Make Your Own Kind Of Music
w.224 | Berkshire, EdTech Market, Beehiiv, Art & Culture, Creativity.
Dear Friends,
Here is an admission: I used to respond to every email. Inbox zero by the end of the week. No thread was left unread or unanswered.
Those days are gone. There’s simply too much…stuff.
Good news? We get an extra day this year. Happy Leap Year!
Today's Contents:
Good Reads: Sensible Investing
Art. Culture. Addiction.
Song of the Week: You’ve Got A Friend
Good Reads: Sensible Investing
Oppenheimer EdTech Market Update (February 2024). It's worth a read-through if you are interested in the industry.
Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter 2023. It was a great one this year. It starts with a tribute to Charlie. It is written to be understood by “Bertie,” Warren’s sister, ‘the investor who trusts Berkshire with her lifesaving without any expectation of resale.’ It has all the Americana and Midwestern charm you could want, with the invitation at the end to come to Omaha at the beginning of May.
I will be in attendance again this year. Might I see you there?
“Berkshire now has – by far – the largest GAAP net worth recorded by any American business.
“There remain only a handful of companies in this country capable of truly moving the needle at Berkshire, and they have been endlessly picked over by us and by others. Some we can value; some we can’t. And, if we can, they have to be attractively priced. Outside the U.S., there are essentially no candidates that are meaningful options for capital deployment at Berkshire. All in all, we have no possibility of eye-popping performance.”
“Berkshire benefits from an unusual constancy and clarity of purpose. While we emphasize treating our employees, communities, and suppliers well – who wouldn’t wish to do so? – our allegiance will always be to our country and our shareholders. We never forget that, though your money is comingled with ours, it does not belong to us.”
Beehiiv Seed Pitch Deck. As a newsletter writer, I’ve been following Beehiiv since it launched and have always been impressed by the quality of the platform for writing, growth, and monetization. I’m seriously considering moving over. Does anyone have any thoughts either way? The deck is worth a read, regardless.
Art. Culture. Addiction.
The State of Culture, 2024. This provocative article should make you consider your relationship with social media platforms and technology. I decided to invest my creative energy into writing this newsletter weekly instead of posting on social platforms to make my creation more considered and thoughtful, less addicting.
Model for US Cultural Food Chain. “The fastest growing sector of the culture economy is distraction. Or call it scrolling or swiping or wasting time or whatever you want. But it’s not art or entertainment, just ceaseless activity.”
“The tech platforms aren’t like the Medici in Florence, or those other rich patrons of the arts. They don’t want to find the next Michelangelo or Mozart. They want to create a world of junkies—because they will be the dealers.
Addiction is the goal.”
Article punchline: “Just telling the truth about the dopamine cartel would be a major step forward for the culture in 2024.
Also, do yourself a favor. Unplug yourself from time to time, and start noticing the trees or your goofy pets. They actually look better in real life than in the headset.”
Song of the Week: Make Your Own Kind Of Music
YouTube with the lyric video.
Art and startups. I’ve been thinking about the earliest stages of the creative process recently. There’s much more to say about this, but my thinking isn’t clear enough yet. I’m getting close, though.
To create original work, one must be able to stand alone and think for oneself. You have to ‘make your own kind of music,’ as Cass Elliot sang in 1969. The song is both ‘sunshine pop’ and also defiant.
“Make Your Own Kind Of Music” by Cass Elliot
You're gonna be nowhere
The loneliest kind of lonely
It may be rough goin'
Just to do your thing's the hardest thing to do
But you've gotta make your own kind of music
Sing your own special song
Make your own kind of music
Even if nobody else sings along
Selfie of the Week
This image needs to be correctly scanned, but my friend and I have been experimenting with taking photos with an instant Polaroid. Here is one of the shots from this week.
Bonus Pic: The Google Building: A large glass building prominently featured on the Austin skyline and right on the waterfront. The problem? The building is empty despite construction being finished years ago. I was laughing about it this week with the Gemini-LLM model snafu.
Thanks for reading, friends. Please always be in touch.
As always,
Katelyn