Random Chat, Thoughts, Posts, and/or Rants Thread

[monnffffiiiiiii]

Wow. Could you be any more of a wet blanket? It's "interesting"?

It is so interesting how "from memory" you throw aspertions, attack and under cut what is actually a great point and applicable in so many situations.

You're a writer, and a marketer, so it's clear that your word choice of "suspicious" and "overrated" and "at times false" lay bare your thoughts on this subject. I'm starting to understand why you weren't well received when you got home. Contrarians usually aren't.

I'll give you two 1% stories.

Going into the 1988 season, Pat Riley's Lakers had won NBA championship this season before. He was concerned about complacency. How do you get a team of champions and future Hall of famers to improve when they believed they just needed to maintain?

He challenged them all to look at what each of them did, and go 1% better. The rebounders, just get 1% more rebounders. The shot makers, just hit 1% more shots.

The Result? The 1988 Lakers were one of the all-time greatest single season teams, arguably the greatest Lakers team ever, and cemented themselves as a dynasty.

Having never read atomic habits or heard of the British cycling team, I still had heard of Pat Riley and his 1% rule.

At the beginning of last year I faced a problem.

I was in the process of purchasing a client's business with a partner. My partner was the lead salesperson in an e-commerce store. But just three years prior, he had been working in newspapers. He didn't see himself as a salesperson. He didn't see himself as a business person.

He had been working in his dad's business for 3 years, and now he and I were about to buy it.

When I took a look at the books I identified one big problem. We were giving too much away in discounts. 8.4 discount rate the year prior to purchase.

After 3 years of his dad preaching that this is what we have to do to make sales, I knew I wasn't going to convince him overnight. I floated the idea to him of lowering the discount rate and met with a lot of resistance. I needed to give him a task that was believable and achievable.

So I asked him to lower our discounts by 1%. I showed him how much it was impacting profit and how much more profit would make for each 1% reduction in our discount. So if he would normally quote 10% off, make 9. Make 5 4 instead. You get the idea.

This was something he could do. And he took to it very quickly. By the end of first quarter last year, our discount rate had dropped to 4.4%, almost cut in half. But our sales were 20% greater then the prior year.

This year we had almost the same result. First quarter, our sales are up 18%, and our discount rate at dropped to 2.8%.

And it all happened through slow steady incremental improvements that sounded believable and achievable.

Now of course your original point is valid that if you don't have a real business, one percent improvement doesn't matter.

Of course someone should have a real business before they focus on improving the business. Your point was so self-evident, I don't know why you felt the need to argue against a good point.



Funny thing about this stat. It is similar over-hype self-help drivel that is flat out false. Ofc.

I wouldn't normally care, except that you took exception with 2 people who are more successful than you and you literally did that same exact thing that you called them out for with your very next comment.

Ironically, I don't think I express myself very well on this forum as it's not the first time I get negative responses from a comment that wasn't even incendiary but just aimed at delivering value.

Looks like the "1% better" commentary needs an extraction into its own thread, history says those don't go well so I'm hesitant.

lmao

 

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[piano]

I have a question (especially to @Blackdragon69 since he seems to be on that field.).
Bad things happen to me often, however I just shake it off or forget about it, however these just keep repeating.
Yesterday happened something especially frustrating that really made me want to make a change and I worked harder than usually.

So the question (tl:dr):
Do you think keeping a "hate journal" could be a good idea? I'd write down the things that bug me and in theory it should motivate me to make changes/take things into hand more. I think it could be a good idea since I am kind of pretty forgiving and often forget bad things that happened to me. It would also remind me of all the things that happen to me, or in other words, I wouldn't forget so easy anymore.

One side of me is like "Yes, defeat them" and one is "... What if you lose your humanity while doing so?"

I hope this isn't a too dumb question..
Have a good day!

 

[ChocolateFactory]

Do you think keeping a "hate journal" could be a good idea? I'd write down the things that bug me and in theory it should motivate me to make changes/take things into hand more.

