CityChad

Is Dating Screwed?

City Chad — Fri, 12 Apr 2024 17:16:50 +0000

Yes, this is the CityChad, your guide in the jungle of jingles – slicing through the vines of financial confusion. Time to swing into the green, Tarzan style!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🫤 Uncertainty
Article: 💕 Is Dating Screwed?
News: 🧱 LEGO = Gold 🎓 Texas Bill #17 👨🏾‍🦲 Rock For President?
Beta Of The Week: 😂 Don Lemon

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MARKETS: 🫤 UNCERTAINTY

Crypto seems to be cooling off with some price corrections as the Bitcoin Halving seems to be closer and closer. The #1 cryptocurrency dipped below the $70K mark, as more ETF holders decided to take profits on their investments.

It is important to remember that after every Bitcoin halving, the price tends to elevate before experimenting slight corrections on downward trends.

Ethereum has been having serious issues to break and keep the $4K level, as its trading volume continues to dwindle.

On the stock front, the Dow Jones keeps on sliding down, while Nasdaq and the S&P remained pretty much quiet.

NVIDIA has a new competitor, as Intel is keen on bringing the fight, with their new Gaudi 3 chip expected to take some of NVIDIA’s market share.

Gold keep flying off the charts. Could all the money printing be responsible for that?

ARTICLE: 💕 IS DATING SCREWED?

TLDR: We live in an era where apps and screens took over on how people meet each other. What happened with Harry meeting Sally in a bar? Is dating dead as we know it? Read to find out!

🤔 How Are Things Going
📱 App Dystopia
💔 Is Everything Lost?
😎 The Chad Takeaway

🤔 HOW ARE THINGS GOING

A shocking statistic shows that about 62% of American males aged 18-29 are currently single. Women on the same age add up to 37% which is also quite high. So how did it got to this point?

Well, saying something cliché-ey like “times have changed” seems like an understatement. As a society we have become explicitly more individualistic, making a concept like spending our precious time dating somebody that isn’t perfects as something not worth it.

Think about it: Fifty years ago, you didn’t have videogames, or the possibility to travel the world. Settling down was just kind of like the next natural step in life.

So a lot of people think that if they are going to settle, they want to do it with the absolute best. Hot take?

Most people aim for unrealistic standards, such as supermodels or blokes making seven figures at minimum.

Where’s the love for the average Joe?

Just check that video out. Women’s standards are just out of proportion. In fact, when you compare it with this graph, women tend to be much more selective with who they date.

Consider this an evolutionary strategy: Women tend to find the best partner for their own survival. But things have maybe got a little out of hand?

There is a reason now the internet jokes that now the “standard” for men has become the “666”. 6-figure income, 6 feet tall, 6 pack abs.

📱 APP DYSTOPIA

Going back to apps… they've turned romance into a fast-food menu – quick, easy, and usually not good for you.

You swipe, you match, you chat, and then? Maybe a date, but chances are you’ll be right back there in days.

The truth is that apps as a whole have completely dehumanized dating. Studies show that since the ‘80s, there was a sharp increase of over 60% of people without a romantic partner.

Dating apps have basically torpedoed romance as we knew it, turning it into a weird, algorithm-driven battleground.

Think about it - back in the day, you'd actually have to muster the courage to walk up to someone and start a conversation and trigger this now long-gone thing called human interaction.

These days just it’s hard to be real with each other. The security of distance through a screen has made us allergic to confrontation, thinking playing it cool will magically solve everything.

And in the meantime millennials are waiting for this mythic 'right person' to get all emotional with.

How do you think this will all play out? Not well, my friends.

🛵 IS EVERYTHING LOST?

There’s definitely some advice that can be shortened into few words: Think outside the box.

Yes, there’s a huge pool on the dating apps, but that does not mean that you can’t stop meeting people at pretty much any place.

In fact, more and more people are shifting away from them. Believe it or not, the yearning for more physical meetings and getting back to the face-to-face way is making a comeback.

Even in Clown World (a.k.a. California) people are signing up for the ever cheesy speed-dating events. That’s the biggest “old school” scream we’ve seen in a while.

But don’t limit yourself to these kind of experiments. Be active. In fact, as our society moves into a digitalized world, the art of doing small talk has went into the drain.

But as studies show, people are still open to engage into small conversations with strangers if the other part does the first step. If you see someone you like, being on the supermarket, college, or a park, just know that your odds at at least striking a chat are way better than what you think.

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

We're in a romance recession, and it's no joke.

So even if the dating apps offer a giant pool of fish, the problem is that you’ll likely end up also fighting with hordes and hordes of other fishermen.

So why not moving to other ponds?

NEWS: 🧱 LEGO = GOLD

Forget Bitcoin. Who cares about NVIDIA?

LEGO bricks is where the sharks are at. Now, of course like any fancy collectible item, LEGO products can spark high prices, specially in olden sets or somewhat difficult-to-find ones, like anniversary gifts.

For example, the massive NinjaGo City set is currently selling for over one grand on Ebay, while the Rome Colosseum averages the same price.

Lots of people have been hoarding LEGO over the last few decades. The idea is simple: LEGO drops new sets each month.

These sets will of course, get retired out of production as LEGO allocates their production to new projects. And then voilá! Those retired sets prices start to skyrocket on every online store. People just don’t want to miss out on sets.

Investor Jarek Lewis gives great insights on how to profit from hungry collectors. High-end sets can increase as much as 30% in price the moment they are labeled as retired.

In fact, a Hardin-Simmons University research paper compares LEGO sets investing against standard tools like the S&P Index or even Crude Oil. Guess what? Those damn bricks win every single time.

Where to get started? Pages like BrickNerd or BrickPicker give valuable info on which sets are bound to be collectors’ favorites.

Keep ‘em Brickin’!

NEWS: 🎓 TEXAS BILL #17

Being effective since January 1st, Texas’ Senate Bill 17 bans public universities from indoctrinating students through programs based on race, gender or religion.

So in general, it’s banning those dreaded DEI initiatives. Pro-bill senators correctly suggest DEI forces certain political beliefs over faculty and students and prioritize social justice over you know, more important things, like the good ol’ merit and achievement.

In order to comply with the new bill, most Texan Unis are dismantling their inclusion programs, which means a huge culling in the often unproductive “Inclusion and Engagement” departments.

But hey, the University also said that those laid off can re-apply for other positions they might see fit. Could be a great opportunity for those who worked on DEI sectors to showcase that those initials don’t stand for Didn’t Earn It.

NEWS: 👨🏾‍🦲 ROCK FOR PRESIDENT?

Did you get tired of Hollywood publicly endorsing Biden to keep them green coming? Well, The Rock’s interview with Fox News is definitely a breeze of fresh air.

Based Rocky is not only refusing to endorse Biden, but he outright spurted that he’s not happy with the state of America. Even more, he dropped a People’s Elbow on the Social Justice agenda by plainly saying that wokeness “bugs him”.

Let’s not forget that The Rock is not only currently carrying WWE with his star power, but in a recent poll, 46% of Americans said that they would vote for Dwayne if he ever runs for president.

Now, to be honest, Rock said that he isn’t endorsing any candidate, but given that he previously endorsed him in 2020, seems like Biden’s crooks will need a new face to somehow make themselves likeable.

Rock also said that he isn’t “fully ruling out” the idea of a future presidential run.

Can you smell what The Rock is cooking?

BETA OF THE WEEK: 😂 DON LEMON

Well, seems like our Beta of the Week Don Lemon couldn’t help himself and blow his chance at redemption.

The former CNN host seemed in track for success as he announced at the start of the year that he would be starting his new show on X, freely available for people anywhere around the world.

On paper, it looked like an easy job.

The Don Lemon Show could’ve been the test run for shows being ran on Elon Musk’s platform, and could boost the much diminished popularity Lemon had lost since his last days on CNN.

Some producers even suggested that they had troubles booking interviewees willing to talk to him.

First day on the job. Your benefactor, Elon Musk, agrees to be your willing interviewee. So why not just ask well researched questions and have an intelligent conversation, Don?

No, you had to go all-in and ask “gotcha” questions that didn’t catch anything. We just got a glimpse into his brain’s inability to process factual information and blame all of societies woes on “prejudice”.

No point in repeating what happened. You can watch the full cringe show below:

One day later, Don Lemon got his show cancelled.

Record time Beta move.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The material on this email and our website is for informational and entertainment purposes only and we make no guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of its content – it is subject to change. Please conduct your own due diligence and research.

None of this information is financial advice, and you should consult your financial advisor before making any investment decisions. Your capital is at risk and you may lose more than you initially invested. We do not provide any offer or solicitation to buy or sell any investment products, nor does this constitute an offer to provide investment advisory services.

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

Equities: Vanguard FTSE All-World UCITS ETF USD Acc
Fixed Income: iShares Core Gl Aggregate Bd UCITS ETF USD Hgd Acc
Real Estate: iShares Developed Markets Property Yield UCITS ETF USD (Acc)
Gold: SPDR Gold Trust
Ethereum
Bitcoin

The index is rebalanced quarterly to the target weights shown in the table. The target weights are subject to change. The index does not represent the performance of a real portfolio and does not imply a recommendation to invest in any of those assets. Past performance is not an indication of future performance.

🎲 Analog Games

City Chad — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 11:52:50 +0000

Yes, this is the CityChad, the wizard of All Streets. Ready to cast some spells on your savings? Abracadabra, let's see that cash grow!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 📈 Overheating?
Article: 🎲 Analog Games
News: 🧠 Huberman Under Fire 🤑 Truth Social = Meme Stock 🛬 Boeing CEO Out
Chadette Of The Week: 🐎 Hannah Barron

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MARKETS: 📈 OVERHEATING?

Markets continued to rise, with stocks reaching all time highs in the US, closing an impressive first quarter.

But are things overheating? JPMorgan seems to think that people are being too optimistic on rate cuts. I am definitely paying attention. The market feels frothy and greed is taking over.

After flirting with it for almost a month, Bitcoin surpassed the $70,000 level, and reached an all time high of $73,000, before retracing all the way back to a$65,000 level, showing high levels of volatility.

As Bitcoin’s halving looms, the market greed seems to stabilized around the 80% level.

On the Gold front, the shiny metal escalated another 1% to set a new all time high, with speculators optimistic in the FED’s imminent rate cuts.

However, the Federal Reserve’s head honcho Jerome Powell seems not-so-hurried to axe its rates, as he deems the economy as “robust enough”.

ARTICLE: 🎲 ANALOG GAMES

TLDR: As the world shifts more and more into digital interfaces, its easy to get your head scrambled and lost in a screen. If that’s your case, the Chad has you covered. Board games are not only a a thriving industry far away from being obsolete, but also there are plenty of games for you to choose.

😩 Digital Fatigue
👴 A Pastime Alive and Well
♟️ There’s one for Everyone
🗡️ Here I Stand
🎴 Coup
🦠 Pandemic
🏰 GENOA
😎 The Chad Takeaway

Read the full article here…

NEWS: 🧠 HUBERMAN UNDER FIRE

Andrew Huberman, the neuroscientist that turns complicated science matters into easy, relatable knowledge nuggets.

He abides for simple changes in our routine to improve our performance.

Sunbathing in the early mornings for a better improvement of our sleep cycles, or using cold showers for improving blood circulation.

But the beloved man has been under fire recently.

Mainstream Media publication, NYMAG tried to “denounce him” by exposing him as a “manipulator” that had six parallel relationships at the same time.

The article even remarks how the women even got in touch with each other to compare notes on the so-called “manipulation” of Huberman, painting him in a not so favorable light.

What was the reaction? Quite mixed. Some criticised his antics and apparent dishonesty. Fair enough.

But others were quick to point out how Huberman is the king of optimisation, even when it comes to dealing with the opposite sex.

Twitter tweet

Let’s get real, who wouldn’t like the stamina to keep up with six missus at the same time? Specially at forty-freaking-eight.

Should you do it, though? Not if you’re being dishonest. That’s just a beta move.

A nice windfall of cash for The Don.

Trump Media & Technology Group which trades under his initials, DJT, exploded onto the market with the stock jumping over 16%. Trump's looking at a cool $4 billion payout from this gig.

This stock is juiced up on Trump's fame and the MAGA mania. Despite being a bit of a financial lightweight with some losses, Trump’s stock is getting pumped by loyalists betting on his brand.

Some are treating DJT like a hot potato, planning to toss it before it cools down, calling anyone hanging onto it long-term a “MAGA bagholder”.

It's not making money, and its only unique feature is Trump's charm, making it sort of a meme stock.

Trump’s got a bunch of legal bills to pay and might just sell off his shares to cover them. That's gonna hurt.

Should you buy it? Well, we can’t tell you what to do, but take a look at our article on Meme stocks to find out more.

It seems like DEI has taken another victim. This time is Boeing’s CEO Dave Calhoun.

In case you aren't up to date with the current gossip on aviation, the word on the street is that hopping inside a Boeing airplane might be the same as boarding a coffin with wings.

Who's to blame for Boeing's scary string of mishaps? No one can tell for sure, but apparently the company is putting “inclusivity” over actual efficiency and safety.

Twitter tweet

Not the best recipe when your job is to make several ton machines that fly across the sky with people in them.

Amongst this chaos, Pieter Levels has launched yet another awesome indie project called “AirlineList”. You can filter out Boeing planes before you make your next flight booking.

The truth shall set you free!

CHADETTE OF THE WEEK: 🐎 HANNAH BARRON

March just gone was the month of women. So we found it extra fitting to showcase Hannah Barron.

With a classic southern belle style, she has a loyal fanbase of over two million followers on Instagram, where she regularly posts about hunting and fishing.

Just a cool Alabama girl living a traditional life. What could go wrong?

Well, Foreign Policy analyst Sameera Khan has a policy called “NO FUN ALLOWED”, saying there’s nothing feminine about Hannah, and that American women are practically men.

Not only did Sameera question Hannah’s activities, but went as far to call for the quirky, thick, sexy southern accent to be eradicated.

Perhaps she just wants the whole world to look like a bag of plastic, given her own looks.

Nightmare Fuel

Thankfully a whole lot of conservatives got into Hannah’s side:

Twitter tweet

Keep rockin’ it, Hannah, showing the traditional values are still holding on strong.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

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DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🚚 What is DTC?

City Chad — Fri, 08 Mar 2024 12:58:43 +0000

Yes, this is the CityChad, the don of dollars – making more green than a stoner on payday. Let's light up those portfolios!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🎢 Rollercoaster
Article: 🚚 What is DTC?
News: 🇩🇪 Germany WTF? 🤖 Gemini Still Sucks 🍒 Beauty is Back
Beta Of The Week: 🔩 Jack Krawczyk

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MARKETS: 🎢 ROLLERCOASTER

Crypto seems to be on an an unstoppable run in recent days. Are we starting to enter the euphoria phase of the market?

Well, the fear and greed index just hit the “extreme level” of 90/100.

And you know what happens after the euphoria phase? Yep, usually a big ol’ crash.

Although the total market cap of crypto is well below it’s all time high, it cannot hurt to be extra cautious at this stage. DYOR!

In the meantime, non-digital Gold has seen a third day in a row on the uptrend, stalking quite close to its all time high.

Wall Street smartypants point out that the shiny metal may still have long ways to go.

Stocks have been taking a breather in recent days.

Apple has been quite lackluster and has been marked as the biggest culprit of the Dow Jones slipping 400 points, and the Nasdaq 100 dropping 2%.

The company doesn’t seem to be able to hold on the China market as iPhone sales continue to drop.

Up and Down and Up and Down

ARTICLE: 🚚 WHAT IS DTC?

TLDR: The DTC model skips the classic physical distribution store or selling through online platforms like Amazon. Instead? You ship directly to consumers. Seem like a no-brainer, right? You leapfrog the fees and costs that the retail giants may get from you. However, you need to play your cards right to make the model work as it comes with it’s own headaches.

🛵 What is DTC?
✊ Give me Freedom or Give me Death
😒 Not All That Glitters is Gold
🥊 Survival of the Fittest
👟 The Nike Way
😎 The Chad Takeaway

🛵 WHAT IS DTC?

For starters, DTC stands for Direct to Consumer, and as the name suggests, is a strategy for manufacturers and businesses to sell their products directly to their final consumers rather than relying on wholesalers or retailers.

The internet definitely made businesses more capable of starting their own commerce and distribution platforms, so hey, it makes sense to try to bypass retailers and saving up on hefty fees.

There have been many success stories in the DTC space. Names such as Athletic Greens, Casper, and Dollar Shave Club have become synonymous with the model. Some more successful than others!

But wait… DTC has both ups and downs, so let's do a rundown to see if its the right choice for your business.

✊ GIVE ME FREEDOM OR GIVE ME DEATH

So what are the benefits of going for a DTC model?

Well, for starters, less intermediaries means less people to split the profits, so a bigger margin for your business overall.

DTC models of course are meant to work on fewer resources which voila! Means lower costs. You can even translate those lower costs to your price, gaining a competitive edge.

You can't forget that going with a DTC online strategy lowers your barrier of entry to start a business.

Like old man Ray, you can tell those commercial space leasers to hit the road, Jack.

Instead of overpaying for a competitive spot in a retailer’s shopfront, suddenly the internet is your whole space.

And this does not come from a Cyberpunk movie. You can just set up an e-commerce platform and get ready to go.

Since it’s your store you are in full control (pretty much). No need to follow any specific rules from retail giants like Walmart or Amazon.

Just like the Red Ranger on the Megazord, you are the head honcho and the one taking all the decisions.

Seems scary right? Well, look at the bright side: You can completely customize your customer experience, and tailor it the way you'd like.

You can set up your own return policies, and build your own brand reputation.

Most importantly, you are not building your castle in another man’s land.

😒 NOT ALL THAT GLITTERS IS GOLD

Ok, so the question is obvious, if the DTC model is just the vie-en-rose, then why the hell isn't everyone going for it?

First of all non-one will know who you are so. So you have to be prepared to spend a ton of money to drive traffic to your website. You are not just running a store, you are running a fully fledged marketing operation.

So, the money you are not paying to a retailer like Walmart in fees you will pay Facebook in Ads.

Additionally, all that customization of the customer experience glory also means that you are handling most if not all of their data. You know, credit card numbers, and private details.

Suddenly you got a a whole liability in your hands. God forbid you get a breach in your cyber security system, you could easily get sued into the Flintstones era.

Heck, even shipping directly to your consumers might become a problem.

There's that comfy feeling of just delivering your goods to a retailer, and farewell them with the sweet cash in your pocket, saying "Hey! It is now your problem you send it to the clients!”,

Well, that whole option is gone on DTC. You got to handle your own distribution and the malfunctions that come with it.

Oh, and by the way, now you aren't just shipping a truck to Tesco or Costco, one one huge, but overall simple delivery.

Your clients (hopefully many) might be as scattered around the world as Maradona's unrecognized sons. Buckle up because those deliveries will multiply.

Some might be just a few blocks close, others might be far, far away. And good news! They all want your product. Now.

Of course there are ways to mitigate all those challenges. You can use the right software and vendors to deal each of them.

So it is not an unsurmountable challenge, but you should certainly bear them in mind right now.

🥊 SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

One of the biggest weak points of a DTC model its is own ease to set up. If you can get your own e-commerce platform for your product from the comfort of your home, what is exactly stopping your neighbour to do just the same and cut you out?

With the entry barrier being so freaking cheap, everyone is hopping on the DTC bandwagon. Even big companies are suddenly flirting with the DTC model to compensate for the dwindling numbers of retail sales.

What happens a lot of the time, a hot product starts to get traction. A bunch of dropshippers start overcrowding the market with knock-offs. And as nobody knows you, there is no way to tell that you were the real OG.

It’s like an arbitrage that disappears as soon as there is money to be made.

👟 THE NIKE WAY

As explained, even giants and leaders of an industrial sector can try the DTC model with reasonable success. Probably Nike is the biggest example.

After having a rough second fiscal quarter, the company decided to trim almost 2 billion dollars in costs, which in return saw them increasing their annual revenue by 19%.

Nike decided to reduce their number of partners while boosting their own app SNKRS and pushing their own stores.

Nike didn’t pursue a full DTC model, since they understood the challenges of a clogged model.

Of course this is easier to be said than done. But Nike actually did a lot of things right. Using their own-made channels, they got a better grasp of their consumer activity, allowing them to create a better experience.

And just you want the whole experience when you enter a store, the same is true with an online channel. Just take a look at Nike’s social media channels and website. They are filled with content, most of the time partnering with some of the most well known stars.

🚀 ALTERNATIVES TO DTC

Let's roll with some alternatives to DTC. Because, let's face it, it's not the only path to glory.

First, there's the good ol' Wholesale Model. You sell your gear in bulk to retailers. Less direct interaction with customers, more time to focus on the big picture. It's like letting someone else drive while you enjoy the ride.

Then, enter the Franchise Model. It’s like cloning your business. You expand your reach, others do the heavy lifting.

What about Subscription Services? This is your ticket to steady cash flow. Customers sign up, you deliver regularly. It's like having a fan club that pays you every month to stay awesome.

Last up, Dropshipping. Here, you're the connector, not the collector. Take orders, pass them to the supplier, and they ship. Your hands stay clean, your pockets get heavy.

