Oh No, I Kinda Want to Work for Elon, Rugged Flexibility: A New Framework for Navigating Change, and More!

Hello and happy Sunday!

Oh No, I Kinda Want to Work for Elon

Is Elon Musk a genius or a tyrant? Yes.

In a review of Walter Isaacson's new biography, Evan explores the enigma that is Musk, delving into his life, leadership style, and the paradox that defines his persona. Musk's uncanny ability to inspire and push boundaries is countered by his ruthless treatment of his employees. Evan analyzes what makes the "M.C.U."—Musk Company Universe—so successful: the five operating principles by which the entrepreneur evaluates his companies. And despite Musk's well-documented transgressions, he admits to a strange desire to work for him. But he also ponders whether such success is worth the personal and societal costs that come with it—and urges us to be, and build, better.

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Rugged Flexibility: A New Framework for Navigating Change

Human beings crave stability—but that doesn't mean that we don't evolve in times of change. In fact, after periods of disorder, we achieve stability not by returning to the status quo, but by creating a new normal.

In an excerpt from his new book, Master of Change, Brad Stulberg explores this framework for navigating change, which he calls "rugged flexibility": working with change requires strength and agency (ruggedness) combined with letting go of resistance and over-controlling (flexibility). He explains how, by embracing rugged flexibility, we can leverage our core values and skills to meet challenges head-on, find security in transformation, and thrive in a world in constant flux.

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How to Price Generative AI Products

Generative AI introduces a problem into software pricing with which startups previously didn’t have to contend: the marginal cost of running LLMs. As a result, according to monetization expert Ian Clark, AI startups need to put pricing first.

Using the example of a lemonade stand, Clark explains that customers' willingness to pay—the maximum price they’re willing to pay for a product or service—should dictate price points. He cautions against focusing too much on competitors' pricing strategies, emphasizing the importance of understanding the unique value of your product, and illustrates that costs are secondary to the optimal price. Finally, he proposes a three-pronged approach to pricing, involving price metric, structure, and level.

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Great Artists Steal (With LLMs)

Great artists steal—but you can only steal what you can find.

In a quest to create a practical but engaging explainer about ChatGPT, Dan reveals how finding the right inspiration can transform the tedious into the extraordinary. But it's difficult to discover that source if you can't explain what you're looking for in terms that Google can understand. Dan stumbles upon the power of LLMs to surface unlikely sources of inspiration—in this case, exactly the article he needed to help him write his story.

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The Paradox of Control

Sometimes the pursuit of control can do more harm than good, especially when it's applied to circumstances that are fundamentally uncontrollable—what psychologists call "misapplied control."

Casey Rosengren explores the paradox of control in the startup realm. Just like airplane pilots learned to regain control by literally letting go during a plane's wild tumble, so, too, do founders need to recognize misapplied control and work with the underlying uncertainty and fear. The first step? Recognizing that you're doing it. Casey identifies external and internal attempts at control and then explains the need to disengage with control strategies, ending with a call for stepping into the unknown with courage.

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That's all for this week!