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Next episode is the 200th, therefore this is the 199th. I raid the 66 pages of ideas for episodes I have been keeping for nearly a decade, and present to you 199 that I have not yet made into podcasts (except for this one). Find the episode's transcript, plus more information about the topics therein, at theallusionist.org/199ideas. NEWSLUSIONIST: The new Allusionist live show Souvenirs is on tour in the UK right now! Rush to theallusionist.org/events for tickets and dates. And if you fancy concocting a quiz question for the imminent 200th episode, go to theallusionist.org/quiz to submit it; your deadline is 6 September 2024. To help fund this independent podcast, take yourself to theallusionist.org/donate and become a member of the Allusioverse. You get regular livestreams with me and my collection of reference books, inside scoops into the making of this show, watchalong parties eg the new season of Taskmaster featuring my brother Andy, and the company of your fellow Allusionauts in our delightful Discord community.  This episode was produced by me, Helen Zaltzman, with music and editorial assistance from Martin Austwick of palebirdmusic.com. Find @allusionistshow on Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Bluesky, TikTok, YouTube etc. Our ad partner is Multitude. If you want me to talk about your product or thing on the show, sponsor an episode: contact Multitude at multitude.productions/ads. This episode is sponsored by: • Home Chef, meal kits that fit your needs. For a limited time, Home Chef is offering Allusionist listeners eighteen free meals, plus free shipping on your first box, and free dessert for life, at HomeChef.com/allusionist.• Squarespace, your one-stop shop for building and running your online empire/new home for your cryptic puzzle that takes months to solve. Go to squarespace.com/allusionist for a free 2-week trial, and get 10 percent off your first purchase of a website or domain with the code allusionist. • Bombas, whose mission is to make the comfiest clothing essentials, and match every item sold with an equal item donated. Go to bombas.com/allusionist to get 20% off your first purchase.  • LinkedIn Ads convert your B2B audience into high quality leads. Get $100 credit on your next campaign at linkedin.com/allusionist.Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionistSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join our live, virtual event for Memphis BRRRR properties on June 25th. Free. Sign up now at: GREmarketplace.com/webinar Compound interest in stocks gets worn down to less than nothing due to: inflation, emotion, taxes, fees, and volatility. I focus on the little-understood deleterious effects of volatility. DON'T focus on getting your money to work for you. Learn what to focus on instead. Compound leverage and OPM are the wealth-building flexes. We discuss how to use a lower down payment to achieve a potential 20% cash-on-cash return with the BRRRR Strategy. Join our live, virtual event for this at: GREmarketplace.com/webinar Resources mentioned: Join our live, virtual event for Memphis BRRRR properties on June 25th. Free. Sign up now at: GREmarketplace.com/webinar For access to properties or free help with a GRE Investment Coach, start here: GREmarketplace.com Get mortgage loans for investment property: RidgeLendingGroup.com or call 855-74-RIDGE  or e-mail: info@RidgeLendingGroup.com Invest with Freedom Family Investments.  You get paid first: Text FAMILY to 66866 For advertising inquiries, visit: GetRichEducation.com/ad Will you please leave a review for the show? I'd be grateful. Search “how to leave an Apple Podcasts review”  GRE Free Investment Coaching: GREmarketplace.com/Coach Best Financial Education: GetRichEducation.com Get our wealth-building newsletter free— text ‘GRE' to 66866 Our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/c/GetRichEducation Follow us on Instagram: @getricheducation Keith's personal Instagram: @keithweinhold   Complete episode transcript:   Keith Weinhold (00:00:01) - Welcome to GRE. I'm your host, Keith Weinhold. Compound interest is weak. What kind of iconoclastic heresy is that? Oh, I've got even more. Including. Don't get your money to work for you. This is a wealth building show. So why don't we discuss 401 days in IRAs here? It's precisely because they're not designed to build wealth. We'll get into that then. A way you can achieve higher property, cash and cash returns than you can with buy and hold real estate today and get rich education.   Robert Syslo (00:00:38) - Since 2014, the powerful get Rich education podcast has created more passive income for people than nearly any other show in the world. This show teaches you how to earn strong returns from passive real estate, investing in the best markets without losing your time being a flipper or landlord. Show host Keith Wine, who writes for both Forbes and Rich Dad Advisors and delivers a new show every week. Since 2014, there's been millions of listeners downloads and 188 world nations. He has A-list show guests include top selling personal finance author Robert Kiyosaki.   