If you can’t beat ‘em, you can join ‘em. Sell your product through Amazon for example and outsource all the headache. Something known as Amazon “FBA”. They will take hefty fees but there is a reason people use them: it works! (sometimes).

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

DTC might have a low barrier of entry, but that is what makes it extremely competitive, and carries a different set of risks.

And still it might be hella attractive. If you can navigate those perils, you can end up with a higher profit margin, and being able sculpt your own customer experience to perfection.

That’s the bottom line. Just remember that a good DTC model lives and dies by its added value. Add content, use the new data you collect to redesign, refine, and try again. Otherwise, you will be copied into oblivion.

NEWS: 🇩🇪 GERMANY WTF?

Germany seems to keep its wokeness crusade against all odds (and sanity).

Long gone are the days where beautiful women just went around catwalks while a cheeky Steve Harvey made some cheesy humor.

No, heaven forbid we have that in a beauty contest.

In fact, the winner doesn’t even get a crown anymore, and the contest now aims for “personality traits” rather than “hegemonic beauty standards”.

So what better way to do it than to crown a 39 years old, mother of two, who is not even from Germany?

That’ll sure send shockwaves around the conservative world. That’ll show ‘em!

*eyes roll three times*

NEWS: 🤖 GEMINI STILL SUCKS

You’ve probably seen it already. The internet is getting clogged with people having a laugh at Gemini.

Apparently the AI is trained to be “diverse” even when not asked for it, which results in catastrophic, cringy answers and images.

We got Greek Philosophers illustrated as strong independent black women, or outright saying that Elon Musk tweeting memes is as harmful as Hitler’s actions.

Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai of course stated that their project is completely missing its mark, calling Gemini’s responses “completely offensive” and “unacceptable”. They justified it in so many words, saying that it was an honest mistake.

Do you believe this reason?

NEWS: 🍒 BEAUTY IS BACK

Did you guys watch the last episode of Saturday Night Live? Yeah, the show is still on.

Euphoria’s star Sydney Sweeney got to play the part of the guest host, and Lord, did she deliver. Oh and she appeared on some comedy skits.

Twitter tweet

Let’s be honest. The woman is stunning… And this of course has triggered some people on Twitter.

Probably the same people who voted for Miss Germany.

But most of us were delighted. In fact, some people are crediting how her SNL appearance blowing up on the internet as just another sign of the tide turning against wokeness.

One can only hope.

BETA OF THE WEEK: 🔩 JACK KRAWCZYK

The man is the King Cuck of AI.

As Gemini is treading water, he is probably the biggest culprit behind its complete and utter dysfunctionality.

He seems to be on a rampage mission to force “inclusivity” down everyone’s throat.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with accepting everyone as the same no matter their background, but when your AI makes African-looking Vikings, the woke agenda went too far if you ask me.

As we write this line, Krawczyk decided to close down his X account, probably leading to less trash in the cyberspace and being picked on by Elon Musk himself:

Seems quite hard to believe that Google put its biggest project up to date in the hands of a Social Justice Warrior which seems to have an intriguing guilt of being a white person.

Case closed.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🤖 3 Ways to Make Money with AI

City Chad — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 21:39:13 +0000

Yes, this is the CityChad, your capital captain – steering your financial ship through even the choppiest of market seas. Let’s go sailing!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🚀 Pump it Up
Article: 🤖 3 Ways to Make Money with AI
News: 🖥️ Neuralink Advancements 📹 Introducing Sora 🛦 Putin Takes Avdiivka
Chad Of The Week: 🦠 John McAfee

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MARKETS: 🚀 PUMP IT UP

Bitcoin kept soaring and Ethereum did even better, as the approval of its ETFs is still on the radar.

However, it seems that this rise in ETH has been boosted by sentiment rather than a change in fundamentals or a bigger number of transactions.

Another factor has been the decreasing supply of ETH after investors put most of what they held into staking pools, reaching a new record of $85 million.

All Hail Ethereum

As the FED continues to sandbag its rate cuts, REITs and Gold seem to have taken a bump as secure investments for those looking for a more conservative portfolio. Mortgage-based REITs have seemed get the biggest pump, increasing almost a 1% over the last week.

NVIDIA once again seems to be close to all the shining lights, as it is slated to post its earnings of the last quarter this week, which will undoubtedly give new signs on where investors take profit on their shares or continue to ride for the next wave.

Other big players in the Microchip industry such as TSMC and ASML saw small losses, which could be seen as a new correction on a possible NVIDIA sell off.

Meanwhile, commodities are predicted to soar as the year advances by a new report of the Citi Group, as the fear of a recession still looms. As the Houthi blockade on the Red Sea continues, other Iraqi and Lebanese exports could be affected, as the War in Gaza may spread to other regions of the middle east.

Everything on the Green

ARTICLE: 🤖 3 WAYS TO MAKE MONEY WITH AI

TLDR: Like it or not, Artificial Intelligence projects and networks keep gaining more momentum as their tools get more effective and easier to access. While this undoubtedly presents a new landscape with jobs being re-shaped, there' are a few alleys where to use these new technologies to your advantage and earning some cash along the way.

📝 The Bottom Line
📽️ AI Video Creation
👨‍🏫 AI-Powered Courses
🤳 Artificial Influencer
😎 The Chad Takeaway

📝 THE BOTTOM LINE

Here's the deal, people.

AI might render obsolete as much as 300 million jobs. Goldman Sachs and other consultants agree that most jobs will be at peril of being completely replaced by machines.

In stark contrast of what happened in Willy Wonka’s factory, the white-collar jobs are the ones on the firing line, as a study from the University of Pennsylvania suggests.

So if AI is here to stay, we might as well try to make money with it. Let’s dive into three stories that might inspire you to side with SkyNet to start your next profitable venture.

📽️ AI VIDEO CREATION

Quentin Tarantino said it best when asked about going to film school: Just get out there and start filming.

And guess what? With free AI software, its easier than ever. You don’t need a camera, you don’t need any knowledge in photography. You can just ask a robot to paint you up some nice illustrations with tools like Leonardo AI, write a decent script with ChatGPT, and a few tweaks here and there, you can have an almost professional product.

Still reluctant? Check channels like Stellar Sagas or the AI Historian on YouTube. Most of their videos are done by using artificial intelligence to well, animate pictures that another artificial intelligence made.

Of course you’ll need some pointers on video editing, but its nothing fancy that you can’t learn in a day or two.

Looking at SocialBlade’s estimations of the Stellar Saga’s channel, it is still a respectable amount of passive income, close to $2,000 a month.

👨‍🏫 AI-POWERED COURSES

Do you have a great knack or are specifically good about something?

Well, you can take advantage of how the methods of learning have been changing and people now resort to online courses.

In fact, as result of COVID-19, the number of people learning from their homes through educational platforms has skyrocketed, with as many as 200 million people willing to sling some bucks to learn a new skill.

And the best thing about it? You don’t even need to know anything about programming or web developing. Pages like CourseBox got you covered. Just use their prompts and fine tune it to show all the content that you want.

Once your course is finished, you can promote it and earn some sweet bucks.

🤳 ARTIFICIAL INFLUENCERS

Meet Aitana López, she is an Instagram model and content creator, hailing from Barcelona. Her story is not that different from Maia Lima, from Argentina, who also has a large following in Instagram as an influencer.

The catch? Neither of them exist.

They were both made by a creative agency, and have been made completely through the usage of artificial intelligence. Using some tools like MidJourney and learning to use its prompts, you can get a consistent character to build an online presence.

And believe us, the world has a very big niche for AI influencers. In fact, they are somewhat catching up on revenue to normal influencers, as creative agencies manage to keep an iconic design.

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

Like it or not, the advancement of AI into pretty much every field is happening, sometimes even at an unperceivable pace, and there’s a plethora of free tools to use: whether you want to start a new project or get help with your work.

You’d be leaving money on the table if you are not trying to stay up to date with AI. It is quite possibly that your next job requires at least some interaction with some sort of an it.

Give it a shot, what do you have to lose?

NEWS: 📹 INTRODUCING SORA

OpenAI just shocked the Artificial Intelligence game again. The company that already lead the charge with ChatGPT and DALLE is now presenting Sora, a text-to-video generator.

While other projects have toyed around with the idea of “motioning” an existing image, like CapCut or Leonardo, OpenAI seems to streamline the process creating an intelligence that “understands not only what the user has asked for in the prompt, but also how those things exist in the physical world” as they say in their blog post.

Undoubtedly the tool still has some issues and can get a little bit sketchy sometimes, as AI engines still struggle with consistency and learning challenges like drawing hands, but there's still a lot of room for improvement.

The tool as it stands right now Sora could be a powerful substitution for stock video footage, before it evolves into a consistent tool open to public use.

NEWS: 🖥️ NEURALINK ADVANCEMENTS

Elon Musk just confirmed that his first Neuralink patient, who just got implanted a chip in its brain, can now control a mouse cursor with its freaking brain.

Neuralink is Elon Musk’s neurotechnology company focusing on creating Brain-Computer interfaces. Looks like something out of a Cyberpunk movie, but it is not a drill.

The company still holds a bittersweet reception from the public, which praises it as a innovative way of helping people restoring vision and motor functions. Of course, it has the small drawback of having a corporation having direct access to your own brain.

Seems like when Elon is the one pitching it, he gets 158 million in funding. But, when you are this guy…

NEWS: 🛦 PUTIN TAKES AVDIIVKA

Avdiivka, Ukraine's own ghost town, just got ghosted by its residents, thanks to Putin's party crashing.

In what looks like a scene from an apocalyptic movie, all with houses trashed and trees snapped, Russian cameras caught the messy aftermath, with NATO toys scattered around like garbage.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's troops waved the white flag to avoid a total wipeout, and Putin's doing a victory dance. This war's turning into a heavyweight bout with no end in sight.

But don't think it's all roses for Russia. They've apparently taken a hit of 47,000 troops in the last four months trying to snag Avdiivka. Talk about a high price for a piece of land.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🦠 JOHN MCAFEE

Source: Jetski Grizzly

This dude's life was more action-packed than a Jason Statham, with enough twists to make your head spin. The man was kind of a mixture between Jason Bourne and Bill Gates. Check this out:

Just check the first line in his resume: Engineer at NASA. And we’re not talking about being one of those boring rovers into Mars, the man went all in in the Apollo program, putting men on the moon for the first time.

After hopping around software companies, McAfee had a visionary moment. While being employed as a software engineer, he came face to face with a new sort of problem: Computer viruses. Bear in mind these were the mid 80s, so the whole idea of your Apple II or your trusty IBM being infected was kind of a new thing.

Like a good Chad, he saw the business opportunity, and developed the first ever antivirus software, which he turned into millions.

McAfee even dived into politics, running for U.S. President not once, but twice as a Libertarian.

McAfee's life was a rollercoaster of bizarre claims and wild adventures. He claimed to have dodged over 50 assassination attempts.

He ended up relocating in Belize, where he spent years arguing against both the Belizean prime minister and the local gangs alike, after being framed for murder.

His enemies even planted a spy within his closest circle, Janice Dyson. After they orderded her to kill him via poisoning, McAfee’s response was to marry her and turn her against her own bosses.

McAfee lived for a while on a heavily armed boat in the Caribbean, and when he finally got caught by the police, he faked a heart attack to escape imprisonment.

The man was a vocal supporter of privacy rights, echoing the sentiments of Edward Snowden.

It is possible that McAfee ended up knowing more than he should, as there were very strong rumors of him blackmailing the US government to avoid paying taxes. He was finally detained in Spain and suspiciously found dead by suicide.

Of course, let ourselves doubt on that one.

Or maybe this is one of his tricks and he’s still alive?

To be perfectly honest here, there are a lot of grey areas in McAfee’s life.

From an alleged murder story, to blackmailing US Government officials to avoid paying taxes. The man was definitely controversial, but no one can deny that the man lived without fear. And never forget, that he who is brave, is also free.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🎴 Raise-Kwon-Do

City Chad — Wed, 14 Feb 2024 22:49:13 +0000

Yes, this is the CityChad, your go-to guru for making bank – and not just in Monopoly. Let’s pass go and collect $200!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🟢 Green Lights Ahead
Article: 👨‍💻 The Art of Raise-Kwon-Do
News: 🗳️Don Leading over Joe, 🖥️ NVIDIA pummels Hong Kong, 🇪🇪 Estonia Sets the Border
Chad Of The Week: 🏁 Steve McQueen

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MARKETS: 🟢 GREEN LIGHTS AHEAD

Cyptochads, rise up.

Bitcoin has finally broken $50,000 barrier (again), powered by the upcoming halving and the good numbers BlackRock and Fidelity Investments Bitcoin ETFs posted last month.

To add to the crypto party, recent activity showed a large boost in stablecoins Market Caps, signifying growing inflows into the market.

Analysts are optimistic that Bitcoin’s new target could be as high as $69,000.

Bitcoin comes back

Ethereum and Solana are among the gainers as well.

Ethereum hodlers are eagerly awaiting for the approval its ETFs. And paradoxically, Solana has seen a collateral boost as traders seem to prefer its network over the classic Ethereum network to commit their transactions.

Commodities as a whole are currently undergoing a deflationary impasse as China seems to be “oversupplied” after last year’s oil binge and prices drop all throughout the country.

Overstocking can be a deadly sin

ARTICLE: 🎴 THE ART OF RAISE-KWON-DO

TLDR: Learning how to ask for a raise is an ancient art that any Chad should strive to master. Just like ninjas carried out point perfect missions with chilling precision, so should be your calculated professional moves. Learn how to prepare, what to say, and how to cultivate a positive outlook on your professional life.

⛩️ Welcome to the Dojo
🥋 First Dogma: Think More of Yourself
🦵 Second Dogma: Leverage your Value
⚡ Third Dogma: Be Proactive
🥷 Entering the Arena
😎 The Chad Takeaway

⛩️ WELCOME TO THE DOJO

Let's start on a high note.

It’s likely that you’re worth more than what your current paycheck suggests.

In fact, companies usually bank on their employees settling for less. It's like the secret menu at a ramen izakaya – most don't know it exists, but once you do, oh boy, it's a game-changer!

Payroll pundits agree that job hoppers – those who switch jobs with the frequency a renegade ronin changed allegiance– tend to score fatter paychecks than the loyal samurai who sticks around.

Red flag? Maybe.

But it also paints a clear picture: If you're a dedicated, long-term player, it's time to master the ancient and noble art of Raise-Kwon-Do.

Why Raise-Kwon-Do, you ask? Because you need to follow this dojo’s dogmas.

Don’t ask, claim.

Don’t expect an all benevolent paycheck upgrade to just fall in your lap. Earn it.

🥋 FIRST DOGMA: THINK MORE OF YOURSELF

In the world of Raise-Kwon-Do, self-belief is your black belt.

Never underestimate your value. It's like going to the gym – the more you flex your ambition, the stronger it gets.

Regularly assess your skills, achievements, and market value. Check job boards for similar jobs and how much are they paying.

Keep a victory log – note every win, no matter how small. Note how you contributed to it.

Build a strong pile of evidence for your case. Remember, if you don't believe in your worth, why should your boss?

🦵 SECOND DOGMA: LEVERAGE YOUR VALUE

Not a single employer will pay you more unless they feel it’s a good deal for them.

Just to be clear, you're not threatening to walk out; you're highlighting your indispensability.

The more you can good-heartedly and subtly show your employer how much value would be lost if suddenly you were to disappear, the more leverage you have for a negotiation later on.

⚡ THIRD DOGMA: BE PROACTIVE

Great workers usually go unnoticed. There’s an ancient saying that, great work whispers, while mistakes scream.

Maybe your superior is already accustomed to you being a well-oiled machine, it is quite possible that your outstanding work gets dubbed as just the standard.

No one is going to just hand you a random raise.

Don't wait to be recognized. Use every possible check-ins with your boss to discuss your progress and goals.

🥷 ENTERING THE ARENA

So now you’ve mastered those dogmas and already inked them as tattoos on your arms. You might feel ready to do the heist.

Break into the castle, talk to the shogun (your boss) and get away with the prize. All with the swiftness and elegance of a ninja.

Not so fast. Any decent Raise-Kwon-Do ninja should have these tips at hand.

Have Clarity About Your Worth:

Before you enter the negotiation arena, you must know your number. This isn't a random figure on a kaiga painting; it's a value backed by research and your track record. If you can quantify the benefits of your achievements, do it. Be ready to articulate clearly why you deserve this raise. Don’t suggest, state.

Master the Art of Timing

Any good warrior knows the prudency of choosing the right moment to attack.

Hard times? Wait for the dust to settle, then make your move.

Times of financial bonanza? Guard may be down, might be time to plunge in.

Finding yourself in a favorable ground, like having some new responsibilities? Don’t waste that advantage, and use it for leverage.

Look Beyond the Money:

Sometimes the best deals aren't just about cold, hard cash. Be open for other forms of compensation. More vacation time, flexible working hours, professional development opportunities, or even a better title. These perks not only sweeten the deal but can also enhance your work-life balance and career trajectory.

Avoid Comparisons:

The greatest swordmen in history knew that some missions were supposed to be undertaken alone. Avoid comparing yourself to your colleagues. Focus on your unique contributions and value to the company. It's about what you bring to the table, not how you compare to others.

Handling Rejection:

If you get a 'no', don't see it as a full stop; it's just a line break in your haiku. Ask for specific feedback. What can you improve? What goals should you aim for? Show resilience and commitment to growth. Once you fixed whatever you could fix, return and ask again.

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

Of course, this is just the first of many lessons one could learn in the sacred Raise-Kwon-Do dojo.

Just remember that thinking that you deserve a raise is already the first step moving forward, but treat it like the venturous mission it is. Have a strategy, a plan, and the weapons to properly execute it.

NEWS: 🗳️DON LEADING OVER JOE

Another week of Ws

Last week was like Christmas in February for Team Trump, while Biden's camp seemed like they were auditioning for a retirement home commercial.

The Colorado ruling to erase Trump from the ballot was overturned by the Supreme Justice, calling it an overstepping of its state authority.

The Don also took a jab at Biden’s refusal to appear on the Super Bowl, calling it a sign of weakness.

This what after Joe’s pyrrhic victory over not being tried for criminal charges when handling classified information as a private citizen.

Special counsel Robert Hur said it best: “he would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory”

Definitely not flattering words for Joe. Making him run again seems like abuse at this point.

NEWS: 🖥️ NVIDIA TOPS HONG KONG

Bow Down

NVIDIA has no doubt led the stock front over the last year, soaring more than 230% and 41% since the start of 2024.

In fact, NVIDIA grew so much that its new market cap of $1.7 trillion makes it worth as much all companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The Hang Seng index (Hong Kong's answer to the S&P 500) kept diving deeper into red numbers, losing 20% of its market value last year.

So who's to blame for this tumble in the Chinese economy?

Well, real estate in China keeps plumetting, with most public developers now defaulting their debts.

NEWS: 🇪🇪 ESTONIA SETS THE BORDER

According to Estonian Intelligence, Russia is bolstering up for a gunswing against NATO countries on the following decade.

Apparently Russia is ready to double their forces stationed in their border with NATO countries, specifically Finland and the Baltic States, (Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania)

The idea of an immediate invasion seems highly unlikely however, as Russia won't be able to hold both a battlefront in Ukraine and the Baltic territories.

As a response, German troops will be permanently stationed in Estonia, signalizing its first foreign deployment since World War II.

This seems to be a reaction to Trump's speech declaring that he won't help any NATO country that isn't pulling its weight.

Seems the Don's words have been finally heard. C’mon guys, pay up!

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🏁 STEVE MCQUEEN

This Chad wasn’t just a king… he was the King of Cool.

First off, McQueen’s style was sharper than an Italian don’s suit. The man made wearing sunglasses indoors not just acceptable, but made it seem downright necessary.

If coolness were a college course, he’d be the professor, with an honoris causa diploma.

Like most of the Chads we’ve covered in this humble section, McQueen had a rough upbringing.

His mother strayed from an abusive partner to another, leaving young Steve-o to be raised by his great-uncle Claude in a small farm.

The man taught him everything about manliness, and got him into one of his biggest loves: Cars.

You see, great men are usually multi-use Swiss army knives.

McQueen didn't just act; he raced cars and motorcycles the same way he acted in his movies – fast and with style. He competed against the greats of his time, racing in the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring, closely finishing second with a broken foot, and the 24 hours of Le Mans.

McQueen was more than just a pretty face with a cocky grin.

For a man that sold himself as an unbreakable badass, he had a very wide range as an actor, being able to play a cowboy in 'The Magnificent Seven' to a rebel in 'Papillion', and even a romantic lead in 'Love with the Proper Stranger'.

Like Duke Nukem, McQueen also had balls of steel, publicly taunting Charles Manson after he found out he was on his hitlist. Needless to say, Manson never even dared to approach a gun-carrying McQueen.

The man was the embodiment of being a Chad. In fact, his own son was named Chad.

One of my favourite quotes from him reads: “I live for myself and answer to nobody.”

