People have the lottery fever with a jackpot over $1 Bn and they're making inane discussions about "What it would be like to win it". They're the same fools, the same with or without the billion dollars.
There is no point in winning anything if the old self remains.
There is no what if.
"There is no beginning. There is no end. There is only becoming."- Selene, final lines: Underworld: Blood Wars, 2016
Women naturally are their own mental point of origin. Are you surprised to hear that?
Most people know the greatest majority of women are repulsed, and certainly not aroused, when watching porn. If you play porn to your girlfriend or wife she doesn't experience arousal and may even be offended. "Turn that off." Of course, someone might say that women have a lower libido than men do, and also women aren't as visual as men. Even accounting for those two factors, it is still not enough to explain away their scarcity of interest. Now, if some of those people on screen were, say, someone they knew, a neighbor, an acquaintance, well, that changes things, doesn't it? The woman would probably be "more into it." The scene or the movie suddenly is interesting, because the meaning is defined by what, if anything, relates to her. Women are their own Mental Point of Origin (MPO).
Ignore phenomena. Become your own fortress.
What's better than winning a billion dollars is being the winner "no matter what".
Here are some steps at clearing out the fog of conditioning. Anybody man take those, those with three dollars and those with more than a few dollars.
1. We can borrow from women's bags of tricks and ponies here. Coco Chanel said "A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life." She also said "I don't care what you think about me. I don't think about you at all." It's not just women, monks and army recruits cut their hair too.
For men,shave your head. Metaphorically speaking, hair is a bargain with the past. It grows every day, every week. It's a time-keeping body device.
2. Coco Chanel was on a redpill trip or something so I'm going to quote her again: "There is nothing worse than solitude. Solitude can help a man realize himself; but it destroys a woman." There you have it. Take a vow of solitude, away from familiar faces and concerns.
Solitude is the beginning of the journey.
3. The vow of a simple, yet dignified, life
Monday, October 22, 2018
Saturday, October 20, 2018
Hater-encyclopedia: all about haters
Haters are a common thread these days so we must develop our own "hater-science".
Haters are of two kinds, broadly:
I. Visible (known) and
II. Invisible (pilfering and rampaging behind the scenes)
Three things we must know about haters:
1. Haters were lovers before they became haters.
2. Haters are textbook narcissists. (if they weren't attaching that much self-importance, then why hate).
3. Haters are fragile.
The most used form of hater criticism is, of course, shame. Shaming, marking, belittling, ridiculing.
Quote of the day: "..they had eaten the fruit of knowledge. [Adam and Eve] were expelled because they had become minds, and they had lost their consciousness." -Osho
Take the case of a a transgender woman.
Who will be her biggest haters?
Haters are of two kinds, broadly:
I. Visible (known) and
II. Invisible (pilfering and rampaging behind the scenes)
Three things we must know about haters:
1. Haters were lovers before they became haters.
2. Haters are textbook narcissists. (if they weren't attaching that much self-importance, then why hate).
3. Haters are fragile.
The most used form of hater criticism is, of course, shame. Shaming, marking, belittling, ridiculing.
Quote of the day: "..they had eaten the fruit of knowledge. [Adam and Eve] were expelled because they had become minds, and they had lost their consciousness." -Osho
Take the case of a a transgender woman.
Who will be her biggest haters?
Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Meet your new masters: the "enlightened" Silicon Valley robber barons
There hasn't been that much enlightenment in Silicon Valley since Buddha drank his first cold brew coffee some 2500 years ago.
Lately it seems, Silicon Valley has embraced a sleuth of self-styled prophets who excel at self-development...and they're on track of seeding poor plebeian minds.
Let me be clear, I am not talking about Big Tech (so no FAANG). Silicon Valley or Silicon Beach are very broad terms. There are others who've built up obscene wealth in the startup ecosystem.
Somebody once said, quoting her father: "My father used to say that intellectual men are weak to the core and traitors. I agree with my father." -FD FYI, I took offense on that, since I consider myself an intellectual man. But...if you wanna play Buddha, perhaps you should at least consider the man's historical pledge of poverty...
