The books of my lockdown.

These are the five books I read during my two months of lockdown. And these are the things I remember.

Book number one.

No filter: The inside story of Instagram
Sarah Frier

A few things to note here. I’m a fan – can’t, won’t hide it.

The first one is on the actual business. Do you really need a solid business plan to be successful? Maybe it’s all serendipity, randomness, luck. Does this business plan have to include monetization? Chances are you’ll end up offering some space for advertising anyway, why bother. LOL. To sum up, it appears that you can get big, and fat, and rich either way. Give that idea a chance even if you don’t consider it a business in the first place. At this stage, I’m feeling strange about the business plan classes I took back in college.

The second one is on understanding who you are as a business. Once you’re there, know your competitive advantage. Take Instagram. Is it the perceived quality? Is it the network effect? Is it the knowledge you have of the user? Is it how you’ve chosen to cash out? This core competence could be strictly business-related and developed in the process; it could also be your pure passion, the one thing that made you do it in the first place.

The third one is on the corporate culture. And all the fuzz around it to be frank. What’s the balance between staying true to your culture, identity, values but also delivering what works best with users, the market, the stock market? Now, normally these two aspects would converge without much effort since business decisions and actions reflect the company culture – whatever that is – even if you don’t realize. But what happens when, say, two companies become one, yet they wish (do they?) to maintain independence?

Book number two.

Uncanny valley: A memoir
Anna Wiener

Hm. I was expecting somewhat more substance, I won’t lie. Some grandiose, effortless proof that this uncanny valley is indeed filled with sexist white males, average Ivey League graduates (or dropouts for that matter), uninspired upper-class entrepreneurs. Don’t get me wrong, these prototypes do wander in this valley and its copycats no matter where. I just didn’t read about any unusually striking ordeal that the author had to endure. I felt the book promised something along these lines but didn’t deliver.

But sure, other than this, a reasonable representation of what your ordinary experience in such environment can be like, either in California or all the way across the ocean.

Perhaps I’ve gotten too used to this reality. I’m surprisingly relaxed.

Book number three.

Breaking borders: Travels in pursuit of an impossible record
James Asquith

A lady somewhere on the vast internet commented on this book as “a record of how to travel in a laddish manner”. Or something of the sort. Honestly, it might as well be. Still, there’s one thing I’d thank James for, and this is his illustration of Africa. Guilty as charged, it’s the one continent I mostly forget to include in my, yes, white world despite its unattainable charm. I got reminded, and I’m getting back to knowing it.

Book number four.

What would the Spice Girls do?
Lauren Bravo

So, this book is brilliant in a Spice Girls way. It did make me feel nostalgic, and it did make me feel old. But it also made me feel utterly cool. In hindsight, I’m confident I was part of some sort of revolution, yes. It involved songs about friendship, a new chapter of emancipation, high heel platforms and sneakers, and a sudden finale just to serve as a preamble of the current era of wild ups and epic downs.

Do you think Generation Z will feel the same about Justin Bieber 15 years from now?

Book number five.

Becoming
Michelle Obama

This is where I should write “last but not least”. Probably the best book among the five mentioned here, although you could say the comparison is rather easy. The book is definitely well-written, striking a fine balance between its factual content and its literary value. To be precise, though, I didn’t really read it; I listened to it. Which I’ll consider a plus since Michelle Obama herself is the narrator.

When it comes to this book, I have to admit I joined the bandwagon fairly late. Tons of reviews are already out there, even a documentary. However, there are two things I’ll always remember.

One, I loved the author’s persistent reference to the fact that they were (are?) the blacks among the whites. And how this resonates with her life story either it was about getting to college or the White House (wait, what colour did you say?). Yet another reminder for those who lightheartedly think we’ve reached equality. Race is still race, and I’m not even going to make comments on the current events here.

Two, for anyone who has worked in advocacy or for some entity that aims for societal impact, be it empowering a poor community or shifting consumers to sustainability, Barack Obama’s words say it all: it’s not just about fighting on the ground, engaging in grassroots activities, and mobilising communities; it’s also about institutionalising the change through – what else – regulation. Probably the shortest summary of what a pragmatic approach to the topic looks like.

Leadership sets the tone in households, in companies, and in countries. We are in urgent need of the right tone.

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Image via Spice Girls on GIPHY.