That is your takeaway, right there.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

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DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

👨‍💻 Remote Work 4 Years Later

City Chad — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 18:29:41 +0000

Yes. This is the CityChad, your Tag Team partner ready to take on the Heavyweight Financial Championship together. Let’s get ready to rumble!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🫤OKish
Article: 👨‍💻 Remote Work 4 Years Later
News: 💉 Enhanced Games, 💑 Dink Shaming, ✊🏿 Ye Against Everyone
Chad Of The Week: 🏹 Chris Williamson

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🫤 OKish

REITs were hit the most during last week, trading below their net asset value, with a median discount of 15.8%.

Industrial, medical and office REITs are struggling, while data center REITs are thriving.

Residential REITs are also hurting as more of them see their occupancy rate falling to an all-time low at 87%

Safe to say, not a great time for REITs at the moment.

Ethereum is leading the Crypto front as developers launch the Dencun Upgrade, which will improve the coin’s scalability and efficiency. According to the Ethereum team, the upgrade has yielded positive results on their testnets.

Bonds and stocks also showed some resistance as the United States Treasury aims to auction almost $42 billion in ten-year bonds.

Ford Motor Co. is this week’s big winner, while New York Community Bancorp got BTFO by Moody’s, who just downgraded its bonds to ‘junk’.

ARTICLE: 👨‍💻 REMOTE WORK 4 YEARS LATER

TLDR: Remote work became the norm for many as companies had to adapt to the global pandemic. Even after Covid faded away, companies saw the benefit of having “hybrid” systems, with some of their workforce either partially or fully working remote. 4 years later, is it still all it’s cracked up to be? Let’s find out.

🚗 How it all Started
👍 The Pros
👎 The Cons
💼 What’s the future looking like?
😎 The Chad Takeaway

🚗 HOW IT ALL STARTED

For most of us, 2020 was the year when we got pulled out of our office desks straight into the home office experience.

As governments around started to put populations in quarantine, some of stocked our fridges and woke up the next day figuring out where would our improvised work station be.

The COVID-19 pandemic came and went but home office became the new normal for a bunch of different people. It for sure change the lives of many.

So is it good? Is it bad?

Let's dive into it

👍 THE PROS

No Commuting Drama: Working from home means saying goodbye to traffic jams and overcrowded buses.

The daily stress of racing against time, worrying about unreliable transport, and envisioning your boss's frown as they glance at your empty chair, while wasting an average of 54 hours every year.

Now, the longest commute is from your bed to your desk, coffee pit stop included. Plus, you get extra Z's even if you had a trusty commute before.
Expanding Horizons: The world of remote work breaks down barriers. The internet is a game-changer, enabling employers to connect with talent miles away.

Workers from quieter, more remote areas now have the same opportunities as city slickers.

You could be in a quaint village and still earn a city salary.
Flexible Lifestyle: Home is where the heart is, and also where you can juggle work with personal life. Got kids? Save on daycare. Caring for someone special? Balance it seamlessly with your work.

Plus, choose when you work best. Night owl? No problem, tackle those tasks in the wee hours.

And let's not forget the dress code – or lack thereof. Working in your comfiest clothes? Priceless.

👎 THE CONS

Distraction Central: Just a quick game of FIFA before that budget planning meeting. Surely you can squeeze one more episode of The Wire before continuing with that pesky project you are due.

Although numbers show that people tend to focus more while working from home, it is not without the danger of your mind wandering somewhere else. Discipline is your best friend here. Remember, a clear mind does wonders.

Try working in focused bursts. Did you know? On average, we lose 2.1 hours a day to distractions and take about 25 minutes to refocus after each one. So, bro, keep your work game strong!
Isolation Nation: If you're flying solo at home, the lack of office banter and human interaction can be a downer.

Some offices are more than just workspaces – they're social hubs, complete with cool amenities and great colleagues. Feeling isolated? Reach out to your work pals.

Being remote doesn't mean you can't keep those connections alive and kicking.
Mixing Work and Play: Especially in a small space, your gaming or chill zone doubles as your office can muddle things up. Your haven becomes a place of stress. The trick?

Set clear boundaries. Have distinct zones for work and leisure, even if they're just different corners of the same room.

💼 WHAT’S THE FUTURE LOOKING LIKE?

Businesses are seeing significant cost savings – goodbye, large expensive office leases; hello, leaner operational costs.

But it's not all about the bottom line. Companies are finding that remote work can boost employee satisfaction and productivity, as their teams relish the flexibility and work-life harmony this setup offers.

But having said all this, 9 out of 10 companies are still demanding the dreaded “RTO” (Return to Office).

Why? Well they perceive that workers are simply more productive at the office and will produce more revenue.

Is this true? Hard to say. The data was gathered from surveys from company managers. So basically pulled from thin air.

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

Remote work is like a rollercoaster – full of ups and downs, twists and turns.

It's about finding what works for you and your employer, striking that perfect balance between productivity and personal life.

The days of remote working may be numbered for some. But a real Chad will make find a way to make it his choice.

Location independent entrepreneurship, anyone?

NEWS: 💉 ENHANCED GAMES

Will someone get hurt?

Although the idea was being mulled over the past few years, it seems like finally the Enhanced Games will get their funding, ready to start in 2025.

What are the Enhanced Games, you may ask?

Basically, the Olympics but where roiding is allowed.

PayPal Co-Founder Peter Thiel is among the investors ready to fund the games which, according to its own site, says “well, everyone is already using PEDs on the side, so why not make it legal?”

It might be controversial, but we are gonna be watching this one.

NEWS: 💑 DINK SHAMING

Look at all this disposable income!

Elon Musk, who is a father of 10, recently stirred the pot with his views on childlessness.

He took a jab against the DINK (Double Income, No Kids) lifestyle as morally questionable.

His take? It's wrong to expect others' children to care for you in old age without having your own.

This sparked a fiery debate online, with opinions split between the freedom of a child-free life and the traditional values of parenthood.

From viral TikTok videos celebrating the DINK life to harsh online backlash, it's clear that the choice to have kids or not remains a hot-button issue.

NEWS: ✊🏿 YE AGAINST EVERYONE

Not happy

Kanye West has been complaining on social media as he is struggling to book venues for his upcoming shows, as he hints at a possible world tour, including sets in USA, UK, Mexico, Australia, Spain, Japan and Egypt.

He posted a video on his Instagram saying that he could only book the United Center, as most other venues don’t want to get associated with him after most of his comments were dubbed antisemitic by mass media.

Despite the Cancel Culture doing whatever it takes to shove Ye under the rugs, it seems like other parts of the world were more receptive of the rapper.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🎙️ CHRIS WILLIAMSON

In less than 5 years, a humble Chad from northeast England built a Podcasting Empire.

Growing up in Stockton-on-Tees, Chris didn't have the easiest childhood. Bullying and feeling like an outsider were part of his daily life. But he found solace in cricket, where he excelled, showing early signs of the grit and determination that would define his later years.

Once Uni started, he dove into the nightlife scene, co-founding a nightclub promotion company that rocked the student world.

This period was all about living large and fast, a stark contrast to his earlier years.

Late nights and heavy partying taking a toll on his mental health, however. His first real brush with fame came with dating reality TV show "Take Me Out," but it was "Love Island" that marked a turning point. On the show, Chris realized the 'professional party boy' persona didn't fit him.

He pivoted with an intellectual turn.

He dove into the world of long-form podcasts, creating "Modern Wisdom" in 2018. His podcast became a space for deep, meaningful conversations, a stark departure from his reality TV days.

What can we learn from Chris's story?

Reinvention.

From a bullied kid to a nightclub promoter to a respected podcaster, his journey is a reminder that we're not defined by our beginnings or the roles we play.

Chris Williamson, you're our Chad of the Week for showing us the power of resilience and the courage to redefine our paths. Stay tuned to CityChad for more stories of personal transformation and triumph!

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🥊 Got Grit?

City Chad — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 19:04:57 +0000

Yes. This is the CityChad, your friendly roommate putting your financial house in order. Let’s tidy up the home base!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🏎️ Shifting Gears
Article: 🥊 Got Grit?
News: 🇩🇪 Losing but Winning, 🐉 China Takes Action, 🪖 Joe on The Ropes
Chad Of The Week: 🏹 Genghis Khan

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🏎️ SHIFTING GEARS

We can safely say that the month of January ended better than it started.

Bitcoin led the recovery as it climbed back into the $43K level. Despite all the FUD around the Sells the News ETF event! And the fact that Greyscale is putting so much Bitcoin in Coinbase (presumably to sell it).

Ethereum also posted a strong gain after Standard Chartered analysts deemed "inevitable" the SEC's approval of Ethereum-based ETFs.

Unsurprisingly, the Crypto Fear and Greed Index is once again on the Greed side...

Is this good? Gordon would say so.

Is it really?

Well it is good for sellers. Let’s see what happens to FOMO buyers!

On the stock front, META absolutely crushed it this week. Like we have said before… Don’t bet against Zuck!

Two events to keep an eye on: BTC Halving, and the FED announcing their rate cuts.

Seems like there is a rhyme from our previous editions?

ARTICLE: 🥊 GOT GRIT?

TLDR: Grit in business is often touted as the key to success for self-made entrepreneurs. And teaching it is as tough as making kale salads trendy. But is it all you need to make it? While grit's part of the success recipe, it's not the whole meal. Find out why.

🏋️‍♂️ What is Grit?
👨‍🎓 Can You Learn Grit?
💪 The Takeaway

🏋️‍♂️ WHAT IS GRIT?

Grit is defined in the dictionary as the combination of resolve, determination, and perseverance even against discouraging odds.

No, this is not a Phil Collins’ song. This is about being able to gather up strength and keep moving forward.

Think about the greatest entrepreneurs of history. Jobs, Gates, Zuck. Success did not come on a silver platter.

In fact, it is considered that facing adversity in early stages of our lives might help to build up character and a positive attitude against difficult times.

According to several psychologists, grit is the determining factor for success.

👨‍🎓 CAN YOU LEARN GRIT?

Teaching Grit is like trying to teach someone to spontaneously like kale salads – it's complex and not everyone's cup of tea. Although it may be good for them!

Even experts admit we're in murky waters on how to teach this trait. It’s like trying to teach ambition, or how Apollo saw the Eye of The Tiger in Rocky. It’s unrealistic.

Grit is considered a stable personality trait, like being naturally organized or detail-oriented. Trying to change this is as tough as trying to become a morning person overnight.

Sure, our personalities evolve over time, shaped by our experiences and environment, but predicting this change is like trying to guess the next viral TikTok dance.

But is learning grit impossible? Hell, no. There are several ways to do it. And it is probably a worthwhile investment.

😎 THE TAKEAWAY

So, shall you drop everything and become the next NAVY seal of business? #grindset

While it can’t hurt to be gritty, let's not put all our eggs in the grit basket.

Sure, grit gets you through the door of pain, but what about intelligence, creativity, and let's not forget, good ol' luck?

Success is like a cocktail – it needs more than one ingredient. Grit is probably necessary but not sufficient to guarantee success.

And we are not alone in this. Famous podcaster Shaan Puri said it best, its not about working harder, but working smarter. The hardest worker is not always the richest (otherwise all line cooks would be billionaires).

Sometimes, you can have all the grit in the world, but if you're playing the wrong game, the outcome will be sub-optimal.

Keep reading CityChad to learn the right games to play.

NEWS: 🇩🇪 LOSING BUT WINNING💸

The Alternative für Deutschland party got its first defeat since plans leaked about their massive deportation plan.

AfD's candidate Uwe Thrum lost the elections of the Saale-Orla district of Thuringia by a 4.5% difference.

That’s not a lot.

However, the vote seems to just be the prologue to something bigger. The state elections are happening this year, and it is not looking well for the far left alliance currently in power.

AfD could take a huge victory this September.

NEWS: 🐉 CHINA TAKES ACTION

As we mentioned last week, Chinese stocks have not been having a good run for a while.

Comrade Xi is pointing fingers at aggressive short-sellers for this market mayhem. His answer? Making investors chill for a day before they can play the short-selling game.

But here's the twist: while some investors are bailing out, hedge funds are jumping in.

Goldman Sachs reports hedge funds bought Chinese stocks hard, marking the biggest three-day shopping frenzy in over five years.

This buying frenzy matched up with Beijing trying to boost confidence in their shaky economy.

Is it time to look at this hurt dragon?

NEWS: 🪖 JOE ON THE ROPES

Three American soldiers have died as a result of a drone attack in Jordan.

Apparently the ones to blame are the Iranian backed militia.

This puts tremendous pressure on Sloppy Joe Biden. The man has remained cautious as to where his next fumble will be.

Before this attack, at least 100 attacks to American outposts have been reported by Iranian-backed forces. Biden's response? Radio silence and meek tweets.

The Don was of course ready to punch, ready for November's looming election.

"Three years ago, Iran was weak, broke, and totally under control. Thanks to my Maximum Pressure policy, the Iranian Regime could barely scrape two dollars together to fund their terrorist proxies"

As momentum in the presidential race has been with Trump, it is up to Biden to show some action.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🏹 GENGHIS KHAN

Genghis Chad

This was an entry long overdue in a section that calls itself "Chad of the Week".

For those not into history, Genghis Khan went on from being a sick child eating rats for survival to building the largest empire ever known to mankind.

A rough upbringing usually moulds the most ambitious minds.

After his father was killed by Naiman forces, young Genghis was deemed unworthy and abandoned by his tribe.

Not one to surrender, he started to network his way through shamans and minor chieftains, steadily gaining followers.

K-Pop and Ceaușescu as part of the same country

After raising a considerable army, he united the Mongol tribes under his rule, and crushed everyone who dared to question his authority.

Once every Mongol horde was under his command, Genghis resorted to a classic Mongolian pastime: Ransacking and raiding China and Persia.

With a big difference, however.

Genghis wasn’t going to just browbeat them and ask for some tribute. Unlike previous Khans, Genghis’ objective was a full on conquest.

His army was much more disciplined, and versatile than those of his rivals. The regular Mongolian cavalry archer had three horses each, strategically placed around their growing empire. Think of it as Formula 1 cars, soldiers could leave their tired horse in one post, and grab a new one, effectively never stopping to move.

Way before Lollapalooza made yurts cool

Genghis’ army was trained, drilled every day, and paid regularly.

Unlike armies who answered to whomever might be the newest prince or the new big lord, the Hordes answered to the Great Khan.

Our boy Genghis has been portrayed many times as a ruthless, merciless machine of killing. The truth is that he was quite an easy-going guy, as long as you acknowledged his rule. Mongols allowed for freedom of worship along all their empire.

In fact, because the Mongol Empire went almost from South Korea to Hungary, the period known as Pax Mongolica saw society flourish, as trade networks surged across the whole Eurasian continent, assuring safe travels and commerce.

So in a way, Genghis Khan was the father of globalization.

What can we learn from Genghis?

He understood that one does not conquer alone. One needs followers, supporters, and allies. Live and die by the crew.
Pick your battles. Letting the other party get what they want (in this case religious freedom) is a textbook negotiation skill (as long as your objectives are served)
Treat your subordinates well. Don’t half ass it when it come to talent. Treat them and pay them well and you will get that investment back with interest.
Your present or past does not determine your future. If he can rise from eating rats to the ruler of the largest Empire that existed, how far can you make it?

And in the world of politics, that's what makes him our Chad of the Week.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

💀 Terrible Businesses

City Chad — Sun, 28 Jan 2024 19:21:43 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your financial whisperer in charge of bringing the Zen into your wallet. Let’s tame the forest of uncertainty!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🛍️ Mixed Bags
Article: 💀 Terrible Businesses
News: 🌵 Lose-Lose for Everyone
Chad Of The Week: 🇺🇸 Vivek Ramaswamy

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🛍️ MIXED BAGS

It’s been a mixed bag lately.

Some things are doing well… and others not so much.

And it’s not just between asset classes (e.g. stocks vs bonds). It is within them too!

What caught our eye recently is the big difference between the US and Chinese stocks markets.

Pieter Levels put it best here:

Harsh Realities

The Chinese economy keeps struggling and the US just keeps innovating and growing.

It’s impressive how good the Americans are at creating shareholder value.

We have talked about this at length already…

But a good story is worth repeating! Just like the one your dad kept telling about the fish he almost caught that was this big.

What to do with this information? Well you may be tempted to just sell China and buy the US. But be careful.

Things tend to revert to the mean and trying to time the markets or pick winners usually ends in tears.

Crypto as a whole took a big plummet as Bitcoin broke down its resistance around the $40,000 mark.

Ethereum got the collateral damage of Bitcoin and the added rumor of the Ethereum Foundation selling around $2 million of its reserves.

“No me gusta” was the collective scream of crypto bros across the Globe.

But hey, this is crypto. What do you expect? An easy ride? Nah, bro.

Crypto Bros this year so far

ARTICLE: 💀 TERRIBLE BUSINESSES

TLDR: No matter how much you love a business idea, you’ve got to remember that not all businesses are created equal. So it is important that whatever you do, you go into it with your eyes open. It may save you from tears!

❤️ To Each his Own
🥘 Restaurants (and Bars)
🛍️ Retail Boutiques
🌊 Wantrepreneur
📚 Bookstores
💪 The Chad Takeaway

❤️ TO EACH HIS OWN

No one is debating that starting any business can be very fulfilling.

It just hits different when you see cash come in from your very own entrepreneurial venture. Something that at some point was just an idea in your mind.

And as they say “if you love what you are doing, you are already succeeding.”

But let’s press pause on that thought for a sec.

Some businesses are just not big money makers. No matter how much drive and passion you put into them.

So let’s dive right in into four different businesses that will definitely not be killing it this year.

🥘 RESTAURANTS

Seems weird, right? I mean, eating will never get out of fashion.

But restaurants are a complicated animal to tame, and in fact, 60% of them close in their first year.

You need more than your extra secret recipe that your family passed on from generation to generation.

You need a well-oiled procurement system (that's getting all your ingredients without breaking the bank), predict how many hungry mouths you’ll feed (forecast demand), and deal with the wild world of food storage.

You don’t want to be that guy with a mountain of wilted lettuce, do you?

Restaurants typically see action during lunch and dinner so there is a mad rush to make bank in a short window… followed by crickets (a.k.a. “off-peak hours”).

Also, the restaurant scene is packed.

Even with people spending more dough on dining out, your local joint is duking it out with big names like McDonald's and that hip new sushi spot down the street.

So how can you still make money preparing food?

You may need to get creative and consider a different approach. Enter the dark kitchen.

No, this doesn’t mean not paying your electricity bill. It means that you prepare your dishes behind closed doors and take advantage of the surge of delivery apps.

No storefront means a huge cut on overheads while also having much simpler logistics. Your clients can just eat at their home.

The problem is that most people want to get into the food business to actually welcome people and sit them at tables. If that is you, I love you! I really enjoy going to restaurants.

But get ready to deal with the high probability of having to close doors quickly.

Oh and you can apply a similar logic to a similar business… bars. Sorry to slip this one in too. It is pretty hard to make money from this fun-sounding venture.

🛍️ RETAIL BOUTIQUES

Pretty much everything retail is getting hammered against e-commerce.

More and more stores are shrinking and shopping malls are at a record high of empty premises.

On the contrary, online malls that never close.

These digital heavyweights are like the superstores of the internet, offering everything from socks to sofas with just a few clicks.

Add to that because sales would happen upfront, you need to find a high traffic spot, which probably will also have a high rent to start.

Retail boutiques need to be more than stores; they need to be destinations.

So if you still dream of having your own real life boutique, how can it survive? Personalization is the key.

Try to offer an experience that there’s no way to be replicated online.

Something Instagrammable... think about great customer service.

As brick and mortar owners say, now more than ever they live and die by how good of an experience they can provide.

🌊 WANTREPRENEUR

This one's a bit of a curve ball. It’s not really a business per se, but an attitude to business that is doomed to fail. We hereby present the “Wantrepreneur”.

This style of doing business (or actually not doing business) can be seen in any industry. But it is most commonly spotted in the “Tech” space.

The name says it all. Someone who does everything but actually making money as a businessperson.

The path of the wantrepreneur is often littered with grand visions but lacking in the stepping stones of validation and consistency.

We have all met one at some point… captivated by the glamor of becoming the next Zuckerberg or Musk, they try to 'boil the ocean' rather than starting with a single pot.

They can be great at raising money, but terrible at actually making it.

Wantrepreneurs hop from one venture to the next without grounding their ideas in market realities. They are always envisioning the million-dollar jackpot but neglecting the practical first step of earning the first hundred dollars.

They see that as below them *facepalm*.

The antidote to this pattern is not less ambition, but more focus—starting small, validating early, and growing with intention!

Also focusing on less glamorous industries (like we talabout on Starting a Boring Business), can really push you to avoid the Wantrepreneur death trap.

📚 BOOKSTORES

It’s one you probably knew was gonna be on the list. And it is not without great grief that this beloved business joins this list because I love them.

Reading books? People still do it. The publishing industry? Believe it or not, still with strong sales. The twist? Brick-and-mortar bookshops are struggling to get a slice of that pie.

It just has too many natural predators to survive.

E-books changed the way people read. Fewer physical books mean fewer reasons to stroll into a bookstore.

