Within the last few months I have received more questions about estate plans than the sum of my entire life prior. My default response is “I don’t know.” Perhaps I ought to leave it there? (my usual response.) Instead, I started reading and began writing… mostly trying to form some coherent thoughts. Disclosure: I still Read more about Questions About Estate Planning[…]
Alex Bridgeman recently asked what niche publications his followers find most interesting. I replied with one of my favorites that we receive at the office. And a snarky comment. It is Twitter, after all. We talk about books we’ve read quite a bit. We’ve even talked about old academic papers. Niche trade publications are also Read more about Learn broadly by reading specifically[…]
These two questions are asked on a regular basis. Depending on who is asking, they want me to reply, I’m seeing low numbers but we’re paying higher (for yours); or they’d like me to say, I’m seeing high numbers but we’re paying low (for ours.) I enjoy my work too much to make this my Read more about What Multiples Are You Seeing? What Are You Using?[…]
Are you in a relationship business? I had lunch the other week with a commercial banker friend. He mentioned how important relationships are to his business. A few days later I had coffee with an insurance brokerage friend. He mentioned how important relationships are to his business. When each guy said it, the thought in Read more about Relationship Business[…]
After completing Robert G. Hagstrom’s “Investing: The Last Liberal Art” I began to re-read my margin notes. His book has over one hundred bibliography entries and is a fantastic introduction to the multidisciplinary worldview of the market. One of my pencil scratches suggested that the market is a profound conversation. Hagstrom uses the word “puzzle” Read more about The Market is a Profound Conversation[…]
Swing you bum! Last week I had a couple of exciting meetings. Looking back on the conversations, I’m pretty sure I relocated my “Go” button. The deals aren’t closed (far from it), but I just wanted to let our readers know that I still know where the “Go” button is located… and I know how Read more about My “Go” Button Still Works[…]
Last fall I learned a phrase, “Multiplex Relationships” in a Perspectives Course at our church. The idea between simplex and multiplex is that a simplex relationship is transactional. You drive the Uber. I ride. Once the task is complete our relationship ends. A multiplex relationship crosses two or more roles. If you buy a car Read more about Multiplex Relationships[…]
Our pace of blog posts has slowed dramatically since 2016. (177 published in 41 months is an average of 4.3 posts per month.) Mikel and I chatted about why the sluggishness. I surmised, “I think we wrote to ourselves more often in the early months.” –Or, perhaps we had more to say? We rolled back Read more about Culture of Writing[…]
I recently asked Mikel what I ought to write. He suggested I write about writing the annual report for Little Engine Ventures or write about reading annual reports. While it seems rather metacognitive to write about reading and writing, I’ll give it a whirl –please bear with me. As with all my writing, my hope Read more about Reading & Writing Annual Reports[…]
I am a willing participant in our capitalist system. Despite that, I’ve not studied intently past participants in this system to look for skills worth copying and any decisions to avoid. The book American Colossus: The Triumph of Capitalism 1865-1900 seemed as good a place as any to work on that study. The book lays Read more about Aspiring Industrialist[…]