Persevere

“Fall seven, Rise eight” - Japanese Saying

The world considers me successful. College degree, good paying job, engineer, author, married, own home, nice cars, savings, not much debt, tall, play volleyball, run, and only ~5 lbs. over ideal weight. But the world does not see how I got here.

Terrible C student: Flunked German and semester of English in high school. Bunch of D’s in Spanish, English, Math & Science. Flunked an engineering course and took an incomplete Junior year of college. Cum was 1.5 that year (2.0 is C). MBA dropout, life got in way. Yet one of 220 engineers to graduate out of 662 freshmen.

Very shy: In school, college and starting out in business. Gave an Engineering Week presentation this week. Told group am leading, I was bad at relationships growing up. Did not get married till 46. Don’t you think I was bullied, had break ups, horrible dates, dating wrong people, and lonely times? Am close with family, have great friends, and good relationships at work.

Business: Worked for companies that closed, laid off half their workforce, and been fired / outplacement. Invested in real estate and went bankrupt. Started and closed my own businesses. Most of my wealth is in the last 8 years, plus buying a house at the bottom of the market. Manage projects with teams of very smart people including senior management. Mentor people on careers and business.

Fitness: 2 painful knees starting at 16. Use to go out randomly in 20s and I would fall down. Swam breaststroke in high school and college. Allergies started around 22. First shoulder injury at 26, and 4 more since including last year. Changed sports. In 40s developed sleep apnea, Insomnia, leg twitches and wonder what a good nights sleep is. Ranked as ‘A’ or ‘BBB’ level in volleyball in 40s (AAA is pro beach player). Lost 15 pounds and kept it off. Given ~90 pints of blood. Ran a mile this morning, and back playing volleyball after months of rehab.

In every area of life have failed, learned, tried again, experimented and overcome. Angela Duckworth calls this process “Grit”. Olympic athletes competing now have overcome injuries, loses, and public failures.

You have to get past negative attitudes. Try hard new things. Find out what works for you. Be uncomfortable. Struggle. Fail. Sometimes it takes years. Find people to teach, and support your efforts. Look for examples and mentors. They are out there.

Talent does not take you very far. Hard work and perseverance does. Support anyone who is trying. Help them persevere and become resilient.

"Fate gave to man the courage of endurance." - Ludwig van Beethoven 

The Correction or What Happened?

Not a good weekend to look at our 401Ks or IRAs. The Stock Market went down about 10% in a week. Depending how it was invested so did our savings.

Company earnings have not dropped. Other country stock markets have not fallen much. The Economy is still doing well. Jobs and Wages are growing. What is causing the sudden change?

It is leverage, options and derivatives. These are higher risk borrowing and insurance without reserves. For instance if you knew absolutely a stock would go up 300% next week you would buy it now as an investor. If you don’t have enough money, you could borrow to buy more shares. That is leverage. The downside if share prices fell, you would still have to pay off what you borrowed and quickly. You sell whatever has value to cover your debts. You could lose 100%.

Most people don’t know they are buying derivatives. Most of us have been buying index Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) or Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs). But now there are more leveraged ETFs & ETNs then there are stocks. Few non-professional investors understand what they own and the risks involved.

Warren Buffet has called derivatives “weapons of financial destruction.” Financial professionals have created “derivatives of derivatives” to further increase profits. However these are all powered by debt. At some point debt has to be paid.

A large number of investors have been improving profits by investing in low Volatility. Shorting VIX was the way this has been done. For the last few years it has been an ideal bet. Or was until a week ago. Some investors have lost 80% in a week. Some funds will liquidate and close.

Debt is the reason stocks fell so fast and may fall more. The average of corrections is 16%, but no correction is average. The correction may be done, or markets lose over 10% more into a recession (20% loss). Stock markets may start climbing again next week or next year. Anyone who tells you they know what will happen next is lying. Which is why am diversified and still investing for my retirement.

10 ‘Life is Hard’ Truths

You can have a good, enjoyable life. Even though life is hard we smile. Here are hard earned truths about life after 60 years of trials & errors.

1. Relationships & love are more important than wealth and fame:

Family and friends have helped me though job losses, bankruptcy, relocations, illnesses, grief, and breakups. Plus celebrated my successes. Be Kind. Listen when someone is having a bad day. (You don’t need to solve it.) Celebrate their successes. Eat together even if vegan. Have stopped at McDonald’s later, and enjoyed strange new meals with friends.

2. Help Others, Volunteer and Support Charities:

No possessions will make you happier than a kid asking you to tie their shoes or for a hug. Neighbors needing a hand with a project. Welcoming people. Doing grunt work at a volunteer event. Helping people move. Can’t pick up as much, but gotten better at packing. Always a contribution you can do.

3. Be Grateful:

What went right today? Who said hi? Write it down or review them going to bed. Most of us focus on our few mistakes or challenging people. Happy people look for good moments to savor and smile more.

4. Spend much less than you make:

You don’t need everything you want. You need peace of mind. Avoid impulse buys. When you get raises, increase how much you put into retirement or emergency funds. You will eventually need them.

5. Learn new skills: 

Be horrible at first, and work hard to be bad at it. Fail often. Became a writer because writing terrible first drafts, then edit & edit some more. Not because I was a natural. Still can’t spell nor type well. We get better.

6. Travel to see people or new places:

Go to parties. Smile. Meet new people. Vacation somewhere new. Attend weddings and funerals. Always make the funeral.

7. Politics are not important to your life. Turn off the news to be happier:

Most news is sensationalistic opinions to make you emotional. Neither President Trump nor Clinton would change my day today. (Voted 3rd party).

What makes you happy? Do it.

8. Be very kind. People do not want to be corrected, lectured, nor feel guilty:

If you try, you will become people they and I run from. No one needs negativity. People need to be understood. Besides we are all wrong more than we care to admit.

9. Hire people to do what you can’t:

See your doctor for physicals and illnesses above the common cold. Learn from a therapist how to cope better. Recommend the good service pros to people. Do what you are good at.

10. God Loves You:

He wants you to have a relationship with Him. Not scold you for your failings. He knows, forgives and loves you unconditionally. Be open and God will be revealed to you.

This one makes it easier to do 1 – 9. The stress goes away.