Ultimate luxury
eggs, AI-ttitude; bakery parties; a mirror challenge; my family; talent that move the culture wider
Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.
– Epictetus
The other day, we visited family friends. Charming couple, loaded. Think 8-figure house in Clontarf, with that view, indoor pool and white Bentley.
That's not what I envied.
They had three hens. One called Eggwina. They offered us a dozen eggs, and on the way back home, I was already negotiating - again - with my wife.
We have a courtyard, we could have hens, I'm so ready. Instead, she wants one of those Cavapoomalticockapoodle designer dog that will never lay anything but poo.
I keep coming back to the definition of ultimate luxury.
And having my hens - each shooting an egg a day - is part of it, for sure. On my 40+ edition bucket list.
Fun fact: Every weekend, their hens get a roast chicken from the butcher, as a treat. Who am I to judge – apparently they love it.
Fun fact 2: I can’t eat chicken and eggs on the same plate. It fucks my brain out. Same with salmon eggs on top of salmon. They’ll find a name for this, origin overlap aversion or something.
Not-so-fun fact 3: In a supermarket, your only option to get eggs from hens that might have seen daylight at least once… is to get them pasture-raised.
Free-range just means hens had access *wink wink* to an outdoor area.
And this is what we call cage-free. I know that you know. Friendly reminder.
That attitude
I could vibe-code Angry Birds meets Catan in a Black Mirror dimension — and you’d still want to learn chess.
I could invent ten thousand “Michelin star microwave-only recipes” in seconds – and still get slapped for asking a Michelin chef if he uses a microwave.
I could prompt the ultimate twisted revenge novel – you’d still go for The Count of Monte Cristo.
I embrace all technologies. Fire. Electricity, Internet, AI, Multivac. They’re magic, they’re just a tool, they’re a revolution.
I also keep in mind that the older the problem, the older the solution.
That’s my AI-ttitude (sorry).
This party slot
They say club culture is dying, so they bring the party to small, unexpected places. And they take a new party slot. It starts early evening or early morning.
From 6 AM till 11 AM, for example. Yes, I know, I know, we call that… an after. The revolution is that these are more circadian and run-club-friendly.
Can I call it a smoothie party? The Cut went for soft clubbing.
It’s everywhere. Search bakery party, coffee rave or barbershop rave on TikTok.
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Here in Sydney. Also happening in Paris and LA.
What do I like here? Spontaneity x healthy x agency.
Now, please keep the rave alive as well, kids. Don’t let it go instamatcha!
Interlude
This challenge
Smile at yourself in the mirror for at least 10 seconds.
The more I stared, and moved past the awkwardness, the more I felt like: ‘Who are you, stranger?’
Not in a negative way at all, more like connecting with a kind person for the first time. ‘Hey, buddy’ vibe.
Dissociation, followed by self-acknowledgment.
Your turn!
This energy
Enjoy the little things.
That talent
In an organisation, sometimes that talent goes pretty much incognito, as per their assigned KPI (sorry), they seem to perform just OK, they don’t shine much. You have to observe the details.
As a leader, being able to source, identify, and retain that talent is key. The output they bring is so much more than their job desc.
It’s all about their net net value. An insight, a pattern nobody noticed here, a “what if we...” there… And that enthusiasm, unpredictable culture and network, empathy vs toxicity, boldness, lateral thinking, street smart and business grasping.
One is worth ten. Nom nom nom, precious!
That talent is in founder mode (vs manager mode).
Brian Chesky, Airbnb’s founder, talks about founder mode at the end of this interesting discussion, where he also shares Airbnb’s next pivot to broader experiences - chef, hair stylist… you name it - leveraging the platform’s power of authenticated recommendation.
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