Another Excuse Newsletter

Welcome back to the Another Excuse Newsletter. It isn’t just another excuse, but a reason to start that thing you’ve been putting off.

What to expect this week:
👓Perspective - Resentment
🔨 Tool - Best Pitch Deck
🍿Consume - Soren Iverson
📖Concept - Agenda Setting Theory

Latest Podcast Episode

Today’s guest is Rayhaan Moughal.

Rayhaan is the founder of Sidekick Accounting. Sidekick is an Accounting company with a big focus on assisting business leaders with strategy. We discuss many aspects of Rayhaan's business and how it all began. He provides some great insights into how to take that leap.

In the episode, we discuss:

• What Sidekick does
• How sidekick started
• Level 1,2 & 3 businesses
• Fears of starting and time to think
• Comparison holding you back
• The traits of an entrepreneur
And so much more...

You can check out the episode here.

Perspective

Resentment

“Unspoken expectations are premeditated resentment” - Neil Strauss

I haven’t heard a quote quite this descriptive in a while.

It really gets you thinking.

Did you intend to feel resentment towards someone?

If not, did you do everything you could to communicate your expectations of them?

Most of the time this isn’t the case.

We make assumptions, we expect others to fulfil certain things without even communicating to them that we’re expecting them to do it.

Although this quote perfectly describes resentment most of the time, a similar line of thinking can be applied to most of life.

We tend to get caught up in our own heads and make assumptions about how things will go.

Then, when they don’t go as “planned” we’re upset about it.

Realising this puts you back in control of your feelings and understanding that your expectations are just that.

Unless the other person or thing knows you're expecting that outcome.

This is just a reminder to check yourself and to communicate a bit better.

Tool

Best Pitch Deck

I’m not even sure if this can be classified as a tool.

But it’s really helpful if you’re looking for funding and need to put a deck together.

These guys have collected all the different decks that have acquired funding.

You can sort through which industry they’re in and how much funding they received.

A deck is one of the most important parts of an early-stage startup as it communicates the intentions of the company clearly.

Everyone has they’re opinion on how long it should be, how wordy it should and what aspects you should include.

Some people think they have it down to a science and will tell you which elements to include and in what order.

But having an objective view of the many decks that received funding can be so helpful.

You’ll notice that every deck is different and it depends on the industry and even the people behind the company.

So, if you’re curious, you can check out some decks here.

Consume (Read / Watch / Listen)

Soren Iverson

This guy’s X profile is amazing.

He shares new interesting business ideas almost every day.

Some of them are a bit out there and some really get you thinking.

I’ll give you a few examples to explain what I mean.

1. Hulu quiz on the ad you watched and if you’re wrong you watch another ad

2. Slack shows Hunger Games style tribute to the fallen on days where employees are laid off

3. Instagram option to send one last message when someone blocks you

You can see that their quirky, but on the verge of possibility.

Many of them get you thinking, either that could work or I need that product/feature.

He’s exploring his creativity and in doing so is attracting business opportunities.

I love this kind of profiles because they’re equally entertaining and motivating for the creator himself.

He’s forcing himself to come up with so many interesting ideas.

Find your way to do the same and who knows, a business might come of it.

Check out his profile here.

Concept

Agenda Setting Theory

Agenda setting theory suggests that the problems that news and media pick to publicise attract attention from governments and international organisations and influence public opinion.

Although it seems obvious when you read this, many people don’t give it a second thought.

We assume the news is the news because that’s what’s happening today.

But that’s not always the case.

Some stories are intentionally excluded, while others are given a lot more attention than they deserve.

Because it’s given so much attention we see the issue as bigger or more important in the context of world issues than it actually is.

The theory suggests that the news has a bigger part to play in influencing how the world develops and what we focus on as a society.

Over the past few years, with more people independently reporting issues, it has taken away from the assumed authority the news used to have.

It still plays a huge role, but more people are questioning it than they used to.

I mean, look at what’s going on in Palestine.

Most people I know now get their updates and news from people on the ground using social media.

They now label the news reporting on the issue as biased or having an agenda.

How much of a role do you think the news play in influencing society?

Thanks for Reading

Now start something!

P.S. Feedback is welcome and needed! If you’d prefer to send me an email and not respond, you can do so here: [email protected]

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