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Episodes

June 8, 2023

EP 428: "You paid WHAT for that?!" Or, How Echo Chambers Distort Pric…

I’m about to write the most journalistic thing I’ve ever written: I received a tip. I wish I could say it was an “anonymous tip” because that sounds even more journalistic. But it wasn’t anonymous, though I won’t say who …

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June 5, 2023

This is Not Advice: Making Work That Can't Be Sold

Welcome to the 3rd edition of This is Not Advice , my advice column that’s not an advice column for paid subscribers of What Works. This week, I am tackling a question that came up during last week’s workshop on …

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May 25, 2023

EP 427: The Trust-Profit Paradox

Today's episode is all about trust and responsibility—and how those qualities impact the cost of doing business and the work that's required for any company to be successful. And specifically, it's about something I'm calling...

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May 22, 2023

EP 426: This is Not Advice: It's Our World, AI Just "Lives" In It

What are we really talking about when we talk about our hopes and fears about AI? It's us. We're the problem. Actually, we're not the problem—we're more like the solution. But that's less mimetic. Sure, this is yet another po...

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May 18, 2023

EP 425: [Dispatch] Gone Meta

There's a sort of inside joke in the online business space of coaches, creators, and service providers. Or maybe, at this point, it's an "outside joke?" Q: What's the surest way to make more money as a creator or small …

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May 11, 2023

EP 424: How the Game We Play Changes Our Work

“This cancerous economic principle means that executives and venture capitalists have abandoned the concept of value within a business. Through decades of corporate greed, production has become almost entirely separated from ...

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May 8, 2023

EP 423: This is Not Advice: What can I do to grow my audience?

Today’s quick episode is a sample of something I’m creating for paid subscribers to What Works. I’m calling it my “This is Not Advice” column. Or, TINA for short. Not to be confused with TINA a la “ there is …

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May 4, 2023

EP 422: The "Risks" of Losing What You Never Had with Nathalie Lussier

What does a bad movie from 1992, loss aversion, Steinbeck, pizza, farm animals, and the founder of a software company have in common? Well, you’ll find them all in this episode. This episode will take you places . I don’t …

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April 27, 2023

EP 421: AI, Automation, and the Case for Luddism

I am on board when it comes to technological progress. I look forward to updating my devices (although I don’t do it as frequently as I used to). New apps and features excite me. I’m pretty quick to adapt to …

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April 20, 2023

EP 420: Why every business is "on a mission to..."

It seems like every company today claims to be "on a mission" to change the world or improve our lives. They bill themselves as social movements more than profit-driven enterprises. It sounds nice. But how does it really func...

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April 11, 2023

EP 419: What is an “ethical business?” with Brooke Monaghan

At least in my corner of social media, there are a lot of folks asking what makes a business ethical. Or, perhaps more accurately, there are a lot of folks answering that question. And there are probably even more folks …

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April 4, 2023

EP 418: [Dispatch] Going beyond the "greedy corporation" critique

This Earth Month... buy more stuff?! We're about to be bombarded with messaging about corporate climate initiatives. We'll have the chance to buy merch to "support" the planet. And we'll be incentivized to spend more so that ...

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March 28, 2023

EP 417: [Dispatch] "All parasites have value"

"All parasites have value, Sibling Dex. Not to their hosts, perhaps, but you could say the same about a predator and a prey animal. They all give back—not to the individual but to the ecosystem at large." — Mosscap, in …

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March 14, 2023

EP 416: Anxiety (and Mental Health) in the Achievement Society with M…

I’ve called myself a recovering overachiever. I’m recovering not from the drive to excel but from the anxiety inherent to wondering if anything I achieve will ever be enough . And folks, it’s a struggle. The philosophy Byung-...

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Feb. 28, 2023

EP 415: The Economics of Being Needy with Mara Glatzel

We all have deep human needs—for belonging, for autonomy, for creative expression, for safety and security. But modern life can make it a real challenge to get those needs met in meaningful ways. Instead, we’re offered produc...

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Feb. 21, 2023

EP 414: The Economics of Ideas with Jenny Blake

What makes an idea valuable? What turns it into a product that can be bought, sold, or rented? Ideas turn into capital assets thanks to our system of intellectual property rights. But understanding IP isn’t simply a matter of...

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Feb. 14, 2023

EP 413: The Economics of Getting (And Paying) Attention: Part 2

This is Part 2 of The Economics of Getting (and Paying) Attention. If you haven’t listened to Part 1, I highly recommend starting there! In today’s episode, I explore the “right to publicity” and the value of celebrity as an …

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Feb. 9, 2023

BONUS: Permission to Speak with Samara Bay

How comfortable are you with your own voice? How likely are you to say what's on your mind? Samara Bay, the author of the brand-new book Permission to Speak , is on a mission to change what power sounds like. …

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Feb. 7, 2023

EP 412: The Economics of Paying Attention (Part 1)

How does the principle of supply and demand influence what we pay attention to? (And who pays attention to us?)

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Jan. 31, 2023

EP 411: The Economics of Cashflow (Remix)

If we want to understand the tiny economy of our businesses, then we have to understand cashflow.

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Jan. 24, 2023

EP 410: The Economics of Work Relationships with Kate Strathmann

How can we avoid unintentional exploitation in our working relationships?

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Jan. 17, 2023

EP 409: The Economics Of Information and Care

If information wants to be free… why is it so darn expensive?

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Jan. 10, 2023

EP 408: The Economics Of Big (and Small) Decisions with Hillary Rea

Can economics help you decide whether or not to quit social media? Yes!

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Jan. 3, 2023

EP 407: How To Feel Good About Going Slow

Can we unlearn urgency and learn to enjoy patience?

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