I say it many times. People prefer to be right than making money. Successful people though have less ego and more money in their pocket. Don’t believe so? Let me ask you what you would do in this situation. In 1997, the movie The War of Troy premiered, with a production budget of $15 million. Easy… probably you never heard of it, right? Well… after it was completed, it was shown in two theatres, sold $309 in tickets, and Warner Brothers pulled it. Sent it to hell. Why? Why not show it in more...
1 day ago • 1 min read
Christmas is a fantastic moment of the year to check how the world work. Many people have no idea of what your hard-earned dollars that move the world work. Many people still ask me whether to invest as a company or as individual. Look. One of the biggest financial predators of our money is the government… Taxes. You want the new Mac. Retail cost 2.300$. Imagine that you are lucky and make 10.000$ a month and you want to buy that Mac. The government eats around 40% in income tax. You got...
2 days ago • 1 min read
When I assess how most professionals and entrepreneurs manage their time, I see the same mistake on repeat. They treat every task as equally important and/or equally urgent. So, they get bogged down with massive to-do lists, where responding to administrative emails assumes the same importance as servicing top clients. Stress is high. Burn-out massive. Effectiveness low. Results inexistent. Your tasks shouldn’t all carry equal weight. And some of the tasks on your list may not deserve any of...
3 days ago • 1 min read
Repetition is a very powerful tool. I’ve done kung fu for many years. You can do very well a movement, understand the technique, but only the repetition of that technique more than 1000 times makes you interiorize the technique and convert it into a reflex. It’s that simple. Repetition. If you are to use that technique in real life and a punch comes in, you don’t have the time to think about the technique. If you do, the punch got you first. This is something that you can apply to anything...
5 days ago • 1 min read
80% of the books you read out there are a waste of time. This is still much better than the number of movies: 95%. Or the number of TV shows: 100%. But from time to time, you find good stuff. One of the problems I see today in many people is their will to overachieve. They go to a congress, present volunteer to a group of whatever, but then, they need to go to the hairdresser, pass the inspection of their car, they have to go to the Christmas party of their company, the Christmas party of...
6 days ago • 1 min read
A few days ago, I talked to you about the Stoics. They always expected to be disappointed. It was a way of emotionally preparing to be ready for surprises that you may not want. By being that prepared, you can be calm when things do not go your way. When you are calm, you think better. You react better. You are in control. And being in control is essential in life. I see to often people that are upset for things that are not in their direct hand. They swear and swear. But they do nothing to...
7 days ago • 1 min read
I have two cats. And I keep a phone to call a vet in case of emergency. Many people do this too. I have the phone of an electrician, a plumber, a dentist, a doctor… to call in case of emergency. Many people do this too. I have the phone of the insurance and the AA for car assistance with me. Many people do this too. I have the phone of a lawyer to call in case of emergency. Some people do this too. I have the phone of someone to call in case of emergency for investments and financial doubts...
8 days ago • 1 min read
Last week I met a friend. Talking about life and business, he told me his case. As I don’t know if he is in this newsletter, let’s say that his name is James. James is a good professional. He makes good money. He gets regular raises, even bonuses. But he feels that he’s not making progress. He is in debt. A big house. A nice car. Regular holidays. A little bit addicted to not having at 0$ his credit card. With every promotion, there is a disappointment about the extra work, extra...
9 days ago • 1 min read
Very good people. Highly educated people. Top performers in their field are usually too hard on themselves. They don’t need a stupid boss. They do the nasty job on themselves much better. For every mistake, they dig and dig and dig on it. That’s wrong. My brother uses to say that your brain is always listening to you. And many times, it does not know if you are joking. So, be especially aware of the words that come from your heart, your stomach, and your soul. If you are going to make a...
10 days ago • 1 min read