans (lol - if so, i’m buying!)

#3: 🏡 The Airbnb customer experience journey

Airbnb have a rep as a design-first organisation, and they never disappoint.

LOVED looking at this blueprint of the Airbnb experience - they analysed millions of customer service calls, thousands of social media posts and spoke to guests & hosts across the world, to figure out what the most common & severe issues were, and then work through the list (<30sec vid).

#4: 🧙‍♂️ What I Wish Someone Had Told Me (Sam Altman)

Can’t be a weekly newsletter without some life advice. When Sam Altman writes, I’m usually one to listen.

A few highlights I liked:

1. Outcomes are what count; don’t let good process excuse bad results

2. It is easier for a team to do a hard thing that really matters than to do an easy thing that doesn’t really matter; audacious ideas motivate people.

3. Optimism, obsession, self-belief, raw horsepower and personal connections are how things get started.

4. Communicate clearly and concisely.

5. Working with great people is one of the best parts of life.

Would highly recommend reading (and coming back to) these 17 points.

#5: The Cheat Sheet to Set Priorities

I’ve used the Eisenhower Matrix and the RICE method to help with priorities, want to try the rest (especially the Theory of Constraints).

Bonus:

• The State of Web3 in 2023 - this is a great summary of the progress in the web3 consumer space (e.g. the likes of Nike & Starbucks are transforming customer engagement and value creation) and some opportunities in 2024.

• How to Rest for Real (when you’re a very anxious person) - worth reading to understand the nuance to the key points (Don’t try to relax, Do an anxious brain dump, Set boundaries to protect your rest, Build up your tolerance for anxiety and a lot more).

That’s all for today - thanks for sticking with me for as long as you have; i’m hoping this shift to a low-lift five links per week can help me be more consistent and share more ‘punchy’ value with you every week.

I may write longer posts, who knows. Or I might decide to post those on other platforms - either way, follow me on X/Twitter and LinkedIn for my latest insights.

Have a great rest of the year and see you in 2024! ✌️

Fahim