21st Century Thoughts

You go to 14 years of school, then 4 years of college for some. Either way, 14 or 18 years of schooling should be enough to understand the difference between right and wrong, morally and factually. With that, there are incentives to being smarter and getting questions "correct".  So why is that same concept not applied to the current work force and has crept into higher education circles? There is no incentive to be correct but rather "telling one's view or truth which is on-par with the actually correct answer". This is dangerous and nonsensical. Until the world re-finds its footing, we will be stuck in a bind of rewarding less qualified and irrational people due to our standards being backwards. There should never be a point where we do not reward "correctness" or meritocracy in favor of one's personal opinions. We will all be dumber because of it.

Small roundtables should be required in all areas of education, work, sports, etc. The ability to exchange information to small groups where each member is able to bounce ideas helps much more than the current format of 1 preach, 30 listen and are unable to question. It limits our education advancement. Some of the best information can be uncovered in small groups such as these. Why do schools not utilize this more? Or managers with their teams of employees? Because it is easier to preach and quell opposing ideas. Small groups lead to big ideas. Big groups lead to small minds.

Un-cancelable. Elon Musk has taken TSLA to another high as his stock continues to push up amid news of a stock split. APPL trending upwards as well. Blue-chips are thriving. Those who want to risk investing in smaller stocks will lose out 90% + of the time. It is not fair but reality. Go Cats in the Final 4.

 Market slowing rebounding at the top. Always buy the dip. Those who sell lose in the long run. No new financial news. Italy is a world embarrassment, and the war continues to set us back in all areas. Go Nova at least...

1. Big sports games on today which makes for good TV. 2. Gambling ads are allowed during all games now (TNT NBA national slate, ESPN games, MLB Network). Seems crazy that the federal government will not just legalize it. 3. Fed wants rates at 2.5% by year end... why not now? The economy is shit anyway, let's not pretend jumping rates too soon would do any more damage than is currently happening.

This is not a call for help but Italy is in WC Qualifying and Villanova is in the Sweet 16. Both play tomorrow. If both lose, my heart will be unable to go on as these are the last teams in my life giving me hope. At least my book is 75% done. It isn't good, but it's something....

There are simply too many. MGM, Draftkings, Fanduel, and numerous others all competing against each other with nice promos. There is too much "free money" being thrown around and not enough consolidation. Am I complaining? No, not a chance. I can only imagine what the figures will look like as March Madness finishes week 1 of 3. There is just too much money at stake with gambling being readily available for companies to miss out. But with companies too spread out and too numerous, the profits are slumping. Come back to me when the form 1 or 2 national sportsbooks.

There is something cool about the first few days of March Madness flipping from channel to channel losing money on brackets but still enjoying the excitement of each game. I never understand why "bigger" or more important games are easier to engage with. Usually, 5 minutes of a regular season BIG 10 game and I wanna do anything else. But during the tournament, your brain locks on much easier. Maybe its the money aspect or just the overall passion behind these games, but I find this to be the best sports time of the year.

Business insider had an article about how NFT's and the Metaverse were loosing popularity among the general public. Today, 24 hours after that article, Bored Ape, the most popular NFT, releases their own coin to trade with on Coinbase.  The elites want crypto and NFT's to fail. Someone has to root for fiat currencies backed by the government. They want the Goldman's and Citi Banks to run the world. Inflation is hurting their cause, they know it, and want crypto to fail too. Far from it. I own 1 NFT which was given to me for free by DC comics for seeing the Batman movie on opening night. I have no personal stake but I can see how important blockchain can be.  We should not be allowing our money supply to be regulated by the elites. And everything the Government touches turns to crap. Seems like an easy choice to me.

Halfway done to my March challenge aka my small book. Will it be good? Probably not but once published, I can add author to my resume. It is all for the accomplishment and resume boost but it has been enjoyable. Also, March Madness and gambling are upon us. I can only imagine how much is going to be wagered the next few weeks. It is the only real day-time sporting event that Americans focus on (sorry tennis). Filling that void is possible...

How much of your motivation is internal? 10%? 99%? Does it matter? Things such as money and status are all external motivators, if even considered one. How much of what you do is what you actually want to do based on internal values and beliefs?

