Updates

Good morning. I got sucked into a supply chain vortex on Bloomberg this morning and did some digging around so you don’t have to. It turns out the world over-ordered during COVID and now, some supply chains are full of surplus goods and materials. This could be a great opportunity for some but signals big problems for others. However, it’s also a good reminder of why you need to take a historic view in your planning, something that toilet paper manufacturers understood, but Peleton didn’t. ...

Good morning. 🇳🇬 Nigerians Vote Nigerians will elect their new president and parliament this weekend with third-party candidate Peter Obi leading recent polls (ANAP Foundation). Obi has a strong following amongst younger Nigerians and a win would signal a break from some of the traditional political power structures in the country. However, there is still a significant margin for error in the polls and all three leading candidates have strong bases of support so a close election and run-off are still a significant possibility. ...

ESG under attack as ‘woke’ capital This post originally appeared in the ‘So What’ newsletter on July 1, 2022 In a lot of recent coverage, ESG (environmental, social & governance) is being termed ‘woke’ capitalism by both supporters and detractors of the investment class. This perception further strengthens the sense that, rather than measuring how well a firm or fund performs in some important non-operational ways, ESG is nothing more than a form of virtue signaling and/or a scam. ...

Opportunity overload continues to be the biggest threat to DCDR right now: I keep finding myself being seduced by thoughts of what the app could do, rather than what the core feature set should be. Luckily, I am getting good advice from Matt and from the several thousands of hours of podcasts and interviews I have consumed. As usual, the problem isn’t getting the right advice. Following the advice, however, is always more difficult. I am finding Paul Graham’s advice particularly useful and his ‘Startups in 13 Sentences‘ essay has become my roadmap. ...