#66: Nomads Flock to Ghost Towns, Managers vs Makers, The Future of Expertise
A nomadic writer's guide to borderless living.
Hi friends 👋
Only a week to go until The Next Web conference.
It’s my first time speaking there, and I’ll be on a panel about hustle culture, digital nomads and the future of work along with these fine folks:
Hayden Brown, CEO at Upwork
Brian Elliott, VP at Slack
Marianne Hewlett, Senior VP at Atos
Anouk Vleugels, Publisher at TNW
If you’d like to tune in for our conversation, go here for the schedule and more info.
-Lauren
📚 Global Natives Q&A
Join me and Anna Codrea-Rado for an intimate live chat about the first chapter of my new book next Tuesday 28th September at 3pm CEST. Everyone who pre-orders a copy of Global Natives before then will get an invite by email:
👀 Want a sneak preview? You can read a public excerpt from the book here.
🌍 Links of the Week
🏝️🇪🇸 Will Digital Nomads Save Spain’s Ghost Towns? (Wired)
Spain is the latest country to launch a dedicated nomad visa, along with a plan to rejuvenate dozens of declining towns and villages. Former Times foreign correspondent Graham Keeley reports from the ground.
🎨💼 Makers vs Managers: The Battle Over Remote Work (Doist)
Fadeke Adegbuyi digs into the differences in attitude between workers and bosses. Her piece pulls together research and insights from Paul Graham and other thinkers in tech, and is packed with actionable advice to help remote workers thrive and survive.
✌️💻 Intentional Work in the Digital Office (Seth Godin)
Legendary entrepreneur and bestselling author Seth Godin explores the nature of good communication and how to harness serendipity in the remote work environment. TLDR: Be intentional.
🎓🔮 21 Experts on the Future of Expertise (a16z)
The creme-de-la-creme of the creator economy share their thoughts on what it means to be an expert in the internet era. Featuring comments from writers, creators, and leading global entrepreneurs, including the founders of Substack and Entrepreneur First.
🎙️✍️ Meet the Writers: Will Storr (Monocle Radio)
Author Will Storr shares the story behind his new book, The Status Game: On Social Position and How We Use It (an excellent read) on Monocle’s regular radio series showcasing the people behind the world’s best new writing.
📚🌆 Like a Local Travel Guides (DK Eyewitness)
The old-school guidebook company DK Eyewitness has launched a new book series with gorgeous modern branding and a local insider’s lens. They cover cities all over the world—from Edinburgh to Austin to Tokyo—and would make excellent Christmas gifts.
🏛️ Nomad Politics
I interviewed Colin Rule, former Director of Online Dispute Resolution at eBay and PayPal, for the Plumia Speaker Series about building an internet country.
I’d never really thought about the importance of resolving online disputes before, but the process is foundational to the internet we have today. From Airbnb to Uber to Deliveroo, the tools we constantly use all rely on fair systems for dispute resolution. Fascinating.
Get stuck in 👇
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