That sounds like a terrible idea. You usually "attract" more of what you focus on (simply by paying more attention to such situations).
How about a "assertiveness journal", where you write about situatios where you were able to stand up for yourself in a way that you think was adequate and didn't let people treat you like a doormat?

 

[JAJT]

Do you think keeping a "hate journal" could be a good idea?

Why on earth would you journal about the things you hate instead of brainstorming ideas on how to prevent those things from happening again in the future?

Solve your problems so you don't have to try and remember them.

Examples:

People keep dinging your car door - park further away
Coworkers keep stealing your favorite mug from the kitchen - store it in your desk
Random people keep lying to you - stop trusting random people
Friends keep cancelling on you - stop inviting flakey friends to things

When something bad happens once, that sucks. When it happens a second time, that's cause for concern. When it happens a third time, you only have yourself to blame.

 

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[thechosen1]

Why on earth would you journal about the things you hate instead of brainstorming ideas on how to prevent those things from happening again in the future?

Solve your problems so you don't have to try and remember them.

Examples:

People keep dinging your car door - park further away
Coworkers keep stealing your favorite mug from the kitchen - store it in your desk
Random people keep lying to you - stop trusting random people
Friends keep cancelling on you - stop inviting flakey friends to things

When something bad happens once, that sucks. When it happens a second time, that's cause for concern. When it happens a third time, you only have yourself to blame.

Biggest takeaway and lesson many people (myself included) need: stand up for yourself. Keep improving your ability to stand up for what you want and need and you will go places.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Ironically, I don't think I express myself very well on this forum as it's not the first time I get negative responses from a comment that wasn't even incendiary but just aimed at delivering value.

Sounds like entrepreneurship.

Provide a product that you think is valuable, yet, no one buys it.

 

[piano]

That sounds like a terrible idea. You usually "attract" more of what you focus on (simply by paying more attention to such situations).
How about a "assertiveness journal", where you write about situatios where you were able to stand up for yourself in a way that you think was adequate and didn't let people treat you like a doormat?

Hm... I don't really connect with that idea, but still thanks!

Why on earth would you journal about the things you hate instead of brainstorming ideas on how to prevent those things from happening again in the future?

Solve your problems so you don't have to try and remember them.

Well, I have plenty of brain power and ideas for that. It's simply the fact that I don't have quite the enough drive to execute on it. And I know that that anger will transform into motivation if I'm cautious about it.

When something bad happens once, that sucks. When it happens a second time, that's cause for concern. When it happens a third time, you only have yourself to blame.

Indeed.

 

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[socaldude]

Ironically, I don't think I express myself very well on this forum as it's not the first time I get negative responses from a comment that wasn't even incendiary but just aimed at delivering value.

This forum has definitely changed and evolved over time. For example, what used to get a good response is now passed over.

Definitely radically changing times we are in. Everything is changing fast.

My favorite era of this forum was back in 2014-2018. Today I think economic and social factors are taking a toll. Resources are definitely scarce and not everyone will have the Pink Cadillac.

 

[Antifragile]

My favorite era of this forum was back in 2014-2018. Today I think economic and social factors are taking a toll. Resources are definitely scarce and not everyone will have the Pink Cadillac.

I wasn't around that time... and cannot comment on that "era". Sure sounds like fun, especially curious about the Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac" as a sexual metaphor in reference to this forum!?! I guess I missed a lot..

Serious question to everyone here today and reading this: when is it most valuable to learn about the power of entrepreneurship:

• a) when resources are so abundant that everyone makes it in every field with little resistance
• b) when "economic and social factors are taking a toll. Resources are definitely scarce"
• c) it doesn't even matter, because for anyone who's delivering value - market will reward you with riches

 

[SamRussell]

I wasn't around that time... and cannot comment on that "era". Sure sounds like fun, especially curious about the Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac" as a sexual metaphor in reference to this forum!?! I guess I missed a lot..

