Newsletter interviewing productive people about their habits, tools, and routines for reading, learning, and getting work done.
HN commenters list it among recommended newsletters on productivity and link its posts on learning systems and Anki when discussing how to remember what you read.
Here's my story about looking for a co-founder for Polar:
https://getpolarized.io
I'm basically trying to build an integrated reading environment for people like researchers and students. You can kind of think of it like IntelliJ or Visual Studio but for books.
I shipped an MVP on Hacker News and right now we have about 5000 MAU. And our users LOVE us.
I just found out that Roger Craig. One of the Jeopardy champions used Polar to win Jeopardy.
https://superorganizers.substack.com/p/how-a-jeopardy-champion-remembers
Now, being a solo founder is tough. A lot of VCs will hold it against you. However, one of the number one failures of a startup is having a bad co-founder.
My strategy has been to be VERY conservative here.
I identified five co-founders but just haven't had a good fit.
I think my biggest advice is to trust your instincts. Unless it feels perfect and you've been working together for a while don't pull the trigger.
My plan now is to have sort of running co-founder search and bring them on more as a senior hire with adequate compensation if I'm successful in finding them.
It's hard though. I'd go so far as to say it's harder than finding a wife.
They need to have your back at all times but unlike a marriage there's no actual love backing the relationship.
Thank you for this - and the references to how you came across the concept.
I was personally only recently introduced to anki [1] & [2]
However, I tried it out but I couldn't end up using it to 'remember books' or broader concepts that the books convey indirectly. I've started summarising books and using a manual form of spaced repetition to remember them better.
Do you have any advice on organising such knowledge better?
[1] https://ncase.me/remember/
[2] https://superorganizers.substack.com/p/how-to-build-a-learning-machine
I really like writing down summaries of key items I extract from the book in a short form that is easy to review.
There are several articles I have seen on HN over the last few months that may be helpful
https://vasilishynkarenka.com/learning/
I prefer to use 3 sheets of paper over an app in this case. But I think it would be useful to digitize your notes.
https://superorganizers.substack.com/p/surgical-reading-how-to-read-12-books
I like this method, it reminds me of the classic book How to Read a Book
The Prepared - Fascinating bits on manufacturing and logistics - https://theprepared.org
Glimpse - Explores why certain trends are growing - https://meetglimpse.com
Super Organizers - New ways of thinking about productivity - https://superorganizers.substack.com
Was it this one? https://superorganizers.substack.com/p/how-to-build-a-learning-machine