Tweets

@Caneco @phpastes @HappyDevFM @TransistorFM @jonbuda I’ll take a look. 👌

@paidinsights @samsontech Have you used it yet?

@Mattylantz @usefathom Sweet. I’m using Fathom on my personal site as well (and on @TransistorFM)

Great post by @ScottHYoung:

"In most pursuits, success is a mixture of breakthroughs and build-ups."

https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2020/01/06/stamina/

@CharlesPal Actually, I've written a few retrospectives:

https://justinjackson.ca/customer-behavior

https://justinjackson.ca/sneakers

https://justinjackson.ca/business-lesson-less-research-launch-small

RT @mijustin: An example from my life:

In my early 20s I opened a skateboard/snowboard shop. It was low-margin everything:

- low markup o…

@CharlesPal don’t do it.

RT @mijustin: Good businesses have margin.

Profit margin, yes.

But also margin for your time, your emotional and physical health, your re…

RT @mijustin: One thing you’ll notice with low-margin businesses: you’re always “adding more” hoping it will increase your margins.

At the…

@iChris @ddgrunau 🤦‍♂️

One thing you’ll notice with low-margin businesses: you’re always “adding more” hoping it will increase your margins.

At the skateboard shop we added a mini-ramp, did events, published a magazine, ran contests, and started doing bike repairs.

“Throwing good effort after bad.”

An example from my life:

In my early 20s I opened a skateboard/snowboard shop. It was low-margin everything:

- low markup on the products we sold
- high complexity (ordering, employees, inventory)
- high risk
- high stress (theft, capital)
- long hours, low pay (as an owner!)

@ddgrunau @iChris I’ll have to think about that.

(Off the top of my head: I know two Canadian ER doctors, and both have incredible margin in their lives)

@nicknow Low-margins require massive scale. (A scale you might never reach)

Also, I’m not just talking about low profit margins...

https://twitter.com/patio11/status/1214396027848937472?s=21 https://twitter.com/patio11/status/1214396027848937472

@patio11 YES!

“If you want something small and beautiful, please, please pick something with fat margins and customer willingness to pay.”

This gets missed so often (like when I started a snowboard shop in my 20s). Bad margins + competing against massive retailers with purchasing power.

If you’re employed by a “low-margin” business, do everything you can to get out.

Your boss will download their anxiety, lack of health, and mania on to you.

They’ll make YOU feel the pressure THEY feel.

Things won’t get better. Get out as soon as you can.

Good businesses have margin.

Profit margin, yes.

But also margin for your time, your emotional and physical health, your relationships, your sanity, and your integrity.

Low-margin work eventually leads to ruin. The margins rarely get better; the sunk costs get worse.

@alantocheri @WestWingWeekly I’ve never paid a guest to come on a podcast. That’s not common.

I've also just updated "How to start a podcast in 2020:"
https://transistor.fm/how-to-start-a-podcast

@dennisvdalen Nope. But thankfully, you can buy a really good mic for about $60:

#bestmic" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://transistor.fm/how-to-start-a-podcast#bestmic

@cafonsomota @rcosteira79 Do it! 🙌

@otherlab I see the 2016 “billion ton” report. Is there a newer one?

https://www.energy.gov/eere/bioenergy/2016-billion-ton-report

@oprearocks Yup! This is my current setup:

https://justinjackson.ca/livestreaming

@robinwarren @Shopify @tobi @stripe @patrickc Yes! Exactly. 🎯

@zavzen Yup. Happy to chat about that too.

@MicroConf As Saul Griffith (founder of @otherlab) outlines here, reducing the world's carbon footprint is going to require action by governments, corporations, AND individuals:

http://longnow.org/seminars/02009/jan/16/climate-change-recalculated/

@Shopify @tobi @stripe @patrickc Also, the idea of corporations contributing to the "public good" isn't absurd. (Before the 1980s these kinds of investments by companies were common).

It's the whole reason we created Public Benefit Corporations.

https://www.blaney.com/articles/the-evolution-of-the-corporation-the-public-benefit-corporation

@beingbrad Yup, I just mute and move on. No time for arguing. The science is clear.

@Shopify @tobi @stripe @patrickc People who are saying this is a "policy problem."

I agree; governments need to act!

But climate change is an “all hands on deck” situation.

We need every individual, corporation, govt to be taking action.

Often, government policy follows a massive grassroots movement.

@kilianvalkhof This is an “all hands on deck” situation.

We need every individual, corporation, government, and non-profit to be taking significant action.

Often, government action follows a groundswell of action (from the bottom up).

