Conversation Agent - Valeria Maltoni

Vendoring in Culture

I read a lot of other people's writing. I recommend it, especially in the form of good books. One of the unspoken rules of many writers is that you don't blackbox something if you don't need to. Writers quote authors—a dependency—for efficiency, not ignorance. In my case, you can assume I've read at least one of their works for context on their thought process. But in writing, as in thinking, you can also copy someone else's idea and modify it for a different purpose. The work you do to reframe a concept allows you to get a deeper understanding of... Read more →

Memes, Social Chemistry, and Humor

Some books work for some people. Read them at the right time, and they give you the insights you need. Some work for others, or in other circumstances. That's why I write about collections on a topic or related topics. You can find my readings archives here. Memes, social chemistry, and Humor The topics I selected for this batch of reading suggestions are connected in more than one way. Originally classified as genetic material, we've become more familiar with memes in culture. Funny ones tend to spread faster. Value is in the ability to cause positive change. Of course, memes... Read more →

Why How we Work Shifts What and Who has Power

In a recent conversation with Cal Newport, Jason Fried explains how email has ushered in a world where conversations happen out of context. The trouble this mechanism creates has a cumulative negative effects on how we work. And you're not going to solve it with hacks. There's no hacking human nature. Conversation is important because it's an emotional tool we use to negotiate meaning. Lack of conversation means decreased empathy, which is the root of the characteristically human qualities we need to succeed in the future. Email is a technology created to accelerate efficiency in the transmission of information. But... Read more →

The Ingredients for Making Something that Lasts

In the Sixteenth Century, Michelangelo was more than a sculptor. Like Leonardo and his beloved Dante Alighieri, he did much more than his art. Director Andrey Konchalovskiy shows “Michelangelo working alongside the masons in a marble quarry, dangling over an abyss on ropes and designing systems for moving mammoth blocks of stone using nothing but muscle power and rudimentary machines such as pulleys.” Three creators, centuries apart. Their works inspired entire generations. Their work is the culmination of skills, ingenuity, talent, insights and elbow grease. But it endures because it's embedded in a vessel—a statue, a fresco, a book—and embodies... Read more →

The Art of Storytelling

All stories are about change. Geometry and structure are the tools of good storytelling. Every time you have a character reacting or adapting to a situation, going through trials, and returning changed, you have a story. Stories are about transformation. They follow a rhythm: biological (life, death), psychological (conscious, unconscious), and societal (order, chaos). Joseph Campbell introduced his theory in The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Campbell said that myths from around the globe share a fundamental structure. He hatched the theory after five years of relentless study. Stories and tales from that of Odysseus, Prometheus, Moses, Jesus, Buddha, and... Read more →

The Fairness Principle

[“The Divine Comedy: The Opera” by Paolo Miccichè and Antonio Mastromattei*] In 1302, poet and politician Dante Alighieri was exiled from Firenze, where he served as one of six priors governing the city. Dante’s political activities, including the banishing of several rivals, led to his own banishment. What goes around comes around? The Divine Comedy was his decade-plus journey and work. You may have heard of Alighieri's magnificent opus in 100 chapters or canti. Would he had written it, had he not been a virtual wanderer, seeking protection for his family in town after town? What resonated with me the... Read more →