Capitalogix

Living Longer, Healthier, and Better

Each year I get a little bit more focused on what I can be doing to get more out of my time and to increase the quantity of time left.

Even with a renewed focus on health, it isn't always easier. As my friend Ben Hardy says, Willpower Doesn't Work - you have to identify goals that are bigger than yourself, create consequences and rewards for achieving or failing to achieve those goals, and change your environment to make success easy.  

I don't just want to be healthier to increase my time on earth, but to better support my family, my business, and to create a positive impact on those around me. 

When you have a vision of who you want to be, and what you want to accomplish, achieving your goals becomes a lot easier. 

When the goal is health, there are definitely some decisions that are proven to help. You can click to see the image in full-size. 

via informationisbeautiful

 

On top of the science, here are some of my anecdotal opinions on living longer, healthier, and better:

• Losing weight is as simple as calories in, calories out. It doesn't matter if you're on keto or eating only twinkies if you can keep your calories ingested below your calories burned
• In life, and in diets, shortcuts end up hurting you long-term more than they help you short-term
• Living "right" doesn't mean you can't let loose, it means that it's the exception instead of the rule. If your lifestyle doesn't let you have fun with your friends or family, it's probably not the healthiest lifestyle. Mental health is just as important as physical health

 

I'd love to hear your favorite "trick" to living better. Feel free to send me an e-mail. 

Thanks! Live Long and Prosper!

Another Year, Another Lesson!

Yesterday was my 56th birthday - I know, I know, I don't look a day over 55.  Regardless, time marches on, and I become increasingly grateful for the friends and family who are journeying through time with me.

We didn't make it to the Jersey Shore this year or have genuine Philly Cheesesteaks, but we did eat amazing food, tell old stories, and spend quality time together. There is a lot to be said for family and tradition.

When I was a kid, I couldn't imagine being where I am today ... nor could I imagine the path that got me here. Looking back, it all seems to make sense (even though it felt pretty random while making my way through it).

I feel lucky to have been in the right place at the right time, so consistently, and to find the gift in most situations (even when it seemed so well hidden).

I'm grateful for a lot today, and as much as I love innovation, sometimes things are perfect just the way they are. 

Hope you took time this weekend to let someone know they're important to you. If not, now is a good time for that too!

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - July 14th, 2019

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

 

Lighter Links:

• How Did NASA Put Men on the Moon? One Harrowing Step at a Time. (Washington Post)
• 55 Dr. Seuss Quotes for the Places You'll Go. (DevelopGoodHabits)
• Nick Saban on the 5 Choices We Have in Life. (LeadershipNow)
• How to Turn on Fall Detection on Your Apple Watch Series 4. (Mactrast)
• When Charlie Chaplin Entered a Chaplin Look-Alike Contest & Came in 20th Place. (OpenCulture)

Trading Links:

• Electric Vehicles are Outperforming the Traditional S-Curve Dynamics. (SeekingAlpha)
• Are Drones Really the Future of Delivery? [Infographic]. (B2C)
• The World's Biggest Potential IPO May Be on Again. (Economist)
• Moody's Economist: We'll See the Markets 'Tank' If the Fed Doesn't Cut Rates. (Finance)
• Trump Picks Another Fed Member Who Believes in the Gold Standard. this One Really Means It. (CNN)

 

 

Biohacking Gone Wild

Dave Asprey is perhaps the most well-known biohacker (he's even referenced in Merriam-Webster's definition of biohacker) and the founder of Bulletproof. For those that don't know, a biohacker is someone who uses drugs and technology to make their body/mind function better. 

Dave and I shot a video where he discusses life and provides an interesting take on algorithms. 

 

 

It's not surprising that biohacking has become as popular as it has. In a society that encourages (maybe even necessitates) an impossible balance between work, responsibilities, and self-care - it makes sense to want to increase efficiency. 

Biohacking helps you do more with less. Biohacking is popular because you're trying to get peak performance via the path of less resistance.

Having trouble with sleep, but don't want to stop using your phone before bed? Wear blue-light blocking glasses. 

Not getting enough results at the gym? Work out "smarter" not harder, by using cryotechnology and intelligent lifting machines. 

While biohacking started as tricks like that - nootropics to help your mind, light and sound machines to decrease stress - it's becoming increasingly tech-centric and augmentation based. 

