What. A. Week.
Last time I mentioned Trump I found I had some supporters subscribed. I was elated. Ok, we lost some subscribers but encountering & engaging pro-Trump people in Holland is nearly impossible. (everyone has seen this right?)
At any rate, the daily barrage headlines and their countless implications coming out of DC is overwhelming. I was stepping away from (alternative) facts to prepare for this newsletter and read about the concept of The Most Respectful Interpretation.
I'm not suggesting you try to determine a silver lining or non-nefarious motivation to the new administration's insidious intentions but rather, in your daily life. Try to go from hair trigger to adopting a more self-aware rigor. From the post:
By pausing to reflect on our anger we can recognize that we are making a negative assumption and challenge ourselves to invert the situation and consider the opposite: “What is the most generous assumption I can make?”
In other words and to paraphrase, Shane from Farnam Street, the next time you find yourself annoyed with colleagues, angry at others on the road, or just judgmental about decisions other are making: try to skip the negative assumption and strive to interpret the situation in a more respectful and generous way. You might eventually realize that the broccoli tastes good. (broccoli emoji due later this year!)
As always, thanks for reading,
Jon
p.s.
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Cycling
Why You Should Ride Your Bike Outdoors All Winter Long
Ultimately, even without any other benefits, I’d ride outside purely for the adventure.
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The Idea Hunt experience for cyclists.
Idea Hunt is an open innovation platform and Twotone has been working with this sweet Swedish startup to connect their tool to the cycling industry. We started by getting 175 social media influencer to signup.
Now we're looking for brands to try some pilots projects. Reply to this mail if you're keen. : )
17 Bike Rides To Experience in 2017
neat list but damn Spinlister, what's up with those maps? Komoot woulda been a way better choice ; )
Startups
10 data-driven insights about European tech
- With a record € 16.2 billion raised in 2016, European tech is better capitalised than ever
- Slow-down in the UK & Germany, France is now leading Europe by number of rounds
- Consumer tech focused more on execution and consolidation in 2016, less on funding
- ... [read more here]
What You Learn Working in Early-stage SaaS Startups
A look back at Melanie Crissey's last five years with two Atlanta SaaS startups. Worth the read. 100%
Stand out quote:
"This isn’t about what I learned — it’s about what we can learn from each other."
word.
The benefits of being an early adopter
Exploring the value of being a first mover, connecting with founders and building a profile in a nascent community.
One of my favorite things about software is trying it first. Kinda like being the first to give feedback on a new bike product or design. You get to help make it more awesome for everyone + its fun!
shout out to Bas & his revue! Almost 1 year!
Sales
How do you sell SaaS software to enterprise businesses?
Your SaaS company has got a minimum-touch self-service model working really effectively, your investors are happy and money keeps on coming in without you really touching anything, but there’s one nut that’s a lot harder to crack and that’s how to sell your SaaS product to enterprise customers in a way that is time-effective and cost-efficient, given your relatively low price.
#trending topic in many recent meetings with partners & prospects
How Storytelling Is Helping Brands Sell More Products
Ilya Vedrashko, svp and director of research at Hill Holliday's consumer research arm, Origin studies consumer desires. They ran a series of experiments to test whether adding a story helps sell a product.
Common Traits of Successful Sales People
Which traits do the most successful people display in the office and when with clients?
Reminder: next Sales Hacker Amsterdam is Thursday! Almost 100 RSVPs!
Radness
Thereabouts 3: Discovering Colombia
In Thereabouts 3, Gus and Lachy explore the difficult riding and the amazing cycling culture of Colombia which has produced some of the finest road cyclists of past and modern eras. It also progresses their own personal story of how the two brothers have come back to race professional together and how Lachy is now taking the step back up to the World Tour.
Bonus! Our client à BLOC was in Adelaide last weekend supplying beer for the premiere ; )