I am no Buddha nor do I pretend to be one. I watch the circus and carousel in town from the sidelines and laugh at it. Chamath Palihapitya of Social Capital has called the SV-environment a "multi-varied kind of Ponzi scheme". (linked) Is a growth-at-all-cost model sustainable? Who knows? Chamath is not the self-styled prophet, he is one of the very few who exposes the model, he is the outcast. One of the very few who (as opposed to the prophets) makes sense.
Quote of the day:
Lately it seems, Silicon Valley has embraced a sleuth of self-styled prophets who excel at self-development...and they're on track of seeding poor plebeian minds.
Let me be clear, I am not talking about Big Tech (so no FAANG). Silicon Valley or Silicon Beach are very broad terms. There are others who've built up obscene wealth in the startup ecosystem.
Somebody once said, quoting her father: "My father used to say that intellectual men are weak to the core and traitors. I agree with my father." -FD FYI, I took offense on that, since I consider myself an intellectual man. But...if you wanna play Buddha, perhaps you should at least consider the man's historical pledge of poverty...
I am no Buddha nor do I pretend to be one. I watch the circus and carousel in town from the sidelines and laugh at it. Chamath Palihapitya of Social Capital has called the SV-environment a "multi-varied kind of Ponzi scheme". (linked) Is a growth-at-all-cost model sustainable? Who knows? Chamath is not the self-styled prophet, he is one of the very few who exposes the model, he is the outcast. One of the very few who (as opposed to the prophets) makes sense.
Quote of the day:
Sunday, October 14, 2018
The Boss who led me by the nose; reaction time exercises
Reader Pat writes in an email:
Hi PatNote,
From what you're saying, you've gotten approval for the better part of a year and got rejected on the final vote. You have a legitimate question of why you were denied approval in the final form.
1. Your final output was lacking. Was there a major deficiency previously not spotted ?
2. You are the problem. You're not saying anything about your relationship with your boss. Is it a cordial, good relationship? Is it not?
3. She is the problem. If your boss is the problem, try to have her overruled.
4. Read the three scenarios in the Book of the Underdog where three people won against the odds. They might be relevant to you.
5. A boss is not supposed to throw their support upon something and suddenly retract it without a thoughtful reason. What is her case?
Quote of the day: "A slave that talks like a master always delights the master for a moment." -F.D.
Note:
Answer published in premium posts in an effort to reduce spammers to this site ↩
"Dear Max,
I wanted to tell you of my work scenario. I am the Chief Architect, I maintain the enterprise architecture at my firm, which is a startup that has grown from only 4 people in 2016 to 35 this month. I provide security recommendations for our API and its systems. But it is my boss I wish to write about. For the past year Liz (I'll call her "Liz") has been promising me approval of the framework solutions me and my colleagues have been proposing and working on. After all year showing apparent support of my solutions, she's gotten offensive and reject it. As CTO, Liz holds a decisive vote. Why would she have been-overtly at least, supportive of the design I had, and mar it at the last minute? Our build up framework was sound, well-defined and successful. She now says that we failed.
It just doesn't make any sense. What can I do?"
Hi PatNote,
From what you're saying, you've gotten approval for the better part of a year and got rejected on the final vote. You have a legitimate question of why you were denied approval in the final form.
1. Your final output was lacking. Was there a major deficiency previously not spotted ?
2. You are the problem. You're not saying anything about your relationship with your boss. Is it a cordial, good relationship? Is it not?
3. She is the problem. If your boss is the problem, try to have her overruled.
4. Read the three scenarios in the Book of the Underdog where three people won against the odds. They might be relevant to you.
5. A boss is not supposed to throw their support upon something and suddenly retract it without a thoughtful reason. What is her case?
Quote of the day: "A slave that talks like a master always delights the master for a moment." -F.D.
Note:
Answer published in premium posts in an effort to reduce spammers to this site ↩
Thursday, October 11, 2018
Tales from the future
I know we have a few Games of Thrones fans on the site. I don't know if we have any science fiction fans, not counting myself and some odd fellow who calls himself Yoda.
I have been going through the science fiction novel Empire of Silence: Sun Eater: Book One by C. Ruocchio and I recommend it.
