Capitalogix

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - April 1st, 2018

 Happy April Fool's Day. What were your favorite pranks?  Here is a list of some that made news this year.

 

via LegallyDrawn

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

Lighter Links:

• Daniel Pink How to Make Better Decisions and Be More Creative. (Tim)
• 2018 Framework to Understand Digital Innovation. (HackerNoon)
• Why Dogs Really Do Love You, According to Science. (Inverse)
• China's 'Social Credit' System Bans Millions from Travelling. (Telegraph)
• We Asked Astronauts If They Think Aliens Exist. Here's What They Said. (Mashable)

 

Trading Links:

• What Exactly is Vladimir Putin's Net Worth? is He the Richest Person on the Planet? (CNW)
• China's One-Man Show. (JacobinMag)
• The next Housing Crisis: a Historic Shortage of New Homes. (Wall Street Journal)
• A Nobel-winning Economist is Part of a Team Launching a Low-volatility Cryptocurrency. (Quartz)
• President Trump Reportedly Obsessed' with Regulating Amazon, Wants to Clip Jeff Bezos' Wings. (GeekWire)

Avoiding Death by Snowmobile

I was in Saskatchewan, Canada last week for my first-ever snowmobiling experience.

When I got there, everyone was in great spirits. Apparently, this is a sport done with day drinking, lots of laughter, and abandon.

We split into groups: Insane, Merely Crazy, and the Turtles.

I figured I was relatively safe with the Turtles. Still, I have to admit that I was a little nervous. The machines are capable of gliding over the snow at speeds approaching 200 miles per hour. And, I heard stories that 70 percent of these outings ended in some form of injury. Those are some sphincter-tightening things to put together.

The scenery was majestic.

But I didn't notice till it was over.  Humans are deletion creatures. That means they can hold seven things (plus or minus two) in their memory. Everything else gets filtered or deleted. For example, in chess, a grandmaster can focus on the portion of the board that is most proximately related to winning. A novice, however, wastes their buffers with thoughts like "the horsey-thing goes up two and over one."

While everyone else was focused on having fun, I focused on how to make the sled do something. There were no instructions that said click this, press that. Here's the brake, or, the three most important things to remember are … 

I quickly learned two rules. The first, you have to lean in the direction that you want to turn (otherwise the sled tips over). By the way, it took me a few iterations to figure this one out. 

Here is a picture of me just after they dug me out from under the sled.

 

 

The second rule is to try to stay on the sled. I never quite figured that rule out fully. 

I guess you can be skillful, you can be lucky, or you can pray.

Luckily, I saw Father Rac before we started.   My question was whether he was here to bless the participants or perform last rites.

 

 

 

After a nice conversation, he said he'd pray for me.

In my industry, we call that hedging.

I did last longer than the sled.  It had to be towed.

Meanwhile, I still have ten fingers and ten toes, ended the day vertically, and had a ton of fun.  Victory!

I’ll suck less next time.

Ikigai - A Japanese Concept About Finding Life's Purpose

I just read that they sell more adult diapers than baby diapers in Japan.

Getting old is tough, and it gets tougher the older you get.   As a result, finding your 'reasons for being' and joy in life becomes even more important. 

Many people (all over the world) struggle to get up in the morning. 

There's a Japanese concept called Ikigai that may help.

 

via InformationIsBeautiful

Finding your "reason to be" and living with purpose is a key to making the most of your time.

The graphic highlights something interesting (yet almost counter-intuitive) ... When two areas intersect, it creates a something positive (e.g., a passion or a mission).   However, where three areas intersect, it creates a pain point (for example it could be what you're good at, you love doing it, the world needs it ... but it doesn't make you any money – so now you're struggling).

Worth examining and thinking about for a bit.

On a related note, here is a TEDx talk about the 9 common diet and lifestyle habits that help people live past 100.

 

TED-ED via YouTube

Live long and Prosper!

12 Ways to Get Smarter - In One Infographic

I just got back from Asia and have been jet-lagged.  Consequently, my mental clock-speed is not yet back to normal.

 

It got me thinking about productive output ... and how to increase it.

