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Think spoon: side hustle thinking of <1 person Think mug: 1-3 people, shared risk Think bucket: 3-12 people, virtual, distinction between 3-4 risk-taking partners and 8-9 paycheck researchers Think tank: 12+ people, in a leased building, with an endowment
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It's hard to envision models for thinking work in useful (ie revenue/return-on-capital models) ways as opposed to useless org-structural ways (ie entities containing people a bunch of people within a pattern of working relationships regardless of financial viability)
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"Let me gather up 3 buddies and found a think tank/design studio/artists collective/boutique consulting firm" is the 2nd-act free agent equivalent of "let me print business cards" for a beginner 1st-act free agent. Cargo cults scaled forms instead of imagining scaling strategies.
Running a proper think tank is definitely a lot of work. Approximately comparable to running an academic department, but say 70% of that, and without the constraints/affordances of a university context. I had no proper appreciation of it before my current berggruen gig.
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