The Compound Years

Five things every Sunday.

A weekly newsletter on building, learning, and the long game. Five specific things, no filler.

• Issue #241 November 2026

  Why I started this newsletter

  This is issue 24. This week, why I write it, and a few people who started before they felt ready.

• Issue #2325 October 2026

  Two homes, two playbooks

  Pi-Squared found its first players on both sides of the Atlantic. The two playbooks looked nothing alike.

• Issue #2218 October 2026

  You don't outgrow where you're from

  I'm Irish, in America, and very proud of where I'm from. This week, on the things from home worth carrying with you.

• Issue #2111 October 2026

  Starting somewhere new

  In 2024 I left Ashbourne for Notre Dame, and now I live in Grand Rapids. This week, a few people on starting again somewhere new.

• Issue #204 October 2026

  The Sunday call

  When you live abroad, calls home don't happen by accident. This week, on keeping people close.

• Issue #1927 September 2026

  AI can't tell you what good looks like

  AI tools in hiring speed up whatever you already do. This week, why that puts judgement back at the centre.

• Issue #1820 September 2026

  Hire the person who's still climbing

  A CV shows where someone has been. This week, a few people on hiring for where they're going.

• Issue #1713 September 2026

  The interviewer with no stake in the hire

  Amazon puts someone in every hiring loop who doesn't need the hire to happen. This week, why an outside view helps, and a question worth asking before any offer.

• Issue #166 September 2026

  What makes a cover letter worth reading

  AI can write a polished cover letter in seconds. So what still stands out?

• Issue #1530 August 2026

  The half-hour interview that costs years

  A short interview can only see so much. This week, what people who have run hundreds of them say it misses.

• Issue #1423 August 2026

  One feature at a time

  Adding something always feels like progress. This week is about the people who got good at taking things away.

• Issue #1316 August 2026

  The cost of later

  Most of what we save for later is important but never urgent. This week: getting it started while it's still your choice.

• Issue #129 August 2026

  Ship the half-finished one

  The rough version that goes out teaches you more than the polished one still sitting in a folder.

• Issue #112 August 2026

  Playing long games

  Most good things look slow up close and obvious from a distance. This week: people who stuck with something long enough to see it pay off.

• Issue #1026 July 2026

  Cut one thing this week

  Getting better often means doing less. This week: what to cut, and how to tell.

• Issue #919 July 2026

  Two-way doors

  Most decisions can be undone, yet we treat plenty of them as if they can't. This week: telling the two apart.

• Issue #812 July 2026

  Where your best hours go

  Your attention gets spent whether you choose where or not. This week: protecting a couple of hours a day for the work that matters.

• Issue #75 July 2026

  Decisions on a ten-year clock

  Most of what feels urgent this week won't matter in ten years. The few things that will matter rarely feel urgent at all.

• Issue #628 June 2026

  The second build ships faster

  The first time you do something, you pay for every lesson. The second time, you get to skip a lot of the queue.

• Issue #521 June 2026

  Staying close to home from far away

  Living abroad makes you choose which relationships you keep up on purpose. A few notes on staying close from the other side of the Atlantic.

• Issue #414 June 2026

  Hire for the slope of the line

  Where someone has been tells you less than how fast they're moving. This week: how good hirers read the slope.

• Issue #37 June 2026

  The small decisions you can't take back

  Some decisions feel tiny when you make them and turn out to be very hard to undo. This week is about spotting them early.

• Issue #231 May 2026

  The price of waiting for the perfect time

  Waiting until you feel ready is an expensive way to start. This week: why the best time to begin is usually a bit before you feel ready.

• Issue #124 May 2026

  What to expect on Sundays

  One idea each Sunday on building, careers and the long game. Mostly in the words of people who've done it, with my own stories where I have them.