 

According to VisualCapitalist, the level of a person’s raw intelligence, as measured by aptitude tests such as IQ scores, is generally pretty stable for most adults.

 

While it’s true that there are things you can do to fine tune your natural capabilities (such as doing brain exercises, puzzle solving, and getting optimal sleep) – the amount of raw brainpower you have is difficult to increase in any meaningful or permanent way.

 

For those of us who constantly strive to be high-performers in our fields, this seems like bad news. If we can’t increase our processing power, then how can we solve life’s bigger problems as we move up the ladder?

 

The Key is Mental Models

 

The good news is that while raw cognitive abilities matter, it’s how you use and harness those abilities that really makes the difference.

 

 

via VisualCapitalist - Click the image to see a larger version.

 

The world’s most successful people, from Ray Dalio to Warren Buffett, are not necessarily leagues above the rest of us in raw intelligence – they have simply developed and applied better mental models of how the world works, and they use these principles to filter their thoughts, decisions, strategies, and execution.

 

Today’s infographic comes from best-selling author and entrepreneur Michael Simmons, who has collected over 650 mental models through his work. The infographic (in a similar style to one VisualCapitalist previously published on cognitive biases) synthesizes these models down to the most useful and universal mental models that people should learn to master first.

 

Concepts such as the 80/20 rule (Pareto’s Principle), compound interest, and network effects are summarized in the visualization, and their major components are broken down further within the circle.

 

If you want to be a top performer, it’s worth looking into mental models. They can help you better frame reality, so that you can harness your intelligence and effort in the most effective way possible – and it’ll allow you to deliver results along the way.

 

Otherwise, caffeine and modafinil help.

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - February 25th, 2018

Sometimes it is nice to be reminded that  great works are often performed by perseverance rather than strength.

 

via BrainyQuote

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

 

Lighter Links:

• 5 Ways Blockchain is Changing the Face of Innovation of 2018. (Forbes)

• Singularity's Top 50 Breakthrough Tech Predictions. (Diamandis)

• Don't Be Fooled: Russia Attacked U.S. Troops in Syria. (Bloomberg)

• Not the End of the World:  The Return of Dubai's Ultimate Folly. (TheGuardian)

• The Price Per Square Inch of Pizza at 8 Major US Pizza Chains. (Visual)

 

Trading Links:

• It's Getting Harder to Tell Banks from Tech Companies. (Bloomberg)

• In Praise of Elon Musk. (NationalReview)

• It's Time to Make Every Road a Toll Road. (Wired)

• No End in Sight for Amazon's Wild Ride. (Wall Street Journal)

• Apple Sold More Watches Than Rolex, Swatch, and the Rest of the Swiss Watch Industry Combined. (Insider)

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - January 21st, 2018

It's day 2 of the government shutdown; but what does that actually mean?

In short: 

• "Essential" government services will still run even if employees aren't getting paid - USPS, TSA, Social Security
• Other "non-essential" government employees will be "furloughed" and told to stay at home. 
• Military will be required to work, but won't be paid until Congress comes to an agreement
• Employees will be paid retroactively once an agreement is met. 

 Efficiency at its finest ... or a force function to get the children to play nicer with each other?

 

 

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

Lighter Links:

• Want to Get Wisdom? Be Your Own Crowd. (Bloomberg)
• NASA Just Proved It Can Navigate Space Using Pulsars. Where to Now? (Wired)
• It's So Cold in Russia that Thermometers are Breaking. (BGR)
• What Robot Strippers Say about Sexism, Tech and the Future. (AP News)
• Benjamin Franklin Built His Character around 13 Virtues and Following His Weekly Plan Could Change Your Life. (BusinessInsider)

Trading Links:

• How Donald Trump Has Remade the Rules for Business. (Wall Street Journal)
• Fed Paid $29.3 Billion to Banks 'Not' to Lend in 2017; Gave $80 Billion to Treasury. (ZeroHedge)
• One Person is Probably Responsible for Almost 600 Percent of Bitcoin's Price Rise. (Mashable)
• Kodak's Pivot to Crypto Seems to Be Working out Quite Nicely. (FastCompany)
• These are the Biggest Risks for Businesses in 2018, According to the World Economic Forum. (Fortune)

