The Unlock

Collage featuring photos of wildlife, ancient stone carvings, and a camel, with the text "THE NIGHTCRAWLER" at the top on a gray grid background—an homage to Sean B. Carroll’s explorations of nature and history.

The hidden rules of business — according to nature

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

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Eric Markowitz

Eric Markowitz is a partner and the Director of Research at investment firm Nightview Capital. A former investigative journalist, with bylines in The New Yorker, GQ, Fast Company, among other[…]

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Collage featuring a snail, two hands gripping a baton symbolizing succession, and a boat, overlaid on a pink and black grid pattern with the text "THE NIGHTCRAWLER" at the top.

Business

Inside the subtle art of succession

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

Eric Markowitz

Eric Markowitz is a partner and the Director of Research at investment firm Nightview Capital. A former investigative journalist, with bylines in The New Yorker, GQ, Fast Company, among other[…]

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Book cover for "Shoveling $H!T: A Love Story About The Entrepreneur's Messy Path To Success" by Kass and Mike Lazerow, featuring a shovel and dirt pile—highlighting every pivot masterstroke. Text reads “an excerpt from.”.

Business

How the startup “pivot” can become a billion-dollar masterstroke

If your world-beating idea is not working you might need to change direction — and Instagram cofounder Kevin Systrom provides the perfect case study.

Kass Lazerow

Kass Lazerow is a serial entrepreneur, the cofounder and Chief Operating Officer of Golf.com and Buddy Media, and the co-author of Shoveling $h!t.

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A classical marble statue's head embodies Roman resilience, adorned with an orange construction helmet against a teal background.

Business

What we can learn about resilience from the Pantheon

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

In a split image, Taleb's surgeon stands confidently alongside two diverse medical professionals: a woman in a hijab and a woman with glasses, each wearing stethoscopes.

Business

How “Taleb’s Surgeon” redefines what expertise looks like

The truly talented are those who got to where they are despite preconceived expectations.

Collage featuring an excavator, the ChatGPT interface, financial figures, and text that reads "The Nightcrawler," all woven into abstract design elements that subtly hint at playing the long game.

Business

How to win the long game: Fight unfair fights

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

A man and woman stand by a wooden fence. The man leans on the fence, smiling, while the woman, focused on better productivity, holds a sickle and looks at him, wearing a headdress and shawl.

Business

Grasp “essentially contested concepts” for smoother productivity

Do you always act professionally in the workplace? Depends what you mean by “professional.”

A collage featuring a partial face overlaid with "I Voted" stickers alongside the text "The Night Crawler," embodying the relentless drive reminiscent of a Zuckerberg mantra.

Business

Mark Zuckerberg’s 4 steps to approach life

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

Two men in suits sit at a table looking stressed; one leans back with his head tilted upwards, and the other covers his face with his hand. The scene hints at the consequences of relying on the McNamara fallacy. A blurred glass pitcher is visible in the foreground.

Business

The “McNamara fallacy”: When data leads to the worst decision

Don’t make the mistake of blindly following quantitative metrics — whether you’re helping clients or looking for lunch.

Collage with a hand holding a pen, hand grasping a light bulb for idea generation, and graphs depicting optimization.

Business

How to create an “idea generation assembly line”

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

The image shows the words "Organizational Friction" in bold white text on a black background with red arrows crossing over them.

Why ‘friction thinkers’ see hidden opportunities first

“When we face a problem, our natural tendency is to race ahead – but some friction is actually a good thing.”

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7 min

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with

Bob Sutton

Three versions of a buttercup flower: left is yellow in visible light, middle is pinkish in ultraviolet, and right is colorless in infrared—a glimpse into the diverse sensory umwelt surrounding us.

Business

How “umwelt” can make you more creative and productive

If you’re out on a walk, you will see a different world than your dog, a bee, or an ant. Here are three reasons why that matters.

Collage featuring a person sleeping at a desk, a hand holding a hotel bell, and sharks. The title "The Night Crawler" appears at the top.

Business

The thrill is in the hunt — not just the victory

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.