Serious question to everyone here today and reading this: when is it most valuable to learn about the power of entrepreneurship:

• a) when resources are so abundant that everyone make it in every field with little resistance
• b) when "economic and social factors are taking a toll. Resources are definitely scarce"
• c) it doesn't even matter, because for anyone who's delivering value - market will reward you with riches

Today, because it takes time to learn all the lessons you need to learn.

 

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[Antifragile]

Oh LOL

“It's time for a 'new kind of capitalism that's not just about making money,' says Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff”

But in 2022, those returns became less impressive. Salesforce was still making healthy profits, but costs were up, revenues were down and the stock dropped nearly 50 per cent. Activist investors started buying up shares, looking to make changes in the company. Some complained it was too "woke."

"Benioff responded by firing 10 per cent of his "ohana," cutting costs and buying back billions of dollars of Salesforce shares. The plan worked. The stock climbed about 40 per cent in the first quarter of 2023.

Cleary, these were not the actions of a man who thought shareholder capitalism was dead. The market spoke, he answered. Despite all the lofty talk of focusing on the needs of stakeholders, business was still about making money. "

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/great-reset-equitable-capitalism-1.6851812

 

[WillHurtDontCare]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1628950608454492167

View: https://twitter.com/owenbroadcast/status/1628950608454492167

 

[Kak]

Oh LOL

“It's time for a 'new kind of capitalism that's not just about making money,' says Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff”

But in 2022, those returns became less impressive. Salesforce was still making healthy profits, but costs were up, revenues were down and the stock dropped nearly 50 per cent. Activist investors started buying up shares, looking to make changes in the company. Some complained it was too "woke."

"Benioff responded by firing 10 per cent of his "ohana," cutting costs and buying back billions of dollars of Salesforce shares. The plan worked. The stock climbed about 40 per cent in the first quarter of 2023.

Cleary, these were not the actions of a man who thought shareholder capitalism was dead. The market spoke, he answered. Despite all the lofty talk of focusing on the needs of stakeholders, business was still about making money. "

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/great-reset-equitable-capitalism-1.6851812

Lol!

The carbon credit market, a market I am adjacent to, has softened tremendously. Gee I wonder why…

When times get tough, virtue signaling takes a back seat to survival.

 

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[mikecarlooch]

read "The Unfair Advantage" again recently.

What a completely rational, no BS, actionable book. So insanely good.

This is on my mount rushmore next to TMF and Unscripted .

 

[Parks]

read "The Unfair Advantage" again recently.

What a completely rational, no BS, actionable book. So insanely good.

This is on my mount rushmore next to TMF and Unscripted .

Never heard of it. What can I gain from it? What did you gain from it?

 

[mikecarlooch]

Never heard of it. What can I gain from it? What did you gain from it?

My main takeaway:

In a way, you get what life has given you, and if what life has given you will not make you a billionaire, that's fine (and maybe it will!) but instead of focusing on what other people's unfair advantages are and how they're worth whatever they're worth, how about using the personal advantages you DO have in order to build the greatest business you possibly can?

Instead of going after businesses you do not have any insight in whatsoever, how about going after one where you DO have insight (where there is also a need)?

The book frames life as a deck of cards. They acknowledge the importance of hard work but moreso acknowledge that your life circumstances matter a lot too for what you will achieve in this life.

The reason Evan Spiegel was a billionaire by 24 is because of hard work.. AND because of a multitude of other advantages that he himself points his success at.

The unfair advantages they help you uncover are:

Money

Intelligence & Insight

Location & Luck

Education & Expertise

Status

And not only that, they tell you how to uncover ideas and how to efficiently bootstrap your company or get funding. They go over hypergrowth startups (startups that typically aren't profitable until $1Billion) and lifestyle businesses (a company like basecamp could be defined as a lifestyle business, even though it's worth many millions)

Overall, it's an absolutely outstanding book.

