Healthy Lifestyle

  • Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading – December 5th, 2021

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    Here are some of the posts that caught my eye. Hope you find something interesting.

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  • Happy Hanukkah 2021

    It's that Holiday time of year again. 

    Wow, how time flies. We're past Thanksgiving, and Christmas and the New Year will be here quickly.

    It turns out that tonight was and the last night of Chanukah – which is the Jewish festival of lights. This is the holiday that involves lighting the Menorah (Chanukah candles), eating latkes (potato pancakes), exchanging gifts, playing spin the Dreidel (a gambling game), and enjoying a sense of family togetherness for eight days and nights.

    That's a long time, right?! Well, sometimes it seems even longer with my family. 

    As a gift to all of you, here is "The Chanukah Song," performed by comedian Adam Sandler on Saturday Night Live.  It became an instant classic (and he since released a second, third, and fourth version.)

    Here is the video. And, if you're feeling left out – here's Adam Sandler's Christmas Song.

     

    via SNL

    It's not too different from Christmas. 

    The cynic in me believes the gift part of the holiday was invented by merchants.

    Regardless, the Capitalogix team has been in a festive mood, and the office has been filled with holiday cheer. We recently celebrated a Thanksgiving Potluck as well. 

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    From my family to yours, Happy Holidays!

  • Drunkest Countries Per Capita

    The holidays and the winter months tend to have a negative impact on collective mental health. 

    Many jump to alcohol to make it through.

    Which countries would you guess consume the most alcohol per capita?

    Several people I asked quickly guessed Russia without even looking at the chart.

    Well, here's the chart.

    Screen Shot 2021-11-14 at 3.00.48 PMvia visualcapitalist

    Europe did top the list with 8 of the top 10 countries. However, Russia did not make the list. 

    Screen Shot 2021-11-14 at 2.57.00 PMvia visualcapitalist

    The Cook Islands top the list with almost 3.5 gallons of alcohol annually per capita. 

  • Thriving Through The AI Revolution

    The world is poised on the cusp of an economic and cultural shift as dramatic as that of the Industrial Revolution. - Steven Levy

    Artificial Intelligence is one of my favorite things to talk about … It makes so much possible! 

    In a previous article, I mentioned that forecasts expect AI to impact or eliminate up to 50% of current jobs. Nevertheless, I think that is the start of the story. The ultimate impact will be more significant and more positive than most people expect.

    Freeing humans to do more has always been a boon to society. Electricity put a lot of people out of work … but, look what it made possible.

    We'd be naive to think AI isn't going to influence the job market, but that doesn't mean you can't navigate that shift. 

    A Look At Industrial Revolutions

    The Industrial Revolution has two phases: one material, the other social; one concerning the making of things, the other concerning the making of men. - Charles A. Beard

    There are several turning points in our history where the world changed forever. Former paradigms and realities became relics of a bygone era. 

    Today, we're at another turning point.

    Tomorrow's workforce will require different skills and face different challenges than we do today. You can consider this a Fourth Industrial Revolution. Compare today's changes to our previous industrial revolutions. 

    Each revolution shared multiple similarities. They were disruptive. They were centered on technological innovation. They created concatenating socio-cultural impact.

    The fourth shares all the same hallmarks.

    We're harnessing new technologies like AI, the IoT, renewable energy, and the blockchain. Automation will reach new levels in this revolution. But there also will be an explosion of new fields, new markets, and new necessary skillsets – it's going to impact the world as holistically as electricity did. 

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    How will humans create value in an increasingly automated world?

    I believe that, if managed well, the Fourth Industrial Revolution can bring a new cultural renaissance, which will make us feel part of something much larger than ourselves: a true global civilization. I believe the changes that will sweep through society can provide a more inclusive, sustainable and harmonious society. But it will not come easily. - Klaus Schwab

    One of the distinctions I've recently made about the industrial revolutions is that for a long time, technology helped humans act like robots. Think about a plow and a farmer, or a seamstress and a sewing machine. After that, it helped robots try to act like humans, which you've seen more recently. 

    I believe we're at another inflection point, where new capabilities will free up humans to be more human and to pursue more of what they really want. 

    Robots can do many things, but they've yet to match the creativity and emotional insight of humanity. As automation spreads to more jobs, the need for management, creativity, and decision-making won't go anywhere … they may be bolstered by data analytics, but they won't disappear. 

    Our uniqueness and flexibility rightly protect our usefulness. AI and automation free us up to be our best selves and to explore new possibilities. 

    These are exciting times!

  • The Promise And Peril of AI with Alan Olsen

    In 2017, I shot my first video with Alan Olsen. Alan is a wealth manager to the ultra-affluent.  His American Dreams show is immensely popular with the High-Net-Worth demographic in Silicon Valley.

    Alan's show is about finding your path in life, and what it takes to make businesses thrive through adversity and challenging times. 

    In my first video with him, we talked about defining a meaningful life. We started by talking about my career path from a young lawyer to spending over 25 years running tech companies … and the lessons learned along the way.

    I recently shot a new video with him – this time on the promise and peril of AI. It has over 3,500 Likes on YouTube.  Watch it here.