Several months ago, I shared Gartner's hype cycle for 2018. Do-It-Yourself Biohacking was one of 5 encompassing trends for the year. 

The future is bringing implants to extend humans past their perceived limits and increase our understanding of our bodies; biochips with the potential to detect diseases, synthetic muscles, and neural implants. - Howard Getson

It's estimated that over 100,000 people already have various types of implants. In Sweden, thousands of Swedes are inserting chips under their skin to speed up their daily routines. They use chips to open locked doors, to store contact information, and to get on to the train. Currently, chips are limited to simple tasks like unlocking doors, holding personal data, and tracking simple to record data.

Longterm, it's likely you'll see it moving toward exoskeletons, AR/XR experiences, and unsurprisingly to sex toys. It's also being used to create artificial organs and counteract memory loss.  The two companies that are leading this movement are Neuralink,  Biohax International and Digiwell. While it's currently being adopted primarily by fast-movers and technocrats, it's pragmatic to think there will be more widely-adopted versions of this as technology gets standardized and protections are put in place. 

For all the excitement, it's necessary to remain skeptical and patient. DIY biohacking raises various ethical issues, especially around data protection and cybersecurity. As a reminder, when it comes to cybersecurity, you "the user" are the biggest weakness.

There's no stopping this train, but there is time to make sure it stays on tracks!

Onwards!

by the way, I highly recommend the Bulletproof product line!

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - July 7th, 2019

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

 

Lighter Links:

• These are the Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2019.(WEForum)
• Inside an Amazon Warehouse, Robots' Ways Rub off on Humans. (New York Times)
• Beetles and Flies are Becoming Part of the Agricultural Food Chain. (Economist)
• China and the World: inside the Dynamics of a Changing Relationship. (McKinsey)
• How Many of the "Top 100 Books of All Time" Have You Actually Read? (BuzzFeed)

 

 

Trading Links:

• So How's the Economy Really Doing?: Theme of the Week. (Bloomberg)
• Jony Ive's Shock Departure from Apple: What Does It Really Mean? (Forbes)
• The End of FinTech. (TheFinanser)
• Is a Netflix Subscription Model the Future of Financial Services? (TheFinancialBrand)
• A Looming Disconnect between the Economy and Financial Markets. (SeekingAlpha)

 

 

 

Remembering My Father

This year, I spent some extra time thinking about my father - and his influence on me and countless others. It's been 20 years since my last Father's Day with him. 

 

 

My Dad was incredibly loving and demanding.  I recognize how much his vision of what I could become helped shape me. 

For example, after winning the State Championship in the shot put, my dad came down from the stands onto the field.  He hugged me and told me that he knew I could do it. Then, he looked deeply into my eyes and asked whether I was a little disappointed?  "Disappointed?" I asked. "But, Dad, I won."  He looked at me and said, "Yeah, winning is great ... but you didn't throw a personal best."   He was proud and he loved me.   He recognized that winning was important ... but he wanted to remind me that the other throwers weren't my real competition. 

In life, to be and do your best, the competition is really with yourself; and we both knew I could do better.

My Dad believed in setting high standards.  He taught me that most people's lives are defined by their minimum standards.  Why?  Because once those standards get met, it is easy to get distracted and complacent.

One of his favorite sayings was "The difference between good and great is infinitesimal."  This applies to many things. For example, people who are good take advantage of opportunities; people who are great create them.  The point is that setting higher standards is one of the best ways to ensure a better life.

As time goes on, I recognize how much of him is inside me. 

 

Nick Offerman via My Tales of Whisky

Many of the lessons he taught me became the lessons I taught my children - and my company. It's easy to focus on the big stories and the big lessons – but as I look back and consider what had the biggest impact, it was what happened in between ... It was his incredibly consistent and unconditional love and his focus on what was possible.

The standards I hold people to are high, and it can be tough for them to meet those standards.  Hopefully, they understand that it's because I love them (as my dad loved me) and that I see the greatness in them and available to them. 

Happy Father's Day weekend!

75th Anniversary of D-Day

June 6th, 1944 ... the day we stormed the beaches of Normandy.  It was the largest seaborne invasion in history. The invasion created a foothold that allowed Allied forces to expand through France. 

The memorial in France this year was a particularly touching event with the many surviving World War 2 soldiers being well into their 90s. 

