Yes, Your Texts Suggest You're a Monster
Good morning from San Francisco, where my darkened desk in the financial district seems worlds away from the absolute insanity that beset the nation’s airwaves yesterday. Tom Brokaw has commented on Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the country in a sobering reflection on Japanese internment camps, WWII and the Holocaust, McCarthyism and slavery. Paul Ryan issued a crisp, direct rebuke, saying “it’s not what our country stands for.” Nate Silver at FiveThirtyEight reminds us how we’ve pretty much brought this on ourselves. And the New York Daily News compared Trump to both the Nazis and ISIS in their latest cover.
In response to all of this, you may be tempted to unfriend every friend of yours who posts something in support of Trump, or something xenophobic, or something that you feel is downright ludicrous. Friend of mine and friend of this newsletter Bill Dahab counters that, no, you shouldn’t unfriend them, reminding us that Facebook is where these ugly thoughts will emerge unfiltered. Unfriending them only eliminates your exposure to their views, reinforces selective bias, and removes an opportunity for you to speak up.
Anyways, in other news...
Study confirms that ending your texts with a period is terrible. From WaPo: "When that reply was followed by a period, subjects rated the response as less sincere than when no punctuation was used. The effect wasn't present in handwritten notes.” SO STOP IT, YOU MONSTERS.
Chipotle is Blaming the Government and the Media for Their E. Coli PR Nightmare - Mum, if you needed another reminder of what I do for a living, it would involve physically throwing myself on the CFO before he says this at an investor conference.
My unrelenting optimism is vindicated: Harvard Business Review reports Proof That Positive Work Cultures Are More Productive. Basically, a positive culture leads to a sense of belonging, reduced disengagement and increased loyalty. PSA: my chipper demeanor is available for parties and office bar mitzvahs.
And finally, Marriott is removing desks from their hotel rooms, saying that Millennials would rather work from bed. And some folks, including this Elder Millennial, think that is garbage.
Take some time to think of one good thing this morning, my loves. See you tomorrow.