#58 - Notes on Twitter, Productivity and Millennial Minds
Education Coffee is a 2xWeekly Newsletter on People, Ideas and Culture.
In each edition of this newsletter, I will share some inspiring web resources that I have curated after hours of research to ensure that you have the best education coffee in your inbox. In upcoming editions, I will focus on sharing insights, notes and realizations that I gather from people, ideas, books, films and podcasts. Please subscribe to this newsletter if you enjoyed reading this edition.
1. Learning from People
Massimo is an engineer who uses his Twitter/X account to select and curate pictures and videos that add context, source and explanation to science, tech, art and weather topics. It is my new favourite account on the platform and you can spend hours browsing through the post archive (280,000 posts) of this handle on the platform. You can follow Massimo on this link @Rainmaker1973.
2. Learning from Ideas and Questions
Chris Anderson, the Head of TED Talks re-introduces the idea of Infectious Generosity in his new book. Infectious Generosity is the idea that through the power of the internet, small acts of thoughtfulness spread to change lives at a scale never experienced before. At TED, he first applied the idea of infectious generosity by giving away thousands of talks for free online. These talks spread like wildfire and compounded the impact and growth of TED worldwide. There were soon millions of requests to host TEDX talks, and participate in the conference coming in globally. He argues that the internet helps us give in so many more ways beyond money and that we all have the power and need to be infectiously generous on a day to day basis. I loved this TED talk and am looking forward to be infectiously generous with content on people, ideas and culture here on Substack.
3. Learning from Books, Websites and Blogs
The YouTuber Ali Abdul published the book, Feel Good Productivity in 2023. In this book talk, he reveals how the science of feel-good productivity can transform your life. He introduces the three hidden 'energisers' that underpin enjoyable productivity, the three 'blockers' we must overcome to beat procrastination, and the three 'sustainers' that prevent burnout and help us achieve lasting fulfillment. There were lots of little insights and actionable steps I was able to apply in my own life from this talk. You can also follow him on Youtube on his channel @aliabdaal.
4. Learning from Films, Videos and Shows
Srikanth Bolla is an Indian industrialist and the founder Chairman of Bollant Industries. He was the first visually-impaired student in Management Science at the Sloan School of Management of Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2012, Bolla set up Bollant Industries with his business partner, Ravi Mantha. Bollant Industries manufactures areca-based products and provides employment to several hundred people with disabilities, with funding from Ratan Tata. Addressing a combination of issues – employment, economics and environment – Bollant produces eco-friendly recycled Kraft paper from municipal waste or soiled paper, packaging products from recycled paper, disposable products from natural leaf and recycled paper and recycles waste plastic into usable products.Bollant has shown exceptional growth, averaging 20% a month since inception and a turnover of ₹150 crores in 2018. Srikanth is a 2024 Indian Hindi-language biographical film on the life of Srikanth Bolla. Rajkummar Rao does an exceptional job playing the main role and bringing Srikanth’s inspiring story to life.
5. Learning from Podcasts and Music
'A Millennial Mind,' by Shivani Pau is a podcast that dives deep into the realms of the unseen, unasked, and unsaid. They have released about 150 episodes and counting. Each episode is a journey of discovery, challenging stereotypes and breaking down taboos to unveil novel perspectives. Shivani engages in candid conversations with a diverse lineup of guests — from renowned celebrities and innovative founders to influential change-makers. My favourite episodes from the podcast are the interviews with Shivani Bafna, Vishal Punjabi, Sanjay Kapoor and Steven Bartlett. Here is a short clip from Shivani about the podcast that you can hear on Spotify and other platforms. I love her interviewing style and the tips she shares about podcasting along the way.
Thank you for reading this edition of #EducationCoffee. I look forward to writing weekly editions of this newsletter this year. I hope to continue to share resources that will add value to your life. You can also review the archive of Education Coffee for free at this link (57 past newsletters). You can subscribe to this newsletter for more such recommendations on people, ideas and culture.
Please do send me your thoughts and resources on any edition of this newsletter through email at abhishekashokshetty@gmail.com, Linkedin or on twitter @AbhishekShetty_. You can find my work online at https://abhishekshetty.carrd.co/. If you would like to read pieces in the future please do consider subscribing to this newsletter by clicking the button below. I love taking these discussions forward on those platforms and look forward to hearing your feedback.
Abhishek Shetty