This edition is brought to you by Shortform.

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: Jim Simons

Jim Simons, the billionaire hedge fund manager and philanthropist, has revolutionized the world of quantitative investing. With a PhD in mathematics and a background in code-breaking, Simons founded Renaissance Technologies in 1982, applying his mathematical powerss to the financial markets. His flagship Medallion Fund has generated an astounding 66% average annual return since 1988, making Simons one of the most successful investors of all time. Known for his scientific approach and his ability to attract top talent from diverse fields, Simons has built a legendary reputation as the "Quant King." Despite his immense success, he remains committed to philanthropy, supporting research in mathematics, science, and education through his Simons Foundation.

What we can learn from Jim:

• On hiring: “Hire the very best people you possibly can and then let them carry the ball.”

• On decisions: “It’s better to make a decision and adjust afterward then to keep procrastinating.”

• On deep thinking: "I wasn't the fastest guy in the world. I wouldn't have done well in an Olympiad or a math contest. But I like to ponder. And pondering things, just sort of thinking about it and thinking about it, turns out to be a pretty good approach."

Read More.

Company: Visa

Visa, the global payments technology giant, traces its roots back to 1958 when Bank of America launched the first consumer credit card program, BankAmericard. In 1976, Dee Hock, a former Bank of America employee, created a new organization, National BankAmericard Inc., to unite various BankAmericard issuer banks. This organization would later become Visa. The company went public in 2008 in what was then the largest IPO in U.S. history, raising $17.9 billion. Today, Visa facilitates electronic funds transfers worldwide, processing over 188 billion transactions annually in more than 200 countries and territories.

What we can learn from Visa:

• On branding: Hock believed the name "Visa" was easy to say in any language, recognizable, and denoted international acceptance.

• On business model innovation: Visa pioneered the 'open-loop' payments network model, acting as a middleman between banks and merchants. This allowed the system to scale rapidly versus 'closed-loop' store cards.

• On sustainable competitive advantages: Visa's moat is its massive global payments network, which would be nearly impossible for a competitor to replicate. Widespread merchant acceptance and trust keeps consumers in the Visa ecosystem.

(Read More).

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Accelerants

High-performance tool

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Superhuman

Every few weeks, I’ll share a tool or hack I’ve been trying that’s improved some aspect of my life. I have no affiliation with these and will always clearly share when that’s false.

This week, it’s Superhuman for Email. If you spend a lot of time on email (20+ emails per day), it’s probably a no-brainer.

My favourite features are AI replies (that actually sound like you), simple-to-understand and use shortcuts, follow-up reminders, and social media insights that automatically get attached to emails.

A trend I’m watching

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TikTok is rapidly evolving from just an entertainment app to a major news source, especially for younger generations. According to Pew Research, 43% of TikTok users regularly get news from the platform, up 21% from 2020. As users crave more authentic and concise content, TikTok's short video format provides a fresh way to consume news compared to traditional media.

As AI lowers the barriers to video-creation, I’m hoping the social platforms start including clear ‘stamps’ to indicate what’s AI-generated and what isn’t.

Potential Business Opportunities:

• A TikTok-native news agency that produces bite-sized video reports and analysis tailored for the platform's format and audience

• An AI-powered tool that automatically summarizes lengthy articles into snappy 60-second TikTok videos

• A TikTok consulting firm that helps media companies and journalists build an effective presence and content strategy on the app

(Read More).

Tactical reads

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> When you're thinking about markets
Markets in motion by Rebecca Kaden (Read it here)

> When you're thinking about product-market fit
How to find product market fit: the counterintuitive secrets by John Vrionis and Sandhya Hegde (Read it here)

> When speed matters
Speed matters: Why working quickly is more important than it seems (Read it here)

> When leading for results
Leadership that gets results by Daniel Goleman (Read it here)

> When looking for inspiration
Smart Words From Smart People (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.

Cheers,

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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.

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