Robert Syslo (00:01:06) - Get Rich education can be heard on every podcast platform. Plus it has its own dedicated Apple and Android listener. Phone apps build wealth on the go with the get Rich education podcast. Sign up now for the get Rich education podcast or visit get Rich education.com.   Corey Coates (00:01:23) - You're listening to the show that has created more financial freedom than nearly any show in the world. This is get rich education.   Keith Weinhold (00:01:39) - We're going to go from Saint Helena Island to Helena, Montana and across 188 nations worldwide. I'm Keith Weinhold, and you are listening to get Rich education. Compound interest is weak. Compound leverage is powerful. And with both available to most anyone, why don't you have more leverage in your financial life? That was a long time listener. You probably understand that if you're a newer listener, your reaction to that is like, wait, what? I mean, your inner self is telling you something like that challenges my existing longtime belief about how compound interest builds wealth. In fact, I will fight to protect this core belief. Even Albert Einstein purportedly called compound interest the eighth wonder of the world.   Keith Weinhold (00:02:36) - All right, well, let's break down compound interest until it looks as impotent as it is, as pathetic as it is, and as fallacious as compound interest is in the sense that it applies to your life as an investor. Now understand, I once thought the same limiting way that perhaps you once did, and that most others still do. When I was out of college and at my first job, I thought that there could be nothing better than getting my money to work for me with compound interest. Oh, and then maybe even the layer on top of that with the tax efficiencies of, say, a 401 K, 400 3B4 57 plan or an IRA. Then I took a real interest in this stuff, and I soon learned that I don't want any of those things because they don't build wealth. I don't want compound interest. I don't want to focus on getting my money to work for me. And I don't want any of those government sponsored retirement plans either. And that's why today I don't have any of them now, I remember when I had this one particular appointment, a financial planning appointment a few years ago, and I had it with what I'll call a conventional financial planning firm.   Keith Weinhold (00:03:56) - Maybe I remember it so well because it was an in-person meeting. It was in a tall office building that I went to and visited in downtown Anchorage, Alaska. And when I was in this money manager's office where basically what he was trying to do is win me as a new client. That's fine. That's his business model. Well, he had this big paper and cardboard sort of laminated charts thing resting on an easel, and this chart was prominently placed in his office so that I or anyone could see it. It showed the rate of return over time of. And I forget which index it plotted. It was either the Dow or the S&P, but no matter. It showed the return line going up and to the right for over 100 years. Your classic chart go up. It gave the impression to a prospective new client like me that, oh well, I had the opportunity to buy into this. And if I just invest my capital with this money manager and pay him fees for managing it for me now, I was at the point where I was starting to become better educated on these sorts of things compared to a layperson, for sure.   Keith Weinhold (00:05:06) - And I had been a real estate investor for a while at this point. Well, that physical chart in his office resting on an easel, it showed something like an 8 or 10% stock market return over time. Let's just be kind and call it 10% annually. And that's the first time in my life that I ever remember asking the question when I asked that money manager something like the chart shows a 10% market return, but what would my return be after inflation? Emotion taxes, your fees and volatility. Mic drop. You could hear a pin drop. I'll tell you what. That money manager almost froze. He didn't know what to say. I just remember, he began his reply, starting with talking about how inflation was low at the time. And yes, CPI inflation was low at that time, but he just didn't have a good answer for me. He was overwhelmed. He may have not ever had anyone ask him a question like that in his life. That sure is how he acted. And needless to say, I left his office that day without ever becoming one of his investors.   