Hi Reader,

Friday is when I share a few leadership ideas, interesting discoveries and questions that caught my attention during the week.

In case you missed the earlier Newsletters this week, you can find them here:

• This week we talked about the difficult choices leaders must make and I kicked it off by sharing our plan to develop A Journey Toward Self-Mastery program.
• On Wednesday, I shared The Disagreement You Never Heard, with a few tips about how to get the most from your team when planning any initiative.

150 Friends Max?

I’ve seen this idea several times over the years, but I’m still skeptical — not so much about the number itself, but whether maintaining that many meaningful relationships is realistically achievable.

​Dunbar’s number is a suggested cognitive limit of about 150 people for the number of stable social relationships an individual can maintain. It was proposed in the 1990s by British anthropologist Robin Dunbar.

He found a link between primate brain size (specifically the neocortex) and average social group size. He extrapolated this ratio to humans to suggest a comfortable limit of 150 stable connections.

The concept expands into concentric circles or tiers of emotional closeness:

• 5: People for deep emotional or financial support.
• 15: Close friends.
• 50: Good friends.
• 150: Meaningful stable relationships.
• 500 to 1,500: Acquaintances and recognizable individuals.

What do you think?

How the Golden Gate Bridge Works

Jake O'Neill is the creator of Animagraffs. He is a graphic designer and 3D artist. He's done all kinds of projects from detecting how blind spots work in cars, how an electric guitar works, how a fire truck works and much more using his unusual graphic style.

It's a long video, but in the first few minutes you'll begin to understand the magnitude of the bridge project. He also provides a transcript along with a table of contents so you can view its specific features.

What he does is fascinating and insightful. Take a look at How the Golden Gate Bridge Works.

The Underground Tunnels of New York

You may have seen the news about the recent rash of men sneaking into the underground tunnels below New York City by illegally entering through a manhole cover.

What amazed me about this subterranean world was its size and scope — with 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts; 7,500 miles of sewer lines; and a system that handles about 1 billion gallons of drinking water every day.

​Subterranean New York has a lot of history — about the so-called "mole people" who have inhabited it and the "sandhogs" who built it.

Who knew?

The Rosetta Stone

Like Stonehenge which I discussed last week, the Rosetta Stone is another artifact that you've likely heard about but don't know much about.

On September 27, 1822, French scholar Jean-François Champollion announced he had deciphered the world-renowned Rosetta Stone. By decoding Egyptian hieroglyphics, Champollion believed he had the key to unlock Egypt’s mysterious history.

His efforts had been extensive. Just two weeks earlier, on September 14, 1822, he burst into his brother’s office proclaiming, “Je tiens mon affaire!” (“I’ve got it!") Moments later, he collapsed, and reportedly took five days to fully recover.

It was a major milestone in understanding hieroglyphics and unlocking Egyptian history — but it also raises another question:

How Did He Do That?

I love magicians and some of them are so clever you find yourself shaking your head — not just "how did he do that?" — but "did he do that?" — "maybe I wasn't paying attention" — "that's impossible."

Check out What's In The Box?​

What's Going On Here?

Combining clever sleight-of-hand, comedy and digital technology, it isn't easy to figure out what's going on here?

You Have to See Jacob Collier

I don't know if you've even seen Jacob Collier, but with multiple Grammy Awards, he has become one of the most innovative musicians of his generation.

The British singer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist is known for blending jazz, pop, classical, folk, and world music into a style unlike anyone else.

That’s an understatement!

​Check this out from Tune Studio!

If You Like No-Holds-Barred TV ...

Few TV aficionados haven't heard of Taylor Sheridan, the creator of such blockbuster shows as Yellowstone, Landman, Dutton Ranch, and Marshals (all of which I've seen).

Lioness, Sheridan's action thriller starring Zoe Saldaña and Nicole Kidman, has now reached a rare streaming milestone, remaining on Paramount+'s Top 10 TV Shows chart for more than six months.

I love this show, in large part because it pulls no punches. Shows it like it probably is — tough, gritty and gruesome in the way it portrays the underbelly of the espionage world.

Action-packed, no let up, takes no prisoners.

If you like those kinds of shows, watch it.

I'll leave you with these thoughts:

If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed and wonder why others seem to have it so easy, take a look at this young man.

Being happy boils down to three things:

• Something to do.
• Someone to love.
• And something to look forward to.

Don’t Stop Leading,

Lary