By Insigniam

October 02, 2021 | minute read

Undaunted: Overcoming Doubts & Doubters
by Kara Goldin. HarperCollins Leadership, October 2020.

A popular brand strategy these days is to tell a story. Kara Goldin has one that’s hard to top: “I hand-delivered the first cases to the local Whole Foods on my way to give birth to my fourth child, Justin.” And Ms. Goldin, founder and CEO of Hint Inc., has more where that came from. She created a product, originally just for herself, in her kitchen. She took on “Big Soda” and now leads a $150M business. Ms. Goldin is an active speaker, lavished with awards, and her podcast is Unstoppable.

“Don’t be in a rush. If you truly believe that you have an idea that is unique and/or disruptive, time is on your side. Put what time you have into the idea and don’t be too hard on yourself for it taking longer than you had anticipated.”—Kara Goldin, Founder and CEO, Hint Inc.

The Exponential Age: How Accelerating Technology is Transforming Business, Politics and Society
by Azeem Azhar. Diversion Books, September 2021.

Want to brush up on your analytic geometry? No? A better idea would be moving past linear thinking to the networked curves Azeem Azhar illuminates in The Exponential Age. He’s talking about the age we live in, and the need to get past fretting over our Wi-Fi to see that not only are changes in technology moving fast but the rate of change is increasing. Mind the gap: The gap between us and crucial technologies (including AI) is widening, and those who don’t adapt will be left in the dust of disruption. Share on XThat goes for companies and for nations. With 25 years in the business as a founder and an analyst, Mr. Azhar has some thoughts on vital connections of tech, societies and economies, and how to manage in this new age.

Collision Course: Carlos Ghosn and the Culture Wars That Upended an Auto Empire
by Hans Greimel and William Sposato. Harvard Business Review, June 2021.

Mystery. International business deals. A man called “Le Cost Killer.” And, of course, spectacular collisions—of cultures, governments, personalities and more—in slow motion. No wonder Collision Course is 335 pages long. Its two authors, both experienced Tokyo-based journalists, map with remarkable clarity the tenuous alliance of Nissan and Renault, and later Mitsubishi; how one man (temporarily) made it work; and how everything fell apart from this disruption. They even interviewed the international fugitive himself: Carlos Ghosn, once applauded for his brilliance, then arrested for alleged financial misconduct. Beyond one CEO’s sensational rise and fall, a reader can ponder the difficulties to be faced when disparate global forces are brought together. Meanwhile, one takeaway: Don’t try to evade airport security disguised as a box of audio gear. It’s been done.

This article appeared in the Fall 2021 issue of Insigniam Quarterly. To begin receiving IQ, go here.