Greetings newsletter friends!

Welcome to the 462 new readers! This is your fortnightly(ish) round up of the best links and newsletters from around the web, curated by the team at Meco.

This edition is an eclectic mix as we delve into how to master any craft, uncover the secret behind why McDonald’s has its own university, and explore the impact of AI-generated pop music.P.S. Special thanks to Negib Kesrouani for letting us use his illustrations. Check out his work on Instagram.

📖 5 Great Reads

The Most Interesting Person Alive (5 mins)

At the age of 46 Josh Waitzkin has accomplished more than many do in a lifetime. He became a chess International Master aged 16, won two Tai Chi World Championships, wrote a well-known book on learning and is now mastering surfing in an unknown location. This article shares Waitzkin’s playbook for mastering any craft and explores the mindset of one of the most original thinkers alive. [Read more]

Thinking in Systems (Why McDonald’s Has a University) (5 mins)

Preparing one burger is easy, but serving thousands of burgers a day with the same quality and speed is not. The McDonald brothers changed the game for burger production and their secret sauce was in building meticulous systems. This article outlines how to think in systems and explains why McDonald’s needs its own university. [Read more]

An Illustrated Guide to Self-Censorship (20 mins)

Tim Urban uses the tale of a made-up land called Hypothetica (and stickmen cartoons) to illustrate how easily people can be forced into saying—and eventually thinking—the same things. This is a longer read, but well worth it! [Read more]

The Absurdity of Over-Optimizing (4 mins)

There will always be an endless list of chores to complete and work to do, and a culture of relentless productivity tells us to get to it right away and feel terribly guilty about any time wasted. This often leads to us sitting in front of our computer, browsing websites and contributing to neither our happiness nor our productivity. If you’re stuck in a cycle of over-optimization, here are 5 questions to ask yourself. [Read more]

10 Charts That Illustrate A Changing World (15 mins)

Rex Woodbury visualizes how the world is changing with engaging charts. The wide array of topics include the decline in friendship, the tech bubble bursting, ChatGPT adoption and the market for obesity. [Read more]

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🗞 Fab Newsletters

• Alts helps you discover unique investments worth exploring. They highlight the best alternative assets available (think sports cards, wine sneakers and fractional real estate) to help you find the best opportunities.

• Maker Mind is a science-based newsletter to make the most of your mind. It’ll help you become more creative and more productive with neuroscience-based strategies and a supportive learning community.

• Find that Pod is a free weekly newsletter bringing you 5 hand-picked podcasts you'll love. They sift through the millions of podcasts available to bring you 5 hand-picked must-listen episodes each week.

• the DONUT gives free, impartial and easy-to-understand news with a side of prodigious wit each day. It's rare to actually enjoy the news but the DONUT is different, it'll keep you entertained, learning and optimistic with its daily dose of useful news.

• Unicorner sends the best early-stage startups straight to your inbox. Every Monday morning, you'll get a 2-minute rundown on a promising company with the potential to be a future unicorn.

🤭 A Bit of Fun

• Check out the 10 of the best train journeys in Europe, packed full of the gorgeous scenery, historic routes and adventures at a slower pace.

• AI programs have started making pop music which raises 2 key questions: a) will anybody listen to this? b) how will this impact the music industry?

• Speaking of AI - here are 100+ ChatGPT prompts to help you speed up your workflow.

• Starting this June, four volunteers will spend a year pretending to live on Mars. Have a peek at the 3D-printed environment in Texas where they will simulate living on the red planet.

A bit of shameless self-promotion incoming!

I’m very excited to be a speaker at a marketing workshop about future-proofing your brand online. We’ll cover fun things like how to use GPT to level up your brand, how to find leverage as a solo creator and which mental models can enhance your marketing career. Tickets are paid but i’ve managed to sneak a few freebies - first come first serve!

👉 Get your free ticket (discount automatically applied at checkout)

Much love, see you next time!

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