The new year has begun, bringing with it the socially sanctioned push to make resolutions. Readers, or those who want to devote more time to reading, tend to set some quantifiable intentions for the year to come. A popular one is finishing an arbitrary number of books; another approach is to establish specific parameters'reading only titles by women for a year, meeting a quota for books in translation, or trying one work from every country. Some readers opt for one or two giant books that are notoriously demanding. There's nothing wrong with these aspirations, but personally, I'm a bit allergic to this kind of goal setting. I don't like hemming myself in with strict rules'and I don't want to let my inner perfectionist force me to continue a challenge long after I've stopped enjoying it. More important, strict directives prioritize box-checking over holistic growth. There are many ways to advance your skill and capacity as a reader: Some of us are naturally drawn to detailed nonfiction, and others must learn to love it; some may have a taste for meandering, multigenerational epics, while their friends must train to build up the attention span they need. Depending on your particular strengths and desires for change, a single book may offer a better workout than a dozen others combined. Each of the five books below exercises a different kind of reading muscle, so that you can choose the one that will push you most....

Tacora Capital provides venture debt to VC-backed startups. Traditionally, venture debt is debt raised usually in unison with raising equity by startups. The debt ' often less structured and with fewer financial covenants than other forms of debt ' is used for traditional growth purposes and is often lent based on the startup's investors and/or where the company is in its growth. Founders Fund ' whose investments over the years include Airbnb, Palantir Technologies and Stripe ' had a busy 2024, making several high-profile investments in companies such as fintech startup Ramp, defense startup Anduril Industries, and AI and data platform Databricks....

' Hey, Linas here! Welcome to another special issue of my daily newsletter. Each day I focus on 3 stories that are making a difference in the financial technology space. Coupled with things worth watching & most important money movements, it's the only newsletter you need for all things when Finance meets Tech. If you're reading this for the first time, it's a brilliant opportunity to join a community of 310k+ FinTech leaders: 2024 has been a remarkable year for many financial technology stocks, driven by a combination of factors including increased consumer adoption, innovative product offerings, and favorable market conditions. Sezzle SEZL 0.00%' : Sezzle's stock surged 1,146% in 2024, fueled by strong financial performance and increasing adoption of its Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services. The company's robust business model and ability to capitalize on the growing BNPL market have contributed to its impressive growth. ICYMI: Sezzle's masterclass on how to make BNPL profitable ' [old but still accurate strategy worth stealing]...

Tesla delivered fewer cars last year than it did in 2023, marking its first year-to-year drop and signaling that the company is struggling to reach new buyers. That means Tesla's Cybertruck, which is the company's first true new model since 2020, did little to boost the company's growth in its first full year of sales. The company announced Thursday it delivered 1.77 million vehicles globally in 2024, down 2.2% from 1.81 million in 2023. Just 85,133 of those vehicles delivered were what Tesla refers to as 'other models,' which includes the aging Model S sedan, Model X SUV, and the Cybertruck. Tesla's stock, which has been on a run since CEO Elon Musk helped Donald Trump win re-election in November, dropped about 5.4% as of 10:20 a.m. ET. The drop in deliveries is a stark change for Tesla and Musk, which spent years promoting the goal of a 50% annual growth rate. The company already started to miss that mark over the last few years ' even with massive, unrelenting price cuts. The drop in 2024 is the first time annual sales actually declined since Tesla started delivering its first mass-market car, the Model S, in 2012....