This post explores it in detail:
https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/private-sector-public-good

If you're still confused by how podcasting works, this blog post is a good place to start:
https://transistor.fm/podcast-hosting

@KingDogDad That's a good option if you're just getting started!

@Shopify @tobi Likewise, @stripe (under @patrickc's leadership), has committed to "purchase negative CO2 emissions at any price per tCO2, starting immediately."

https://stripe.com/en-ca/blog/negative-emissions-commitment

If your New Year's resolution is to "start a podcast" I'm here to help. 👋

@theothermarcusc @tim_cook That’s enough money to buy solar for over 7 million homes.

@lwdupont Yes. I’ve seen all that.

But this is a company who spent $122 billion buying back their own shares. They have so much cash that could be invested for the social good.

$122B is enough to buy solar for 9 million homes. (I’m not saying they should do that; but showing the scale)

@dbchhbr Yes. I have.

But this is an “all hands on deck” situation.

We need every individual, corporation, government, and non-profit to be taking significant action.

Often, government action follows a groundswell of action from regular people like you and I.

The folks at @shopify (under @tobi’s leadership), have already committed $5 million annually to fight climate change.

I think Apple can do more.

@conradnobert really curious what happened with this project since your post in 2011.

Did the house end up having some net zero years?

http://greenedmonton.ca/net-zero-year-final.html

This is the Apple keynote I want to see:

<@tim_cook enters>

“Today we’re announcing a $100 billion dollar investment to fight climate change. This seems like the most sensible way for us to maximize shareholder value. Thank you.”

@operaqueenie Wow. And Apple’s market cap is half of that! 😮

@awilkinson There’s @songadaymann:

@songadaymann 👍

@jonasdowney Nice! I’m a big fan of this section.

@ahmedash95 @lenaggar Nice! 🙌 Let me know if you have questions.

@dustin Yes! 🙌

@anthilemoon These are really incredible life lessons.

You are wise beyond your years! Happy birthday. 🙌

There’s a natural tension between the “safety of the known” and the “opportunities in the unknown.”

Some safety and familiarity is healthy, but don’t let it hold you back from discovering new ideas

Every once in awhile, venture out and explore the world of possibilities.

Interactions with people outside your normal circle will have the biggest impact.

These “collisions” open up new opportunities:

- You run into someone at an event who has a career you never knew existed.
- You start a relationship that turns into a partnership 5 years later.

It’s not enough to open your mind to new possibilities; first you need to get in a different space.

Explore a new culture, a different profession, or a bigger city.

Go to a meetup, conference, or party you wouldn’t normally attend.

Expand your world.

In life, our imagination is often limited by our context.

We only know what we see around us:

“This is how much money folks in my area make.” “There aren’t many opportunities.”

But outside our realm, there are possibilities we’ve never even thought of.

Get out of your bubble!

@iprashantpillai Thanks!

@nurijanian Thanks!

@chriscoyier Yeah, it’s one of my kids’ faves! We used to buy them all the time on iTunes. Now you get them with @disneyplus!

@andymci Thanks!

@cgenco That is something I want to do soon. Yes. 👌

@AliAbdaal ThNks!

@dotNetkow Thanks!

@missbikesalot Yes!!! “Kondoing” old projects is the best feeling.

@wardsandler @jonbuda Yes! 🙌

Just published my 2019 year in review:
https://justinjackson.ca/2019-review

@LukeFVL Thanks!

@jbrooksuk @HappyDevFM Here’s how we do it: (listen to last 5 minutes)

https://saas.transistor.fm/episodes/what-happens-tomorrow

@jbrooksuk @HappyDevFM Btw - I think sponsorship is one approach, but Patreon would be perfect for a show like this.

There are (potentially) many devs who want to support mental health work like this.

@sambreed is this your new living room

@BarrettABrooks Definitely check out Saul Griffith. This interview gave me hope (and made me want to act):

https://overcast.fm/+QLhUk_f9A

@timoreilly @ezraklein Is there any chance we can get Saul on Twitter?

His interview with @ezraklein (and his Medium post) are the most hopeful pieces on climate change I’ve seen.

It feels like we need his voice here!

We already have private podcast “invite links” that you can use in welcome emails you send to your members:

@typeoneerror Yes! It's awful on so many levels. The smoke. The damage. And the risk for firefighters. 😞

https://twitter.com/teslainvernon/status/1212845928593231872

RT @evanpro: Why: temp rise under 1.5C

What: zero emissions by 2050; capture CO2

How to get to zero: vote and donate to climate+ pols, el…

@LeviNunnink Thanks!

@vulkd 👍

@vertis 👍 I’m glad some folks are with me.

