Just wanted to post a recent win here! I've been selected as one of the businesses being addressed by students in an MBA program at Southern New Hampshire University! I took part in an incubator earlier this year for my business Open for Product (stewarding space for a new way to work and play!) through start.coop and this MBA program is in partnership with them. I'm leaving it up to the students to decide what to address, mostly. But I've suggested using the opportunity to strategize around building a sustainable business model for Open Book, my pilot project for Open for Product. It's a collective publishing experience I'm developing. Specifically, I'm gong to challenge the students to think about how to equitably distribute revenue and share ownership when people contribute different kinds of value, while keeping participation accessible.

In my last post, I wrote about the realization that changed how I do business. The closest economic analogy for AI (according to AI) isn’t a technological revolution. It’s a mass extinction. No. AI doesn’t wipe out humanity. But it does wipe out most businesses (like 75%+). And it does so in a very short timeframe. My last post was about the extinction event. (If you missed it you can read the whole thing [HERE]) Today is about the survivors. The 25%. Who are the 25%? The answer changed my outlook on business entirely. There have been five mass extinction events in earth’s history (that we know of). In every instance, the living things that survived all had one thing in common… In ecology, there’s an old framework for how species survive: K-selection vs. R-selection. K-selected species reproduce later, produce much fewer offspring, and invest way more into each one. Examples: elephants, whales, gorillas, bears, you. They tend to be larger, live longer, mature slower, and far more invested in learning, development, and parental care. They evolve primarily in relatively stable environments where resources are limited and competition is fierce. Their advantage isn’t speed. It’s optimization. They make fewer bets and invest more heavily in each one. They develop deeper capabilities. They become extremely good at competing within the environment they inhabit. Think of them as nature’s specialists. They pick a game and get very, very good at playing it. Now, compare them to… R-selected species reproduce earlier, produce way more offspring, and invest way less into each one. Examples: mice, rabbits, flies, mosquitoes, frogs, fish that lay lots of eggs. They tend to mature earlier, reproduce faster, have shorter lifespans, and invest far less in parental care. They evolved primarily in unstable, unpredictable, rapidly changing environments. Their advantage isn’t optimization.

That’s what I’ve felt. Literally every single day since AI dropped. Or, more appropriately, since I really started to understand the implications of AI on all of our lives. It’s such a strange combination of emotions. Terrified I’m being left behind. Terrified of being irrelevant. Terrified of obsolescence. All mixed up with a level of excitement that makes me feel like I’m going to burst. Excitement for all of the opportunities I can see (and even those I don’t see yet). It’s enough to drive someone crazy. So, I did what all of us do now when we need someone to talk to. I talked to ChatGPT. (Fun Fact: From the very beginning the #1 use of generative AI has been therapy.) The conversation didn’t start with much direction other than I just didn’t want to be so afraid anymore. I’m already a neurotic, armchair “doomsday prepper” so big shifts like this are designed to agitate the part of me that needs to be ready. The problem is, I didn’t know what to get ready for. So I started asking Chat for analogies (which is wildly ironic for reasons you’ll learn if you keep reading the articles I plan on posting). From an economic perspective, what times in human history are analogous to what we’re experiencing today? I was looking for the frameworks, the mental models, the “if this, then that” equations that would help me understand what to do. The problem: There really weren’t any. In fact, I think that’s where the terror and excitement come from. We have nothing to compare this to. So, I went further back. What times in history (removing the “human” qualifier) are analogous to what we’re experiencing today. You’re not going to like the answer. However, please stick with me past the initial shock. I promise, there’s light at the end of the tunnel. You’ve probably already guessed what Chat said (with a little coaxing and then a lot of disclaimers)… Extinction events. Uh oh. There have been five major extinction events in earth’s history (that we know of).

On Persistance: I'm interested enough in the etymology and philology of words (where they come from and how they change over time) that I run an internet search every now and then when I wonder, "Huh; why do we say that?" That is to say: I trust the first result I read, and only dig deeper if things get interesting (yes; I realize "interesting" is perhaps doing some heavy lifting here.) 😂 Words often change meaning over time, or get pronounced or spelled in different ways. "Ye olde shoppe" is one of my favourites— British spelling for emphasis —because there is a fascinating, yet quite practical reason it looks like "yee" but is actually pronounced "the". But, my message today is about persistence: Roots and History - The Prefix: per-, which means "through". - The Base: It combines with sistere, "to stand". - French Influence: The verb "persister" was adapted to a noun form "persistance". - English Adoption: English borrowed the word, adding a firm or stubborn connotation. Today, the English meaning and spelling essentially reflects the Latin origin! In other words, it has ... persisted! 👏 So have I. I've started negotiations with a client in February. I had an idea for their marketing, communications, and website. It's a bit of a seasonal business: STEAM programming for school children. So, I wanted to get started early, and set a foundation for their Fall operations this year. But they went a different direction. We've kept in touch. I've followed up regularly. They've sent back questions. Yada yada. Essentially, I developed a good bit of rapport (another English word borrowed from the French). Today, I contracted with them to do the work. I couldn't have expected this yesterday, but I feel lighter today. My shoulders have less tension. I'm more harmonious in my interactions with people around me. Something feels right that I didn't even know felt wrong before. I can't attribute that entirely to the completion of this goal, but I'd be ignorant if I didn't realize it's a contributing factor. It's not just the business side of things, either; this is not my biggest client by far.

@Kasim Aslam I just wanted to say: I got more out of your welcome module than I've gotten in some other communities after months of being active. What a testament to the value of what you're building here. In the product development and design world, "time to value" is a big consideration. I'm not even sure it was intentional, or just the result of value emerging from a good framework, but you nailed it!