No. 337 | June 19, 2026
Welcome to Friday Five, a short collection of ideas for your weekend.
This week’s theme: longevity, taking ownership, originality, and the uncomfortable process of getting better.
If this resonates, forward it to a friend. Most readers discover Friday Five because someone they trust shared it.
Music of the Week
Herbie Hancock is a jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer from Chicago who has been creating music for over seven decades.
He’s won an Academy Award, 14 Grammys, and still performs as he approaches his 90th birthday.
Start with “Cantaloupe Island,” “Watermelon Man,” and “Chameleon”:
Quotes of the Week
Overcoming adversity often starts by taking ownership. These quotes capture that idea:
“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”— Marcus Aurelius
”If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions.”— Albert Einstein
”I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”— Thomas Edison
”Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve.”— Leonardo da Vinci
Article of the Week
All happy companies are unique, while failed ones are identical. — Peter Thiel
There is no shortage of investors who will tell you diversification is the way to go. Peter Thiel made his career doing the opposite. He made concentrated bets.
Those bets led him to a few conclusions: work on problems that matter, spend thoughtfully, avoid commodity businesses, build something people want, and never assume a product succeeds without distribution.
In Zero to One, Thiel argues that every great business starts with a secret: something insiders understand that outsiders have yet to see. Those secrets become new markets.
These companies chase opportunities hiding in plain sight. They do work the crowd ignores. They solve problems nobody else wants to touch.
They start small and dominate a niche. They do something both different and useful. By solving problems everyone else ignores, they earn the right to expand into larger markets.
For more on Thiel and the lessons from Zero to One, read:
📝 Entrepreneur Mindset: 3 Lessons from Zero to One
Podcast of the Week
“The principle is competing against yourself. It’s about self-improvement, about being better than you were the day before.” — Steve Young
Steve Young is a Hall of Fame quarterback who spent most of his 15 NFL seasons with the San Francisco 49ers.
Since retiring from football, he has co-founded private equity firm HGGC and written two books.
Young recently joined The Tim Ferriss Show to discuss moving beyond victimhood, taking ownership, and the value of mentors.
For more on Young, his life lessons, and reinventing yourself, listen:
🎙️ Steve Young: From Super Bowl MVP to Managing Billions
Enjoyed Friday Five? Hit reply and tell me what stood out, or forward it to someone who might enjoy it.
You can also follow along on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
Thanks for reading Friday Five. Subscribe to receive a new collection of ideas every week.
