- The Remote Life OS Newsletter
- Posts
- 90 - How you finish important as how you start
90 - How you finish important as how you start
The Connection #90
The Connection | 2021.07.26 | Issue 90
Hello from Albany, NY!
What we’ll talk about:
Venture Capital, Parenthood, Movie Marketing, "Nice Guys", Dog Toothbrushes
Why you’re getting this:
The Connection
is the newsletter I send to family, friends, and future friends. Hope you've been well. If I can be helpful in any way, please let me know.
How you finish is as important as how you start
On July 10th, 2021, Dustin Poirier defeated Conor McGregor at UFC 264, under the bright lights of Las Vegas. Dustin won by
, forcing him to clinch, and avoiding Conor's blitz game.
Over the last 7 years, Dustin's evolved his boxing into a modified "Philly shell": using his shoulders, top of the head, and elbows to protect himself. He is hittable but protected, and his modification keeps him close enough to work his counterpunching (check out Jack Slack's superb
).
Round one was rough for Conor. Then with seconds left in the bout, Conor crumpled from a rolled ankle from hell.
Then it got ugly.
Conor hurled a barrage of insults about his opponent's wife. He said the fight "was not over." He did all this while stretched out on the ground, nursing his broken leg.
It's certainly not the end of Conor's career. In the long tail of his contributions to the sport, this will be a blip. But
it is
perhaps an end to an untitled chapter. If that's the case, then it's been sadder to watch than the
Game of Thrones
cast
.
No one in the history of the sport has come out of the gate like Conor. But how you finish is as important as how you start.
This is true for our careers.
You're remembered for how you finish your job, not how well you executed your 90-day plan. Leave with dignity, while you're still shipping great work. When you leave, it should feel sad; it
.
It's true for relationships
. Some relationships are for life, others are just a tour of duty. The hard part is knowing which is which. Leave people better than how you found them. When it's time to move on, be honest. But mostly, be kind.
It's true for parenting
. Sometimes I think it's easy to be a great dad: after the first cup of coffee; after they tell you "I love you"; when you're on holiday. The test comes when they're sick and you're on deadline; when they wake up screaming at 2am; at bedtime and they ask you to read
We're Different, We're the Same
for the 3rd time.
I remind myself to finish the day out as a great dad. They won't forget it. It may be all they remember.
Onto some of my favorite things this month 📖
I wanted a Boosted board since their Kickstarter campaign in 2014, and finally purchased one (used) in 2020, the same year the company folded. A constellation of factors led to the end: tariffs, product delays, and an overreaching product strategy. But the root cause lies around venture capital money and culture, driving the company to grow too fast and get stretched too thin.
"Many customers simply blame Khosla Ventures and acknowledge that Russakow’s aggressive product goals were a reflection of the returns the big firm wanted on its investment. It was in pursuit of those goals that Boosted overextended itself... Throughout its early years, Boosted defied expectations. It was a successful Kickstarter project that turned into a bona fide company, and basically helped create an entirely new category of vehicle along the way. But at its end, Boosted had evolved into something far more common: yet another Silicon Valley startup that struggled to meet ambitious goals set by the people who wound up running the show."
Parenting in the social media age is an interesting social experiment. On one hand, you have to manage your FOMO while watching other people's highlight reels; on the other, it's never been easier to see other models of navigating parenthood. I really appreciated this honest post about the evolution of this family's model.
"We both want the freedom to spend time away from our family as individuals – many of the things we love to do are not baby friendly and require time away from the home; outdoor adventures, trips with friends and retreats or seminars to expand our knowledge. The narrative that I was hearing from friends and the general population was that this is something we would need to sacrifice for a period of time (around 18 years haha!) Did we have to sacrifice completely? Or, could we ensure this wasn’t our story?"
"The trend is so explosive that people not familiar with the Fast and Furious franchise suspect the meme itself may be a secret marketing campaign, with one reddit user saying that the sudden rise of the meme 'has shown me without a shadow of a doubt that marketers are using memes to keep advertising to people without them realizing they’re being advertised to.'"
I would love for nothing more than if the entire collection of Vin Diesel memes was the brainchild of a bored intern in the marketing department of NBCUniversal but I strongly doubt it.
Unpopular opinion: Tokyo Drift is underrated. (Not sold on The Fast franchise? Patrick Willems explains why it's great.)
I rewatched The Girl Next Door. I remember loving it and the rewatch probably cements it as a Top 10 for me (below Brick but right up there with Clueless). This oral biography is a great article on a small piece of move history.
Taylor puts on a masterclass on handling media. She's two steps ahead of the interviewer the entire time, thanks to (probably) countless reps at dealing with these situations.
Two product recommendations
A Standing desk. I've been bringing this standing desk with me to Starbucks and it's been awesome.
Dog toothbrush. Deefer has needed two teeth cleanings procedures so far. My vet recommended this toothbrush (technically a cat toothbrush) to brush properly. It's amazing. His teeth look great! (Here's a pic of me brushing his teeth with his old toothbrush.)
Recent articles
As always, thank you for reading 🙏 If there's anything I can help with please let me know.
Someone else you think should read this? Please share with them.
Reply