Keith Weinhold (00:06:17) - All right, so then let's dig into it. I've scratched the surface a little. What is the problem with, say, a 10% average annual return compounded over time? I mean, that sounds rather attractive when it's presented that way. Well, first, what do you think that the real rate of. Long term inflation is some make the case that it's still 15% today, even though the current CPI is 3 or 3.5%, and anyone that's looked at it feels that measure, the CPI is understated. So what do you think you want to use 6%. How about 6% as the long term true diminished purchasing power of the dollar? Okay then will your 10% stock market return -6% or you're already down to a 4% inflation adjusted return? Then there's the emotional component to buy and sell at exactly the wrong time, because no matter what people say they're going to do, most people want to sell when stocks are low because they're discouraged and they're just tired of taking their losses and they want to cut their loss. And then conversely, people want to buy when stocks rise because they're encouraged and they say they're a momentum investor and they experience FOMO if they're not in and riding the stocks up, well, what did you just do then? You just sold low and bought high.   Keith Weinhold (00:07:42) - How much does that emotional effect drag down your 4% inflation adjusted stock return that were already down to now? I mean, are you already at less than zero? Then there's taxes. Even in a 401 or IRA, you either pay the tax now or you pay the tax later. It's not tax free. How far below zero is your real return? Now that it's taxed? The IRS won't adjust your tax for inflation on a capital gain. Then tack on the investment fees, which can be 2% or higher. If you've got a professional money manager like the guy I met with in downtown Anchorage, or the fees can be really low if you are in an index fund. But how far below zero are you now? And that brings us to the last drag on compound interest in the stock market. We're not even done yet, remember? Okay, all we've done now is deduct out inflation, emotion, taxes and fees. What about adjusting it down further for volatility. Let's look at how deleterious volatility is to this floored compound.   Keith Weinhold (00:08:48) - Interest builds wealth thesis right here. Because you know on a lot of episodes we've just glossed over that. It just comes down to math. If you're up 10% one year and down 10% the next year, you're not back to even run the math and you'll see that you've lost 1%. That's just simply math. And now I'm going to get wonky here for a moment, and I'll use a more extreme example to demonstrate my volatility point for you. But I must get that way in order to debunk this myth about how compound interest builds wealth, or the getting your money to work for you builds wealth. Time spent making up lost returns is not the same as positively compounding your return. Any time you're looking at the annual average performance of an investment, it is vital to check how that performance has been calculated. And bear with me here for a minute, because this is substantive. Say your collection of stocks or whatever it is, just your overall portfolio value. It doesn't matter. Say it's up 50% one year, down 40% the next, then 50 up 40, down 50, up 40 down again.   Keith Weinhold (00:10:05) - All right. That right there was a 5% average annual return. But your average annual return. That is a lie because a 5% return through arithmetic performance. That sounds better than what really just happened to your money. So in a mutual fund prospectus, you might see that as a headline number, the 5% average annual return. But that's a lie in the small print. That's where you're more likely to see this CAGR, the compounded annual growth rate, and the CAGR. That's usually going to be worse than what the average annual number is. That headline number. And in our example, the CAGR is -5.1%. In this case that's the geometric figure. That's what you really want to look at not the arithmetic one. It looked like the market was up 5%, but your real return on your money was down 5.1%, a delta of 10.1% then. And the more volatile your returns are, the wider and wider this difference becomes. Now, if there were zero volatility, your average annual return, the arithmetic thing and the CAGR, the geometric thing, they would be the same and there wouldn't be any need to have this discussion.   Keith Weinhold (00:11:35) - This discussion is. Germane because volatility exists in the stock market and its related derivatives. So small differences over time compound and see really the problem is over the decades in your conventional retirement account, if you think that you're going to be quadrupling your money over time, but you only double your money over time, now you can see how this becomes a major problem. Come time for your retirement when it's too late. All right. Now, if you didn't follow that part because there were a few numbers flying around, just remember this time spent making up for lost returns is not the same as positively compounding your return inflation, emotion, taxes, fees, and volatility that just broke down any conventionally invested nest egg to less than nothing. This is why volatility is worse for investments than most people think. Well, we had someone write in to our general mailbox a while ago. And by the way, we like to hear from you. You can always communicate with us here at GR either through email or voice at get Rich education.   