Deep into mid-year planning and thinking about headcount? Athena just graduated a strong new class of assistants ready to join your team.

We can match active clients with an Athena assistant on a discovery call within 1 week.

Reply to this email to start the process.

Ted Sarandos' House of Cards

In 2011, Netflix stared at an unusual data pattern.

Viewers who loved the British House of Cards also binged Kevin Spacey films and David Fincher projects.

The insight was worth betting on.

As a result, they created a US version of House of Cards, starring Spacey and produced by Fincher:

→ $100 million
→ Two full seasons
→ Zero pilot

Traditional studios would have formed committees, commissioned studies, and filmed a pilot.

Netflix was informed by data, then let Ted Sarandos (Chief Content Officer then) make the call.

Most companies preach empowerment but practice permission-seeking.

Netflix treats proximity to information as authority.

Here's the test:

"Do I know the most about this decision?"

If no, pass it to someone who does.

House of Cards became Netflix's first original mega-hit. 33 Emmy nominations. Changed streaming forever.

Panic in Antarctica

Ernest Shackleton's crew should have died in 1915.

Their ship Endurance was crushed like a tin can in Antarctic ice.

No rescue ships in sight and no radio contact. Only endless white and temperatures that could freeze spit before it hit the ground.

Instead of despair, Shackleton built something extraordinary: a productivity system that kept every man alive and functioning.

Each morning at 6:30 AM, the crew began scientific observations.

✓ Wind speed
✓ Temperature readings
✓ Ice measurements

Frank Hurley documented everything through photography, even in -40°F weather.

Afternoons meant mandatory exercise. Soccer games on ice floes. Boxing matches. Racing competitions between tent groups.

Evenings brought lectures. The ship's surgeon taught anatomy. The meteorologist explained weather patterns. The navigator shared stories of ocean currents.

Shackleton assigned each person specific daily responsibilities.

→ Leonard Hussey played banjo every evening
→ Thomas Orde-Lees managed food rations with military precision
→ Frank Wild organized camp logistics

No idle time meant no room for panic.

After 497 days on ice, every single crew member returned home alive. They credited their survival to staying busy, staying useful, and having something to do every day.

When your world feels chaotic, productivity becomes survival. Structure creates stability. Purpose prevents despair.

Give people something meaningful to do each day, and they'll endure almost anything.