And online shopping is like the convenience of microwave meals for book lovers. Trying to out-muscle Amazon in the book game might just be as impossible as dodging rain.

Another nail in the coffin? Audiobooks, which post stronger sales every year. They saw a 10% revenue increase in 2022, and that’s just flexing at this point with eleven straight years of gains.

So, how do bookstores manage to withstand the test of time?

The key here is differentiation. Some of them, like Peter Harrington books in the UK, specialize in rare, obscure and very hard to find books, aiming for the collector’s market.

But most others successfully transitioned into becoming “literary cafés”, becoming sort of a social pub. You can add selling lattes to your book sales.

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

In the world of business, just like in life, it's all about going into it with eyes wide open.

Knowledge is power after all.

So now you know what kinds of businesses and attitudes to business are best to avoid if you want to make the big bucks.

If you still want to give them a go, the key is not just to survive but to thrive by embracing change and creativity.

Whatever you choose to do, make sure you know how much money it can actually make you and that number fits with your life goals.

NEWS: 🌵 LOSE-LOSE FOR EVERYONE

The border crisis in the US Southern border is alive and well.

And the latest episode in this saga relates to Biden’s standoff against Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott. So what happened?

In short, the state of Texas put up razor wire to prevent illegal border crossings. Biden and his crew objected. And finally the US Supreme Court allowed this Monday to let federal agents cut the wire.

Now this sounds like a victory for Biden. But is it?

Of course not.

Now, how do you think it looks when federal agents are standing up against state officers and the National guard to basically facilitate illegal immigration and promote human trafficking?

No matter how woke Dem voters are, it’s not a good look.

What’s Biden's other option, to back down? Not a good look either.

This is what happens when you try to outwoke everyone.

Egg on face for Biden.

But worse still, it is the US and human trafficking victims that lose out in all of this.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🇺🇸 VIVEK RAMASWAMY

What a refreshing thing to see in politics. A man that has the guts (and space) to eloquently say what the many are thinking.

Sounds simple, yet hardly seen.

Vivek Ramaswamy was a Republican presidential candidate.

He became an overnight sensation in the realms of Twitter and beyond. He has now gracefully pulled out of the Presidential race to support Donald Trump.

But what made him our Chad of the Week is how he has dealt with provocation and controversy in the last few weeks.

It was like watching Neo dodging all those bullets.

Exhibit A: The man took a classic bait attempt by a Washington Post reporter and flipped it on its head.

Here's where Vivek shows his Chad energy.

The WaPo journo asks him “if he rejects White Supremacy”. Vivek starts off with the expected "of course I condemn any form of vicious racial discrimination".

But he then takes a sharp turn and challenges the very premise of the question.

He suggests that the real issue isn't what the reporter implies, but rather the institutionalized racial discrimination baked into systems like affirmative action.

Bold. Chad move.

This isn't just about throwing shade or making headlines.

Ramaswamy is highlighting a deep-seated issue in American discourse. He's calling out what he sees as a hypocrisy in the system.

Exhibit B: Vivek is unfazed by 7-Eleven joke

The Babylon Bee (a parody website) made a (somewhat crude) joke with the headline “Trump Promises Vivek an Administration Position Running The White House 7-Eleven”.

Most people were hoping this would enrage the man. And maybe cause some controversy in the Republican camp. But what happened instead?

The man just laughed it off. Chad energy by the gigawatt.

Anyway, whether you agree with him or not, one thing is clear: Vivek Ramaswamy isn’t just playing the game, he’s changing the rules.

And in the world of politics, that's what makes him our Chad of the Week.

So, hats off to Vivek, for not just walking the walk, but talking the talk in a way that's got everyone listening.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

💳 The Awkward World of Debt

City Chad — Wed, 17 Jan 2024 19:35:08 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your lifestyle alchemist, turning ordinary moments into golden memories. Let’s craft some magic!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🐢 Slow Recovery
Article: 💳 The Awkward world of Debt
News: 🖥️ Microsoft Topples Apple
Chad Of The Week: 🇸🇻 Nayib Bukele

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🐢 SLOW RECOVERY

Most asset classes have had a pretty muted start to the year.

The SEC stated that the Central Bank may take longer to drop their rates than predicted. They will likely take their time.

This is putting a dampener on investor’s spirits that were running high at the end of last year.

Bitcoin was the biggest loser this week. This exactly the opposite of what most people were expecting after the approval of the Bitcoin ETF.

I wish I had a Bitcoin every time someone painted this as the event that was gonna make every crypto degen a billionaire. Alas, it was not to be.

Most investors were eager to take their profits. The price was really close to $49,000, before dropping down to around $42.000.

It was the typical case of “buy the rumors, sell the news”.

However, Ethereum posted a formidable gain last week. The SEC has flirted with the idea of approving ETH-Based ETFs as well.

Maybe the sell the news time is coming for ETH too?

Pump and Dump

ARTICLE: 💳 THE AWKWARD WORLD OF DEBT

To owe or not to owe?

TLDR: Debt isn't always the villain in your personal finance saga. Used wisely, it's like a power-up in a video game. Especially for big moves like snagging a property (hello, mortgage!). But getting into debt just to live large without any game plan for returns is a major no-go. Smart debt can be your ally, catapulting you towards those big life wins. Thoughtless debt, on the other hand, is like quicksand for your wallet. Know the difference, play it smart, and understand that getting into debt is a critical choice that requires careful analysis.

🧠 What the Experts Say
👍 What is “Good” Debt?
🏦 Consolidating Debts
😎 The Chad Takeaway

🧠 WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY

Mark Cuban and Warren Buffett had the same advice when consulted on what people could do to protect their personal finances from an economic recession.

Avoid debt.

Cuban even went as far as considering paying off debt a better investment than stocks, bonds, or other financial securities.

The math is simple: The average APR (that’s the annual percentage rate) that people pay on credit card debt is around 28%.

An S&P 500 index fund has a (roughly) 10% average annual return. So it means that avoiding paying that 28% APR is better than getting 10%.

But getting into the situation of having to pay that 28% in the first place is what you should avoid first.

Buffett gave this pretty obvious advice to young children: you should never spend more than you earn.

The key word here is “spend”. We’ll get back to that later.

It looks tempting, right? You have good credit, after all. Give your house that new paintjob. Get yourself a new TV. Mastercard and Visa approve of that.

However, living out of your own means will send you into a downward spiral which will always be more and more difficult to come back from.

Cuban himself learned the hard way the woes of being a chronic addict to credit card debt. Once creditors start to pile up, every paycheck just vanishes in thin air.

This does not mean that credit cards are satanic devices created by the devil himself.

You should make the most of their cashback rewards or frequent flyer miles. Just remember to always pay off the whole of your bill at the end of the month.

👍 WHAT IS “GOOD” DEBT?

Unless you are the son of a billionaire you probably will need to borrow money to kick off one or another chapter in your life.

“Good” debt is the one where you expect to use that money to get a an improvement in your net worth or a significant enhancement of your life.

“Good” debt is used to invest prudently. Contrast with the previous key word when we talked about credit cards earlier: “spend”

We are not talking about a luxury vacation or getting yourself a Lambo. We are talking about something that will help you get more greens in your bag in the future. Or at least a more solid situation.

So what are some examples of potentially good debt?

Mortgages: This is the classic example. Buying property can be a smart play. Real estate often appreciates in value, and owning a home can be more cost-effective than renting in the long run. Plus, it's an asset that can provide stability and potential rental income.
Education Loans: Investing in your brain is always a good move. Degrees or specialized training can boost your earning potential significantly. Just make sure you're choosing fields with solid career prospects!
Business Loans: Got a killer business idea? A loan can give you the launchpad you need. If your business plan is solid, this debt could be the stepping stone to financial independence. Be careful on how much you borrow and what guarantees you give. Business is never a certainty and make sure that whatever happens you can live to fight another day.
Low-Interest Loans for High-Return Investments: This is advanced level, but borrowing money at a low interest to invest in high-return opportunities can be smart. Think stocks, bonds, or other investments, but only if you know the game. The use of leverage is generally left to the experts and requires collateral. And of course it is far riskier than an investment without debt!

The key with good debt is that it should help you grow your net worth or generate income over time. Plant a seed and nurture it into a money tree. Just be sure you've done your homework and understand the risks involved.

🏦 CONSOLIDATING DEBTS

Now, what if you have read this article too late, and you already sunk yourself into bad debt?

Well, one option that a lot of people consider is to consolidate your debts.

This means just as simply to put all your debts into a (hopefully) low-interest loan. This will allow you to have a better record on how much you owe, while also owing money to just one entity rather than many.

Pay off everything as quickly as you can. The more time it takes you, the more interest it'll accrue and the more it will cost you.

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

Managing debt intelligently is a Chad skill you cannot forgo. Especially if you are lucky enough to have access to credit on good terms.

However, how you use that money and under what terms you borrow it will make all the difference between success and failure.

Even if you can't (yet) afford all the luxuries you desire, nothing will beat the feeling of laying your head to rest without the stress of debts and loans breathing down your neck.

Don’t use debt to flash cash that is not actually yours but the banks’.

They will always want it back and more.

NEWS: 🖥️ MICROSOFT TOPPLES APPLE

Ladies and Gents, it looks like there is new Sheriff in town as Microsoft briefly surpassed Apple as the most valuable company in the World.

Apple kicked off 2024 with bad news: Barclays downgraded the company, dubbing iPhone 15 sales as "lackluster". And they expect the upcoming iPhone 16 will carry on the same way.

On the other front: Microsoft. The company is closely associated with OpenAI and it is positioning itself as a leader in the ever-expanding artificial intelligence industry.

Both are great companies. But it is hard to see how Apple will continue to participate as a major player in a world obsessed with AI. Their hardware is popular awesome. But is it enough to keep it as the most valuable company on Earth?

It seems that companies like Microsoft and NVidia are benefitting a lot more from the AI boom than the last few years’ tech winners like Apple and Google.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🇸🇻 NAYIB BUKELE

Even looks like the Gigachad

Sometimes you have to take the bull by the horns.

Nayib Bukele rose to power vouching to: side his country to western values, end decades of malnutrition, and, most importantly, take a stand against the violent crime gangs that ran El Salvador.

An boy did he succeed.

Bukele’s policies dropped the murder rate of his country by about 80%. Taking the nation from one of the most dangerous to one of the safest.

When have you ever in your life seen results like that? I’m sure not from your own country’s politicians.

Now, his methods have upset many NGOs and similar groups.

Those groups that are great at defending human rights when it does not involve the violent death of their own families at the hands of criminals.

How did Bukele do it? He issued a state of exception in March 2022, meaning constitutional rights were no longer guaranteed.

In short, he said that gloves were off. If gangs weren’t going to abide to any rule, then neither would he.

To date, Bukele's government has imprisoned over 74.000 people suspected to be gang members.

Instead of having a costly trial, risk of them resorting to legal loopholes or just go on the lam, gang members were thrown straight into jail cells.

What do Salvadorans think? Well, honest Salvadorans rejoiced with now safer places and newfound sense of security.

Bukele is the living example on how you have to be ready to meet your enemies in a playing field where you can actually win.

While not everyone approves of his methods, few can argue with the results.

Are you playing a game you can actually win in? Or are you just there to pass the time and be forgotten?

Well done, Nayib!

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🤨 How to Find your Risk Tolerance

City Chad — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 20:53:29 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, the man whose investment portfolio is so diverse, it should have it’s own Netflix show. Let’s start diversifying our thinking!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🥴 Not the Best Start to the Year
Article:🤨 How to Find your Risk Tolerance
News: 🇺🇸 US Economy may dodge Recession in 2024
Chad Of The Week: 🕵️ Agent Juan Pujol

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🥴 NOT THE BEST START TO THE YEAR

Ouch. Our portfolio bled on all fronts this past week.

The Nasdaq index received a big punch in two of its biggest constituents: Apple and NVIDIA.

Barclays downgraded Apple after weak iPhone sales. And the Dutch government blocked ASML Holding of shipping to China. This hurt NVIDIA and other semiconductor related companies, such as AMD and OnSemi.

On the flip side, biggest gainers were oil giant Chevron, powered by rising oil prices. Disney and pharmaceutical companies also did well.

However, most stocks suffered losses. Some speculate this is because, although the FED is showing signs of wanting to cut rates, it has not been clear on neither when nor how it will happen.

The Crypto market was a bloodbath, but who’s to blame for it?

Well, we aren’t someone to point fingers, but crypto-services platform Matrixport seems to be the one to blame. They published a market forecast report saying that the SEC won’t be approving any Bitcoin ETFs anytime soon.

Others say it is because Jim Cramer was bullish on Bitcoin. The internet joke is that with anything he says you should do the opposite.

It is so painfully accurate!

Voilá! Source: Twitter

Not the best start to the year. But worry not, we’re just getting started.

ARTICLE: 🤨 HOW TO FIND YOUR RISK TOLERANCE

TLDR: Assessing your risk tolerance in financial planning goes beyond just your gut feel. Taking a more rational and intentional approach makes a lot more sense. Factors like age, commitments, and personal preferences all play a role. Be honest about stress tolerance and evaluate worst-case scenarios. Also weigh alternatives to determine a level that aligns with your comfort and goals. You’ll thank yourself later!

☣️ To Risk or Not to Risk
🤗 Your own Attitude
📈 More on Risk Premium
😎 The Chad Takeaway

☣️ To Risk or Not to Risk

No extreme is ever good.

But we sometimes act like investing is either “YOLO and bet the farm” or “do nothing and put money under the mattress”.

Taking extreme risks may sound like the stuff of Hollywood movies. The Chad who “risked it all” to start their business or go all-in on a stock.

But despite this romantic take, jumping heard first into a Hail Mary bet isn’t really the best way to build long-term wealth.

On the other hand, a completely conservative portfolio with zero tolerance to risk might not be the best option either.

So, what’s the correct answer?

Despite what anyone else might tell you, ultimately it is completely up to you to decide your level of risk. Some people may have a better taste and appetite for risk. Some may have a more cautious approach.

The catch is that the correct answer is different for every person. And that’s completely fine, as long as you find your own balance.

The art and science comes from understanding where risk comes from and making an informed and rational decision that aligns with your goals.

In addition to this “gut feel” there are a number of factors you have to take into consideration to make this informed decision.

This includes your age, your commitments and personal preferences.

🤗 Your own Attitude

Whether to indulge or not into risk depends on several factors that you should consider.

Age: The unstoppable track of time is one that you should definitely consider. What's your stage in life, family, and career. The obvious conclusion is that the younger you are, the more likely you are to be able to recover from a loss. But don’t take it to extremes! A generally accepted rule of thumb is the “100 minus your Age Rule”.

This means that you invest your age (say you are 30) as a % in lower risk assets (like bonds, i.e. 30%) and the difference from 100% (i.e. 70%) in riskier things like stocks.
Commitments: Of course, having people depending on you, such as children or parents, is a more than justifiable reason to have an aversion to risk. On the same way, financial commitments will undoubtedly hinder your wanting to make bolder choices.
Assets and Income: You should always know which percentage of your wealth are you willing to sacrifice and lose. If an investment going south will dramatically affect your lifestyle, then obviously best avoid it. Ask yourself, if X asset or income source disappeared tomorrow, what would it mean to me? Would I have to go back to a job I hate, for example?
Your reaction to risk: Ancestral Chad Lao Tzu said that the soldier that knows himself is worth double. Following on his words, take a deep introspection. Are you a naturally positive, or negative person? There's no wrong answer here, but you should consider it when knowing how to face risks. If you are going to panic sell when an investment is in the red, then find a way to manage yourself in this arena, make these investments a small part of your portfolio or simply delegate to a qualified financial advisor.

🤿 The Risk Premium

Finance 101 will teach you that the levels of risk are usually proportional to the level of reward.

This in turned leads us to the concept of the Risk Premium.

This is the difference between an investment with a certain degree of risk against a risk-free rate of return like a US Government Treasury bond.

This calculation of a risk premium should be at the upfront of your investments, since it will help you decide which risks you are willing to take.

Risk Premium could be seen as a 'hazard pay' for our investments.

You can see it as the compensation a worker gets for performing a dangerous activity.

In a high interest rate environment (like today) the higher risk-free rate means that other riskier investments have to yield more to compensate for that risk.

So bear in mind when interest rates are low (which may happen again in the near future) the compensation for risky investments will also be lower.

And buying into those investments at that time may cause trouble in the future when interest rates rise.

😎 The Chad Takeaway

Be honest with yourself. Realize how much stress can you sustain.

Understand how much risk you are willing to afford, specially on worst case scenarios.

Always ponder, what are the alternatives to taking a risk and will this change my life unncessarily?

Don't forget: Only you will fully know what grade of risk you are happy with. But use all the tools of your disposal to learn where you land in this respect.

Play to win, win to play

NEWS: 🇺🇸 US ECONOMY MAY DODGE RECESSION IN 2024

2023 was seen by several analysts as the year where the United States would finally be hit by a brutal recession.

However, it did not happen.

Experts and specialists still say that the worst is yet to come in early 2024. And to be honest there’s a lot of brown matter that’s about to hit the fan.

Economic activity is still operating below a sustainable level, with government spending reaching record levels.

Also, Mass layoffs are still lingering. As 2023 saw almost 33% of American companies reduce their workforce and 22% of companies expect to be forced to cut jobs in 2024.

In fact, 60% of Americans think that the economy is already in a recession.

But behold, fellow Chads. There might be a light at the end of the tunnel.

The FED managed to stall what many consider to be an unstoppable inflation in 2023, with a stern determination to cut their rates at least twice next year.

Let’s keep our fingers crossed and hope the worst outcomes don’t materialize.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🕵️ AGENT JUAN PUJOL

The man could sell ice to inuits.

Picture this: It is World War II. Yeah, Axis vs The Allies.

How the hell does a man manage to earn himself both the Iron Cross, Nazi Germany’s highest honor, while also being made a Most Excellent of the British Empire?

Enter Juan Pujol.

Experiencing the atrocities of the Spanish Civil War, Pujol, having no experience in espionage and no James Bond movies to use as reference, had the undeterred wish to become a spy.

So he contacted the British Embassy in Madrid, offering his services as a spy.

And yeah, of course he was rejected.

Brits said no. But Pujol was going to be a spy whether they liked it or not.

He fabricated a false identity as a pro-Nazi Spanish Government official, and got the balls to play his farce in the face of the Gestapo.

And they bought into it.

Pujol quickly became a German informant. The German government granted him a monthly allowance and ordered him to relocate to London.

Of course he had no intent on doing that.

Instead, he moved to Portugal, a key neutral ally of Great Britain, and started to provide Nazis with blatantly false information.

The Germans thought he had successfully built an effective spy network (27 informants strong) gathering information for him.

Not a single one of them existed. Pujol was just sitting comfy in Lisbon just creating fake agent after fake agent. And the Germans were funding all of them.

Gestapo officers spent countless resources chasing down made-up convoys, chasing after imaginary double agents, based on the information Pujol was providing them.

He just made them believe they were always a little too late.

Eventually, the British Secret Service (MI6) contacted him.

Pujol played a key role on Operation Fortitude, making Nazis believe that Allied troops were going to attack on Pas-de-Calais, rather than on the beaches of Normandy.

The Normandy landings ended up being the pivotal point in the liberation of France.

What can we learn from Pujol’s adventures?

Sometimes you gotta create your own chances. You can’t expect other to always think you are just the right person for the job.

Savvy people will seize opportunities. Chads will make their own.

Not only that, but Pujol didn’t let rejection dictate his decisions. And once he was rolling, he had the courage and determination to keep up his blatant farce. Conviction in what you are doing is the name of the game.

You don’t need knowledge, approval, or hefty resources to allow yourself to dream and win.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🧈 Gold is Money... everything else is Credit!

City Chad — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 21:39:08 +0000

Yes, once again this is the CityChad, that internal voice in your head keeping you sane in a world ruled by clowns. Let's start grinding!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🎅 Xmas Rally & Solana Pump
Article: 🧈 Gold is Money... everything else is Credit!
News: 🛢️ Houthi rebels might cause oil prices to uptrend
Chad Of The Week: ⚔️ Alexander the Great

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🎅 XMAS RALLY & SOLANA PUMP

Xmas came early for investors… Last week all asset classes climbed up.

Why was that?

Well, the FED seems to not only be unwilling to raise rates, but could actually end up lowering them.

Crypto had another whopper of a week. Bitcoin and Ethereum (part of the Chad index) kept printing gains almost daily.

But the story of the week has to be Solana. The Ethereum competitor has soared almost 900% in the last 12 months.

It even passed BNB (Binance’s token) to become the 4th largest cryptocurrency. And it is still far from its $260 All Time High.

There are a bunch of reasons behind this. The growth in network users being a huge one.

This was not in my bingo card for 2023 to be honest. Especially after the SBF debacle and the fact he owned so much of this token.

This altcoin was once mockingly referred to as “Soylana” (i.e. the Soy Boy favorite).

Not any more…

If things keep going like this maybe it will have to be added to the “Chad Index”!

The #InverseCramer plays out again

ARTICLE: 🧈 GOLD IS MONEY... EVERYTHING ELSE IS CREDIT!