"A generation whose unconquerable spirit shaped the post-war world. They didn't boast. They didn't fuss. They served" - Theresa May

A 97-year old veteran paratrooper, Tom Rice, commemorated the day by once again dropping into the field he landed in on that fateful night. 

Check out the video. It's an inspiration. 

 

via TIME

Seems like a friendlier welcome than a sea of German soldiers. As an extra fun fact, Teddy Roosevelt stormed the beaches of Normandy at 56 with a heart condition,  arthritis, and a cane. He was the oldest man to take part in the invasion. 

Our society is built on the backs of many strong men! I'm thankful for their sacrifices. 

The Rise of the Megacity

Population growth is an interesting measure. Historically, growth has been slow.  But something changed that.  And the implications are stunning.

Scientists estimate that humans have existed for over 130,000 years. It took until 1804 for us to reach 1 Billion. We doubled that population by 1927 (123 years later), and then doubled it again in only 47 years later (which was 1974). 

Early population growth was driven by the agricultural revolution. Since 1804, the industrial revolution, health and safety advances, and technology have radically improved quality of life - spurring comparatively rapid growth. 

via Axios (Click for an Interactive Graph)

World population growth rates peaked in the late 1960s and have declined sharply in the past four decades, but we're still on a positive trend. We're expected to reach 9 billion people by 2050, but a lot of that growth comes from developing countries - they also almost exclusively come from urban areas. 

Urbanization: Megacities

Since 2014, over 50% of the world's population has lived in urban areas - today it's approximately 55%. That number is growing.

Ironically, as we grow more digitally connected, our world is shrinking and our populations are concentrating. 

An interesting consequence of this rapid urbanization and population growth in developing countries has been the increased development of Megacities - defined as cities with populations greater than 10 million. Today, there are 33 megacities - more than triple the number in the 1990s. 

This creates a set of interesting opportunities and challenges. 

For example, how will these cities deal with infrastructure - sanitation, transportation, etc.

 

via Blackrock (Click to view full infographic)

 

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - June 2nd, 2019

Toronto plays Golden State in game two of the NBA Finals tonight. Tickets were a little pricey!

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

 

Lighter Links:

• This is Why Einstein Knew that Gravity Must Bend Light. (Forbes)
• The Lucrative Black Market in Human Fat. (The Atlantic)
• Goldman Sachs's Chief Critic Picks New York's Top New Restaurants. (Bloomberg)
• Amazon Working on Wearable Device that Will Track Your Emotions. (News18)
• Harvard Spent 80 Years Studying Happiness, and We Now Know the 1 Key Habit that Makes People Happier. (The Problem: Most People Never Even Try). (Inc)

 

Trading Links:

• Al Gore Keeps Beating the Stock Market. Here's What He's Buying and Selling. (Barrons)
• Big Revenues, Huge Valuations and Major Losses: Charting the Era of the Unicorn IPO. (TechCrunch)
• Musk's SpaceX Raised over $1 Billion in Six Months: Filings. (Reuters)
• Texas Set to Become 11Th State to Ban Red Light Cameras. (Gizmodo)
• Alibaba Billionaire Jack Ma: I Know Nothing about Tech or Marketing – This Is the Secret to My Success. (CNBC)

 

 

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - May 26th, 2019

Theresa May has just announced her resignation as UK Prime Minister. She's faced massive criticism for an inability to come to a resolution on Brexit, and missing two deadlines. A new PM will be appointed in July.

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

 

Lighter Links:

 

• Our Coming DNA Nightmare, as Outlined by a Dystopian Graphic Novel. (FastCompany)
• Google May Know You Better Than You Know Yourself. (Wall Street Journal)
• Leonardo Da Vinci Designed an Ideal City, Centuries Ahead of Its Time. (TheConversation)
• U.S. Among the Ten Most Stressed Nations Worldwide [Infographic]. (Forbes)
• Princeton Valedictorian Gets Engaged to Her 71-Year-old Former Professor. (FoxNews)

 

Trading Links:

• Economics in the Age of Big Data. (Science)
• These are the 20 Highest-Paid World Leaders. (CNW)
• America's Strong Economic Growth this Year Surprises Economists. (Economist)
• Millionaires Flee Their Homelands as Tensions Rise and Taxes Bite. (Bloomberg)
• This Map Showing the Fastest and Slowest Internet Speeds in the US Could Predict the Path of a Silicon Valley Startup Exodus. (BusinessInsider)