FS | BRAIN FOOD
November 16th, 2025 - #655 - read online - Free Version
Welcome to Brain Food, your weekly signal in a world full of noise.
Tiny Thoughts
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When you fall in love with the process rather than the outcome, you don't have to wait to be happy.
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The best opportunities go to people whose reputation got them picked before anyone else knew the opportunity even existed.
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When you're impatient with results, every day feels expensive. When you're impatient with effort, every day feels like progress.
Insights
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Writer and playwright Nora Ephron on agency:
"Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim."
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Novelist Charles Kingsley on happiness:
"We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us happy is something to be enthusiastic about."
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Citadel founder Ken Griffin on opportunities:
"Often it's the person who goes the extra mile who comes to the right conclusion. That's grit, it's perseverance, it's determination. It's making the effort. One of the things we emphasize is what do you need to do, what extra steps do you need to take to get to the right conclusion faster than those you compete with. And if you do hustle, you will find those opportunities."
The Knowledge Project
Top restauranteur Ron Shaich reveals how to scale a business, find the inputs that matter, and create long term success.
Ron is the founder of Panera Bread, chairman of CAVA, and managing partner at Act III Holdings. He created the fast-casual dining category.
Here are 10 of the maxims I took away from this episode and my research:
1. Complexity kills more companies than competition.
2. Long-term greedy, not short-term stupid.
3. Commitment owns you. You don't own it.
4. The best seek out the details.
5. Failing fast works in software, not restaurants.
6. There is no balance. You make choices.
7. Obsession isn't a problem. It's an advantage.
8. People want to feel special in a world where they don't.
9. The greatest risk is underinvesting in what works.
10. Build something worthy of those who believed in you.
+ Listen to the full episode Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Web/Transcript | YouTube | X
Want to go even deeper?
+ 27 short maxims
+ 9 deeper lessons
+ Members have access to all 43 of my highlights from Ron's book.
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Thanks for reading,
— Shane Parrish
P.S. Would fail the marshmallow test.
P.P.S. A robot vacuum that just works.
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