This is a tale of a young palatine [noble], Hadrian Marlowe, who runs away from home, from his father and his father's rule. Faith is not kind to the young noble who ends up far away from where he intended, in a backwater world, first destitute living in the streets and canals of a capital city, then fighting in the pits as myrmidon at the Colosseum. He gets captured and held captive for his fortuitous genes by the Ruler of that system, disavowed by his father. He kills the high priest of the land, the leader of the Chantry in a duel. Then he gets to fight the enemy race of the mankind, a race by the the name of the Cielcin. Why? How? ...because he can speak their language.
Life gets rusty when you get hit left and right, front and back.
For you seldom land where you aim.
But you can still aim. All you can do is AIM.
I have been going through the science fiction novel Empire of Silence: Sun Eater: Book One by C. Ruocchio and I recommend it.
This is a tale of a young palatine [noble], Hadrian Marlowe, who runs away from home, from his father and his father's rule. Faith is not kind to the young noble who ends up far away from where he intended, in a backwater world, first destitute living in the streets and canals of a capital city, then fighting in the pits as myrmidon at the Colosseum. He gets captured and held captive for his fortuitous genes by the Ruler of that system, disavowed by his father. He kills the high priest of the land, the leader of the Chantry in a duel. Then he gets to fight the enemy race of the mankind, a race by the the name of the Cielcin. Why? How? ...because he can speak their language.
Life gets rusty when you get hit left and right, front and back.
For you seldom land where you aim.
But you can still aim. All you can do is AIM.
"The man who hopes for the future delays its arrival, and the man who dreads it summons it to the door."
"The future might come only in its own time, but the scholiasts teach that there are many futures, and it is only the crashing of the waves of time and possibility against the interminable now that makes the world. It is not the future that is present in Ever-Fleeting Time but the futures. Freedom-freedom of thought and action- matter and are guaranteed because the future is not. There are no prophecies, only probabilities. No Fate, only chance. The present time is not when we are, but what we do." -Empire of SilenceWeaklings will not understand that. That's alright, we don't need them. Let them stay home safe and sound.
Sunday, October 7, 2018
Reader mailbox read: The Psychopath Workout
A reader by the name of Kim send me this email:
"Max,
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your book last month. On your Chapter on psychopaths, you've cleverly described those traits and the three CEO commandments.
Your tale of your former banker Mark Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette where you coin the term BOSS as Be Of Special Service gave me a a lot of pause. I needed to reflect on that.
In Chapter 15 "The Psychopath School" where you say that "everything is just really a stepping to everything else" I have you accurately describing my boss. Uncanny!
With my boss now, I have the problem of him throwing me on a development project away from my real work, or core work I should say. I need to be back on track as a Cost Accountant at the nutraceutical company where I work. If you have any suggestions for me it'll be much appreciated.
P.S.
Lol-ed at your frankness when you recollected seeing that parked Aston Martin Vantage. Hilarious! It could have been me who had the same reaction."
Kim
Quote of the day: "The passing of years hardens a man to the simple joys of life." -Marcus Crassus, Spartacus
Answer
Kim:
Thanks for reading my book and for your kind words. In this book as well as in everything on this blog the emphasis is on practical. There are always nuances, but if I am able to develop a pattern so much better. So in your situation you have a boss that put you to work on something unrelated, perhaps marginal or foreign to your normal tasks and job duties.
"Max,
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your book last month. On your Chapter on psychopaths, you've cleverly described those traits and the three CEO commandments.
Your tale of your former banker Mark Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette where you coin the term BOSS as Be Of Special Service gave me a a lot of pause. I needed to reflect on that.
In Chapter 15 "The Psychopath School" where you say that "everything is just really a stepping to everything else" I have you accurately describing my boss. Uncanny!
With my boss now, I have the problem of him throwing me on a development project away from my real work, or core work I should say. I need to be back on track as a Cost Accountant at the nutraceutical company where I work. If you have any suggestions for me it'll be much appreciated.
P.S.
Lol-ed at your frankness when you recollected seeing that parked Aston Martin Vantage. Hilarious! It could have been me who had the same reaction."
Kim
Quote of the day: "The passing of years hardens a man to the simple joys of life." -Marcus Crassus, Spartacus
Answer
Kim:
Thanks for reading my book and for your kind words. In this book as well as in everything on this blog the emphasis is on practical. There are always nuances, but if I am able to develop a pattern so much better. So in your situation you have a boss that put you to work on something unrelated, perhaps marginal or foreign to your normal tasks and job duties.