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - January 14th, 2018

 

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

Lighter Links:

• Tesla Model 3: the First Serious Review. (The Drive)
• How Religion Made a Global Comeback in 2017. (The Atlantic)
• New Year's Fitness Resolutions: the Smartest Way to Keep Them. (WSJ)
• How Kaspersky's Software Fell under Suspicion of Spying on America. (Wall Street Journal)
• Could Your Apple Watch Save Your Life?: How Smartwatch Sensors Could Help Tackle a Dangerous Heart Condition. (ZDNet)

Trading Links:

• Kodak Announces Blockchain Plan, Share Price Soars. (FinExtra)
• Here's Why Spotify is Bypassing the Normal IPO Process and Why More Companies Don't Do It. (BI)
• As Dow Tops 25000, Individual Investors Sit It Out. (Wall Street Journal)
• Amazon Has a Master Plan to Turn Alexa into a Full-fledged Economy All on Its Own. (Insider)
• A Crypto Expert Explains the Difference between the Two Largest Cryptocurrencies in the World: Bitcoin and Ethereum. (BusinessInsider)

Thoughts on Ten Years of Marriage ...

I met Jennifer in April of 2004.  We got married in January of 2008.  We celebrated our 10th Wedding Anniversary this week.

  

Wow, how time flies!

On one hand, it seems like just yesterday.  On the other hand, portions of that decade seemed to take forever.

As an entrepreneur, I live in a weird "tense".  For me, the future and present are often blended.  Meaning, I imagine the future I want – and then I find the path to create (or manifest) that destiny.  Not surprisingly, some of the things that were easy to imagine were hard to bring into reality (in a reproducible, efficient, and effective manner or process) ... And these things seem to take forever.  

Other things (like relationships or the growth and maturation of my kids) seemed to happen in the blink of an eye.

I am consciously trying to be more mindful and grateful for the progress (and even the minor moments, wins, or curiosities) before me.  The truth is that if you fail to notice them, you don't experience them.

Here is to experiencing all that you need or want ... and I hope the rest serves as raw material, learning, or fuel to get you there faster.

Onwards!

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - December 22nd, 2017

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

Lighter Links:

• How One Connection Could Change Your Life (In Less Than 90 Days). (Forbes)
• Why Facts Don't Change Our Minds. (NewYorker)
• Long Island Iced Tea Soars after Changing Its Name to Long Blockchain. (Bloomberg)
• How Quantum Computing Will Change the World. (NewStatesman)
• Cracking the World Famous Enigma Machine with Artificial Intelligence in Just 13 Minutes. (7WData)

Trading Links:

• Here's How the Tax Bill Will Affect the Richest 1% in All 50 States. (CNBC)
• Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Just Sold $1.1 Billion Worth of His Stock. (Money)
• This Animation Shows the Explosion in ICO Funding over the Last Four Years. (Insider)
• The First $100 Billion Dollar Blockchain Company Could Be the next SAP. (Forbes)
• Worldwide Cognitive Systems and Artificial Intelligence Revenues Forecast to Surge past $47 Billion in 2020, According to New IDC Spending Guide. (IDC)

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - December 3rd, 2017

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

Lighter Links:

• The Seven Powers of Gratitude. (LeadershipFreak)
• The Top 18 Destinations for 2018. (ThePointsGuy)
• Lab-Grown "Clean Meat" is Almost Here. Will You Eat It? (BigThink)
• The White House Wants to Ban Cellphones, Citing Security Risk. (TechCrunch)
• The 12 Best Business Books of the Year, According to Stanford Business School. (BusinessInsider)

Trading Links:

• CryptoCurrencies and Blockchains. (Inference-Review)
• Investors Beware: 'Sentiment' is Not an Exact Market-Timing Tool. (Forbes)
• Institutions Shift More Assets Into Smart Beta. (FT)
• 'Stealth Hedging' Shows Investors Not So Complacent. (Reuters)
• Entrepreneurs Eye the Early Exits as M&A Activity for Young Companies Rises. (CityAM)