Shiny, shiny, shiny

TLDR: Investing in companies with solid fundamentals has been a proven way to grow your wealth in the long-term. Just look at Warren Buffet’s track record. All that sweet growth is great, but what about the downside? Safeguarding some of your wealth in stores of value can be a sound move. Even the best quality companies can be susceptible to black-swan events outside of their control. When markets are uncertain “safe haven” assets like gold usually go up in price while stocks and other financial instruments are prone to dwindle.

🧈 The Worth of Gold
👨‍🏫 The Historical Element
👍 When does Gold Thrive?
👎 When to Avoid it?
🤔 How to get Gold?
😎 The Chad Takeaway

🧈 The Worth of Gold

“Gold is money... Everything else is credit.”

Those are the wise words of John Pierpont Morgan during his famous 1912 declaration before the US Congress.

Trying to hide his rare middle name he went by his initials "J. P.".

Oh and he also happened to found one of the biggest financial institutions in the world: J.P. Morgan.

Fast forward to today and those words are as true then as they are now.

Fiercely guarded by emperors, kings, (and nowadays) bankers and investors. It’s the precious metal with the unique quality of never decaying or corroding.

So what has made so many men throughout history dive into uncharted waters, invade enemy lands, or even raid cursed temples like Indiana Jones to get it?

Let’s dive right in.

👨‍🏫 The Historical Element

Gold has been accepted as a method of payment and a store of value since people started using money.

Almost every civilization on the planet has traded using gold coins.

Heck, even every fantasy RPG has its "Gold Dragons" or "Golden Crowns".

Gold has definitely resisted the test of time. And you can argue it has value because people have always believed it has value.

Sounds like circular logic, right? But that’s how we humas operate.

But that is not the whole story. Gold is is also considered valuable because of its beauty, physical properties and scarcity.

It has been interlinked to money ever since money was a thing…

And even until 1971 the US Dollar was pegged to the price of Gold! It was set at 35 USD per ounce.

But the turmoil of the US economy in the ‘70s forced President Richard Nixon to axe the pegging.

And once again the precious metal became free to rise in price against the now “fiat” currency.

Some consider this to be a tragedy for various reasons. But we digress so we will cover that another time.

👍 When does Gold Thrive?

Looking at historical charts, gold prices start to spread their wings when unexpected events happen. Like catastrophes or wars.

These conflicts generate uncertainty and lure investors and Chads into securing their positions.

Gold “guarantees” a tangible valuable asset in the face of not-so-clear circumstances for other financial instruments.

This increase in demand forces Gold’s value up: the mining of gold is limited per year and cannot easily satisfy a surge of new buyers.

👎 When to Avoid it?

Gold prices tend to be quiet or even decrease during prosperous times.

Favorable times bring certainty. This encourages investors to drop safer assets like gold and venture into riskier ventures.

And as you can expect, investing in gold for profit requires a good understanding of macroeconomic events and even international politics.

If you can foresee a military conflict or a major crisis, shifting some of your portfolio to gold might be an excellent choice.

Gold may very well move in opposition or independently of your other assets and investments.

Buying it for stability might help you cover your losses in the face of unexpected conflicts.

🤔 How to get Gold?

There are two main options to access gold.

The first one is simply to contact a gold-broker and just physically possess it. Your bank may even offer that option.

Gold can be sold in ingots, tablets or coins. You’re more likely to buy them in the latter form unless you are a Giga Chad.

The downside to this is that you may find it harder to sell it back at the same price you bought it. Also you may lose the damn thing!

The second option can offer you a better way of liquidating your position fast if you need to.

This is to buy a gold-backed security like an ETF. This is what we have put on the Chad Index.

These are basically trading like stocks in the stock market. But instead of representing shares in a company they are shares in a pool of physical gold.

The downside to this is that you are relying on a counterparty to run the ETF. It is normally safe but the risk is never 0.

Finally you can also access indirectly the price movement of gold by allocating some of your investment portfolio to gold-mining companies.

As a rule of thumb, when gold prices rise so do the profits of gold-mining companies. But this correlation is not perfect.

😎 The Chad Takeaway

Gold may seem like a poor investment as it may not provide you with the growth benefits a stock might accrue over the long term.

However allocating some of your portfolio to this commodity can be an excellent hedge against macro risk and inflation.

Remember that the price of Gold can often move inversely to your other assets. This can be a good thing when the thing hits the fan.

And who doesn’t like a bit of bling around them anyway?

Do not try this at home

NEWS: 🛢️ HOUTHI REBELS MIGHT CAUSE OIL PRICES TO UPTREND

BP (British Petroleum) has taken the same action as other freight companies such as Maersk, MSC and Hapag-Lloyd:

Stopping their shipments through the utmost important Red Sea.

The Red Sea has been a massive chokepoint of international trade, with over 10% of international trade crossing the Suez Canal.

However, its waters have now been contested and undermined by Houthi rebellious groups in Yemen.

Houthis have increased their influence in the area since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

They have been using anti-ship missiles and drones to harass any potential trade that could land in Israeli ports, specifically barricading the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

It would be expected that commodities such as oil will continue to rise in price should supply continue to be disrupted.

Companies will be forced to undergo almost 10 extra days of navigation, bordering around Africa. Probably stopping by in the Cape of Good Hope.

Definitely an event to keep an eye on, since even though Houthis won't be able to block the Red Sea, the attacks have been serious enough to browbeat shipping giants.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: ⚔️ ALEXANDER THE GREAT

Let’s be real. The man is called “the Great”.

Perhaps the Chad of all Chads? This week we pay homage to the one and only Alexander the Great.

Not many people in history have “The Great” attached to their names. And this was not just some random historical whim. The title was well deserved to say the least as you should know.

Alexander was born in 336 BC and his short ruling of 13 years was enough to build one of the biggest empires in the world.

And it would be impossible to detail in such a brief space all the things that made him Great. But we shall instead talk about one of the lessons all aspiring Chads can take from him. Let’s go.

Young Alexander didn’t have an easy going.

His father Philip was assassinated during a turbulent period of time where Greek city-states were in constant fighting.

Now, one of the challenges he faced was how he dealt with the treacherous Thebans.

The Thebans, long vassals of the Macedonian Kingdom, were ready to conspire when they wrongly thought that Alexander was killed in battle.

They proceeded to not only lynch and murder Macedonian traders and officers, but quickly rallied behind Persian funds to declare themselves independent from Alexander.

Of course, Alexander was “the Great”, not “the Oh well…”

He marched his army across over 500 kilometers in less than ten days to show himself to the deceitful Thebans.

Unlike other famous battles, like Issus or Gaugamela, Alexander almost doubled the defending Theban army, and swiftly executed 6000 Theban soldiers, before selling the remaining 30.000 citizens to slavery.

The city of Thebes was obliterated and erased from the face of the earth.

Noy you may say, this was all a bit harsh. And how can this apply to me in 2023?

Well, Alexander sent a powerful and resonating message. He was the head honcho of the Greek peninsula, and whoever thought otherwise would end up facing the consequences.

Creating a reputation for yourself (good or bad) can really have impactful long term consequences for you (also good or bad).

Sending a strong message of your character should be an intentional act in all that you do. Make sure it is the message you want others to hear.

People are always listening to your actions, not just your words. Whether you want to or not. Give them something Great to talk about!

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

💥 How To Identify A Bubble

City Chad — Thu, 16 Nov 2023 20:29:01 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your financial weatherman forecasting a strong chance of success in your ventures. Let’s start sunny-side up!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🌮 Me Gusta!
Article: 💥How To Identify A Bubble
News: 🐂 Bitcoin, Is The Next Bull Run Coming?
Chadette Of The Week: 🛡️ Suella Braverman

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: ME GUSTA!

Ahoy dear Chadettes and Chads!

We had another saucily good week in the markets in the past week. Stocks kept steamrolling ahead as did crypto and pretty much all asset classes.

As we discussed last week investors are now counting on the FED to not be raising rates soon. And some new data this week seems to be helping this case.

No one wants a huge recession. But a cooling off in the economy and lower inflation can provide a great space for risk assets (like stocks and bonds) to continue heading higher.

Crypto kept climbing. Is the next Bitcoin bull run coming? Read the News section below to find out more!

everyone this week

ARTICLE: 💥HOW TO IDENTIFY A BUBBLE

TLDR: Investing can be tricky, especially when there's a risk of running into financial bubbles. These are dangerous areas where you can either make a lot of money or lose it. Most likely the latter. Knowing how to spot these bubbles is like having armor against making bad decisions. Chad give you the down-lo on how to spot one without breaking much sweat

💭 What is a Financial Bubble?
🚀 Hype around new tech
📊 The “CAPE” Ratio
📉 Weak fundamentals
🧐 The Takeaway

Introduction

“Am I in a bubble?”

The question careful investors that just made a load of paper profits are asking themselves every night.

The truth is that financial bubbles can lead you to be filthy rich (if you sell at the right time) or leave you with empty pockets (the most likely outcome).

By identifying them, we can avoid falling into the cliff with everyone else like a lemming.

💭 What is a Financial Bubble?

A financial bubble occurs when the prices of an asset exceed their intrinsic value.

By a lot.

By intrinsic value we mean “what something is actually worth”.

That rise in price is not driven by fundamentals but more often by speculative trading.

Once the enthusiasm fuel burns out... the bubble explodes and prices decline at light speed.

Leaving people broke and a ton of sob stories to watch. Maybe even a movie gets made about it.

Think of the 2008 housing market bubble.

Bubbles can pass under our radar and fool us. Like that friend that said would pay you back. Yeah right.

Although in retrospect it all looks so stupidly obvious. But they often are backed up by media hype and some kind of herd behavior.

And realistically, few are immune to propaganda.

But worry not! Chad is here to help you identify them more easily.

So here are some tips that could show we are in a market bubble.

🚀 Extreme Hype around New Tech

This indicator is the most evident.

But I understand why this happens. Some ideas and the companies behind them can be very promising.

That’s why investors rush to capitalize on whatever the new tech (potential) snake oil is.

This large movement is followed by FOMO, which inflates the bubble even more.

The best example I can think of is the Dot-Com bubble of the early 2000s.

Basically, the internet was super hyped upon, and people started to invest in anything that had “.com” in their name.

We don’t have to go so far to the past to see other bubbles.

It happened with crypto in 2017-2018.

Although Bitcoin recovered, most other “coins” didn’t.

Now AI and Biotech hypes are everyday bread.

They can even have good fundamentals but still be way overpriced. Meaning that it is unlikely that investors will ever make their money back even if the company does OK.

Be skeptical, be wise and don’t take impulsive decisions.

Remember that saying that goes “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.”

A good rule of thumb I use is what I call the “layman test”.

If you hear someone you know has no interest in any type of investing tells you “they just bought X and it’s gonna make them rich quick” you need to sell immediately.

📊 The “CAPE” Ratio

It stands for Cyclically Adjusted Price-to-Earnings Ratio.

Aka the PE10 Ratio.

This is how it works:

1. You take the earnings from the past 10 years.

2. Adjust it for inflation.

3. Obtain the current market price of the stock or index.

4. Divide the current market price by the average inflation-adjusted earnings to calculate the CAPE ratio.

5. Compare the calculated CAPE ratio with historical averages to assess whether the market is currently overvalued or undervalued.

Quite straightforward.

A CAPE above historical averages can indicate that the market is overpriced.

While a ratio below historical average can suggest undervaluation.

The CAPE ratio is a great starting point, but keep in mind that it’s not the full picture.

Economics is not a science like physics; well, maybe quantum physics due to randomness.

Things can change from one moment to another.

The CAPE ratio uses historical data and remember that “past results are not indicative future performance.”

Remember that as a holy mantra: these strategies work until they don’t.

📉 Weak Fundamentals

This is something quite obvious, but if it were so evident, people wouldn’t fall for it.

Some things just make no sense.

Even if something is overhyped, it still can have strong fundamentals, or be a good investment.

But some things just don’t add up, and their prices are purely driven by FOMO or hype.

A great example is the GameStop case that we talked about previously.

It increased some people’s wealth and led to huge losses for others.

But GameStop has nothing intrinsic that made them a good investment.

Its rise in price was driven by a communal sense of justice and, of course, greed.

🧐 The Takeaway

Investing can be tricky, and financial bubbles are a real risk.

Now it should be easier for you to spot them.

It is like having armor against making bad decisions.

Keep an eye out for signs like hype around new tech, use indicators like the CAPE ratio, and watch out for weak fundamentals.

Being wise and skeptical can help you avoid potential pitfalls.

NEWS: 🐂 BITCOIN: IS THE NEXT BULL RUN HERE?

They say that no evil lasts a thousand years.

And this seems to be the case with Bitcoin! It seems BTC is shaking off that smelly bear market funk.

I remember as if it were yesterday the ATH of 69k (nice). I also remember the cold crypto winter that has followed.

Now it seems the sun is rising again with this recent rally. Personally, I'm bullish. And the market is too.

Or at least that's what the fear and greed index indicates.

Another indicator is that the next Bitcoin halving is relatively close. This is historically a time where buying Bitcoin has been a good idea.

It will happen in April 2024.

And the increasing likelihood of Bitcoin ETF approval certainly adds to the sentiment.

But let's not celebrate too quickly. Bitcoin is at its highest price since about a year and a half.

I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of whales decided to withdraw their spoon from the plate suddenly.

Really, it only takes a small spark to enter a fear loop and have people start selling.

As we've said before, Crypto is a rollercoaster, with ups and downs. But like in all of them, excitement is never lacking.

CHADETTE OF THE WEEK: 🛡️ SUELLA BRAVERMAN

We are living in a convoluted world and tensions are growing every day.

In this context, having the wrong opinion can cost you a lot.

However, today we feature a woman that doesn’t fear to speak up her mind and condemn what she finds wrong and hypocritical within society.

Recently, British politician, Suella Braverman, publicly criticized what she thinks is a double standard concerning protest in the UK.

She publicly condemned a public pro-Palestine protest, denouncing “sick, inflammatory and, in some cases, clearly criminal chants, placards and paraphernalia openly on display.”

Harsh words, I know, she doesn’t really pull any punches.

That discomforted many, leading Prime Minister Sunak to relieve her of her position.

Braverman proved willing to point out an uncomfortable truth.

A truth that resides in the minds of many citizens, but they dare not express for fear of censorship.

Suella earns the title of Chadette of the Week for staying true to her ideals and denouncing what she finds unjust, without fear of reprisals.

Sunak may consider himself brave, but Suella is braver, man! Sorry for that terrible pun.

Let's hope things in the UK normalize soon. Good luck, Suella!

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

💡 Decisions vs Attempts

City Chad — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 17:23:22 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your lifestyle genie, here to grant your wishes for a better life. Let’s start rubbing the lamp!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: ⬆️ Pamp it
Article: 💡 Decisions vs. Attempts
News: 💸 Tipping is out of Control
Beta of the Week: 🏦 Sam Bankman-Fried

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: ⬆️ PAMP IT

The market rally continued from last week. How fun, right?

After a brutal end of summer and early autumn things are starting to settle upwards.

It feels that investors are getting warmer to the idea that we are turning a corner. Yes, the corner in the street of the FED tightening cycle.

Now, even the most recently hated asset classes like bonds are starting to come back in fashion.

Why? Bonds “compete” with interest rates for investors’ money.

When interest rates rise, the competition gets tougher and bonds lose value. When rates are expected to fall, bonds become more attractive.

There you go. Your first bond finance class. You’re welcome.

Anyway, despite all the good news, nothing is certain in this world. And we may yet be surprised with what is to come from Mr Powell.

In the meantime, enjoy the ride…

ARTICLE: 💡 DECISIONS VS. ATTEMPTS

Source: YouTube

TLDR: We talk about the difference between deciding and trying. You should be absolutely crystal clear what on your to do list is a decision or an attempt. Things under our control are decisions. Things that involve people and circumstances around us are attempts. Learn how to manage both in the most effective way.

📰 Introduction
🤔 Decision vs. Attempt: What's the Score?
🎯 Locus of Control: The VIP Pass
🔎 Discerning Between Decisions and Attempts: Commit to the Control
🔑 The Key Takeaway

Hola Chads and Chadettes.

Buckle up, we're diving deeper into the mind gym, where we buff up our decision-making muscles.

Remember when we talked about decision fatigue? That brain-drain we get from picking one-too-many things.

Well, today we're gonna slice and dice the difference between making boss moves (decisions) and taking shots (attempts).

🤔 Decision vs. Attempt: What's the Score?

Let's break it down, shall we?

Decisions are your jam. They’re about calling the shots on things you can boss around.

We're talking about the plans you craft, the actions you take, the power moves you know will leave a mark.

Then you've got attempts — those hail marys you throw, hoping they'll catch because they're mingling with stuff like chance, other people’s moods, or just the universe doing its thing.

🎯 Locus of Control: The VIP Pass

First of all, what is the locus of control?

According to Psychology Today, “locus of control refers to the degree to which an individual feels a sense of agency in regard to his or her life.”

In a sense your locus of control is like your VIP pass to the party of life.

If it's internal, you're the DJ, mixing the beats. If it's external, you're more like the party-goer, vibing to the playlist life throws on.

Spoiler alert: being the DJ is where it's at.

Internal locus folks believe they can shape their own banger of a life track.

This isn’t about whispering to the cosmos. It's about taking the wheel and driving down Success Boulevard.

This is a spectrum. Nobody is 100% one or the other. So if you have to choose to be one way, choose to be internally focused.

Why? Research has generally suggested that those with a more internal locus of control are more successful, healthier, and happier than those with a more external locus.

🔎 Discerning Between Decisions and Attempts: Commit to the Control

Alright, let's really drill down here and combine these concepts.

Seeing things through the "in-my-control" or "not-in-my-control" lens is like separating your protein from your carbs.

OK let’s say you’ve now done this.

Great, what’s next?

Well, when you spot something you can control, you've got to lock it in as a decision.

This isn't just about making a choice; it's about committing to it, like committing to leg day — no skipping out.

On the flip side, for the stuff that's outta your hands, give it your best and call it an attempt.

You're giving it your best without expecting to totally own the game. It's like throwing a three-pointer; you've practiced the shot, but there's always a chance it'll rim out.

And that's cool because not everything’s about sinking baskets. Sometimes it's about playing the game.

Now the promised land lies where you start acting and tilting towards making more decisions rather than attempts.

When you focus on what is in your locus of control.

You treat those decisions with the respect they deserve.

If you say you wake up at 7am, then that’s a decision. It’s locked in. Now, if you don’t do it, you’re telling yourself you can’t be trusted.

No bueno.

If you can't wake up on time because you’re too tired, then ask yourself, what decisions did you make to not be able to do what you wanted to do?

The idea is that you train yourself to see the path to where you want to be and where you want to go as a function of your decisions, not your circumstances.

Escaping the victim mentality and empowering yourself all in one fell swoop.

Boom!

🔑 The Key Takeaway

Alright here's the game plan: master the art of spotting the decisions in your to-do list and tackle 'em like they're the last set in your workout — with everything you've got.

As for attempts? Give them a shot, but don't let 'em steal your mojo if they don't pan out.

Remember, a Chad knows when to flex those decision-making muscles and when to roll with the punches.

Now go out there and conquer that list like the champs you are.

And like Yoda said “do or do not, there is no try”

NEWS: 💸 TIPPING IS OUT OF CONTROL

When going out for a meal or drinks with colleagues, it's not a bad idea to leave a bit of money as a tip for good service.

As long as it's deserved.

Something in this courteous gesture took a wrong turn and became an obligation, at least in the United States.

Recent surveys show that half of Americans are fed up with tipping.

And more than half believe that places that didn't used to ask for tips are now doing so excessively.

You might say, "But Chad, we have to tip; employees need it."

And I partially agree with you.

Leaving a tip is indeed a good way to express gratitude for good service.

But, newsflash, when a tip is required, it is not a tip: it’s part of the price.

Why are we BS-ing ourselves and creating awkward situations?

This just creates a certain animosity between the customer and the employee.

It turns a pleasant experience into a guilt trip.

Let's hope that tipping becomes a gesture of gratitude again and not an obligation.

Meanwhile, here at City Chad, we don't force you to leave a tip.

We just ask you to share this newsletter with your friends 😉

BETA OF THE WEEK: 🏦 SAM BANKMAN-FRIED

They say the bigger they are, the harder they fall. And it seems to be nothing but the truth.

The perfect example is Sam Bankman-Fried. SBF for friends. Although you probably already know him, he was the CEO of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange.

He was portrayed as a different millionaire, an altruist, a vegan who doesn't wear fancy clothes and drives a Toyota Corolla.

He was also described by Fortune magazine as the next Warren Buffet.

Everything seemed fine until the news broke of massive issues in his organization. To cut the story short, the matter reeked of fraud and misappropriation of funds.

Recently, SBF was found guilty of all the charges against him.

These charges included using, without consent, customers' funds from the FTX cryptocurrency exchange platform to finance risky investments for the Alameda Research fund, as well as to buy properties in the Bahamas.

The sentence sums up to 110 years in prison.

What's the moral of the story?

Well, we can all learn something from here.