If you feel envy from others before reading the book, you won't after reading it, because you will realize that some things just are the way they are.

In the book they push the Reality-Growth mindset, which is a combination that takes you out of delusion but still encourages you to think big. By taking you out of delusion they mean focusing on variables and goals that you can control.

Saying you want to make 100 million dollars selling XYZ product is cool..

But do you have unfair advantages in XYZ that could get you the funding to grow that business to $100M?

Or realistically, do you have a unique insight in another area that maybe you can build a $20M business off of (maybe bootstrapped) that would be a better selection for you based on your unfair advantages?

It gets you thinking..

And if that hasn't convinced you enough - the book was recommended to me by @Antifragile

 

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[PureA]

If you're going to poison your mind with IG use... make sure you're following MJ, he is dropping some really good stuff recently.

@mj.demarco

 

[Isaac Odongo]

b) when "economic and social factors are taking a toll. Resources are definitely scarce"

This must raise the barrier of entry. The herd then flows elsewhere. Or goes to hide and wait for the sun to rise. I am beginning to see it in a business I setting up production in.

c) it doesn't even matter, because for anyone who's delivering value - market will reward you with riches

When this is added to the above. And determination. Not giving up. Sticking to it. That's my take.

 

[Isaac Odongo]

On 1%better and 1%improvement,

It works only when you have a business to improve, and the first business we all always have to improve is ourselves. So in that way, there is always a business to improve.

Example:
I started creative writing in 2015. Before I had read any book teaching it. I wrote in that manner till 2017.

That year I applied to a writing course and didn't attend. My invitation was late. I guess because I wasn't good enough then.

That was July of 2017. I downloaded books on creative writing immediately and began applying their suggestions.

The next year I entered a short fiction contest for Africa, with my first complete short story and was among 94 nominated, out of 5000+ entries.

Then I read more on writing and found an editor named William Sloane who is big on SHOW! DON'T TELL!

And I apply his suggestions and read masters of the art and keep improving.

Last few years I was revising my first yet unpublished novel and I was crossing out everything and writing afresh.

I could many ways of making it better. I had improved.

 

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[monnffffiiiiiii]

This forum has definitely changed and evolved over time. For example, what used to get a good response is now passed over.

Definitely radically changing times we are in. Everything is changing fast.

My favorite era of this forum was back in 2014-2018. Today I think economic and social factors are taking a toll. Resources are definitely scarce and not everyone will have the Pink Cadillac.

No clue, think I arrived in 2019.

Tbh I get the same with content. My worst articles go viral, and the articles I work very hard on get read by 5 people.

Go figure.

 

[mikecarlooch]

This thing cannot be trusted lol.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

This thing cannot be trusted lol.

It is horrible at math. It couldn't even get the APR calculation from here correct.

 

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[ghostscout]

Like to post something but it doesn't need its own thread?

This thread is for you!

Thought I'd create a random thoughts and chit-chat thread for anyone who'd like to post something, but it doesn't need it's own thread.

For example, I just learned today that an idea I had years ago for an airport valet service is now reality. Not only is it reality, but it is growing and grabbing funding.

The service is EXACTLY as I envisioned it would be.

OAK and LAX Long-Term Airport Parking : Never Park Again

Darn it!

The old, "Damn, I had that idea!!" strikes again!

That said, I might invest as they are taking accredited investor money.

So I was thinking, there are lots of potentially profitable things I could do but I am conflicted with most of them because they aren't things I agree with a lot of the time. Like for instance if it was any way of profiting from educating people in some way, I don't want to do it unless it was somehow flvastly different from anything else because I have learned almost everything I know for free on the internet.
Or like creating a business itself even come to think of it...getting to the point of having employees also means keeping people into the slowlane mindset, I haven't thought of any way around that, of course if they like the job then they like it but it will never be as good to them as them doing stuff for themselves.
There's more examples of these conflicting feelings I could think of but those are just two broader ones that came to mind while writing this out.
Anyone have any thoughts on this sort of thing?

