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: Eliszabeth Uihlein

Elizabeth Uihlein is a formidable figure in the business world. Co-founder of Uline, a shipping and business supplies company, she's known for her no-nonsense approach and conservative political views. Uihlein started the company with her husband Richard in their basement in 1980. Today, Uline is a multibillion-dollar enterprise. "We're fighters," she once said, reflecting on their journey. Her hands-on leadership style and focus on customer service have been key to Uline's success. Uihlein's influence extends beyond business. She's a major Republican donor and vocal supporter of conservative causes. Despite controversy over her COVID-19 stance, Uihlein remains unapologetic. "I'm a realist," she stated. Her story is one of entrepreneurial grit and unwavering conviction.

Key Lessons from Elizabeth Uihlein:

• On starting small: "We began in our basement. You don't need much to start a business. Just determination and a good idea."

• On hands-on leadership: "I believe in being involved in every aspect of the business. It's how you stay connected and make informed decisions."

Read More.

Company: Canon

Canon was founded in 1937 as Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory by Goro Yoshida and his brother-in-law Saburo Uchida in Tokyo, Japan. Initially focused on developing Japan's first 35mm focal-plane-shutter camera, they launched their first product, the Kwanon, in 1934. The company was renamed Canon Camera Co., Inc. in 1947. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Canon expanded into office equipment, introducing Japan's first plain paper copier in 1970. The company went global in the 1970s and 1980s, establishing subsidiaries worldwide. Today, Canon is a multinational corporation with over 180,000 employees and annual revenues exceeding $30 billion, known for its cameras, printers, and medical equipment.

Key Lessons from Canon:

• On innovation culture. Canon encourages employees to spend 15% of their time on personal projects. Sound familiar? Google does the same. Innovation doesn't happen by accident. You have to create space for it.

• On persistence. Don't give up if your first product flops. Canon's initial camera, the Kwanon, was a commercial failure. But they kept refining. Kept pushing. The next models sold. Persistence pays.

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.

If you’re in the market for talent, visit their website to explore options and cover all your hiring needs.

Accelerants

High-performance tool

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Hypernovelty

The pace of change in the world has outstripped our ability to keep up—hypernovelty.

While we’re designed to adapt to change, our biology and social systems are still ancient, causing us to be out of sync with the modern world

Insights

Tactical reads

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> When learning to embrace idleness
How to do nothing (Read it here)

> When maximizing personal productivity
How I got to 200 productive hours a month (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.

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Alex Brogan

Find me on X, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok

Offshore Talent: Where to find the best offshore talent. Powered by Athyna.

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.

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