Blog - Ben Guttmann

A “blanding” backlash?

What do Johnson & Johnson, Eddie Bauer, Airbnb, and Balmain have in common? Baby shampoo, rugged flannels, beach house rentals, and $3,000 handbags aren’t often stocked in the same aisle. But, as of 2025, they all have logotypes that look pretty similar.

January 13, 2025

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Some predictions for 2025

With 2025 dawning tomorrow, here is my final entry into list season: An unscientific set of predictions, along with my confidence level in each.

December 31, 2024

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24 things I enjoyed in 2024

It’s been another big year – for me, this one dominated by a new baby and all that comes with it. As we near the end of list season, here’s a sampling of some things that I enjoyed in 2024.

December 23, 2024

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16 of the best links from 2024

Hot in the middle of List Season, here are some of my favorite links from this year’s weekly 3 Simple Things email. Each Tuesday I send out something from me, something from somewhere else (these links), and an idea/quote/statistic. In case you missed this year’s batch, check out 16 of my favorites from 2024.

December 16, 2024

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4 mini-stories about numbers, baseball, solar, and more

As we wrap up the year during list season, it’s time again to clear my notebook of a few stories that I found interesting, but never had the chance to develop into bigger ideas. Here's some stuff about baseball uniforms, Apple Vision Pro, and energy abundance.

December 9, 2024

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5 little habits to make a better digital life

Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, it’s officially List Season around these parts. To kick us off, here are a handful of little habits I’ve picked up over the years that have made my digital life just a tiny bit better. Maybe they’ll work for you too?

December 3, 2024

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Bluesky has the juice

After spilling a few thousand words on this topic, I don’t have much more to say about Twitter. But what is new and interesting is that, quite recently, we finally seem to see a coalescing around a replacement platform. It took two years, but Bluesky has the juice.

November 18, 2024

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Just email people

You should just email people. Go invite somebody to join your podcast. Ask a famous executive for advice. Offer to buy lunch for a writer you admire. This sounds like dumb advice. But sometimes, it really is that simple. Just email people and ask for the stuff you want.

November 4, 2024

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Check out Tony's Chocoloney’s brand guide

They’re doing great work fighting exploitation in the cocoa industry and pledge to make all their products “100% slave free.” And their product is bomb – check out the dark almond sea salt one if you spot it. But beyond all that, the cool thing about Tony’s Chocolonely for marketing and design nerds is their logo.

October 25, 2024

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Some actual good stuff from TikTok

I’ve spent more time on TikTok than I ever thought I would. I’m not particularly proud of it – I should probably be using those precious minutes on something more fulfilling, but what are you gonna do? The algorithm is too strong. But fortunately, not all of it is wasted. There’s some good, non-brain-melting stuff on there!

October 21, 2024

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Each Tuesday, I’ll send you one thing from me, one link from somebody else, and one idea to think about. That's it.

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Thoughts.