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: Gail Miller

Gail Miller is a prominent businesswoman and philanthropist from Salt Lake City, Utah. She became the owner of the Utah Jazz NBA team and the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies after her husband's death in 2009. Miller transformed the family business from a single car dealership into a diverse empire spanning automotive, sports, entertainment, and real estate sectors. "I never planned on running a large corporation," Miller said. "But I knew I had to step up." Under her leadership, the company grew to over 10,000 employees and $5.6 billion in annual revenue. Miller's focus on community involvement led to significant charitable contributions, including a $50 million donation to the University of Utah for diabetes research. In 2020, she sold majority control of the Utah Jazz but remains actively involved in philanthropic efforts.

Key Lessons from Gail Miller:

• On stepping up: "When faced with unexpected challenges, don't shy away. Rise to the occasion and learn as you go."

• On legacy: "Think beyond your own success. Build something that will benefit future generations."

Read More.

Company: Domino's Pizza

Domino's Pizza was founded in 1960 by brothers Tom and Jim Monaghan, who bought a small pizza shop called DomiNick's in Ypsilanti, Michigan for $500. Jim soon sold his share to Tom for a used Volkswagen Beetle. Tom, a college dropout, focused on streamlining operations and delivery. He renamed the business Domino's Pizza in 1965 and began franchising in 1967. The company expanded rapidly, opening its 200th store in 1978 and going international in 1983. Domino's pioneered the 30-minute delivery guarantee in 1984. By 2022, Domino's had grown to over 19,500 stores in 90+ countries with global retail sales of $17.5 billion.

Key Lessons from Domino's Pizza:

• On systems: Obsess over efficiency. Tom Monaghan spent years refining every aspect of store layout and pizza-making to maximize speed. He even patented a corrugated pizza box for better heat retention.

• On guarantees: Make bold promises. The 30-minute delivery guarantee was risky but differentiated Domino's. It forced operational excellence and became a key brand element.

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.

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Accelerants

High-performance tool

⎯

Jootsing

An extreme version of thinking outside the box that involves:

1. First gaining deep knowledge of the system and its rules

2. Then stepping outside to find something that subverts its rules

3. And finally, using your findings to make something new and creative

Insights

Tactical reads

⎯

> When examining the cognitive biases behind procrastination
Akrasia, hyperbolic discounting, and picoeconomics (Read it here)

> When analyzing the psychology of procrastination in depth
Why Procrastinators Procrastinate (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

⎯

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.

Send us your feedback and help us continuously improve our content and achieve our mission. We want to hear from you and respond to everyone.

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