Jul 26, 2022 4 min read Monthly Mention

The Monthly Mention - July 2022

My monthly recommendations newsletter “The Monthly Mention” covers what I’ve been enjoying from the world of Books, Movies, Podcasts, YouTube etc.

Quick Overview

📕 Book - "Building A Second Brain" - Tiago Forte

💿 Album - “Cerulean” - Ken Yates

📘 Book - "Islands of Abandonment" - Cal Flyn

🎞 Documentary - "Watergate: High Crimes in the White House"

🎧 Podcast Episode - "How To Become a Digital Nomad - Lauren Razavi" - Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal

📕 BOOK

"Building A Second Brain" - Tiago Forte

Last month I recommended the digital note taking app "Obsidian", which I have been using to build my second brain. In harmony with that I thought I would have a read of Tiago Forte's new book "Building A Second Brain", which condenses and distills his key ideas from blog posts, podcasts and YouTube videos that he has been making on the subject for the last few years. Forte has been very successful at selling access to his online cohort based courses and this book will no doubt get his message out to a wider audience.

The "Building A Second Brain" concept is part of what's known as Personal Knowledge Management (PKM). The idea being that our 'first brain', our biological brain, is quite fallible so we need a system for recording our ideas and concepts, especially if we are part of the creator economy. Essentially by using the zettelkasten note taking method (Compare: "How to Take Smart Notes." by Dr Sönke Ahrens) you will have a way of linking your thinking and being able to produce new content quickly and easily. A second brain is a place to store our ideas and knowledge, our first brain is a place for thought, rumination and idea generation.

This book is a great introduction to the field of PKM. Forte shares his “system” for building a digital note taking second brain, but unlike a rigid prescription, these are more like timeless principles that can be adapted into your note taking system or used as a starting point for those who want to be more deliberate with their knowledge management.

💿 ALBUM

“Cerulean” - Ken Yates

I recommended Ken’s last album (“Quiet Talkers”) previously (TMM Dec 2021) and purely in the interests of variety I considered putting another album in here. But this one is just too darn good to pass over! Yates is a master of brilliantly uplifting melancholy. I just love his lyrics. Which have probably gone up a notch here on "Cerulean". E.g. “life is like a cheap wine, it don’t get better with time” or “the worst pain comes with no bleeding, when you're stuck staring at the ceiling” - from the two standout tracks of the album “Best of the Broken Things” and “Honest Light” respectively. Ken has begun to augment his acoustic guitar with some pretty cool soundscapes and guitar effects which work rather well too. Suffice to say if you enjoyed “Quiet Talkers” you will definitely appreciate this record. He picks up where he left off. Brilliant stuff.

📘 BOOK

"Islands of Abandonment" - Cal Flyn

This is an intriguing book with quite a unique concept. Flyn takes a look at a selection of desolate places and regions (such as Chernobyl or the The Buffer Zone in Cyprus) long after we humans have packed up and left. She largely looks at the ecological impact but also the cultural and historical significance of these developments. It's fascinating to see how nature responds, adapts and in most cases thrives without human impact. The book again highlights the symbiotic relationship between man and nature. We have an obligation to treat the planet with the respect it rightfully deserves and if we go about things the right way, mother nature will work along with us. We also have here ample evidence that the converse has been catastrophic. "Islands of Abandonment" is a wake up call and a clarion call to action. You can see why it's made the shortlist for a number of prestigious nature writing awards. Well worth a read.

🎞 DOCUMENATRY

Watergate: High Crimes in the White House (2022)

It’s 50 years since the Watergate scandal erupted, leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. It truly is the scandal of all political scandals, the reason why "gate" has become an appendage onto every other one since. I enjoyed this recent retelling of the story, which covers all the basics of the plot, the ensuing saga and the outcome. As a retrospective it could have focused more on the longer term implications as well as the modern parallels to be found in the Donald Trump presidency. However, it’s very well put together and features up to date interviews with most of the key players, as well as the press covering the story. If you can’t catch this documentary from CBS there are a ton of others on YouTube. I have watched a few on the subject in the past and I seem to remember the BBC one being rather good as well.

🎧 PODCAST EPISODE

"How To Become a Digital Nomad - Lauren Razavi" - Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal

As you guys may know I'm a big fan of Ali Abdaal's work. I found this episode of Deep Dive fascinating. I've been interested in the digital nomad lifestyle for years and this episode explores that world in some depth. Particularly significant was the impact of the COVID pandemic on nomads and the novel ways they coped with this challenge. Lauren is currently working on a project to create products for digital nomads that provide social care services - heath care, benefits, nomad visas etc- without the need to temporarily cross boarders.

Her current line of work fits under the umbrella of newly founded 'digital countries'. This concept of digital nations is so simple, yet potentially revolutionary. Instead of paying into a nation states tax system - for health care, benefits etc - you would be paying into a corporations coffers for the same services in return, without the need to be domiciled in a particular geographic location. If the corporation don't live up to their promises or you disagree with the direction they are taking, you can simply vote with your feet and move over to another provider, another digital state.

The world is changing at an ever increasing rate and these esoteric ideas and fields can very quickly become mainstream. All I can say is watch this space.

If you are interested in these topics I also recommend the recent 3 hour podcast interview of Balaji S. Srinivasan with Tim Ferris. Long form at its best.