 

[Fox]

View attachment 48967

This thing cannot be trusted lol.

Sometimes I ask it about quotes on a certain topic etc.

It will give me an answer with some crazy sounding name I have never heard of before.

Me: "Who is this person?"

ChatGPT: "Apologies, I seem to have made a mistake, this person doesn't exist."

I think it can't admit when it doesn't know. It is like that smart kid at school who gets caught out with something, so they just make up a whole story to save face.

 

[Timmy C]

Sometimes I ask it about quotes on a certain topic etc.

It will give me an answer with some crazy sounding name I have never heard of before.

Me: "Who is this person?"

ChatGPT: "Apologies, I seem to have made a mistake, this person doesn't exist."

I think it can't admit when it doesn't know. It is like that smart kid at school who gets caught out with something, so they just make up a whole story to save face.

It gives flat out wrong or biased information as well.

I have to ask it so many things in round about ways to get the actual truth sometimes.

Overall amazing tool though.

 

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[constant]

Sometimes I ask it about quotes on a certain topic etc.

It will give me an answer with some crazy sounding name I have never heard of before.

Me: "Who is this person?"

ChatGPT: "Apologies, I seem to have made a mistake, this person doesn't exist."

I think it can't admit when it doesn't know. It is like that smart kid at school who gets caught out with something, so they just make up a whole story to save face.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

What's with the Reddit mentality from a lot of users around here?

For the love of God, if I read another post about how everything boils down to luck, I'm gonna puke.

View attachment 48970

Wow, what a big FAIL.

 

[loop101]

I had a friend for 45 years and the last thing they said to me was "You're a F*cking idiot! You're a F*cking idiot! You're a F*cking idiot!", lol. This was a very intelligent and accomplished person. The problem was, I didn't believe a certain ex-President was working for Putin because he was being blackmailed with pee-pee tapes. My "refusal to admit the truth" was proof of my stupidity. When he was screaming at me, I was laughing, because I thought he was joking. Nope! What I learned from this was, no matter how well you think you know how someone else's brain works, you really don't. Other people can have thoughts that you simply are not going to understand. Somehow this relates to marketing. I've seen marketing that I did not believe people would respond to, and yet many did. Maybe people that do marketing are more aware of how other people might see things. I was quite shocked.

 

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[Isaac Odongo]

Wow, what a big FAIL.

AI still has a lot to learn as well. Good the forum doesn't allow people to chat using AI. It fails literature, especially from Africa like holy fire.

 

[Kak]

There is a conflation I notice among a decently large population of new members to the forum that I think needs some clarification.

“Fast” as in “fastlane.” We believe that money can be made faster than a linear relationship with money. 1 hour of work = 1 hour of pay.

Yes, money can be made faster.

Our equation looks more like each hour of work is invested in a system of leverage that once to market, and providing value, could produce a lifetime of pay. Sounds great, but, divorcing your time from your pay also makes you preform hard to quantify work. It looks like work for no pay. Sometimes for a while.

When the money finally does come, and your hard work begins to pay off, it comes in faster. Hence “fastlane.”

Now, if you want to get really serious and want to make tens of millions of dollars, you are also playing a probability.

The probability of making tens of millions of dollars working for someone else is almost zero.

Those that do pass these marks are almost always benefiting from some form of leveraged system. So not only can entrepreneurship be faster, but for some goal levels, it’s the only way.

For most western citizens, entrepreneurship is not faster to $100k. It is faster and more likely to $10m and beyond.

Just because it’s fast, doesn’t mean it’s easy. Don’t ever read one of my posts and think this comes easy to me. It doesn’t. It hasn’t. And it won’t continue to.

Entrepreneurs do what others won’t. That’s why the world needs entrepreneurs and also why the reward can be greater.

Fast ≠ Easy

Possible ≠ Easy

Can you do it? I believe so, but never expect easy.