3-Things Weekly - The Throwback Edition - December 19th, 2021

Hey all!  Here's the latest "3-Things Weekly," an exclusive letter about 3 companies, ideas, communities, or people that are on my mind. Subscribe here for free.


As we roll into the holidays, I wanted to share 3 articles from over the years that people still ask me about today. I'm planning to write about a lot of new topics in 2022. I'm curious what you want to learn more about. Hit reply, share your thoughts & questions.

Without further ado, here you go...


#1 - Let’s Get Real About Company Perks

Back in 2017, I wanted to change how we thought about perks. Instead of fancy office perks and free lunches, I wondered what we could do to focus on making people more productive and giving people more time back.

This is more relevant today than ever with the world shifting to remote work. Check out the article and let me know what perks you think are great. Inspired by this original piece, we've added some new perks at XMTP as well so be sure to check them out.

What perks matter to you in today's world?

Let’s Get Real About Company Perks
Taken right from the Assist handbook for new team members I wanted to share why we believe giving everyone a personal assistant is the greatest perk you can offer. And a few other thoughts. Productivity Perks > Posh Perks There’s a lot of talk, especially in technology, about cute

For personal assistants for your entire team, check out Squared Away.


#2 - What if there was a single question that could tell you NOT to hire someone?

David Marquet was the captain of the largest submarine in the Navy, The Santa Fe. His book, Turn the Ship Around, changed how I thought about leadership. I've been lucky to spend the past 10 years with David talking about ideas, the future of leadership, and how we create environments to create more leaders.

One conversation that I'll never forget, was when he shared this question with me. "What if there was a single question that could tell you NOT to hire someone?"

David studied the most elite teams in the world and the best performers on them. What they concluded is something that I always think about. Check out what they discovered below...

What if there was a single question that could tell you NOT to hire someone?
I’m fascinated by this thought. Is there a specific question that can help you understand who not to hire if you are focused on building the highest performing team in the world? Recently, I had a conversation with former Navy Captain David Marquet. He told me about a 10

#3 - How To Quit

When a new team member joins our company, we have them start by reading a handbook to help them understand our culture, mission, and team.

One part that people read on the first day shares thoughts on how to quit. We want to make it safe to talk about this so when people leave they walk out with fans and supporters. Maybe this will inspire your own quitting policy?

I'm re-sharing this after a conversation last week with Sam McBride. He had never read it and had a similar philosophy.

How To Quit
When a new team member joins our company, we have them start by reading a handbook to help understand our culture, mission and team. One piece of this document which you read on the first day shares thoughts on how to quit. I want to share our insights because honestly

Please say hi anytime, just hit reply, and feel free to forward this email to anyone who you think would be interested in learning about new companies and ideas I'm interested in. Also, feel free to share http://blog.shanemac.com on social networks if you like what you're reading.

Talk soon,

Shane Mac