Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s installment of Tom’s Top 3 Tuesdays, where I highlight three pieces of content (Podcasts/Shows/Songs/Articles/etc.) that I found interesting or noteworthy from the prior week.
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[YouTube] Stanford Graduate School of Business - Last Lecture Series: How to Design a Winnable Game — Graham Weaver
Graham Weaver, founder of Alpine Investors and Stanford GSB professor, describes how to create a “Winnable Game,” one where external success and internal motivation are aligned.
Here is his formula:
Choose a game that stirs your blood
Assume the identity of someone who has achieved your goals
Ask yourself: what would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?
You will have a higher probability of achieving an aspirational goal than a modest one
Design your own game
Most rules are just conventional wisdom
Purpose is combining something that the world needs with something that you are excited about
Play the game with people you admire
Find the people that give you energy and share your values
Avoid the people that dont
Play now
Don’t wait to start, you can’t win if you’re on the sidelines
[Podcast] Plain English with Derek Thompson - The Future of Entertainment, Part 1: Is Hollywood’s Business Model Broken?
This episode covers many of the trends affecting the entertainment industry that we have previously discussed on this newsletter, including streaming, AI, YouTube/TikTok, etc.
What was most striking was the number that sparked the conversation between Derek Thompson and Ben Fritz of the WSJ: 40%.
Movie ticket sales were 40% lower in 2024 than in 2019
The number of film industry employees in LA Country has dropped by 40%
The amount of mid-budget film and TV series has decreased by 40% over the last three years
They discuss the lasting effects of Covid on viewing behavior and the strikes on film/TV volume. The optimistic take is that this slowdown will usher in an industry renaissance similar to the 1970’s, the studios being pushed to take creative risks that will bring customers back to the theaters.
[Podcast] WTF with Marc Maron - Episode 1686 - Barack Obama
After 16 years and 1,686 episodes, Marc Maron is hanging up his cleats. I was admittedly a late-comer to the podcast, but I have listened to it more this year. Honestly, I’m bummed I didn’t find it earlier, but there is a long back catalog I can explore.
What an awesome last guest. Obama was previously on the podcast in 2015 for episode 613. A lot has changed since then…
That wraps up this edition of Tom’s Top 3 Tuesdays. If you made it to this point, please drop a 1️⃣, 2️⃣, or 3️⃣ in the comments to let me know what you found most interesting/useful. And as always, please like and consider sharing with a friend who you think would enjoy! I’ll be back next week. ✌️