Friday, October 5, 2018
Beta Tales
Reader Tom writes in an email today:
Yesterday Elon Musk taunted the SEC calling it "Shortsellers Enrichment Commission".
Today, David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital "Like Lehman, we think the deception is about to catch up to TSLA," Einhorn said in an investor letter Friday. "Lehman threatened short sellers, refused to raise capital (it even bought back stock), and management publicly suggested it would go private. Months later, shareholders, creditors, employees and the global economy paid a big price when management's reckless behavior led to bankruptcy." -via CNBC
Tesla shared dropped 7% thanks to Musk's tweets.
What are your thoughts?
-Tom
Tom, I don't know about the future of Tesla (full disclosure: I don't hold any positions in that company).
I can tell, however, beta male behavior. Beta male behavior is unsettling and, sometimes hidden in what appears to be aggressive, alpha-like stance. It is quite obvious Mr. Musk hasn't read this blog or else he wouldn't be writing those tweets.
#Number 1. Twitter is not the place to address critics, ongoing legal issues and such.
#Number 2. Twitter is not the place to impress your girlfriend. In fact, only beta males work hard at impressing their girlfriends. A high value male is a constant target of women's manipulation. Their hypergamy instincts shoot through the roof especially especially if the target is a public figure. I don't know if you went through this blog yet, but we hold dear here the model of Christopher Walken. He's composed at all times, even when he is theatrical. He is an what I call a "class act."
#Number 3. If the shorts are bothering him, at least don't show it. Or show it with humor, i.e. post a picture of dirty shorts or something.
Quote of the day: "Often I have found that liars do this: they watch their dupes closely, searching for the moment when belief sets in." -Hadrian Marlowe in Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio
Yesterday Elon Musk taunted the SEC calling it "Shortsellers Enrichment Commission".
Today, David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital "Like Lehman, we think the deception is about to catch up to TSLA," Einhorn said in an investor letter Friday. "Lehman threatened short sellers, refused to raise capital (it even bought back stock), and management publicly suggested it would go private. Months later, shareholders, creditors, employees and the global economy paid a big price when management's reckless behavior led to bankruptcy." -via CNBC
Tesla shared dropped 7% thanks to Musk's tweets.
What are your thoughts?
-Tom
Tom, I don't know about the future of Tesla (full disclosure: I don't hold any positions in that company).
I can tell, however, beta male behavior. Beta male behavior is unsettling and, sometimes hidden in what appears to be aggressive, alpha-like stance. It is quite obvious Mr. Musk hasn't read this blog or else he wouldn't be writing those tweets.
#Number 1. Twitter is not the place to address critics, ongoing legal issues and such.
#Number 2. Twitter is not the place to impress your girlfriend. In fact, only beta males work hard at impressing their girlfriends. A high value male is a constant target of women's manipulation. Their hypergamy instincts shoot through the roof especially especially if the target is a public figure. I don't know if you went through this blog yet, but we hold dear here the model of Christopher Walken. He's composed at all times, even when he is theatrical. He is an what I call a "class act."
#Number 3. If the shorts are bothering him, at least don't show it. Or show it with humor, i.e. post a picture of dirty shorts or something.
Quote of the day: "Often I have found that liars do this: they watch their dupes closely, searching for the moment when belief sets in." -Hadrian Marlowe in Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio
Sunday, September 30, 2018
A16z data reveals how much Silicon Valley bosses make
They usually keep this information secret. Silicon Valley bosses keep a closed lid on what they make. Their take-home is hidden from the public, even more hidden from the rank-and-file.
BusinessInsider recently published Andreessen Horowitz data of "annual surveys of more than two-dozen executive search firms about more than 4,000 job offers that are made to executives across roughly 30 different roles". The positions range from CEO to senior vice president of technology to general counsel. Accordingly, the data was published in 2017 and corresponds to job offers made up to 2016.
Of course, the data is applicable to only companies that have secured outside funding.
You may also find helpful The Race for Top Talent, Equity Vesting Schedules May be the Next Battleground published by Radford.
