Four things to consider

What is strategy? Are we at the dawn of the end of social media? And visualizing your destiny | Vol. 58

Jan 30, 2025

Last week’s dispatch was 4-minute read. This week’s is an estimated 6 minutes. Still better than 10! LOL. 😆 Please enjoy! 🤗

1. What is strategy 🧭

“The kernal of strategy contains three elements: a diagnosis, a guiding policy, and coherent action.” - Richard Rumelt, Good Strategy Bad Strategy

Follow-Up Thoughts & Questions

While that sentence seems straightforward and logical, in reality, it is very hard to think strategically and commit to the process. Especially when that involves thinking strategically with groups of people. To diagnose a problem properly, you must be willing to question the entire situation, even to go as far as to admit said situation is a failure. When setting a guiding policy, it needs to be rooted in a discipline and have elements of ambition and clarity. In my experience, many people would rather run on the whims of their comfort zones versus being hyper focused on good strategy. If you want to go deeper on mission and thinking strategically, I wrote about it last July here.
How might you use this framework to consider your own pursuits and projects?
Whether it’s your own journey or work you are doing with a group, ask yourself are you adhereing to what strategy really is?
Are you honest in your diagnosis?
Are you setting a clear policy on what’s ahead? Are the actions producing the desired results?
How can you get groups of people to buy into a strategy? What do people need in order to believe in the journey good strategy requires?

2. Will social go the way of malls? 📱

“The amount of space these technologies take up in our lives – and their ever-diminishing utility – has brought us to a sort of cultural tipping point. [Our feeds have completed their] years-long transformation from a neighborhood populated with friends to a glossy condo development of brands.” - From Anne Helen Petersen heard through Dense Discovery Newletter 323 1.28.25
“Not long ago, we hoped that these artificial gathering places could be robust, vital replacements for the neighborhoods we tore down. But what I’ve learned is that you pay a heavy price for replacing a real community with a fake one. And that brings me to the subject of social media platforms—which increasingly resemble these old, decrepit malls.” - Ted Gioia, Honest Broker 12.12.24

Follow-Up Thoughts

I deleted my Twitter. I am on Instagram way less (but I still use it). I never use Facebook. The only platform I really log into these days is TikTok. I watch it the same way I use to watch Cable TV years ago. Flipping from channel to channel catching sound bites on news of the day. It’s all what cable TV use to be (news, MTV, sports clips) plus comedians, plus podcast clips, plus skits that are so dumb I never finish them, and at times academic lessons on history, philosophy, or mindfulness. That algorithm is SO impressive. And I learn SO many things from it. Yet, I will say this: after I am done scrolling for minutes my brain feels mushy. And then I think, that can’t be good.
And yet, when I take a longer look back at social media I have to thank my lucky stars in a way. On a personal career tip, if it wasn’t for social media I’d probably never had been able to break into advertising. But that’s a story for another time.

3. Is the trend of unplugging growing? 💫

“2024 saw the luxury industry get deeper into run clubs, book clubs, pop-ups, and activations. I’m predicting that this will drive an attitude that spending more time IRL will be seen as a status symbol, which conversly means being tech addicted with being seen as a low status trait.” - Eugene Healy (@eugbrandstrat)
“Being choronically offline is the new flex.” - Eugene Healy (@eugbrandstrat)
“Boredom is when you do the things that make you feel like you have life under control. Not being bored is why you always feel busy, why you keep ‘not having time’ to take a package to the post office or work on your novel. You do have time – you just spend it on your phone. By refusing to ever let your brain rest, you are choosing to watch other people’s lives through a screen at the expense of your own.” - Kate Lindsay, as heard through Dense Discovery Newsletter 323 1/28/25

Follow-Up Thoughts & Questions

I saw this ad above for “dinner with human beings” on Instagram and it felt perfectly fitted for an era where loneliness continues to grow. Last year I noticed this interesting thing called Offline Club. It started in Amsterdam but has since grown to six other cities. A brilliant gent I’ve been forutnate work with at Giant Spoon started a weekend getaway book club that sells out every time he hosts a new one (@PageBreak). Fascinating trends signaling people creating space for people to be with eachother off of a phone.
As Eugene Huley pontificates, are we entering the post-social [media] era?
Are you getting out into your community with humans IRL more so than in years past?
Why do you think this trend of being intentionally offline is growing?

4. Pro-Tip: Do a mood board & put it on the wall in your room 🖼

"The clearer you are in your visualization, the more you will be able to make it come true. You must see it clearly and consistently for it to manifest." - Shakti Gawain, consciousness researcher and author
“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions. Imagination is more important than knowledge.” - Albert Einstein

Follow-Up Thoughts & Questions

I use to do this a long time ago and I am bringing it back in 2025. Below is a little mood board I made. Some of these images are just moods. Or vibes as the kids say. Some of it is envisioning places I want to be. Or photos I want to take one day.
You are just like a plant. And if you want to be a healthy strong plant, you need water, sunlight, and good soil. I’d argue visualization is form of good nutrients for you to set a positive mood. Or better yet, nutrients to help you to continue your growth to become even stronger and taller.
What kind of photos would you put in your moodboard to increase the positive energy in your life?
What kind of places do you want to be in the months or years ahead?
Are you giving yourself a chance to visualize those things every single day?