Max Holzheu's Weekly Newsletter - Issue #1
Hi friends! This is the first issue of my newsletter. I hope to send it every weekend, but I might skip it if I don’t find anything particularly interesting. Enjoy!
Quote Of The Week 🔑
Simple heuristic: If you’re evenly split on a difficult decision, take the path that’s more painful in the short term.
- Naval Ravikant
Bitcoin ⚡️
This week, Bitcoin gets its own category because I’ve been doing a deep dive on it, trying to understand how it works, why it matters and where it’s headed. For me, Bitcoin is an extremely disruptive technology waiting to break into the mainstream.
Here’s an ordered list of what I’ve read to understand Bitcoin:
(Warning: These are all long. Take your time 🙂 )
0. Sapiens, by Yuval Harari. This is not really about Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies, but I suggest you read this book first, not only because it’s the best book I’ve read all year, but also because it explains why we Homo Sapiens can collaborate in huge groups (thousands and more), whereas most other animals can work in groups of 25 tops, and how that single fact has propelled us to where society is right now. This becomes important in #2 and #3.
1. Cryptocurrency for the Busy Beginner: Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Beyond by Alex Moskov. I recommend this for everyone trying to learn about Bitcoin and beyond. It’s a fantastic and easy to read guide.
2. Hear this episode (transcription here) of the Tim Ferriss Show with Nick Szabo and Naval Ravikant. Nick Szabo is a polymath, but he’s best known for his pioneering research in cryptocurrency. I liked this podcast because Tim (the host) in an absolute n00b in crypto topics, so both Nick and Naval are forced to dumb it down so that even non-technical people can understand. Watch out for their discussion on “social scalability”, which will blow your mind if you read Sapiens first. 🔑
3. Money, blockchains, and social scalability by Nick Szabo. This is the essay that got Nick Szabo an honorary doctorate and professorship from the UFM in Guatemala. It’s very long, very in depth and very technical. My one sentence summary: Bitcoin is trust made software. Read Sapiens. 🔑
Lastly, if you’re thinking about investing in Bitcoin, please be sure to inform yourself, just like any other investment :)
You never invest in something because someone else tells you to, that person may not be around to tell you when it’s time to sell.
On Nutrition
I have a goal to gain 20lbs by the end of the year, and a crucial part of that is my diet. In order to avoid getting scammed by marketers, I’ve been taking WageningenX: NUTR101x Nutrition and Health, a great course on basic nutrition and our body. I highly recommend it!
Thanks to my friend Luisan for the hat tip!
What I'm reading 📖
The Effective Executive, by Peter Drucker
What I'm listening to 🎶
- Derek Sivers on Developing Confidence, Finding Happiness, and Saying “No” to Millions
Is this useful to you? Feedback 👂
If you made it this far, you are awesome, and I’d love your feedback on what you’d like to see (or not like to see) in the next email digest. Send me your thoughts by hitting the reply button. Thank you so much! ❤️