Slack destroying American companies is one of the core points of discussion in Ezra Klein's interview with Cal Newport, nominally about his new book "A World Without Email"[1][2]. Great conversation. We feel weirdly run aground at this minima, to me.<p>I think there's still an unresolved but asked question about how we got stuck here. I forget who observed, but worth noting that the workers themselves tend to demand the popular, already mainstream product, which entrenches tools like Slack.<p>But I think there's a general lack of willingness & interest in catering to more alpha geeks, in trying to enable humans, in giving them means to tool themselves up. Industrial software is, almost universally, highly massified in nature.<p>Worth noting that Ezra's already a fan of Cal's work. From 2017[3], discussing Cal's book "Deep Work",<p>> I was asked recently to name a book that changed my life. The book I chose was Cal Newport’s “Deep Work,” and for the most literal of reasons: It’s changed how I lived my life. Particularly, it’s led me to stop scheduling morning meetings, and to preserve that time for more sustained, creative work.<p>[1] <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/05/podcasts/ezra-klein-podcast-cal-newport-transcript.html" rel="nofollow">https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/05/podcasts/ezra-klein-podca...</a><p>[2] <a href="https://www.calnewport.com/blog/2021/03/15/one-step-closer-to-a-world-without-email/" rel="nofollow">https://www.calnewport.com/blog/2021/03/15/one-step-closer-t...</a><p>[3] <a href="https://www.vox.com/2017/4/21/15382282/cal-newport-taking-life-back-technology" rel="nofollow">https://www.vox.com/2017/4/21/15382282/cal-newport-taking-li...</a>