Keith Weinhold (00:12:52) - Com slash contact that's get rich education comment. I'd love to hear from you and really appreciate having you as a listener. Well, a listener wrote in on our inbox. They're asking why, if we're a wealth building show, why don't we talk about the benefits of 401 or IRAs? Well, it's squarely because those things don't create wealth. They aren't even designed to build wealth, but they create the illusion of doing so, partly due to the myth of compound interest that I just explained. But there's more outside of any employer match for IRAs and just generally investing cash in mutual funds or stocks or ETFs, they all have another gigantic problem. It could be a problem even bigger than the compound interest fallacy, which I just addressed. And that is all you're trying to do is get your money to work for you. Getting your money to work for you does not build wealth. Show me some evidence that it does. All right. Well, what's the problem here with these 41K and IRAs? I think you know, where I'm going is that you don't get any leverage.   Keith Weinhold (00:14:06) - Where is your leverage? Every single dollar that you lock away there means that you don't get the opportunity to ethically use three x or four x of what you've invested in OPM, other people's money, which you can build wealth off of. Where is your compound leverage with those conventional vehicles? It's gone. It never existed in the first place. Plus there's typically zero monthly cash flow. Plus you could have it invested where you don't legally have to pay any tax. Instead any tax, because retirement fund investors either pay tax today or pay tax later. Real estate can permanently mitigate income tax like you can get with real estate depreciation and absolutely zero capital gains tax on your real estate with the 1031 exchange. But let's not let the compound interest versus compound leverage case go to rest here just yet okay. How does then compound leverage build wealth instead? Well, the most available means for you to get access to leverage OPM is with real estate. Well, let's just look at what's going on today. Today, per the Fhfa, national home prices, they're up 6.6% year over year.   Keith Weinhold (00:15:26) - That's the latest figure that's not too different than historic norms. All right then. Well, if one year ago you had made a 20% down payment on a property that's 5 to 1 leverage, so you just take your 6.6% home price appreciation rate multiplied by five, and there's 33% for you. You went from a 6.6% return on the asset to a 33% return on your money, because you got the return on both your money and the bank's money. The majority is from the bank, OPM. So if you got a 33% return in year one, maybe it's 26% the next year and 21% the following year. It will go down over time as equity accumulates. And that's compound leverage. That's the wealth builder. And notice what else? Now that you know how destructive volatility is to returns, there is less volatility in real estate asset values. So now you're really on the path because you have a durable wealth builder. And then of course in real estate those high leverage returns are one of just. Five ways you can expect to be paid, but that one is the biggest leveraged appreciation.   Keith Weinhold (00:16:41) - That is the biggest return source of the five over time. And now you better understand why you don't want to set up your investor life to optimize getting your money to work for you. You don't want that. It's to get other people's money to work for you. And my gosh, mathematics makes compound interest in getting your money to work for you look amazing. But the real world proves that compound interest in getting your money to work for you is a farce, and it will keep you working at a job, maybe a soulless job until you're old. But the sheep believe it. You're listening to this show, so you're not a sheep. You're not among the masses. If you do what everyone else does, you'll only get what everyone else got. If you want wealth for yourself. All right, well, then, do you see that? You would have to think differently. And do you think that you would have to learn new things and then act differently than the masses? Well, yes, of course you do.   Keith Weinhold (00:17:41) - You can either go through life as a home run hitter or as a bunter. Most people are afraid to do anything other than learn how to be a bunter. And that's why the most popular personal finance platforms give the worst advice that limit you and keep you small. It's because they're talking to people with average or below average mindsets, not below average intelligence, but an audience of average or below average mindsets, which are the masses and they're just striving to get to a level of mediocrity, okay. They cater to financially irresponsible people that are just trying to get up to a mediocre level. And you know what? I was recently listening to one of these shows, I'll call it, a get rid of your debt and invest for compound interest and get your money to work for you shows. One caller called in. He and his wife got a $60,000 windfall from an heir. And they're wondering what they should do with the money. And they owned a home valued at 500 K, with 320 K left on the mortgage, which was a 3.25% interest.   