haruki zaemon

I read Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? when I was a kid (c. 1982) and loved it. Not long after, I watched Blade Runner in the theatre (as was the fashion at the time) and loved that too. More recently we watched Blade Runner 2049 as a family which I also enjoyed, but certainly not as much as my memory of the original.

Re-reading the book for the first time in over 40 years, I realised my memory of the book was actually a memory of the original movie. It was clearly written in a different period and to a different set of expectations and norms. The stereotypes, the gendered character tropes, etc. all felt a bit stale. It also reminded me a bit of Man in the High Castle in that it felt like it went nowhere in the end.

All that said, I enjoyed it, and think I’d happily read it again, no doubt in another 40 years when they release Blade Runner 2077.

I’d been searching for a new sci-fi book to read and, having really enjoyed The Wool series, I thought I’d give Machine Learning by Hugh Howey a go.

Sadly, I did not enjoy the book overall. On a positive note, I did appreciate the author notes at the end of each story.

I’m coming to appreciate that I am not a fan of first-person narratives, nor short stories. Definitely not first-person short stories.

Maintaining the iambic pentameter of the original, as well as the number of lines, this English translation totally worked for me.

What more can I say? I’m certainly not about to review the story itself!

About as compelling as a horoscope. I never made it past chapter 2.

I watched the Marlon Brando and Val Kilmer movie in 1996 and remember almost nothing of it. I’m not sure if that helped or hindered my enjoyment of the book.

I enjoyed the book for what it is. “A good example of that sort of thing” as they say.

It’s a relatively quick read with what I imagine were shocking science fiction themes in 1896.

If late 19th century colonialism is your thing, I would recommend Heart of Darkness instead.

Who knew they had another book series? Apparently, everyone but me.

The Mercy of Gods is the first book of The Captive’s War trilogy and brings with it a whole new world building journey. I’ll admit it took me a few chapters to get over this realisation but by the end, I was absolutely hooked, and a little sad that I’ll now have to wait for the next installment.

I can only imagine the expectation that any new series live up to The Expanse, and they nailed it. If you’re looking for a new sci-fi series to get into, and you love Daniel and Ty’s writing, get into this.

Transformed is the book I wish Marty et al. had written first. At the very least, the book I wish I’d read first. It’s definitely the book I think most executives and leaders should read first if they are wanting to switch to the product operating model.

Marty explains what it really means to make the shift away from the IT operating model, the challenges, the mistakes, the benefits. I predict that having read the book, many who thought they wanted the product operating model will realise they actually don’t, or will never get there.

For many organisations, the product operating model with outcome-focused, problem-solving, continuous-delivery, cross-functional teams is where they began as “plucky startup”. The IT operating model is where they are moving to in the name of “maturing” and “scaling” as a business, emphasising project-based, output-focused, requirements-driven, siloed teams, with formal change management.

If (like me) you’re already singing from the Marty Cagan song sheet, Transformed is probably more bias-confirming than eye-opening. If you’re product operating model curious, in a position of authority, and have a mandate to actually make the change, this is probably the book for you.

I love books that give me a coherent model and vocabulary for things I’ve observed but not necessarily put together myself.

We often describe people as having a growth mindset and the book covers a lot of ground on how to foster that. As the title suggests, it also demonstrates that mindsets are cultural, and that the collective mindset is a predictor of the individual mindset.

Growth mindset cultures inspire learning, foster collaboration and inclusion, spur innovation, and build trust. Leaders in growth mindset cultures believe that great ideas come from everyone. People in growth mindset cultures tend to celebrate the success of others.

So, what’s the opposite of growth mindset culture? It’s genius mindset culture.

Genius mindset cultures undermine learning, stifle innovation, and create mistrust and inter-personal competition. They’re based on the premise that, as the name suggests, some people possess inherent genius and should be rewarded as such.

Leaders in genius mindset cultures favour people who think the same way as them, look fondly upon those who unquestioningly execute their plans, and reward people for their overt individual contribution.

Genius mindset cultures have in-groups of people deemed brilliant or talented, and out-groups seen as incompetent. In-groups get all sorts of leeway to make mistakes, whereas failure in out-groups is further evidence they cannot be trusted.