     

    via The American Dreams Show

    The main issue addressed during the video is how you can best get what you want as the world changes and forces like AI terraform the world and your role in it. 

    It's worth watching.

    Ultimately, I believe AI is simply another vehicle freeing human nature. As AI does what humans used to … you have an opportunity to choose what to do with the freedom you get.  Will you relax or lift your gaze to something better?  The choice is yours.

    Similarly, some will want to direct new AI capabilities towards things they want to monetize better.  Others will want to weaponize AI.  Still others will use it to spread peace and love. 

    You've seen it with nuclear power (and a host of other technological capabilities) … tools aren't good or bad in and of themselves – it is what people use those capabilities for that determines their impact. 

  • The Rise of Remote Work

    Remote work has been increasingly popular because of the pandemic … but even as more people have vaccines, and some are even getting booster shots, the love for remote work stays. 

    Screen Shot 2021-10-24 at 5.40.47 PMvia Buffer – State of Remote Work 2021

    But some industries are adopting it more than others. 

    Which-industries-are-embracing-remote-work-1via Visual Capitalist

    I'll be honest … when I first saw this, I was like, "Retail's that low? That can't be right". But then I realized… I never really go to stores. What would I know?

    Seeing the rise of remote work in Media & Tech is unsurprising. But, I will be curious to see what percentage of these businesses stay remote as we move further away from the "worst" of Covid-19. 

    As I mentioned in this video, hybrid solutions are the answer. There's too much benefit to the culture of companies that spend real time together in person. While I believe productivity can remain high at home or in the office, the sense of camaraderie is hard to sustain if you rarely see each other in real life. 

    That being said, employees are reporting being happier and more productive at home.  Consequently, I wouldn't bet on the move back to the office happening quickly. Meanwhile, companies also are suffering through the "great resignation."  Clearly, the game has changed – and so must their strategies and tactics. 

    The culture of work is in a massive period of transformation. Regardless of where your specific company or industry ends up, all businesses will have to increase the amount of employee care they provide. Just as the heart of AI is still human, so is the heart of our businesses. 

    You shouldn't be forced to take care of your employees … you should want to. This past year+ has been challenging for everyone, and it's important to keep that in mind as you make decisions. 

  • Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading – October 24th, 2021

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    Here are some of the posts that caught my eye. Hope you find something interesting.

    Lighter Links:

     

    Trading Links:

  • Get Yourself Optimized with Stephan Spencer

    I was recently on a podcast with Stephan Spencer where we talked about the future of AI – of course – but also about personal development, mindsets, and the hidden opportunities created by the byproducts of your strategies and business models. 

    It was a nice talk, and I hope you enjoy it and find it helpful.

     

    via Get Yourself Optimized

    The whole video is worth a watch, but the idea of strategic byproducts is a simple but powerful one. Essentially, while you're working on your core business, or operating your core business, you'll often realize that you have created other capabilities or outcomes of that business that can become a complementary business or platform in-and-of-itself. Instead of just being the exhaust of your business, they can become a valuable resource and the path to something new and potentially bigger and better than the original business. 

    That conversation starts around the 18-minute mark and picks back up around the 38-minute mark. 

    Stephan Spencer does an excellent job of that, not only in his businesses but with his podcast. What could simply be a video he records with the interviewee becomes audio, a transcript with highlights, a timeline of topics, and a checklist of action items that he (or you) could personally take from the interview. 

    He's already shot the podcast – so why not capitalize on the "exhaust" of it as well. 

  • It’s Not What Happens, It’s What You Do

    It's been a while since I've shared this video. I shot it in 2015. But, it's as relevant today (if not more so) as it was then. 

     

    A lot of times, the things that look like giant problems or setbacks turn out to be catalysts for something positive (and often better).

    You can't control everything; but, you can control what you focus on, the meaning you give things, and how you respond.

    It's not what happens, it's what you do! 

  • Top Influencers (By Platform)

    When you ask children what they want to be, many likely say YouTuber, Influencer, or some other variant of that theme.

    Influence is a complicated thing. From an abstract perspective, it's the ability to affect someone else's behavior. A high schooler can influence their classmates. As entrepreneurs, we can influence our employees, our industry, and more. You can have immense influence over a small number of people or a little bit of influence over many people – both still count as "influence."

    But, in this case, many of the most popular influencers aren't famous for changing the world; they are celebrities or just famous for being famous.

    Below is a chart of the top 50 "influencers" by social media platform. 

     

    Top-50-Social-Media-Influencers-2via visualcapitalist

    In the digital age, it's worth acknowledging social reach as power. People with a large platform have the opportunity to exert enormous influence – and it's why you often see the spread of misinformation reach far, fast. 

    It would be interesting to see how many of these people use their platforms to be a beacon to their followers (rather than a beacon to attract followers).

    It would also be interesting to see how much (or little) engagement many of these "influencers" actually have with their followers (and how that level of engagement relates to the growth or decay of their followings). 

    While I assume that the readers of this post aren't in the business of being "Influencers,"  Most of us recognize the value of influence – and getting more of it.

    As a result, it is probably worth thinking about influence as an asset.  And now is time to think strategically about how to grow and use that asset better.