Five Points – 30 – Aaron Loring Davis

Where The Wild Things Are Secret Forest Camp –

I had only two contingencies in purchasing my house outside Nashville 1) ability to get internet 2) proven demand for airbnb guests to stay

The first one was easy..I just ordered internet to be connected.

The second one was satisfied by my creating a fake ad on airbnb.com, using photos I found on Pinterest, and writing up a clever description of what I envisioned – while using my actual address. I used airbnb’s dynamic pricing, which will change as per demand on the site, allowing me to understand what rent it may command.

Within 3 days I had several solid inquiries…a couple celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary and wanting to get out of town for the weekend…a couple traveling from Chicago to Atlanta to visit their son at college and needing to break up the trip…and a couple moving from St. Louis to Nashville and needing a spot to crash for the 6 week gap between their previous house closing and the the new place (and my day rate $100 was ok with them)…regretfully, I had to decline them all, as I had no airbnb setup, but I certainly proved my theory. I then removed the ad..or rather, “snoozed” it.

Next I had to go out and get an Airstream. Get power and water to it. Establish a sewer. Repair all of the systems. Build a deck. Decorate it. And buy some of those little soaps.

Happy to report she’s now available for guests. Tonight, the first strangers will stay.

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/21641468

If friends and family are keen to stay in the camper, as opposed to the house, just let me know the dates and I’ll block out it for you. I would only ask for $20 to pay for it to be cleaned and turned over on your departure.

Spoons –

I started carving spoons a couple months ago and I’m really enjoying the process. One thing I really like about making this particular art is that a piece can be finished in a couple hours.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgAj-j2jxSj/

A Matter Of Perspective –

My dear friend Calli Beck just launched a kickstarter – Matter Of Perspective: Modern Views of Mountains // She wants to use robots to create visually stunning backlit wall hangings from steel, acrylic, and wood.

She’s already over half way to funding her project. Please consider supporting her effort.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/632796944/matter-of-perspective-modern-views-of-mountains

Quote I’m Thinking About –

In your day-to-day negotiations with clients and colleagues fight for the kings and queens and bishops but throw away the pawns. A habit of graceful surrender on trivial issues will make you difficult to resist on those rare occasions when you must stand and fight on a major issue.

David Ogilvy

What I’m Reading –

RAND – Autonomous Vehicle Technology – A Guide For Policy Makers

For the past hundred years, innovation within the automotive sector has created safer, cleaner, and more affordable vehicles, but progress has been incremental. The industry now appears close to substantial change, engendered by autonomous, or “self-driving,” vehicle technologies. This technology offers the possibility of significant benefits to social welfare — saving lives; reducing crashes, congestion, fuel consumption, and pollution; increasing mobility for the disabled; and ultimately improving land use. This report is intended as a guide for state and federal policymakers on the many issues that this technology raises.

After surveying the advantages and disadvantages of the technology, RAND researchers determined that the benefits of the technology likely outweigh the disadvantages. However, many of the benefits will accrue to parties other than the technology’s purchasers. These positive externalities may justify some form of subsidy. The report also explores policy issues, communications, regulation and standards, and liability issues raised by the technology; and concludes with some tentative guidance for policymakers, guided largely by the principle that the technology should be allowed and perhaps encouraged when it is superior to an average human driver.

https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR443-2.html

Exploration – Control Your Data. Collect Your Money.

My primary job is as the CEO of Exploration. We help media companies compile the data needed to get paid.

I wrote the YouTube Guide For The Music Business (20 min read) over a year ago. It is the authoritative resource on the subject that exists, gets read about 50+ times a day from all over the world, and was used at two universities for curriculum in the United States this past year. I’m proud of this. I went on to write about 60 more chapters covering nearly every facet of the music business. I had trouble finding the large blocks of time needed to edit them..and I’m not such a good editor anyhow…so I hired 3 brilliant Belmont students, 2 of whom have recently graduated and 1 that is still attending, to help me compile and polish the remainder of work. So far, these are published for free on our website and a new one is published each week:

All the credit to Mamie Davis, Jacob Wunderlich, Luke Evans, and my business partner, Rene Merideth, for writing, editing, and helping me publish these guides.