BusinessInsider recently published Andreessen Horowitz data of "annual surveys of more than two-dozen executive search firms about more than 4,000 job offers that are made to executives across roughly 30 different roles". The positions range from CEO to senior vice president of technology to general counsel. Accordingly, the data was published in 2017 and corresponds to job offers made up to 2016.
"The median salary offer for a Series C consumer CEO is $325,000, and they should expect a 50% bonus and a 6% equity grant. A senior director of engineering at a Series A startup might take home $200,000 in cash, and just 0.58% equity in their business. A vice-president of sales at a late-stage, Series D (or later) enterprise company is raking in $242,500 in base salary, but their total cash take-home is around $450,000. And so on." -via BI
Of course, the data is applicable to only companies that have secured outside funding.
You may also find helpful The Race for Top Talent, Equity Vesting Schedules May be the Next Battleground published by Radford.
Friday, September 28, 2018
Toughest sport: rock climbing
There are a few dummies out there who peddle activity-based "membership clubs" for people to become "tough and resourceful" in the style of "black ops" and "Jason Bourne skills". Towards that they charge you thousands of dollars, of course. Suffices to say that doesn't make anyone tougher anymore than visiting Dracula's castle makes anything but a bad night's sleep happen.
I would be better of taking up rock climbing, for example. It is tough, physical, and doesn't have a lot of room for error. Rock climbing is not for the faint of heart.
You will certainly have to go to a mountaineering school, and hone your practice over many years. You can start with the bouldering wall at your gym.
Quote of the day: " It’s not about how hard you can hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. —Rocky Balboa, Rocky
In U.S. competitive rock climbing, the so called "V" scale is used to describe the grade of the terrain. For example, VB on the V Scale corresponds to YDS 5.1-5.8. (More information on Climbing and Bouldering Rating Systems at REI).
I would be better of taking up rock climbing, for example. It is tough, physical, and doesn't have a lot of room for error. Rock climbing is not for the faint of heart.
You will certainly have to go to a mountaineering school, and hone your practice over many years. You can start with the bouldering wall at your gym.
Quote of the day: " It’s not about how hard you can hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. —Rocky Balboa, Rocky
In U.S. competitive rock climbing, the so called "V" scale is used to describe the grade of the terrain. For example, VB on the V Scale corresponds to YDS 5.1-5.8. (More information on Climbing and Bouldering Rating Systems at REI).
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
Equity-based compensation for you bankers
There's an Open Letter to Goldman CFO from Albert Meyer of Bastiat Capital and the reply received where the author criticizes stock options awards to employees and discusses the case of not only Goldman Sachs but Wells Fargo, BofA and others. The author argues against equity-based compensation for employees and makes the case for cash bonuses instead, which "are stable and do not have the effect of shareholder dilution".[All quotes are from the letter]
The author makes the point that Goldman 2007 RSU were underwater until November 2016. Ok, what did you expect from that market?
"One reason Bastiat escaped the carnage in the financial sector in 2008 (caused by imprudent risk-taking) was because we avoided companies with large stock option overhangs." -A.M.
Wells Fargo, it seems, survived it quite resolutely.
"We believe that the expectations of cashing in on significant stock gains might well have encouraged the improper sales practices which lead to the forfeiture and elimination of $91.3 million in incentive awards granted to these two individuals [Wells Fargo executives]". The Wells Fargo case seems to have been a bottom-up as much as top-down exercise in reckless risk behavior.
Quote of the Day: "Privacy and secrecy: the true treasures of nobility." -Christopher Ruocchio, Empire of Silence
The author makes the point that Goldman 2007 RSU were underwater until November 2016. Ok, what did you expect from that market?
"One reason Bastiat escaped the carnage in the financial sector in 2008 (caused by imprudent risk-taking) was because we avoided companies with large stock option overhangs." -A.M.
Wells Fargo, it seems, survived it quite resolutely.
"We believe that the expectations of cashing in on significant stock gains might well have encouraged the improper sales practices which lead to the forfeiture and elimination of $91.3 million in incentive awards granted to these two individuals [Wells Fargo executives]". The Wells Fargo case seems to have been a bottom-up as much as top-down exercise in reckless risk behavior.
Quote of the Day: "Privacy and secrecy: the true treasures of nobility." -Christopher Ruocchio, Empire of Silence
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