Obviously, gambling with money that isn't yours is generally a bad idea, especially if you use it to fund your personal gain.

But most importantly, be wary of sacred cows.

SBF was touted as the best thing since sliced bread. A fair degree of skepticism from users and investors would have served them well. Ouchie.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🔍 Big Ticket Niches

City Chad — Fri, 03 Nov 2023 16:03:19 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your wealth whisperer, unlocking the secrets to abundance in the language of money. Let’s get the show rollin’!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🦍 Come Back
Article: 🔍 Big Ticket Niches
News: 👩‍🎓 Gen Z and Work
Chad Of The Week: 🥶 Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🦍 COME BACK

We finally saw green across the board. It feels weird typing this as it has been so long.

Stocks have made a comeback as we entered earnings season. The time every three months when companies give us their report cards.

How have public companies they so far? It’s been a mixed bag.

But was has been driving the uptick has been a dose of optimism at the start of this week. After the latest FED meeting, investors are now expecting an 89% chance that rates won’t be hiked any more this year.

Less rates hikes = less pain for investors.

I think we’ve all had enough rate hikes for now.

The bull market 💀

Bitcoin continued its spectacular run in the last few days. I think the anticipation of the next bull run is creating the FOMO that is driving up prices.

Have crypto fundamentals changed? Not much.

Have people become less greedy? Never.

ARTICLE: 🔍 BIG TICKET NICHES

TLDR: Before you start doing anything, how do you know how to assess a good business opportunity? It's not spending hours on end doing surveys. It is identifying your skill set, creating the right product and approaching the right customers. Finding big ticket niches may hold the key to starting your entrepreneurial journey the right way.

Introduction
The Main Asset
The Right Product
The Right Client
Taking Action
The Takeaway

We all must start from somewhere in our entrepreneurship journey.

And starting a new business venture is exciting. But it’s not always rainbows and butterflies.

Its success will depend on more than passion and dedication.

And the first crucial step is finding the right business niche to work on.

This might be the most important choice for your business since everything you decide from now on will depend on what market you are in.

So, keep reading to make the foundation for your business the right way!

The Main Asset

Even before your business exists, there’s something that will make it unique.

That’s you.

So, when contemplating different niches, try asking yourself the following questions.

1. What do I like doing?

2. What can I do better than other people?

3. How can I combine my different abilities?

First, you have to like what you are doing.

If you are in just for the cash, you'll probably end up doing a job that doesn't stand out at all.

Then, consider what things you are good at.

Whatever it is you do, there's likely a way to leverage it to your advantage.

Next, there must be a way for you to combine your skills to stand out even further.

This will pigeonhole you into a niche where you can thrive in.

Shaan Puri, mentions the example of a bear on a unicycle in his podcast.

What's special about a bear? Not much, and the same goes for the unicycle.

But a bear on a unicycle is something you don't see every day.

Combine your talents to find a niche where you can be #1 at.

The Right Product

You have found something you can offer. That’s great.

Now you must see if people are willing to pay for it consistently and profitably.

Some things just sell better than others.

This is a very important point.

You may be very talented and good at offering something.

But if it won’t allow you to reach your goal of financial independence or living from it, then it is probably not worth pursuing.

Let me give you an example I have seen many times.

Offering baked goods or hand-made fashion items. Those are simple businesses that many people can realistically create products for.

But, the problem is that, even if the profit margins are great, the volumes are usually too low. The scalability is limited. And the competition is plentiful.

So if you are starting on your own, and can only make a limited number of sales, you want to be in a market that has a big ticket size.

Big ticket size means that every sale is for at least 3 digits (4 is better). $100 to $10,000 minimum.

Rather than trying to sell 100 cupcakes to make $100, sell 1 physical product or service for $400.

High volume (i.e. many sales) and low margin businesses are usually better suited for large companies (i.e. a supermarket).

If you want to succeed as an enterprise of 1 you have to make every sale move the needle for yourself.

The Right Customer

Now it goes without saying that someone needs to give you their money to make a sale.

And you want to make it as easy as possible for that to happen.

Not all customers are created equal.

This sounds obvious but you want to go into a niche that has customers who are already willing to open their wallets.

The easiest way to find them is by looking for customers who are already spending money on what you have to offer.

So let’s say you have identified a high ticket niche like enterprise software.

Basically businesses spend thousands or millions a year just to use software. They are pretty much forced to do it as you cannot run a business without it these days.

Now what angle can you take to benefit from that fact?

…You could create a simple tool or product that solves a very specific need for a business industry that you know well.

…You can become an expert at implementing a specific software solution that you already use.

…You can consult on a business customer's “tech stack” (i.e. software bundle) in an industry you have worked in.

Helping clients save money or achieve better results.

What these all have in common is that you are dealing with a client that is already in some way a high ticket customer of the solution you are offering.

That is where you want to go hunting.

You can apply this principle to other types of high ticket products and services.

For example, how much does a company pay to acquire a customer? Can you find them a customer from a particular niche and earn a high ticket referral fee?

Think companies that high ticket clients themselves. Lawyers, healthcare professionals, IT companies.

Recruitment is another great example. Can you part-time headhunt in a particular industry and earn a 25% commission on the candidates’ salary?

Low sales volume and high ticket sales makes your life easier if you can pull it off.

Now having said all this, does that mean you can’t make money from selling a cheap product to many people (clothing, home goods, etc.)?

You absolutely can.

But building the infrastructure to do so in a scalable and profitable way will likely make your life harder.

The Takeaway

Finding the right business niche and succeeding in it goes beyond passion and dedication.

The first step is looking at yourself, your strengths and weaknesses. Combine them into your genius zone.

Next you will need to explore the market, defining your best possible customers and offering something they simply can’t afford to say not to.

Aiming for the big ticket niches can give you a change to move your needle faster.

Whatever you do: take action. Nothing is gonna happen if you don’t.

NEWS: 👩‍🎓 GEN Z AND WORK

China and its youth are not in a great moment right now.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic many educated young people, Gen Z, aged 16 to 24, cannot find a job.

In fact, the unemployment rate for that demographic is 21%, a new record. And it could be as high as 46%! If the government was not fudging the numbers.

The West (particularly the US) seems to be having the opposite problem in some ways.

Unemployment is at record lows in America.

The recovery since COVID has been nothing short of spectacular in the land of the free.

Is this making people more entitled?

Well this reminds me of the viral TikTok video where a girl complains that her 9-to-5 job is overwhelming.

@brielleybelly123
im also getting sick leave me alone im emotional ok i feel 12 and im scared of not having time to live

The reaction to it was mixed. Some people criticized her for being an entitled cry-baby and not toughening up.

To be fair I agree that her working conditions don’t seem particularly harsh.

But on the other hand she does seem to have a point. Returning to the office is making people miserable. And commuting is the biggest time waste ever.

My take is that… I can’t really judge her. But everyone should strive to build the life they want to live.

Crying about it on TikTok is not really part of the solution. If you don’t like it, find something you like better. Like a remote job or start your own business.

And accept that nothing worth having comes easy.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🥶 SIR ERNEST HENRY SHACKLETON

When we look up to icons of greatness, we usually picture people who have achieved what seems like impossible success.

That’s not always the case though. Sometimes greatness is not achieved by success in the main objective but by endurance and determination.

Today we talk about Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, a name that has become synonymous with survival against all odds.

Shackleton was a natural born adventurer. His passion to explore the world led him to one of the last unexplored terrains in the world. Antarctica.

In there the weather is unpredictable. During his adventure, water started to freeze, and his ship became trapped in ice.

This left the crew stranded in one of the harshest environments on Earth.

Instead of succumbing to despair, he persevered, ensuring that every member of his crew made it home safely.

He knew that true greatness isn't about never making mistakes. It's about navigating through adversity and making the best of it.

He had to maintain morale, ration supplies, and make really hard decisions.

That was a situation in which, having the wrong mindset would lead inevitably not only to your death but also to that of your crew.

The captain of the expedition, Frank Worsley, tells the story in great detail within his book Endurance.

We can learn from this absolute Chad and apply it to our own journeys.

Endurance and resilience are critical to achieve greatness.

Not everything will go your way. But how you face it will determine the final outcome.

💖 SHARE THE LOVE

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

😩 Decision Fatigue

City Chad — Fri, 27 Oct 2023 13:30:00 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your lifestyle guru ready to show the path to moneyrvana. Let's start vibing!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 🚀 Crypto Pump
Article: 😩 Decision Fatigue
News: 💻 Digital Euro
Chad Of The Week: ⚽ David Beckham

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

THIS WEEK’S EDITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

It doesn't matter whether you're a growth, value or contrarian investor, you'll find value in reading The Average Joe, a 3x-weekly newsletter covering stock market trends, news and analysis.

Over 19k investors rely on them to discover trends like:

Cloud companies are taking over as the next FAANG stocks and here are the companies with the potential to drive returns…
Canadian tech companies are seeing explosive growth and here’s how you can diversify your portfolio beyond US stocks…
Biden’s infrastructure bill could electrify the commercial EV sector and this electric bus maker stands to benefit...

Subscribe to the free newsletter and become a better investor by reading their 5-minute, jargon-free stock market updates.

MARKETS: 🚀 CRYPTO PUMP

Good day, ladies and gents.

Stock markets continued to decline in the past week. No surprises there. The world is still an uncertain place. And we know, the global political climate is very heated.

But this decline came despite US GDP growing at its fastest pace in 2 years. How can risk assets (like stocks) continue to go down when the economy goes up? Well, that’s one of the paradoxes of investing.

Growth in the past is not the same as profits in the future. And the stock market normally reflects forward looking expectations. Known as a “leading” indicator.

With all the monetary tightening done by the FED, it is natural to expect something’s gonna give in the future.

But the news of the week has to be the massive jump in Bitcoin and crypto in general. Why did this happen, I hear you shout, you degen?

Basically there were more signs that the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock could be getting closer to the launch of a Bitcoin ETF. Although there was nothing really conclusive in this respect.

With the Bitcoin halving just around the corner, it seems that history may repeat itself again. Generally Bitcoin (and other altcoins) tend to see huge rallies in anticipation of halvings.

But who knows, Chad does not give financial advice… so do your own research.

And please, for the love of God, don’t gamble with your life savings!

ARTICLE: 😩 DECISION FATIGUE

Would you go this far?

TLDR: Making Decisions is killing your productivity and self-confidence. How? Your mental energy is limited. Useless decisions waste it. It’s a crime against your progress. What's worse? It can distract you from your real goals. Failure then breeds self-contempt and loss of confidence. Learn how to develop a winning framework for making the 1 decision that eliminates 100 decisions. And frees you to become a total Chad!

What Is Decision Fatigue?
How Does It Affect You?
What’s The Solution?
The Takeaway

What is Decision Fatigue?

Yeah we all know, the world spins faster every time and taking decisions is a daily necessity.

But this is where decision fatigue can rear its ugly head!

Decision fatigue is the deteriorating quality of decisions made by you after a long period of decision-making.

The worst thing, it has the potential to:

Drain your mental energy
Undermine your self-confidence
Guide you through a different path that diverts you from your goals

It’s a sly enemy appearing due to the requirements of the hectic modern world.

How does it affect us?

Simply put, decision fatigue decreases productivity and makes the path to your goals slower.

This is how it works.

We only have a limited amount of cognitive bandwidth. Right?.

So when you put all choices and decisions on the same level playing field, you increase the chance of making some bad ones.

Why? Because you didn’t take the time to focus on just the ones that deserved your thoughtful attention.

In other words… you’ll eventually replace smart and high-impact decisions with stupid low-impact ones.

Bad decisions then erode self-confidence by making you doubt your abilities and judgment.

To make things worse.. they distract you from your real goals.

Rather than focusing on what truly matters, you will find yourself among inconsequential choices that don’t move your personal needle.

That leaves your real ambitions unfulfilled and you dig deeper into fatigue.

It’s a vicious cycle but a very silent one and for most people it goes unnoticed.

But you are not most people. You read City Chad. So here’s the solution.

What’s the solution?

Because you are only able to take a limited number of decisions in a day you gotta make sure they are the most important ones.

Ironically, leaving decision fatigue requires you to make an active choice.

It requires you to be proactive and develop strategies.

Here are my favorites:

Prioritize and Plan

Before you even start on your “to-do” list you have to ask yourself. What game am I playing?

And I don’t mean “Uno”. I mean in life. What are your real life goals and ambitions?

The next obvious question is. How does my “to-do” list match-up with those goals? Are most of the items there driving me closer to my goals?

Listen, we all gotta do the laundry and give it all at our jobs.

But if less than 20% of the things that you do in a week are not driving you towards your goals then you:

Change your goals, or
Change your to-do list

Now you have that clear in your mind then you start building your “to-do” list.

I recommend doing this once a week on a Sunday. Your mind will be clearer there and you will have less distractions. You will then be able to plan like Napoleon.

Doing it weekly also makes you more intentional about your actions. It’s not a day to day mindless collection of things you had no say about.

If you don’t like that approach and prefer to plan daily, do it early in the morning or the night before. And never during the day. That means you’ll know exactly what you need to do, and when

Recognise that not all items in a “to-do” list are created equal.

Some are strategic life objectives. Others are chores. Group them or color code them depending on where they fall.

This has proved to be a game changer for me.

When you have identified what matters the most you can allocate your mental energy to these key areas and not leave it to some future day that may never come.

Eliminate, Delegate, Automate

You should first aim to eliminate. This one is the hardest but the most powerful.

The first question you should ask yourself: do I need to do this thing at all?

If the answer is no, press delete.

Those are there are things that really do not move the needle for you and are not in line with your life goals and values.

That includes hanging out with that person you know you shouldn’t.

The next step is to delegate.

Delegating is my favorite thing. It requires skill and time. But it is an investment in getting time and money back.

What should you delegate? This is a huge topic and we will cover it in more detail another time.

The general rule of thumb: anything that you would not be willing to do for someone else for the market rate of that service. It includes most chores, driving around, tedious admin.

Now, a lot of things you cannot delegate. But within that, there are things that don’t require your attention more than once.

And those things are best automated or systematized.

Making routines and habits will save you a lot of time. Once you get used to them they run on autopilot.

For example: organize your wardrobe once a week so you don’t have to think about the outfit every time. Small things like this makes a difference.

Did you know that Mark Zuckerberg basically wears the same outfit to avoid decision fatigue? Sounds crazy, but it’s true.

Maybe you don’t have to be that extreme, but you get the idea.

I am sure you have a morning routine. Write it down. Use your Notes app or Google Keep to create an actual checklist.

Sounds OCD and you may feel stupid but you are releasing your brain from the task of thinking about things.

Do that often. Your brain will thank you by clearing its cache, so to speak.

The magic word “No”

Not every choice demands your attention. In fact, many of them are trivial and you don’t even want to do them

So what’s the magic pill?

Don't hesitate to say “No” to some things. It's truly better to say no from the beginning than to commit and not follow through.

Learning to say “no” also empowers you. It reminds you that you are the dog wagging the tail of your life and not the other way around.

Don’t underestimate the value of ingraining that heuristic in your mind.

Remember, your actions need to be aligned to your goals if you want to reach them.

Saying “no” to things is part of the process because nobody is as aware of those goals as yourself.

It is your responsibility to communicate them to the world around you, and saying “no” is part of that task.

The Takeaway

Modern life is fast and agitated, putting our attention on the right things is essential to be productive and take care of your mental health.

Implementing a structured approach is the way to break free from decision fatigue.

By shedding the weight of unnecessary choices, you not only empower yourself but increase productivity and restore self-confidence.

Establishing limits is the way to become a true Chad, liberating yourself from decision fatigue in your personal and professional life.

And remember, it’s a “To-Do” list, not a “To-Try” list. Follow through in what you say you’re gonna do. You got this!

NEWS: 💻 DIGITAL EURO

The European Central Bank (ECB) is beginning an experimental phase for its digital currency beginning next Wednesday, November 1^st .

This has many people quite worried. And I would say, rightly so.

On the surface it sounds like there are a few advantages. The goal is to facilitate digital payments within the Eurozone.

The user experience may be similar to using an app or a card, so it won’t be something that we aren't already familiar with.

That being said, there are some things that are not as good.

Privacy is one of the main concerns. With cash, all transactions are anonymous, but digital payments can be tracked easily.

Another issue is centralization. This currency will be controlled by the ECB, and that comes with all the counterpoints.

For example, what if they suddenly decide to drain your wallet because they don’t like what you say or do?

For me it looks like crypto done wrong. What do you think?

CHAD OF THE WEEK: ⚽ DAVID BECKHAM

We often associate greatness with an unrealistic level of perfection.

The truth is that perfection does not exist.

Greatness is its own thing, and it has nothing to do with perfection. It comes with its own merits.

That’s why I wanted to talk about David Beckham today. The man that has been recently the subject of a very popular Netflix documentary.

He's not a flawless icon. David is not exceptionally charismatic nor an academic genius. He made mistakes like all of us.

So, what's the secret behind his success? I’d say it’s his unparalleled work ethic and energy.

He was quick to understand that everyone has their unique set of assets. He leveraged his soccer skills and good looks to carve out a legendary career and legacy.

Beckham's rise to Chad status is a reminder that hard work, leveraging your unique assets, and striving for greatness is how you get to an extraordinary life.

And most importantly, become Chad of the week!

Take a leaf out of his book and bend it like Beckham in your own pitch.

💖 SHARE THE LOVE

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🔮 Technical Astrology

City Chad — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 13:47:21 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your lifestyle sorcerer, ready to turn your financial situation into a magical experience. Let's start conjuring!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 😐 Uncertainty
Article: 🔮 Technical Astrology
News:📈 SEC's New Short Selling Rules
Chad Beta Of The Week: 💔 Will Smith

Enjoying the content? Follow Us: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn

MARKETS: 😐 UNCERTAINTY

After last week’s (and ongoing events) the tone in the World is somber.

Uncertainty is the flavor of the times. And this has also been reflected in the markets over the past week.

Stocks had modest losses as people are trying to figure out what is next with regards to inflation, interest rates and geopolitical risk.

As expected, the troubles in the Middle East brought up the price of oil.

There are now even calls for the inflation target in the US to be raised from the modest 2%. It seems the stubborn inflation is making investors lose patience.

What do you think?

I for one don’t like to see prices rising consistently. But for me the trouble goes back even further…

Do we really need supposedly independent Federal Banks determining the cost of money? We will leave that discussion for another day.

Almost forgot. We could not not mention the fake news that shook crypto this week. An intern at Cointelegraph decided to post some fake news on X about the approval of a Bitcoin ETF.

This made the price of BTC rally around 10% but then fall back once the scam was discovered.

Many people got liquidated and of course the conspiracy theories started. I will not bore you with them but many people were a little upset to say the least.

What the hell was CoinTelegraph doing by letting this happen?

Crypto Bros Once they Realize the Bitcoin ETF news was fake

ARTICLE: 🔮 TECHNICAL ASTROLOGY

TLDR: Does Technical Analysis (TA) work? A lot of people use it with varying success. But if making money was as easy as looking for shapes in a chart, everyone would do it. And if everyone did it, it wouldn’t work, as we will explain. Should you implement it as an investment strategy? Let’s find out.

What is Technical Analysis
Does TA Work?
Chart Patterns
Essentials Analysis
Self-fulfilling prophecy
Final Thoughts

What is Technical Analysis

The core idea behind this approach is pretty straightforward.

Technical analysis (TA) is a method that aims to forecast the future price movements of assets.

It mainly does so by examining historical price charts and trading volumes.

A price chart represents the movement of an asset, shaped by human choices.

This assumes that humans often follow predictable patterns when making decisions.

If we can discern these patterns we could foresee the asset's price.

So TA revolves around identifying trends on these charts.

DOES TA WORK?

Asking if TA works is asking if anyone can predict what humans will do.

You probably know the answer: not always.

Especially because you can get into what is known as a “Keynesian Beauty Contest”.

We start by investors using TA to act based on what they think other people will do. But then they know other investors are doing the same. So then they act based on what they think other investors think other investors will do.

Then those investors act on what they think other investors think that other investors will think will do.

And this silly situation can continue forever and yield little predictive power.

TA can also be exploited by some who are promoting courses or get-rich-quick schemes. Results can be manipulated through overly optimized backtesting.

This oversimplified chart interpretation is why some humorously liken technical analysis to astrology for business.

Yet... we know that at least a third of professional portfolio managers utilize it with varying success.

And the truth is that technical analysis encompasses various concepts under its umbrella.

The real question is: Which of these concepts could the average Joe apply to gain an edge in their investments, if any?

It’s hard to know. So here’s some pointers…

CHART PATTERNS

Do you like stars? Do you like looking for constellations? Or maybe you like randomly joining points to form figures? Well, chart pattern analysis may be for you.

Chart patterns analysis is the most popular form of technical analysis. And also the simplest.

I’m almost sure that you have seen them being mocked with memes on Reddit. And for good reason, since building a consistent investing strategy based on them is not easy.

Having said this, they can be useful.

According to LogicFX “chart patterns should primarily be used to time the entries into the markets and provide the best risk to reward ratio possible, after a fundamental bias.”

So they can be useful when complementing fundamental analysis.

