No "should"
also microscopic wonders and the power of truth
I’m definitely not Georges Perec – who entirely wrote his 300-page novel La Disparition without using the letter e – but if you’ve read this newsletter since its launch, you’ve been without knowing in a should-free environment, and always will be. Check in the search bar: should disappeared. Banned.
I started playing that game last year and will keep playing it for the rest of my life.
It’s called no should, and it’s simple – I challenge myself not to use the should formulation anymore. Discussions, text messages, emails, this blog… I don’t should others, and harder: I try not to should myself.
I should probably x
You should have told me y
We should not say z
It’s liberating. Should is fuel for judgements, hypocrisy, entitlement, guilt, and not accepting what is; Should isn’t Just do-friendly; Should is a complete waste of time and energy.
Withdrawing should mean I have to cancel sentences – a blessing in disguise – or to navigate, replace it with an invitation – would; an obligation – must; an interrogation – could; or a decision – will.
Any alternative sounds and feels so much better, and triggers a change of mindset, serene and lighter.
You should try it too. Kidding. You must try. Would you try? You could try… I will try.
This alignment
I recently listened to three podcasts that all echoed and aligned on the power of trust. The gentlemen's agreements and handshake deals stories mentioned below may sound from another century, obsolete, but they are invaluable. Loyalty, honesty, common sense… these values will never get old. Quite the opposite.
So, first, in this conversation, Charlie Munger said “Trust is one of the greatest economic forces on earth” and mentioned how he’d “rather have a brief telephone with somebody I trust than I would a 40-page contract prepared by the finest law firm in the world with somebody I don't trust”. Ummm.
Side note: somewhere in the conversation, I savoured John Collison (CEO of Stripe) trying to convince Munger – the final boss of the investing game – of the use case for cryptocurrencies… facing a wall of disdain that could not care less. Epic and humbling. (Disclosure, while I’m not far from being a Bitcoin maximalist, I also appreciate a good “sit down, son”). Unrelated, but it just reminded me that Peter Thiel (yes Peter Thiel) mentioned “AI in 2024 is like the Internet in 1999”. I don’t understand how that bubble hasn’t popped already tbh.
Then I listened to this podcast mentioning Rolex had a handshake deal for 70 years with its main supplier. Yes, nothing in writing up until 2004.
Side note: I used to collect watches and already had high esteem for Rolex, so this felt like a welcomed booster shot. If you happen to be a detractor, thinking it’s a show-off brand for tacky real estate agents… you are right. But you might also be terribly wrong. Give Ben Clymer (founder of Hodinkee) a chance to convince you! I agree his statement:
there are other companies where the more you learn about them, the more you like them. Rolex is the archetype of that.
Next, in this Founders episode, I learnt the founder of Red Bull sealed his main bottler relationship with a handshake.
Side note: I worked at Red Bull for six years. Here’s my greatest learning from Dietrich Mateschitz’s mindset: you can make a mistake, but don’t make the same mistake twice. This motto encourages pushing boundaries and risk-taking while preserving excellence through a radiating Darth Vader’s pressure. I liked that.
This question
Who you gonna trust?
I can’t imagine the scarcity and the value of trust when – in the age of AI – everything will be fake by default.
A return to the hyperlocal, the eye witnessing… and maybe handshake deals?
This photographer
Igor Siwanowicz is a biochemist and neurobiologist who does stunning macro. I feel obliged to share this one because I have a thing for mantises, and he delivers.
But what triggered me was his fantastic microscopy work. If NASA’s telescope images are fascinating, I find microscopy even more mind-blowing.
Igor brought me to another world where chicory isn’t common anymore; where the foot of a beetle becomes a flower from another galaxy; and a flower becomes interstellar dust.
This is only 21st-century technology, with only 400x magnification (with all respect for his $600k Zeiss LSM 980 lol).
How far we can travel from there?
Thanks for your attention. Take care, and have a great week ☀️
full of great recommendation and stunning images. thanks for writing ! I should read more ;-)