Have faith and be kind!

On Christmas day in 1914, during the start of World War I, something incredible happened. The British and the German armies agreed on a cease-fire and had… a football match! Right in the middle of no man’s land, the two armies put their differences aside and enjoyed the holiday with a friendly game.

As the New Year approaches, we’re all thinking about the future.

It seems uncertain. War is ravaging both Europe and the Middle East, democracies are getting more and more unstable, and new technologies like AI have the potential to cause as much harm as benefits.

But while we can’t influence the global processes that dictate our lives, we can stay in charge of our attitude toward these circumstances.

Just like the soldiers during WWI playing football, we can always find something positive to keep our spirits up, even when we are down in the trenches!

For this edition, I don’t have a profound insight to share. I’d just urge you to have faith and be kind to each other.

Happy holidays!

🗯️ Improve SEO in 4 steps

SEO is a highly technical subject, but you don’t need to be a pro to see your rankings improve. The good people at the Social Media Examiner have shared a practical 4-step manual for improving your SEO performance - without hiring an expensive expert.

• Speed is crucial in SEO. Use Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool to see how fast your pages load.

• Use lower-sized pictures for faster load speeds.

• Using WordPress? Add the W3 Total Cache plugin for faster load times.

• Research keywords with tools like Ahrefs and UberSuggest.

• Your pages should target keywords your audience is searching for.

• Add keywords in headlines and opening sentences.

• Target longtail keywords with good search volume but low competition.

• Metadata gives search engines extra context.

• From your CMS, add keywords to title tags, meta descriptions, and pictures.

• Plugins like Yoast SEO can offer guidance on how to improve performance.

• Backlinks are external sites linking to your web pages.

• They signal to search engines that your content has authority and value - and should be ranked higher.

• Connect with relevant bloggers/publications and find ways to get featured on their platforms with your valuable content.

📚 Shelf Shocks 💥

1. The Coming Wave by Mustafa Suleyman & Michael Bhaskar

As the former co-founder of Google’s AI subsidiary DeepMind, Suleyman has seen what disruptive technologies like artificial intelligence and synthetic biology are capable of, and he is far from optimistic for our future.

In his book, he warns that we need to contain these rapidly-developing technologies, which can bring unparalleled benefits to society, but also pose unignorable dangers to our governments, health, privacy, and employment. If they fall into the wrong hands, these powerful technologies can cause much more harm than gains.

Will we adapt quickly enough to avoid getting swept up by the coming tech tsunami? Only the future can tell.

2. The Geek Way: The Radical Mindset that Drives Extraordinary Results by Andrew McAfee

Why do big corporations often fail spectacularly, while small renegade entrepreneurs manage to disrupt industries with innovative solutions? McAfee, an MIT research scientist, claims that embracing a new model of developing ideas and managing teams can yield unbelievable results by tapping into our biggest strengths as humans - curiosity and cooperation.

The Geek Way shows how adopting new management models can help teams achieve big results and survive the traps of bureaucracy and the old-fashioned corporate world. It is time to embrace a new way of working - the Geek way!

3. Waiting for Your Cat to Bark?: Persuading Customers When They Ignore Marketing by Bryan Eisenberg & Jeffrey Eisenberg

Did I choose this book because of its adorable title? Maybe. The Eisenberg brothers have nevertheless written a great manual on customer psychology and persuasion.

It introduces the idea of “persuasion architecture”, which aims to deliver the best experience for customers by helping you understand how your product meets their specific needs.

Some of the practical advice may be slightly outdated (it was published in 2006 after all), but the book still delivers in-depth knowledge on customer segmentation and perfecting your marketing messages.

Fun Links

1. What is your Entrepreneur DNA?

Do you enjoy personality tests? If so, the Entrepreneur DNA test from the Founders Institute will assess your leadership, teamwork, creativity, and adaptability skills to reveal your Entrepreneur profile.

Discover your strengths and learn where you will be the most effective in your founder’s journey, as well as see suggestions on how to overcome your weaknesses.

The basic report is free, with a more in-depth version you will need to pay for.

Psst, mine is “The Visionary“. 👀 

You've reached the end of my newsletter. Hooray! If you have any comments or would like to share what you enjoyed the most, feel free to get in touch! See you in two weeks!