ESSENTIALS ANALYSIS

By essentials I’m referring to elements that collectively form the foundation of technical analysis.

These elements are the following:

Candlesticks: A visual representation of the price data of an asset, showing the opening price, closing price, highest price, and lowest price in a period of time.

Support and Resistance: A support is a price level at which an asset tends to stop falling while a resistance is a price level at which an asset tends to stop rising.

Momentum: This refers to the speed and strength of price movement, usually indicated by the Relative Strength index (RSI) and the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD)

Indicators and Oscillators: Besides the RSI and MACD, there are other indicators that could show if an asset is overbought or oversold, like the Average True Range (ATR) and Moving Averages.

Volume: This refers to the number of trades in a period. A significant price move accompanied by a high volume can be seen as more reliable than a move with low volume, for example.

Surprisingly, there’s evidence that a strategy built analyzing the essentials may actually outperform a buy and hold strategy during some periods.

You can think of it as akin to counting cards in blackjack, where your chances of winning improve as specific scenarios unfold.

SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECIES

Going into what makes those strategies work.

Some people would argue that they work because people believe they do.

For example, let’s say that a group of unrelated people use the same indicators to see when to buy or sell.

If the indicator makes enough people to buy, the price will rise, while if the same indicator makes enough people to sell, it will go down.

Seems like a logical explanation, right?

However, if that were the case, the strategies would deliver stable returns.

That’s not the case. Those strategies can see long periods of underperformance, throwing the self-fulfilling prophecy hypothesis through the window.

FINAL THOUGHTS

In retrospect everything looks easy.

And back-testing is the easiest way to make yourself like a genius.

The hard part is looking forward, making an educated guess, and applying the right strategy at the right moment.

So, should you implement technical analysis in your investment journey?

It depends. I personally don’t use it much. And for the average long term, buy and hold investor it may not make much sense.

I would look to see if it is actually something I want to become an expert in and if the edge it may give me is worth the time. For me the answer at the moment is no.

But it is a fun topic to explore, like getting your palm read at a bar.

NEWS: 📈 SEC'S NEW SHORT SELLING RULES

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has introduced new rules, in an effort to enhance transparency in short selling.

Funnily enough, we were talking about GameStop last week. Which is one of the factors that drew attention to short selling.

Basically, the rise in GameStop’s stock prices led to huge losses for hedge funds that were shorting on it.

GameStop degens vs Hedge Fund guys

That snowballed until the Congress got involved, ending with the SEC compromising to enhance transparency in the market, especially concerning short selling.

These measures are supposed to promote competition, besides benefiting the general public and regulators.

Why do people hate on short-sellers, you may ask?

Well some people see it is a bit of a douche move to make money when a company is going down.

And short sellers can actually put pressure on things to get even worse as it is a market signal that the supposedly “smart guys” are not keen on a stock.

Company owners and founders hate it when there is a lot of short interest on the stock.

Even Elon Musk dissed Bill Gates when he found out he was shorting Tesla.

But playing devil’s advocate short selling can be a healthy thing for the market. Not every company can succeed and the role of the market is to reflect the real value and opinions of the participants.

Short selling is a part of it, whether we like it or not.

CHAD BETA OF THE WEEK: 💔 WILL SMITH

I used to enjoy The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air a lot growing up. An entertaining comedy with occasional feel-good messages and drama.

I never imagined that in the future, Will Smith's relationship with his wife Jada would bring 10X the drama as the show.

Let's go back to about a year ago, recapping the infamous slap Will delivered to Chris Rock due to a lighthearted joke about Jada's appearance.

The slap was the crowning moment of a broken man trying to prove a point through violence on a smaller man.

Not a Chad move at all. Not even a Beta move. Just cowardly.

Now, before the incident Jada publicly admitted to cheating on him with her son's friend.

And now, Jada has said that she and Will have been separated since 2016.

Are you telling me that Will destroyed his reputation even further by trying to defend his cheating EX-wife by slapping Rock?

That makes absolutely no sense.

So, despite Will being the victim of a pretty brazen narcissist, I have no choice but to give him the dishonorable title of Beta of the Week.

His situation seems really horrible. It seems that every opportunity Jada has to humiliate him, she seizes to the fullest.

But as the old saying goes, in life you get what you are willing to tolerate…

Every man and woman has to learn to know when enough is enough. Your self-respect cannot be above how much you like someone.

Come on man, you need a good pair of pants and to put an end to the emotional abuse you're enduring.

You're really the only one who can do something about it.

Let's hope that the next time we mention you, it's as the Chad of the Week instead of the Beta.

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DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

📈 Meme Stocks

City Chad — Thu, 12 Oct 2023 14:51:24 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your philosopher of wealth, ready to help you unlock the secrets of financial enlightenment. Let's start the Socratic dialogue!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 😌 Relief Rally
Article: 📈 Meme Stocks
News:🍔 Ozempic Affecting Food Sales
Chad Of The Week: 🧠 Thales Of Miletus

MARKETS: 😌 RELIEF RALLY

It has been a tragic few days in the World with the events happening in Israel and Palestine. We send our condolences to all the victims of unprovoked violence.

Geopolitical risk has certainly increased. No sh*t, Sherlock. However stocks and other asset classes have fared pretty well over the past week.

A relief rally was overdue from the pretty bad run since the end of summer. There are expectations that the FED will at least pause hikes as inflation subsides.

A company that didn’t do so well this week was luxury goods company LMVH. Yes, the maker of your favorite fancy brands dropped over 6%. It seems even the rich (or wanna-look rich) are also feeling the sting of economic uncertainty.

Let’s see what this turbulent year brings ahead!

ARTICLE: 📈 MEME STOCKS

TLDR: Meme stocks are captivating and unpredictable. Unique beasts in the stock market. Capable of delivering both triumphant victories and harrowing losses. These stocks defy conventional wisdom, driven by social media hype rather than fundamentals. They can inflate to astronomical values but are generally not a good investment. Keep reading to find out more!

Meme Stocks
The GameStop Case
The Risks
Gambling vs Investing
Final Thoughts

Meme Stocks

What is a meme stock?

According to Investopedia: “Meme stocks are shares of companies around which online communities have formed to promote and build narratives.”

What makes them so interesting is their unpredictability that leads to great success stories.

But more often than not, to tragedies.

They are those few stocks that suddenly blow up and their price goes through the roof and beyond.

How is a meme stock born? Well, I can assure you that is not because the company is doing necessarily well. In fact, it is often the opposite.

It’s mostly due to hype on social media.

You can view it as the stock market's equivalent of a funny viral video that a week later everyone realizes wasn't all that funny.

By the moment you hear about them it is already too late to invest in them.

The GameStop Case

Picture this: back in January 2021, GameStop was doing super bad, to the point of going bankrupt soon.

Many professional investors were betting against it by “shorting the stock”.

That strategy consists of 1) borrowing shares, 2) selling them immediately for a “high” price, and 3) buying them back later at a lower price to return them to the person you borrowed it from.

So you basically make money when the price goes down.

Suddenly, a bunch of folks from r/wallstreetbets decided to team up to buy GameStop stock like there was no tomorrow. There was an emotional element to this. It was the nerd gamers against the finance jocks.

Guess what, the nerds won (at least for a while). The stock price skyrocketed. At its peak, it was worth over $500 per share. This started from around $17 at the beginning of the month.

Some stock trading apps stopped people from buying GameStop shares citing various ehem reasons. Some saw this as an attempt to protect the big guys from the little man.

This move ticked off a ton of people. Lawsuits flew and there were even congressional hearings about the whole ordeal.

Anyway, it became popular and hit its highest value ever.

However, it was only a matter of time before the stock returned to a reasonable price.

And that, my friends, is the problem… here’s why.

The Risks

Well the big obvious risk is losing your hard-earned cash.

Unless you buy the stock quite early, that’s what is probably going to happen. And knowing when “early” is, is pretty much impossible.

Meme stocks lack strong fundamentals for their price jumps, like growing profits.

It’s all hype, and when the hype cools down, prices crash in the blink of an eye.

In other words, they are riding the rollercoaster of public opinion.

They can go from “to-the-moon” to panic selling real quick.

Some may bounce back to normal; others could stay in that wild ride for a while before they settle.

Investors who bought meme stocks when the hype was high usually end up with stocks worth less than what they paid.

Very simple.

Gambling vs Investing

Let’s get things clear, investing and gambling are two different things.

Gambling is all about luck.

You pick up the right card, roll the dice, and that’s it.

No matter what, you cannot control the dice, nor have a hint of how it will land.

Investing has some luck factor but the biggest difference with a casino is that the odds are stacked up in your favor over the long term.

Source: X.com

…as long as you have a sensible approach to investing that includes a well-diversified portfolio of companies with real fundamental value.

Meme stocks align a lot more with gambling rather than investing. So it is not really a viable strategy to grow your wealth over the long run.

Best to avoid it.

Final Thoughts

Although meme stocks can be fun they are not real investments in the traditional sense.

They are more like financial slot machines.

If you want to gamble your money, better go to a casino.

At least they give free drinks!

NEWS: 🍔 OZEMPIC AFFECTING FOOD SALES

We featured Ozempic’s Power Move a couple weeks ago. And the company keeps steamrolling ahead. This time causing some collateral damage to other businesses.

Surprisingly, around 15% of Americans already use it.

That’s quite a number and some of its effects have spilled over into other areas of the market.

Specifically, Walmart has noticed a reduction in food sales.

It is good to see people being able to control their appetites and overall health. But I think it seems quite dystopian.

Who would have thought that all we needed for these modern sociological diseases was to swap one industry for another?

Don’t get me wrong, many people have no other option and the drug works wonders. But it would be a shame for to become a default for people without serious medical conditions.

And it isn’t cheap either. Without insurance it costs around $1000. So it isn’t a long-term solution for most...

I just think that taking these kinds of shortcuts, although useful, can carry unexpected consequences in the long run. It basically can become a way of outsourcing your discipline. And that ain’t no Chad move.

What do you think? Reply to let me know.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🧠 THALES OF MILETUS

This week, the title of Chad of the Week goes to Thales of Miletus.

No, we haven’t lost our marbles.

Even though this gentleman died more than a couple millennia ago, a Chad is always a Chad.

And there is something to learn from him… This time in the field of money making.

He was an ancient Greek philosopher born in the city of Miletus, which is now in Turkey.

He made contributions to many fields, especially mathematics.

But the story I bring you today is about finance.

Specifically, the first recorded options trade in history.

The story goes like this:

Thales wasn't a wealthy person, but he was quite knowledgeable, and his fellow citizens criticized him for having useless knowledge.

To prove them wrong, Thales decided to study the weather and predicted a superb olive harvest a year in advance.

As a result, he placed a deposit on local olive presses.

Since no one could be sure if the harvest would be great or a dud, Thales got a deal on those presses.

When the harvest was a hit and everyone needed the presses, he charged a pretty penny for using them.

The cool thing? Thales wasn't risking it all.

If things went south, he'd only lose that initial deposit. He basically bought an option.

Smart guy.

What we can learn from this Chad move is that there's always a way to apply knowledge.

What knowledge or skills do you have that are not traditionally used to make money, but could be?

Thinking orthogonally is a life skill few people apply. But it could be you.

Thales also left behind quite a legacy. Options are financial operations with the potential to make you super wealthy if you play your cards right.

But some types can also carry a lot of risk. We will leave that for another edition

Thales, you not only have a badass name, but a badass story to tell.

You da Chad.

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DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

⏰ 20 Hours To Greatness

City Chad — Thu, 05 Oct 2023 12:03:05 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your prosperity professor, about to school you in the art of abundance. Let’s begin the lesson!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 😓 Yields Causing Troubles
Article: ⏰ 20 Hours To Greatness
News: 🔥 Sweden On Fire
Power Move: 🔌 Meta Connect
Chad Of The Week: 📰 Elon Musk

MARKETS: 😓 YIELDS CAUSING TROUBLES

I am sure that one day the market update will have lots of good news.

But today it ain’t it.

Stocks and bonds continued going down last week. Why? Long term bond yields are continuing to rise. This means that the expectation is that interest rates will stay higher for longer.

This is turn means that risk assets (such as stocks and credit markets) could be facing trouble in the future. With inflation still well above the 2% target, there is not much the FED can do to come to the rescue if that happens.

Not a pretty picture overall.

Crypto is surprisingly performing quite well recently. The SEC’s motion to appeal their loss in the ripple case was denied, which was bullish for XRP and the market overall.

Not any other major news in the space except the start of SBF’s trial. I am sure many people are hoping for justice to delivered swiftly.

ARTICLE: ⏰ 20 HOURS TO GREATNESS

TLDR: Here's an aha moment for you: being great at almost anything does not take 10,000 hours. It's more like 20 hours *gasp*.

I Know. You've probably wanted to learn about investing or starting a business. Or learn a new language, play guitar or dance like a stripper whose rent is due tomorrow. But you felt scared it would take you years.

The good news is here you'll find out the method of master learner and author Josh Kaufman to master any skill in 20 hours within one month.

Read on to find out the juice.

10,000 vs 20 hours
The Learning Curve
Use Your Time Effectively
Why this Works
Closing Thoughts

10,000 vs 20 hours

I know I sound like a broken record…

But cultivating yourself is the wisest thing you can do.

Not only does it make you an interesting person and help you achieve your goals.

It will make you fearless. You will always have yourself to count on.

But a common worry among us is that we need lots of time to be good at something.

You’ve probably heard of the 10,000 hour rule (made famous in the book “Outliers”).

It’s all over the place.

In simple terms it says that it takes around 10,000 hours to master a skill.

That’s nuts! That is like a regular 9 to 5 job for about 4 years.

There is some truth in that… but that’s for expert level performance.

Think professional level. And in fact, there is an even better book (in my opinion) called “Peak” that actually details how it is not just about putting in 10,000 hours. It is about implementing “deliberate practice”.

But most of us don’t want to be professionals in every field we are interested in.

We want to be good enough (competent) to enjoy it or to get the results we want.

The question should be how long does it take to achieve my goal with a new skill?

I’ll tell you right now, you usually only need 20 hours to be good at something.

See how master learner and author Josh Kaufman explains it here:

The Learning Curve

Choose any skill with a well-defined goal.

Could be learning to dance, a new language, or learning to code. Even learning the basics of investing or starting a business.

People tend to learn really well and really quickly at the beginning.

That’s the famous learning curve!

You start with virtually no skill in the subject.

As you learn the basics you improve immediately, you pass from zero to something and that’s a great step.

After that you will continue to improve by practicing the basics and including new skills and techniques, until you can say you are good enough (represented by the red line).

Once you are good enough, you can still invest time and become an expert in the field (if you want).

However, the learning and acquisition of new skills is not as fast as before.

The good news is that it takes around 20 hours to get to “good enough”.

And that’s probably all you need to achieve the goal you are aiming for.

This translates to just 45 minutes a day in less than 1 month.

Use Your Time Effectively

But I know what you are thinking: “I have tried things for more than 20 hours and I still suck at them”.

Well, there are ways to use those 20 hours more effectively and take the most advantage out of your time.

Here are some general guidelines that Kaufmann outlines:

1. Deconstruction:

Take some time and ask yourself what exactly you want to do. Make it a specific thing like “I want to start an ecommerce website and sell $1,000 worth of products” or “I want to program a special kind of calculator in C++”.

After you have it, then break it into smaller and smaller pieces that you can tackle individually.

A skill is really a combination of small skills combined.

Also, having a clear goal will provide you with a real and tangible measure of your progress.

You can also extrapolate the skills you learned in it to other projects.

2. Don’t fall into tutorial hell:

It’s OK to buy some books about the skill you want to learn. Watch some videos on YouTube. That’s great.

But don’t procrastinate.

You will never learn something that you don’t practice. There must be a point in which you say “OK, enough watching, let’s start doing.”

Use tutorials and learning resources just enough you can start doing it yourself and fixing your own mistakes.

3. Learning time is sacred time:

Television, cellphones, social media, anything that distracts you while learning will slow down your progress.

At that moment nothing else matters. Just you and whatever you are trying to learn.

Willpower is not enough; you must actually put distractions apart.

4. More is not always better.

This I’ve learnt as an amateur multi-instrumentalist.

Just like going to the gym, overdoing it won’t make you progress faster.

It will in fact leave you frustrated.

It is better to practice 1 hour a day during a week with a couple of breaks, rather than 5 hours in just one day.

Why this Works

It’s incredible that this works like this.

Why is that so? You learn a lot faster at the beginning because you master the basics.

What are the basics, you ask?

The basics are those core things that are very very important for a specific activity.

The trick is that they are used all the time.

Take for example playing guitar. At the beginning you’ll learn the techniques to hold it, strum it and make a limited number of chords (up to 7, let’s say).

And in most of the songs you play, you will just need those basic skills, or fundamentals 90% of the time.

And that’s it. You don’t have to learn the secret to Jimi Hendrix’s guitar licks to enjoy hours of playing by a fire with your friends.

Good fundamentals will do most of the time.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

The 20 hour rule has been a game changer for me and I hope it is for you.

One last thought that Kaufmann makes is that: "The major barriers to learning are not intellectual, they are emotional."

So once you realize this, anything becomes less intimidating.

The question for you is, do you have the guts to give it a go?

Let me know if you do.

NEWS: 🔥 SWEDEN ON FIRE

Like most Nordic countries, Sweden used to be a safe place to live and raise a family.

But that has changed quite a bit.

Shootings, gang wars, grenades. You name it.

Eleven people have recently died as the result of gang violence, including a 13-year old child.

The situation is so bad, they have now decided to call in the army to help.

The police apparently cannot cope with the situation.

The case of Sweden begs the question, is Europe finally waking up to reality?

A HISTORY OF ALTRUISM

Sweden has a strong history of being a safe haven for people in need.

During World War II, Sweden provided a safe haven for thousands of Jews fleeing persecution in Nazi Germany.

In the 1970s, Sweden welcomed refugees from Chile, Iran, and Vietnam.

In the 1990s, Sweden granted asylum to refugees from the Balkans and Somalia.

Sadly, their altruism has recently backfired.

Sweden’s PM recently pointed out how an “irresponsible immigration policy” and “failed integration,” along with “political naivety,” was to blame for the rise of gang violence.

WINDS OF CHANGE

One of the most popular quotes attributed to Ayn Rand is: “You can avoid reality, but you cannot avoid the consequences of avoiding reality.”

We have seen how the issue of uncontrolled migration is now gaining headlines across Europe and the rest of the World.

This is because the reality of good intentions is clashing with the reality of poor outcomes.

The situation in Lampedusa, as we covered in last week’s edition.

The situation on the US Southern border, covered in this week’s edition (see Chad of the Week).

The situation In the UK, where home Secretary Suella Braverman recently talked about the failure of cultural integration in the country.

It seems like the people and politicians are finally waking up and saying enough is enough.

Time for change and rethink policies.

POWER MOVE: 🔌 META CONNECT

Let’s face it, Zuck got ahead of itself when it went all-in at the top of the hype of the Metaverse.

Going as far as renaming their company from FACEBOOK to META to jump into pretty uncharted territory.

Their demo of their version of the Metaverse back in 2022 was frankly, embarrassing:

Looks a bit like the first Tomb Raider, launched in 1996

But you gotta give merit where merit is due. This man does not give up.

And Meta Connect could be the hit Zuck has been batting for for the last few years.

This is what went down:

A new headset named Meta Quest 3.
A quite cool augmented reality interface
Customized AI chatbots
AI studio, a platform that would allow people to make their own bots.

Will all this actually work in the real world? Who knows.

Everyone expected Threads to be the Twitter killer. Alas, that did not happen.

But you gotta admire Zuckerberg’s determination to keep trying.

Not only that, he is working hard on becoming a Chad:

Twitter tweet

Like they say in Silicon Valley. Don’t bet against Zuck.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 📰 ELON MUSK

Good stories deserve a sequel. So we bring Elon as Chad of the Week for the second time.

What made him deserving of this honor?

To make it short. People from many different countries are taking advantage of Biden’s “Open borders” policy.

There is a huge amount of illegal immigration happening on the US-Mexico border. Unfortunately the legacy media brushes over this.

So what did Elon do? He did what any self-respecting billionaire would do.

He put on a badass cowboy hat and sunglasses and went live streaming in the heart of the action.

Elon then speaks to those who are involved in the situation: Sheriff Randy Brown and congressman Tony Gonzales.

What’s (sadly) remarkable is the fact that Musk asks simple direct questions and lets the authorities speak their mind.

Funny how that’s better than what many mainstream journalists do.

He also had the audacity to point out how it is “insane” that murderers with face tattoos are claiming asylum together with those in need.

To make things even sweeter, reporting the truth apparently triggered some sensitive souls on the left like AOC.

Musk, you’re the Chad.

If you enjoy this content, please share it with those you love. Hit the little button below and the magic will happen:

🧔‍♂️ CHAD MEME

DISCLAIMER

The Chad index (“the index”) is a combination of historical returns for the following assets:

🤑 The Event of Money

City Chad — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 15:20:14 +0000

Yes, this is City Chad, your legionary commander of life's battles, ready to lead you into the conquest of success. Let's start marching towards victory!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: ⛷️Down We Go Again
Article: 🤑 The Event of Money
News: ⚔️ Men And Empire
Power Move: 💊 Ozempic
Chad Of The Week: 🏰 Dominik Tarczyński

MARKETS: ⛷️DOWN WE GO AGAIN

It was not a pretty week to say the least.

