HACK Issue 13: Gratitude, Lightsaber's and Epic giveaways

This morning I took the family to the opening day of the Boise Farmers Market. Walking around with my favorite coffee drink, seeing booth after booth of fresh, organic, delicious-looking vegetables, meats, and breads during a idyllic spring morning... it was perfection.

And I was struck by this as a stark contrast to the food shortages we may face later this year (check out Friedberg's take on the All In Pod a few weeks back).

Today, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the abundance and safety I enjoy here in America while millions in Ukraine (and many other places in the world that aren't covered in the top news headlines) are fleeing for their lives and have none of the abundance I enjoy. I'm reminded of this C.S. Lewis quote:

God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world. - C.S. Lewis

I focus on this, my dear readers, to bring you along with me to my point of self-reflection:

• Enjoy the precious moments with family, knowing it is such a privilege.
• Put things in perspective when say, work is stressful, life is hectic, the economy is not doing well. These are first world problems as the saying goes.
• Ask the Lord, "What do you have to share with me today?" and "Who do you want me to pray for right now?".
• Remember you are blessed to be a blessing to others.

Best things I read this week

I love stuff like this. Zero utility, but infinity fun. Nicely done Andrew.

100daysofKubernetes and 100Daysofcloud seem really neat. Full respect for the creators who focus on these types of projects. I think there's crazy good value.  

Hacksmith is selling a lightsaber, should you be so inclined to bid $70k+ to win the auction.

Let's talk giveaways for a second: MrBeast is very well known for his insane cash prizes and gimmicks.

I watch Chris Heria videos all the time for my workouts, and EVERY video he mentions that the first few to comment can win some swag, and that he does daily Instagram giveaways.  While these are consumer-focused creators, I've seen first hand the success for community building and brand building from my time at HackerOne and now at Lightspin: people love free stuff.  

I've been exploring Alyce for Lightspin and we are doing a Twitter giveaway (with more to come) and an insanely cool campaign for 1-year of free A Cloud Guru which is a $420 value. The marketing return is solid and I just have fun doing it.

So what should I give away next?