Hello! And happy new year! I kicked off 2021 by riding my bike far for fun.
Any long time readers would agree: this week wouldn't be the 1st time sarcasm was used in the subject line. ; ) And those near to me know that I've been joking throughout December that 2021 would feel like a hangover from 2020. But, so far, it feels more like 2020 was a (bad) dream and we haven't woke up from yet...
Well, after a welcome return to work & the first week of 2021, I decided to spend some time on a Saturday to get through my inbox's last 2020 leftovers, and to me, shipping this issue feels like a real kick-off to the new year. And with a bike ride tomorrow, I'm back on track!
So, as I do, here's some fun stuff scroll through to kick-off the issue: 52 things that Tom Whitwell learned in 2020.
I picked my five favorites:
- 🌲Most cities plant only male trees because it’s expensive to clear up the fruit that falls from female trees. Male trees release pollen, and that’s one of the reasons your hay fever is getting worse. [Jessica Price]
- 🇨🇳In China, 🙂 doesn’t mean happy, it means “a despising, mocking, and even obnoxious attitude”. Use these, instead: 😁😄😀. [Echo Huang]
- 🇪🇺 Euro English is an evolving pidgin English used by EU administrators, for example: using ‘Handy’ to mean mobile phone (from German), ‘Non?’ to turn any sentence into a question and unusual plurals like ‘expertises”. [Lindsey Johnstone]
- 🛂For the first time ever, Americans are saying they want more immigration, not less. [Mohamed Younis]
- 🎛️You can learn a lot from Lego control panels. [George Cave]
as always, thank you for reading,
Jon
p.s.
🎶 While writing this week, I listened to Gwenifer Raymond & Andrew Wasylyk. Enjoy!
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This week’s banner image courtesy of Max Riese.
p.s. Share the stoke & pass the newsletter on to your friends & colleagues via a tweet, a post on LinkedIn, or a share on FB.
Cycling
Winter Cycling Clothing Hacks
My homie John Braynard does a solid breakdown of keeping cozy on the chilly winter miles that many of us are facing this time of year! (a little Rapha heavy but some great budget options and shout-outs to other brands too!)
Also, the guys at Ornot have some great tips!
last but not least, we posted some on our insta also! :D
The International Bicycle Tourism Conference is online this year.
And the agenda is here & I'll likely tune in especially for the influencer marketing talk & panel.
Bohemian Border Bash Race — A race without Borders
People always ask me about my bike plans for the year. This is at the top of my list!
Work
How to Lead When Your Team Is Exhausted — and You Are, Too
I'm tired. Are you? Chances are our 'surge capacity' is depleted...
Well, what now? I've lauded grit, resilience, and, yes, especially rest here over the years. This HBR article is good for managers & employees alike. Spoiler alert, here are the tips:
- understanding the difference between urgency and importance, and focus on the latter
- be compassionate while also driving your employees to action by channeling their feelings of defiance, anger, and frustration.
- change things up every single day with a focus on energizing your team
For the last one, I'd need to think outside of the box a bit. I'll report back with what I come up with!
Having a foreign name decreased chances of being called for a job interview by 25 per cent
Using identical fictitious applications, researchers in Norway were in 2012 able to track who was and who wasn’t called for an interview - those with a Norwegian or those with a Pakistani name. But the study raised some ethical issues.
Here in Amsterdam, Twotone will be working with Refugee Force to combat this fact here in Holland.
Learn more here: refugeeforce.nl/apply
Playing chess is an essential life lesson in concentration
The challenge of chess – learning how to hold complexity in mind and still make good decisions – is also the challenge of life
We've been playing a lot of chess at my house recently! So, you know I dug this article!
Friends
Cyclists, Bloggers & Content Creators - Ride Punk Ride
Björn & Jana are Hamburg based cyclists, bloggers, and content creators who do some exceptional work for brands I admire. They're open for new work in the year so consider giving them a shout for creative projects you may have on the horizon!
Tom Onda Consulting's New Website
My friend Tom Onda just launched a new website. Here's how he could help you:
- having trouble with your supply chain?
- need to optimize your cost base?
- looking for new collaborations?
- want to develop your future product
- could use help with your development pipeline?
- need guidance on expanding your business?
Good Night 2020: A New Year Biosphere
While I don't know Cass nor his son Sage (yet), I do consider Bikepacking.com co-founder Lucas a friend and riding with my kids & their friends like this is one of my very favorite things to do so this link fits squarely in this section ; )
Radness
How Bad Is Your Spotify?
Our sophisticated A.I. judges your awful taste in music.
For the record, my Spotify is not that bad. ; )
But if you're into music lurking. Here's my / the Twotone office aka Workspace Six's year in music on last.fm.
And, yeah (if you click the last.fm link & see Another Weekend as my top track...), I know Ariel Pink has come out as a Trumper (he was in DC during the whole Capitol chaos too) but some of those songs are still just so good. 🙄
Please do reply with your experience with this app. I found it quite funny!
Mine even referenced me listening to my daughter on Spotify. Wild! 😊