About

What is Attempted Thoughts about?

Attempted Thoughts is about understanding the political economy of the future, political philosophy, and interacting with tangible policy.

I do this to chase understanding of the true engines of societal progress and personal success. A key interest of mine is on capital.

Beyond that, I want to understand how we can effectively progress society. This involves enabling people to flourish, attaining material plenty, and figuring out what social structures we need.

Think of humanity as an interstellar civilization. Now figure out what we need to get there. That's what I'm captured by.

One of my dreams is to have an activist fund.

What will you get?

Consistent short-form pieces that cover issues in political economy, with the general format of:

Explainers and reviews on think-pieces and reports on current (and future) political economy
Resources and links that I find on knowing more about the world or being better at analytical skills
Personal thoughts on managing my time and energy, as well as what we should care about

Current format: Shortform commentary on recommended material.

Who am I?

Hi, I'm a grad student in philosophy that wants to understand the world.

I've got some experience in finance, the military (not as glamorous as you think), and academia (as a PPE undergrad). I also read voraciously.

I believe that corporate power is largely under-addressed. I aim to crowdfund an impact-driven activist fund. Think corporate governance campaigns in oil majors, checking labour conditions, and addressing the footprint of massive supply chains.

Key interests of mine include automation, capital, and the future of work.

What do I get out of this?

This is more for me to remind myself why I do this:

You actually like political economy, so there is intrinsic joy to figuring these things out. You also have beliefs on what matters - and this seems to be a good thing to figure out to make the world a better place.
There is instrumental use in a newsletter or public presence. You can connect with like-minded people, which leads to better conversations, good feedback, and possible connections that are useful career/wealth-wise. (ToDo: Link my public profile to this eventually! i.e. use my real name)
It's a nice way to start testing how to make money doing the things you love. Because you do love this. Tap into that 'number go up' feedback-loop that is so powerful. It is also cohesive with your current job (literal research), so it makes sense.

The above will also inform how you do things. Hence the current testing of a lower-stakes, but more consistent, format. You want to read all the time, so why not make this a casual by-product? Rather than high-value production for things that you don't necessarily care about.

It may also be that by pursuing what you are genuinely interested in, you fall into a more authentic and focused voice. This seems to be helpful to generating an audience anyway, so why not.

Focusing on what is useful to you also seems to be a good way to reverse engineer what is useful to others. Rather than just guessing. If you do things that aren't useful to yourself, then how on earth will others find value in it?

Remember: views for its own sake doesn't really mattered compared to the type and quality of person you attract.

Current Focus

To build up an audience over Youtube because of the algorithm and ability to find new people. You only have so much energy. And publishing on a newsletter first will have very low discoverability.

Then, build up a newsletter and infrastructure which you can snowball from. Link your public persona and this project together. Get new projects off the ground that actually helps people.

Charging people probably comes last, there's money to be found by charging firms in the meantime. (ToDo: Ethics statement of sponsorships and so on)

Network and Portfolio

I try to push projects and analysis pieces on youtube. I should probably link my personal website as a brag-sheet soon.

Upcoming features include an ask box and a community platform.

Contact

Feel free to drop a line anytime. Idle thoughts or topic suggestions are always welcome. Business enquiries or admin matters can also be routed through the same email below.

A focused heading and concise writing is always appreciated. Contact me at: attemptedthoughts@gmail.com

Socials

Youtube: Attempted Thoughts - YouTube