Stocks continued their downward trend — now down more than 3.5% in the last 30 days. Ouchie.

What’s going on? The same narrative as before. The FED warning that rates will stay higher for longer.

This has affected many of the stock darlings of the summer, particularly in the tech sector. It is down 10% from it’s recent peak.

To make things matter worse Nvidia had their offices raided in Europe due to an investigation into uncompetitive practices.

Don’t press the sell button yet, though.

Market noise and falls are normal. Chasing the market (i.e. investing only when things have already gone up) and selling during volatile times is just a recipe for underperforming in the long term.

Keep strong, Chads and Chadettes. It’s not been a bad year overall.

ARTICLE: 🤑 THE EVENT OF MONEY

TLDR: A side hustle could be the smartest starting point in your journey to financial freedom. But you have no ideas and no cash? Not to worry. Here we go deep into the Event Planning side hustle, which could be an interesting low-risk gig to try. Keep reading to find out more!

Introduction
Organizing events
Getting started
Why do it?
What are the challenges?
Final thoughts

INTRODUCTION

Hello hustlers!

Here at City Chad we like to dish out a lot of (hopefully) inspirational advice on financial freedom.

And we already discussed the benefits of starting a side hustle rather than going all in.

But what is advice worth if it cannot be put into practical use?

Nothing, that’s how much.

So we decided to deep dive into a side hustle that is pretty flexible and could be quite profitable if you get it right: event planning.

The good news is that you don’t have to spend an absurd amount of time or money on it.

Let’s take a look, shall we?

ORGANIZING EVENTS

Looking for a business with almost 0 setup costs?

Then event planning could be for you.

The fun part of an event is the event itself. Duh.

But many people much rather ask someone else to take care of the actual planning.

That’s where you come in.

There is something happening all the time. A birthday party, a wedding, charity fundraising, a business masterclass.

And people are always looking for professionals who can turn their ideas into unforgettable moments.

If you have great organizational skills, a knack for creativity and an eye for detail, then event planning can be your ideal side hustle.

Once you’ve gained some traction, this biz is possible to scale.

How? You can delegate most of the tasks to other people. At some point, you will end up working on the biz, not in the biz.

But wait, it’s not only other people’s events you can organize.

You can actually take the lead and find a profitable niche to organize events in.

Think of particular industries in your town or online where people would be willing to pay good money to attend.

You can eventually get sponsors to also dish out some dough your way too.

The best part of it? It’s already been tested.

None other than Sam Parr, former Chad of the Week, did it and eventually became a millionaire. Organizing those business events was arguably what catalyzed the success of his newsletter business (The Hustle).

In the video below you can listen to him go into detail about it in his podcast “My First Million”

GETTING STARTED

How do you get started?

I would take a 2 pronged approach to this one.

You can actually do both at the same time.

First, you could go to your close friends or businesses that have an important date coming up. Could be their birthday, their parents 50th anniversary, the arrival of a new baby.

You simply ask, “hey do you need help organizing this?” I have some great ideas!

I know, it’s a bit cringe. But hey, you gotta start the hustle somehow, right?

No website, no business cards, no Instagram page. Just slide into their DMs. You are here to prove if there is demand, without investing much time or money. Think lean.

You slowly build your portfolio of clients that way. You could even start doing it for free, and slowly build your reputation.

How much do you charge long term? Do your research. It will depend on the event type.

Make sure you know the client’s budget in advance and build enough in there for yourself.

Aim to charge at least a reasonable amount per hour for the time invested.

Pro Tip #1: You can form partnerships with local businesses who want people to use their venues, and also monetize that way.

Make sure you make that clear to your clients, though.

Pro Tip #2: Make sure you take good photos in each event so you can showcase your work.

Pro Tip #3: Every event is an opportunity to get referrals. Don’t be shy to put some of your branding in visible places at the event.

The other approach would be to organize events on Facebook and MeetUp.com for particular niches.

Pick industries that have the potential to be profitable.

Some examples are Tech, Finance and Entrepreneurship niches. Or you could split it by another affinity group. For example, “Women in Business”, or “Young Entrepreneurs”, etc.

Pro Tip #4: Start building a community around something you are passionate about, it will make it a lot easier.

Pro Tip #5: Don’t limit yourself to the people you know or your local area. You can organize online events and reach a much wider audience.

WHY DO IT?

Flexibility: Event planning allows you to work on your own terms. Taking up the work you can confidently handle for your clients or your own events.

Outside working hours: Events are usually held outside the standard 9-5 working hours. This means you can work on your side hustle while still working a regular job.

Low Startup Costs: Unlike many businesses, event planning doesn't require a lot when it comes to upfront investment. You can start small and scale as you gain experience and clients.

Great Networking Opportunity: It’s not only about organizing the event. It’s about who you could meet in them too. Putting yourself out there as a leader in a particular niche can open many unexpected doors. Not only financially but personally.

Creative Outlet: If you have a passion for design, aesthetics, and bringing visions to life, event planning allows you to do just that. What begins as a passion project can easily become a goldmine.

Consistent Demand: Not only is event planning high in demand, but it will never leave the market. People will always need events to be planned, as long as there is no major disruption in the World.

Potential for Add-on Revenue: If you control the event, you can control what gets sold to the attendees. You have access to a captive audience that may just be interested in buying other related stuff from you (or someone else who gives you a cut).

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES?

Time Management: Be ready to work when others are having fun. And don’t expect it to be easy. Making a sale is hard. But most things in life that are worth pursuing are hard.

Networking and client relationships: Building trust and a good reputation is essential. In the beginning, no one will know your name or how good you are. It’s a must to be a “people’s person” to build effective relationships. If you are too much of an introvert, then maybe this one is not for you.

FINAL THOUGHTS

As you can see, you don’t have to invest a lot in your side hustle.

Here you have one of many options for a low-investment gig that may help you improve your financial situation and have a side benefit of turbo charging your professional or personal life.

Remember that the point is to go beyond the basic service. Scaling the side hustle is essential to improve it as a source of income, gain more freedom, and make it more reliable.

Taking action, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction, as we talked about in the last edition. Whatever you choose to do, it’s better than doing nothing.

Do you like this idea? Let us know by replying to this email.

Cheers!

NEWS: ⚔️ MEN AND EMPIRE

You may have heard the news about the TikTok trend where women ask the men in their lives, “just how often do you think about the Roman Empire?”

There have been several attempts at explaining this. Some with a tinge of anti-male bias.

I don’t know about you guys, but I think about it daily.

As a matter of fact, when a friend of mine asked me about it I was reading Circus Maximus. The story of the Chaddest Emperor ever, Trajan (This isn’t open to discussion).

Rome was, and still is, a big deal.

Western civilization has been trying to replicate the Roman Empire since it’s fall. The words Tsar and Kaiser come from “Caesar”; the word “Emperor” comes from “Imperator”, the Latin word for “commander.”

The impact it has had in this part of the world can still be felt and it’s impossible to escape from its influence.

So, how can you not think about it? Well, apparently it is mostly a man-only thing.

But why is that so? Well, obviously gender preferences.

The Roman Empire, although socially it doesn’t necessarily adjust to our modern conception of masculinity, fulfills that power fantasy.

And it does so in more than one way, its militaristic expansion, its engineering works, its administrative organization, its political methods, among other things, convey that aura of power and grandeur.

So, it’s no surprise that usual daydreaming for men involves the Roman Empire.

POWER MOVE: 💊 OZEMPIC

Recently, the French giant LVMH has been dethroned by the Danish company Novo Nordisk.

At the time, Novo Nordisk has become Europe’s most valuable company, with its stock being valued around $190, giving it a total worth of $428 billion.

That’s actually more value than the GDP of Denmark. Amazing.

But exactly how did they do it?

Rather than being a jack-of-all-trades, they preferred to focus their efforts on a profitable market.

The weight loss market and related issues such as diabetes.

Turns out that doing one thing really good is the winning strategy.

The star drugs that catapulted them were Ozempic and Wegovy. These are products used to treat obesity and prescribed to individuals with metabolic disorders that hinder weight loss.

Another key point to their success was their exploration of the Chinese market, which is projected to become the largest diabetes market by 2030.

Novo Nordisk took advantage of this situation and applied a strategy that consisted not only in providing quality products, but a long-term approach to patient care and people education that focused on prevention.

They call that strategy “Defeat Diabetes”, and one of the main goals is providing affordable medicines to the global market.

The company understands that having a good reputation is key to success, so they also have committed to a green agenda, to try and reduce CO2 emissions.

Those approaches help develop trust in the company, it becomes apparent that the market rewards this type of attitude.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🏰 DOMINIK TARCZYŃSKI

There’s a cozy Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea called Lampedusa with about 6000 inhabitants.

Imagine that in less than a week, it triples its population.

That surreal situation is what actually happened recently. Waves of migrants mainly from Sub-Saharan Africa had arrived.

This may be the main political issue for Europe. This kind of thing happened before in 2015 and many places, for example, Sweden, have faced heavy consequences.

There’s a limit on how many migrants the European Union can handle.

Among all this chaos, we have the figure of Dominik Tarczyński.

A Polish politician, a Member of the European Parliament that doesn’t say things by halves when it comes to putting the interest of his people first.

You can see him stating things clearly in this video.

His policies are simple and effective. Zero tolerance.

And surprisingly, it has worked, in 2021 Poland has had the third largest increase in peacefulness, also counting with one of the lowest levels of homicide in the world. Being Europe’s safest country at the time.

Not only is citizen safety where Poland shines, but the country is on the road to becoming Europe’s next superpower, as we reviewed in a previous edition.

The other countries’ leaders could learn a thing or two. Who would have guessed that a clear and strong leadership that puts its citizens first actually benefits the country, right?

For the good of Poland, and the rest of Europe, we wish you the best of luck, Dominik.

Keep up the Chad work.

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🕊️ The Matthew Effect

City Chad — Thu, 21 Sep 2023 20:54:02 +0000

Yes. This is the City Chad, your money navigator, charting a course to wealth and wellbeing. Let’s start sailing!

In this week’s edition:

Markets: 😅 Looming Challenges
Article: 🕊️ The Matthew Effect
News: 🏡 The Leftist Skeptic
Power Move: 🏔️ Rumble Stands Firm
Chadette Of The Week: 👩‍❤️‍👨 Billie Rae Brandt

MARKETS: 😅 LOOMING CHALLENGES

Stocks were pretty flat in the last week.

But today we saw the markets open lower due to the expectations that the FED will keep rates higher for longer.

What has also captured investor’s attention in the last few weeks is the rise in oil prices. The black stuff hit a 10 month high on Monday.

This could mean (you guessed it) more inflation. Just what we needed.

A little bit of higher rates, a bit of inflation… could mean some challenges ahead.

On a brighter note, we saw Bitcoin recover from the bad run it had in recent weeks. No massive news really, but just part of the volatility of this asset.

ARTICLE: 🕊️ THE MATTHEW EFFECT

TLDR: The Matthew Effect explains how those with advantages tend to progress more, while others at a disadvantage fall behind. To thrive in this world, you must act strategically and compound the good things and avoid the bad. Here we discuss some ways to use the Matthew Effect like a boss.

What is the Matthew Effect?
Am I screwed?
Glass Half Full
The Takeaway

WHAT IS THE MATTHEW EFFECT

Have you ever heard of the Matthew Effect?

Maybe you’ve heard the phrase “The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer.”

Or if you prefer a more mystical touch, the bible puts it like this:

“For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

Now, what the Matthew Effect tries to explain is that those people who already have some kind of advantage tend to progress more and faster, while those at a disadvantage progress slower or can even fall further behind.

It’s a fact of life, ladies and gentlemen.

Over time whatever you are doing and who you are compounds.

AM I SCREWED

This sounds a bit scary doesn’t it?

“I’m not rich, I have no chance. Better stick to what I know”

Or “I’m this way, I know nothing about starting a business”

You can add anything you think you’re not great at to that list.

And you wouldn’t be wrong to think you’re in a tight spot. The Matthew Effect would predict that you are more likely to stay the way you are and become more of it.

Unless…

You do something about it, and change course.

Easier said than done, right? Well, not really. That’s the good part.

Here’s how to use the Matthew Effect to your advantage.

The easy way.

THE GLASS HALF FULL

The Matthew Effect says things compound over time, right?

So… what if you start compounding today the things you actually want to have more of. Here is how:

START NOW

This is the most obvious one, but usually the hardest. Just start.

If you don’t put any work into improving, not only will you stagnate, but the world will keep moving and your initial position will be worse.

Starting late is better than not starting at all.

The key is to initiate that first push, even if it’s a small one.

1 push up. 30 minutes on your side hustle. Everything counts.

By just starting you’ve invoked the Matthew Effect to shift the direction of travel.

That is huge. Even if it doesn’t seem like it.
ACCUMULATE SMALL WINS

Starting is the first small win, but don’t stop there.

The key to leverage the Matthew Effect in your favor is positioning yourself at sequentially more favorable places each time.

These small wins will create the momentum you need and help build confidence.

Which brings us to the next point…
LEARN FROM SUCCESS

Despite what people say on the internet, you can learn more from success than failures.

Yes, you read that right.

Not only does success show you what you are doing right. It provides insights into your strengths so you can keep tapping into them.

It also helps to put you in a winning mindset and make it easier to take the next step.

By succeeding you get to learn and also taste sweet victory. That does wonders for your confidence.
SET WINNING GOALS

This is a big one. If you shoot straight for the moon every time, most of the time you won’t make it.

So what should you do instead?

Before you even start putting pen to paper or your gym shoes, only define the goal of the day as something you are close to 100% sure you can achieve that day.

Why? Because remember you want to build positive momentum. Even if it is small.

3,000 steps, 500 words, selling 1 widget.

Most people are worried about how to make $10K a month on the internet. But they should be worried first about how to make $10.

The thousands will follow once you have that sweet taste of victory and have learnt what people want from you. Then you scale.

This does not mean you should not have big goals. It means you should break them up into micro milestones you can totally ace.

A clever hack is to define success as positive momentum. Even if it is small.
DEFINE WHAT NOT TO DO

So we’ve covered the stuff you should do. But you can also apply it to the things you shouldn’t do. That’s the beauty of the Matthew Effect.

Cut down on the Netflix time. 1 minute a day or skip 1 day altogether.

Do this slowly. Remember you are focusing on accumulating easy wins that compound over time.

THE TAKEAWAY

The Matthew Effect is a real thing. Embrace it. Take it out for dinner and introduce it to your parents.

To make the most of it… action is the answer. It’s all about seizing opportunities and starting to build momentum from the get-go, in the right direction.

Even through the smallest wins.

Remember that the mental game is half the battle.

NEWS: 🏡 THE LEFTIST SKEPTIC

I’ll assume we are all familiar with the laws of supply and demand.

Now. Have you ever heard of “supply skepticism”?

Well, me neither and with no surprise because it’s a terrible idiotic idea.

However, the world is like (Pandora’s) box of chocolates. Turns out that “supply skepticism” is actually a thing believed by some left-wing collectives.

It’s the belief that building more houses somehow makes housing more expensive.

Sadly, as pointed out in this great piece in the Financial Times, it’s a common misconception that building new houses increases rents and prices, thus hindering the ability of lower income people to buy properties.

Funny that misconception does not apply to the price of other goods and services, just housing.

Happily enough, we have techniques that allow us to find out whether this is the case or not, rather than just guessing.

Studies from Sweden, Finland and the US, show that building houses even if they are not affordable for most people, benefits everyone.

There are more examples, but I don’t want just to repeat the obvious.

So, why does this happen?

Some groups try to leverage this misconception to support their narrative.

It is easier to blame the rise in prices on landlords’ “greed” than to understand how things actually work.

The evil landlord just raises rent because he feels like it.

When in fact, there is an old saying “the solution to high prices is high prices”.

It means that when something goes up in price (housing), more people will produce it (increase supply) and that will lower the price of it.

The problem lies when you cannot increase supply due to constraints such as planning permission to build new homes. Thanks to the bureaucrats in government, poor planning, and NIMBYs.

That is the artificial limitation that prevents the free market from bringing things to the equilibrium.

Adding “supply skepticism” to the mix, just makes things even worse.

Facepalm.

POWER MOVE: 🏔️ RUMBLE STANDS FIRM

Twitter tweet

We'll keep this short and sweet. You've probably all seen the very worrying allegations about Russell Brand. YouTube was quick to demonetize him.

But Rumble has actually taken a different approach...

Regardless of what you think of the matter, a company standing against the menacing tone of a UK member of parliament is laudable.

Check out the Tweets below and let us know what you think on our own Twitter @therealcitychad

Twitter tweet

CHADETTE OF THE WEEK: 👩‍❤️‍👨 BILLIE RAE BRANDT

Hey! It’s been a while since we featured a lady in this section.

Now, we are delighted to introduce you to an exceptional person named Billie Rae Brandt.

She’s an expert when it comes to dating advice. Yeah, not the usual subject of City Chad, but definitely something that captures many of our readers’ imaginations.

She started all back in 2012 on YouTube with her video “CLASSY BOYS”. Since then, it only snowballed, now she’s got over half a million followers on TikTok and her own Podcast called “Make Me A Sandwich”.

She is considered controversial by some. But her content is very unique. The dating advice she offers usually touches topics you wouldn’t find somewhere else.

You see, personal growth and transformation are often handled with a lot of filters so as not to inconvenience anyone.

Not in this case. Billie is different and provides us with a clean, direct and unvarnished version of the complex world of dating and self-improvement, saving us all from uncomfortable situations and valuing our time.

That’s what she calls No B.S. Approach.

What sets Billie apart and makes her truly cool are her exceptional qualities, including her creativity, and the way she speaks her mind freely and with no self-censorship.

A true Chadette, Billie Rae

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CityChad

Is Dating Screwed?

MARKETS: 🫤 UNCERTAINTY

ARTICLE: 💕 IS DATING SCREWED?

🤔 HOW ARE THINGS GOING

📱 APP DYSTOPIA

🛵 IS EVERYTHING LOST?

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

NEWS: 🧱 LEGO = GOLD

NEWS: 🎓 TEXAS BILL #17

NEWS: 👨🏾‍🦲 ROCK FOR PRESIDENT?

BETA OF THE WEEK: 😂 DON LEMON

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MARKETS: 📈 OVERHEATING?

ARTICLE: 🎲 ANALOG GAMES

NEWS: 🧠 HUBERMAN UNDER FIRE

NEWS: 🤑 TRUTH SOCIAL = MEME STOCK

NEWS: 🛬 BOEING CEO OUT

CHADETTE OF THE WEEK: 🐎 HANNAH BARRON

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🚚 What is DTC?

MARKETS: 🎢 ROLLERCOASTER

ARTICLE: 🚚 WHAT IS DTC?

🛵 WHAT IS DTC?

✊ GIVE ME FREEDOM OR GIVE ME DEATH

😒 NOT ALL THAT GLITTERS IS GOLD

🥊 SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

👟 THE NIKE WAY

🚀 ALTERNATIVES TO DTC

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

NEWS: 🇩🇪 GERMANY WTF?

NEWS: 🤖 GEMINI STILL SUCKS

NEWS: 🍒 BEAUTY IS BACK

BETA OF THE WEEK: 🔩 JACK KRAWCZYK

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🤖 3 Ways to Make Money with AI

MARKETS: 🚀 PUMP IT UP

ARTICLE: 🤖 3 WAYS TO MAKE MONEY WITH AI

📝​ THE BOTTOM LINE

📽️ AI VIDEO CREATION

👨‍🏫 AI-POWERED COURSES

🤳 ARTIFICIAL INFLUENCERS

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

NEWS: 📹 INTRODUCING SORA

NEWS: 🖥️ NEURALINK ADVANCEMENTS

NEWS: 🛦 PUTIN TAKES AVDIIVKA

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🦠 JOHN MCAFEE

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🎴 Raise-Kwon-Do

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MARKETS: 🟢 GREEN LIGHTS AHEAD

ARTICLE: 🎴 THE ART OF RAISE-KWON-DO

⛩️​ WELCOME TO THE DOJO

🥋 FIRST DOGMA: THINK MORE OF YOURSELF

🦵 SECOND DOGMA: LEVERAGE YOUR VALUE

⚡ THIRD DOGMA: BE PROACTIVE

🥷 ENTERING THE ARENA

😎 THE CHAD TAKEAWAY

NEWS: 🗳️DON LEADING OVER JOE

NEWS: 🖥️ NVIDIA TOPS HONG KONG

NEWS: 🇪🇪 ESTONIA SETS THE BORDER

CHAD OF THE WEEK: 🏁 STEVE MCQUEEN

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MARKETS: 🫤 OKish

ARTICLE: 👨‍💻 REMOTE WORK 4 YEARS LATER

📝 THE BOTTOM LINE

⛩️ WELCOME TO THE DOJO

🧠 WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY

☣️ To Risk or Not to Risk

🤗 Your own Attitude

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