This edition is brought to you by Athyna

Good morning to all new and old readers! Here is your Wednesday edition of Faster Than Normal, exploring one short story about a person, a company, a high-performance tool, a trend I’m watching closely, and curated media to help you build businesses, wealth, and the most important asset of all: yourself. 

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Today’s edition:

Cheers,
Alex

P.S. Send me feedback on how we can improve. I respond to every email.

Stories of Excellence

Person: Abigail Johnson

Abigail Johnson, the chairman and CEO of Fidelity Investments, has successfully led one of the world's largest financial services companies through a period of rapid technological change and industry disruption. Born in 1961 in Boston, Massachusetts, Johnson grew up immersed in the world of finance, learning the ropes of the family business from her father, Edward C. Johnson III. Since taking the helm of Fidelity in 2014, Johnson has prioritized innovation, customer experience, and adaptability, ensuring that the company remains at the forefront of the evolving investment landscape.

Key Lessons from Abigail Johnson:

• On innovation: "We need to be willing to disrupt ourselves before someone else disrupts us."

• On long-term thinking: "We're not just focused on the next quarter or the next year. We're focused on the next generation."

• On risk-taking: "You can't be afraid to take risks, but you also need to be smart about it."

Read more.

Company: Scentsy

In 2003, Kara Egan and Colette Gunnell launched Scentsy, a wickless candle company, from a basement office in Salt Lake City, Utah. Orville Thompson encountered their products at a home show in 2004 and, sensing huge potential, he and his wife Heidi bought the company within months. They moved Scentsy to a shipping container on their Idaho sheep farm. On July 1, 2004, Scentsy signed its first consultant, officially becoming a direct selling company. The Thompsons navigated early challenges - like being $700,000 in debt - with grit and determination. "We are going to swing really hard," Heidi famously declared. Their passion and authenticity resonated with customers and consultants alike, propelling Scentsy to $87 million in revenue by 2008, $471 million by 2019, and $1 billion by 2021.

Key Lessons from Scentsy

• On branding: "It goes back to the feel-good aspect," Heidi says. "I love to come home, open the door and find my house smelling so good. Customers love that feeling when they walk in the door, too."

• On competition: Scentsy's wickless, flameless candles offered a safer, cleaner alternative to traditional candles, carving out a unique niche in the fragrance market.

• On customer insight: Orville was intrigued by how different scents evoked powerful emotions and memories, and how natural it was to share those feelings with others - a key insight that shaped Scentsy's direct selling model.

• On business model: "Orville and Heidi decided to market and sell Scentsy products directly to consumers through home parties," allowing the immersive Scentsy experience to shine.

Read More.

Hire remote employees with confidence

Two years ago, I hired an offshore assistant , and it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made. From marketing to customer support, it’s helped streamline work and boost productivity.

Athyna is a service that finds top remote employees in <5 days in Latam, Africa, and Sth East Asia. They cover roles in finance, creative, engineering, and product, sourcing top talent from companies like Google, AWS, Microsoft, and more.

If you’re in the market for talent, visit their website to explore options and cover all your hiring needs.

Accelerants

High-performance tool

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What? So What? Now What?

The "What? So What? Now What?" framework was developed by Terry Borton in the 1970s as a group facilitation technique. It's a simple yet powerful approach for reflection, learning, and action. As Borton put it, "What? surfaces the facts and events of an experience. So What? gets at the meaning and implications. Now What? is the process of identifying and committing to appropriate next steps."

Why does this framework work so well? First, it forces you to be objective about the facts of a situation before jumping to conclusions or actions. Second, it pushes you to dig deeper into the implications and learnings from an experience — not just what happened, but why it matters. Third, it ensures reflection turns into decisive action by asking "Now what?" As leadership expert John Maxwell said, "Reflection turns experience into insight."

So how can you apply this in your work? Use "What? So What? Now What?" in your next project retrospective or after a critical incident. Gather the facts, discuss the implications and learnings, then define clear next steps.

As author Phillip Moffitt wrote, "Reflection is one of the most underused yet powerful tools for success."

A trend I’m watching

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Neurotech startups like Neuralink, Kernel, and others are pushing the boundaries of what's possible with brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) and neurostimulation. The goal? Enhancing human cognition to achieve peak mental performance. As these technologies become more accessible and socially accepted, we could see a future where popping a "smart pill" to ace a test or zapping your brain to learn a new skill is as common as downing a cup of coffee.

Some opportunities in this space:

• Personalized brain training apps that use neurofeedback and adaptive algorithms to optimize cognitive function

• Over-the-counter neural implants or non-invasive BCIs for on-demand boosts to memory, focus, or learning speed

• "Neuro-wearables" that track cognitive metrics and provide real-time enhancement recommendations

• Cognition-as-a-Service platforms that let anyone access the latest neurotech enhancements through a subscription

Tactical reads

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> When you need to understand the financial levers in your business
How to understand the financial levers in your business (Read it here)

> When managing a massively profitable trade
The psychology behind managing a 20-bagger (Read it here)

> When you want to become a better reader
45 lessons on Becoming a (Better) Reader (Read it here)

> When understanding manufacturing
A deep dive into the additive manufacturing technologies transforming mass production (Read it here)

> When contemplating astrology
Millionaires Don’t Use Astrology, Billionaires Do (Read it here)

1 question

That’s all for today, folks. As always, please give me your feedback. Which section is your favourite? What do you want to see more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know.

Have a wonderful rest of week, all.

Recommendation Zone

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Hire remote employees with confidence

Two years ago, I hired an offshore assistant for the first time. Since then, I’ve recommended many people do the same. It’s been one of the highest leverage things I’ve done, helping with everything marketing and customer support (for The Intelligence Age) and personal matters and email management.

Athyna is a service that quickly (<5 days!) finds remote employees across 150+ countries for you or your team. They cover roles from sales and marketing to creative and product, and have worked with companies like Facebook, Zoom, Uber, Microsoft, Salesforce, and Amazon.

I’ve personally used Athyna and recommended them to my Brother, Will, who runs a fashion label, and several close friends running their own businesses. To date, they’ve all had very positive experiences.

If you’re in the market for talent, visit their website to explore options and cover all your hiring needs.

Why Faster Than Normal? Our mission is to be a friend to the ambitious, a mentor to the becoming, and a partner to the bold. We achieve this by sharing the stories, ideas, and frameworks of the world's most prolific people and companies—and how you can apply them to build businesses, wealth, and the most important asset of all: yourself.

Faster Than Normal is a ‘state' of being’ rather than an outcome. Outlier performance requires continuous, compounded improvement. We’re your partner on this journey.

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