@_KevinGraham @MicroConf Yes!!!

@productgangsta I agree that it’s hard to replace.

But I still want to wrestle with this.

Maybe there are other alternatives we haven’t explored.

Here’s a cool idea for reducing air travel to tech conferences:

@MicroConf recently announced a series of smaller, local events that will bring their big conference experience to cities across the USA.

This also enables folks to attend who wouldn’t normally be able to afford it

@tahirraza_se 👍

Too many companies make their profits by outsourcing the true cost of their products to the public.

This is also true in tech, and with startups.

(And yes, also true for my company!)

In the future, the public will demand that corporations and governments are responsible for their externalities.

The airline industry should have to pay to clean the air it pollutes.

Manufacturers should be responsible for the entire lifecycle of their products.

@mike_julian @tylertringas Another way to do it would be to charge the airline industry for all their externalities.

That would be the true “free market” approach.

And then, there’s no “personal responsibility” angle.

For those wanting policy: we could implement what the UK is considering.

“Each citizen would be allowed one tax-free flight per year but would pay progressively higher taxes on each additional flight taken.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/25/1-of-english-residents-take-one-fifth-of-overseas-flights-survey-shows

@sethlouey I’m not going to be able to change your mind, so I’m not going to debate it.

@mike_julian @tylertringas There are wide-sweeping policy changes we could make here, similar to what they’re proposing in the UK.

“Each citizen would be allowed one tax-free flight per year but would pay progressively higher taxes on each additional flight taken.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/25/1-of-english-residents-take-one-fifth-of-overseas-flights-survey-shows

Movements are created when leaders present a compelling vision of the future.

This can even work on a global scale.

When Kennedy decided to pursue the Apollo mission, it galvanized countries around the world to create space programs.

Folks who say “individual action is wasted” should re-watch @sivers’ video on how movements are created:

@mike_julian @tylertringas It’s “both, and..”

We need to get our own house in order.

AND, we need to be engaging in more conversations with China and India, and putting pressure on them to decarbonize.

https://twitter.com/noahpinion/status/1051676756933894144?s=21 https://twitter.com/Noahpinion/status/1051676756933894144

@sethlouey Oh boy. Sorry man, I’m not debating that. You’re wrong.

The science is clear.

One realization I had (after listening to Saul Griffith on the @ezraklein show):

Life could become *better* as we solve climate change.

If we take the premise seriously, it allows us to imagine a clean energy future.

It doesn’t have to be depressing!

https://overcast.fm/+QLhUk_f9A

Our instinct is to respond by pointing the finger (“But China, India, the elites!”), stroking our ego (“but I own a Tesla!”), or becoming despondent.

We’ll do anything but consider the premise: “Do we fly too much? What could we do instead?”

(I get it, I do this too)

@MattGiovanisci Yes! You’re a green machine. 🌎

For folks replying “but... China!”

Yes, China’s emissions matter, but can we at least do something about our own actions?

Let’s not abdicate our responsibility here.

https://twitter.com/noahpinion/status/1051676756933894144?s=21 https://twitter.com/Noahpinion/status/1051676756933894144

@tylertringas Is your point that “because there are no easy alternatives” we should just ignore it?

Some would say that air travel is low hanging fruit, because for most folks, it’s a luxury.

@jonathanwmeier @Noahpinion Yes, and this is the part I’m taking about. We still need to take action.

https://twitter.com/noahpinion/status/1051676756933894144?s=21 https://twitter.com/Noahpinion/status/1051676756933894144

@jonathanwmeier @Noahpinion I don’t like that form of defeatism: “well, if the US and Chinese governments won’t do anything we’re fucked anyway!”

We need action: government policy, clean tech, foreign policy, and to change the way we live and conduct business.

@tylertringas I agree: we need policy changes.

But not doing anything personally is abdicating responsibility.

It’s defeatism: “well, if the USA and China won’t do anything about it we’re fucked anyway!”

@Shopify and @stripe are both leading decarbonizing campaigns. We can lead here too.

This is one of those hard realities I don’t want to think about.

I like flying to conferences and events. The face-to-face connections I’ve made there have been invaluable.

But, if we’re serious about tackling climate change we need to look at everything.

For most of us, it’s normal to fly multiple times per year for conferences, meetings, and retreats.

And air pollution is getting worse; particularly with regards to global warming.

https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2019/1/11/18177118/airlines-climate-change-emissions-travel

“Technologies have always been about emphasizing the mobility of the elite. It prioritizes their need to connect and their ways of making an income.” – @melgregg

Unpopular opinion: people in the tech industry fly too much.

@awilkinson But... have you tried CBD oil? 😜