Albert Alabau
Chief People Officer, Typeform
1. What seemed like an inconsequential decision at the time, but in hindsight
turned out to fundamentally reshape your life?
Consciously deciding to break up with my group of friends when I was 16. I was raised in a small village, and that meant spending a lot of time on the street, hanging around with friends, most of the time playing sports and having fun. The group of friends I used to hang out with back then, moved from playing football and riding a bike to using drugs over a few weeks in the summer. That was not my cup of tea and, after a period of deep reflection (your friends are “almost everything” at that age), I realised I was a sort of misfit to their eyes too, so I decided to stop seeing them and went on my own. I started reading, a lot. And listening to music as a need, not as a hobby. I soon realised I was devouring books -from fiction to behavioural science- and records -from pop music to jazz- like if there was no tomorrow. This strengthened my curiosity, and I realised I could find empathy as well as questions to my answers on books and lyrics, and later found myself asking questions I had never thought of before. I soon found myself surrounded by a new bunch of people who shared some of my passions, and whose values and interests were better aligned with mine. I learned early that you need to be genuine to who you are, to what you feel, rather than following the crowd just because this is what you are supposed to do. That forged the person I am today.
2. What do you think is true that most people think is false? What do you think
is false, that most people think is true?
I think what is true is a sustainable world is possible today: cheap green energy production, long-range electric mobility with carbon-neutral vehicle production, low natural resources plant-based tasty food production, sustainable housing building, removing plastic usage from packaging, … and a long list are all possible today and I do not understand why all governments aren’t forcing the global manufacturers and companies in that direction.
I think that what is false is that sustainability will come through awareness and a change of habits in people: i.e. recycling. It will rather come through disruptive innovation. I.e. developing bacterias that eat the plastic in our oceans vs making people stop throwing it to the sea
3. When was the last time you changed your mind about something really
important? What was it and what led you to change your view?
I love cars. I would say I’ve been a petrol-head since I was a kid. I loved the sound of powerful, petrol engines. Even the smell of gasoline. At the same time, a while ago I worked for a wind energy company whose founders’ motto was to “make a living out of air”. That started making me pay attention to renewable energy and electric mobility but still thought that was something to come in the future. 2 years ago, my wife needed a car, she wanted a small, city car, and we started researching the option of buying a Smart. We tested it, she loved it, but then I discovered the electric version looking at me in the car shop… while its selling price was significantly higher than the petrol equivalent, we made numbers and realised that, in less than 3 years, we would compensate for the extra cost. That blew my mind. Most people drive less than 80km a day. No electric car sold today has less than 130km range, and most of the new ones go much further without being too expensive if you do the maths (the higher selling price is amortised in 3-4 years if you do 12-15,000 km per year). And this means tones of CO2 saved from intoxicating our cities. And, at least in Barcelona and its surrounding, the street is full of lamps that would be super easy and cost-effective to adapt as night public chargers. Moreover, driving an electric car is a completely different experience: it’s much more fun than the equivalent petrol option.
4. What are the three books that you would unhesitatingly recommend to
others? Why?
Kafka’s The Metamorphosis (read it for the first time when I was 16 or 17 and it was mind blowing), The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni (learned so much from it and keep re-reading bits of it almost every year), and Ray Dalio’s Principles, which I am about to finish now and it has made me reflect like no other book I’ve read in the last 5 years.
5. What’s one misconception people generally have about you?
That I am an extrovert. Many people get surprised. I am an introvert who opens in close groups but never been the kind of person arriving at a party and high-fiving everyone. That’s also why, while I loved sharing and exchanging knowledge and engaging in meaningful conversations with other people, I refuse to speak to most events I am invited at.
6. What is your untrainable superpower?
Caring about others genuinely, in silence, without others noticing my acts. I’ve realised that most people, even those that seem evil, do care about their loved ones but mostly use care as something transactional outside their closest circle. In HR, when you care genuinely about others, you constantly find yourself questioning what is the best answer or solution to impact the biggest amount of people if it’s something good, or the fewer people possible if the decision will have a negative impact. I learned it from my mum but I do not think it’s something easily trainable. You do care or you don’t. If you do, you can be trained to care more and better. If you don’t, probably you need a life-changing event to help you learn it and then train it.
7. Have you always had the same political beliefs? If so, why do you think you
have held them so long? If not, what event caused you to change your view?
No, and I think they keep evolving as I age. I always kept a strong social and humanist belief but today I find myself hesitating in debates where years ago I had a really strong opinion of. My wife is about to finish a PhD in economic history and, regularly listening to her and her crew talk about historical, economic and political events of the last 100+ years that seem so relevant today, have shacked some of my beliefs about one best way or system to run the world to the advantage of people’s wellbeing and happiness.
8. What do you think is acceptable today but will become taboo tomorrow?
Talking really freely. The line between “being always respectful” and being “a free thinker who does not aim to harm anyone but neither aims to please everyone” is under thorough public scrutiny. It’s a growing taboo today. Although still accepted, I am not sure this will be anytime soon. And social media and the immediateness of reactions without checking facts, data or even pausing to think before reacting do not help.
9. What app or tech product have you most recently fallen in love with?
Insight Timer. I started meditating 3 years ago but I did not manage to practice every day. I recently bought the yearly subscription and I am loving it: so easy to use and so convenient. The amount of varied guided meditations the app offers helps me squeeze a few minutes almost every day, be it early in the morning, after lunch, or before going to bed. And the benefits of it are tangible so quickly. A great investment.
10. What is the best purchase you’ve made recently? Why?
An automatic coffee machine. Since the lock-down, my wife and I have been WFH, which means 6 coffees a day. Being able to grind the coffee and get a fresh espresso without making a mess as we did before, and working with a constant smell of ground coffee is a great experience.
11. If you were to survive the zombie apocalypse, what role would you play in the
new society that would follow?
Something completely different from what I’ve done before but using the skills and knowledge I have today to help others have great experiences. Maybe becoming a cook and feeding people with tasty, healthy food.
12. If you could invite any 3 people - living or dead - to your final dinner party
before the end of the world, who would they be and why?
My grandfather: I did not meet any of my grandfathers and, according to everyone in my mother’s family, my grandfather was a great human being, a great listener, but also very fun.
Thom Yorke: his music with Radiohead has influenced me a lot, and I’d love playing with him before the world would end.