People in genius mindset cultures are incentivised to move from the out-group to the in-group, and remain there at all cost. They are more likely to cut corners, own other’s ideas, and resent others for their accomplishments.

The book is based on rigorous scientific research and provides many resources to promote growth mindset cultures. For me, the standout concepts are that mindsets are cultural, and that thing I’ve observed, genius mindset, now has a name.

I had Expanse withdrawal, and Memory’s Legion proved an effective remedy.

I really enjoyed this collection of short stories, each intended to fill in some part of the Expanse universe that would have been overkill for the main storyline. As a nice bonus, the audiobook also includes author’s notes narrated by Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck themselves.

I liked that each story goes deep on one aspect of one character (often secondary characters at that) and left me with no doubt as to the depth of world building the authors have gone to.

I did find the one first-person story less enjoyable than the rest. I don’t think it was objectively bad, but the perspective and the cadence were so different to everything else in the series that I found it a little jarring.

If they wrote more, I’d be in. At the same time, Memory’s Legion gave me some closure, as it were. Well worth the read.

I admitted defeat and returned the book, unfinished. It’s one of the few books I’ve ever given up on.

The second book in the Earthseed series, I found Parable of the Talents a hard slog from the start, and it didn’t seem to be getting any better.

I really enjoyed Parable of the Sower and still recommend reading it. Thankfully, it was told in such a way that it needed no sequel.

I was expecting to hate this book and instead I loved it.

Together, Erin Meyer and Reed Hastings essentially document their analysis of the key principles that drive how Netflix operates.

It became apparent fairly quickly that many company leaders are doing a bad lip-reading of how they think Netflix operates. At best, they’ve read this book and ignored some of the critical steps:

1. Increase talent density by paying for the best, and then pay them to leave when they’re objectively no longer the best.
2. Remove controls (like vacation leave, and decision hierarchies) and increase freedom, autonomy, and accountability.
3. Cultivate a culture of feedback by training everyone, and role modelling.
4. Lead with context, not control.

The book reminded me of An Everyone Culture and Principles but easier to read, more practical advice.

I read the 3rd edition, and I believe there is a 4th edition in the works.

As a fan of participatory leadership and consent-based decision-making, I figured this would be a useful book to read and I was not disappointed.

The book is almost entirely practical with very little standalone theory. Every chapter introduces a new set of patterns, then walks through what they means, why they’re important, concrete scenarios explaining when and why they apply, and concrete examples for how to apply them.

It was fairly clear, to me, how this book has both documented and influenced the practice of what has become know as The Art of Hosting.

As with such books it’s pretty dry but as a reference, I definitely recommend it.

I really enjoyed Hidden Potential by Adam Grant.

There’s so much fascinating, insightful, and often validating stuff, I almost don’t know where to start.

Some things that stuck with me though, in no particular order:

• Character traits that predict growth potential: being pro-active; pro-social; disciplined; determined. Develop these in yourself, and foster them in others.

• Be proactive: don’t wait for others; become a leader in your journey; experiment with new ideas and approaches.

• Be pro-social: work collaboratively, inspire collective efforts; build understanding of other people and yourself.

• Be disciplined: persist; stick to the plan despite challenges; don’t choose the easy path; endure discomfort for the sake of improvement; practice deliberately.

• Be determined: mistakes and setbacks are part of the process; the more effort you invest, the more you grow.

• Aspiration over ambition: Aspiration represents who you wish to become; Ambition is about your desired achievements.

• Discomfort is where growth happens: create opportunities to face it. Embrace imperfection and start before you have full understanding or skill mastery; this leads to faster improvement.

• The joy of learning: cultivating a love for learning fuels growth; discover and alternate between various learning methods to keep the process fun.

• Teaching to learn: reinforce your understanding, especially when grappling with difficult material; teaching is a highly effective learning tool.

• The curse of knowledge: It’s often easier to learn from someone only slightly ahead of you in experience; large knowledge or skill gaps require additional effort to bridge.

There’s also a wealth of information about fostering equitable education systems that offer increased opportunities for all, and unbiased hiring practices that consider the individual’s potential, rather than solely past success.

Another book I read after watching the Apple TV series. This time, I can’t decide which I liked more. They’re almost entirely different stories save some common threads and characters.