Everyone should read every day. Yesterday, I was thinking about how much time people waste on their social media accounts. If you spent 2 hours a day on social media for 5 years, that is 153 full days spent on these apps. Some people spend more, and have had their accounts for 8-9 years. The numbers get scary, fast. With that said, I try to read 12-15 books a year of various lengths, 30 mins a day and in a different language. Then, I add in 5-7 books in English as well. I want to avoid feeling bored scrolling on an app for hours... Find a hobby and stop the scrolling. I want something to show for the time I am spending or wasting throughout my life.

Its Friday before St. Patty's day so its basically a wasted day... but one small thought. I went to ColdStone yesterday night (couldn't have it, but my family wanted some so I went). When you check out, they have the card reader that basically strong arms you into a tip. Every single time, me or my family caves. It is hard to just skip with the worker looking over you. Are we weak? Sure, or it's just brilliant by the business. Allows for the workers to make some spare cash without customers being able to complain. The business doesn't care if they tip or not, but the employees can directly see each customer being directly asked to tip a dollar or two.  Do I like it? No, not at all. But I respect it. This is the business innovation and changes that separates those who are successful with those who are destined for average at best.

Not the rich. Inflation hurts those at the bottom. Less buying power, less food for your dollar, less gas for travel, less gifts for children, less ability to pay bills. Inflation is detrimental to the lower classes. Inflation is at about 10%. Did you return 10% on your assets and salary last year? If not, you are poorer today than 1 year ago.  The elites and politicians do not care about inflation, it doesn't hurt them. They are in a bubble outside of reality. 

Let's get there folks. But one thing of question: why are all employees who deal with others (virtually everyone) not trained as salesmen? This does not mean change careers, but rather instill the confidence to defend work and communicate effectively?  Salesmen run the world, and the most dangerous ones are also charismatic. A good salesman can convince the world of anything... So why are all business not training employees on this for all positions? We are always selling something.

Virtual world means less asset ownership... be weary. Anything that can be taken away by clicking "off" should scare everyone. If your goal is to accumulate assets, you should be balancing between virtual and tangible.  Just like in Russia right now, if your assets are all tied up into virtual ownership, the "kill switch" can be flipped at any time. Ensure you are protecting yourself against future theft. It is coming with each passing day.

Interesting topic: do we really do what we love? Does anyone truly do what they love? Is it possible only after we retire or during our childhood? If we do, how long is this? Is it for 5 years in our 60's or for our entire life? Is there a way to measure? The last part is does it matter? Can we find passion in everything we do, forced or not? My book is also coming along nicely. 30 day challenge means that it will not be fantastic but it will follow along with one of my favorite books, The Prince. One week down, 3 to go.

You learn more this way. The best leaders know when to listen vs when to insert their opinion. The loudest in the meeting are usually the least intelligent.... Happy Friday and Go Bulls!

Premier tonight for The Batman by Matt Reeves. Excited and one of the few occasions to head to the theater for a movie I want to see and justify spending money for. I also started a show on Netflix called "Luna Park" (European Indy movie) that made me nostalgic for prior years (even if I never lived them, it just looked awesome).  There is something special in old habits, such as movie theaters and theme parks and feelings of old. And if we all agree that there is something special in past methods, is all change good? Is it really better now than it was 50 years ago? On the surface, yes for certain causes (social rights, standard of living, technology advancement, etc.) and no for others (faster cultural shifts, more social isolation due to technology, more foreign presence in our lives, etc.).  I think most people confuse past methods with past age. We associate certain things as "better in the past" because we were younger. I do this, I know other adults do too, a...

How much of what the media gives you is fake? The SOTU address was riddled with lies, fudged numbers, and fake assertions. If this can happen with cameras rolling 24/7, imagine times before this.  How much of history is completely the opposite of what we know? Or even altered a little? The very thought of it being "fake" makes me wonder. This isn't political but rather an analysis on the past and future. Censorship will continue to make it easier to see what they want. They are already doing it now.

Some thoughts on Russia and Ukraine... 1. What is next? What is the end goal? More of Europe? No one has a direct answer which only helps Putin as he knows everyone else is scared. He is evil but unpredictable is worse in times of war. 2. These events show how fast the public can get behind certain causes. The media power is truly second to none. We have thousands of illegal immigrants pouring across the border daily, a pandemic, drug crisis, financial recession, and hyper-polarization. The media can always pick the narrative which is scary. 3. How many people understand the depth of certain global affairs? I would bet a majority have no idea where these countries are, who the leaders are, and what is actually at stake. Again, continue to pray Ukraine is able to withstand the attacks. It is not a favorable situation to anyone involved.