Keith Weinhold (00:18:53) - And the guidance that the host had for this caller. I'm not kidding. Here was to use the 60 K to pay the 320 K mortgage down, so then they'd only owe 260 on the mortgage. I'm not kidding. That was the recommended course of action. And this is not an aberration. I've heard this same guidance with other callers on this conventional show. I mean, the opportunity cost of such a misguided move, what has he done when he pays down his mortgage? 60 K like that. He lost liquidity, he lost leverage. And it didn't even help with his cash flow. Because with a fixed amortizing loan, your monthly payment is the same the following month. Anyway, that 60 K, instead of being used to pay down a mortgage that could have been leveraged again by purchasing, say, a 250 to 300 K rental property. So my point is that conventional guidance does not build wealth in financial freedom. When you're actually young enough to enjoy it, you do things like learn how to get out of debt and then solely grind for decades, doing so, all while paying the opportunity cost of being leveraged less for the opportunity cost of targeting something like debt free, which is the wrong target rather than being financially free.   Keith Weinhold (00:20:18) - It's just like, if you want a wealth coach, well, then you don't hire and listen to guidance from a mediocrity coach. It's the same is if you want to learn how to skydive, then don't ask a basketball coach because you're going to die. We practice what we preach here at GRA. Now me what would I do if I had a paid off rental property or paid off home? Well, first, I've never had any residential rental property paid off in my life. Not one. Although I could, I'd recognize the opportunity cost of zero leverage. But just say, hypothetically, a paid off home fell in my lap. What's the next thing I do? I would go get the maximum loan against it, and then I'd have access to cash that I could invest in other properties. But what about these new loans that I'm taking out? What happens with them? I'm not concerned because both tenants and inflation pay it down passively, without my involvement at all, without my grinding for it at all, without me trading my time for dollars at all.   Keith Weinhold (00:21:27) - Well, I am really glad that we got into this here in the first segment of today's show. If you're near the show, it probably gave you a starting point for. Some new topics to search. Maybe you should start with learning the difference and reading more about average annual return versus compounded annual growth rate. It's really eye opening. And yes, you've heard me say on the show before that stock returns are dragged into negative territory with inflation, emotion, taxes, fees and volatility. And what's new here today is that I took the volatility component and broke it all the way down for you. There is a real paradox out there in America and elsewhere. You know, people spend all this time learning about how work works, zero time learning about how money works. And yet money is the main reason that people go to work. So congratulations so far on educating yourself some more today. Suffice to say, compound interest does not build wealth. If you're focused on getting only your money to work for you, you are really missing out on leverage through OPM.   Keith Weinhold (00:22:38) - And the good news here is that you actually don't have to believe everything that you think. Even if you thought the same way for years or decades. Chances are you're by yourself when you're listening to me right now. So that way you can change your mind all on your own without anyone thinking that you're wishy washy. Is it iconoclastic? Yeah, sure it is. If you're going to live an outsized life, if you're going to have an outsized impact in this world and on others, then you don't want to get labeled as normal. I mean, me, myself. I want nothing to do with normal. You can learn more on topics like this with our Don't Quit Your Day Dream email letter that makes it visual for you. Get it free at get Rich education com slash letter I write every word of the letter myself again. Get it at get Rich education.com/letter or it's quicker while it's on your mind right now. Text gray to 66866 to get the letter. Text gray to 66866. More straight ahead on how to potentially achieve cash on cash returns of 20% plus with real estate today.   Keith Weinhold (00:23:58) - That's next. I'm Keith Reinhold. You're listening to get Rich education. Your bank is getting rich off of you. The national average bank account pays less than 1% on your savings. If your money isn't making 4%, you're losing your hard earned cash to inflation. Let the liquidity fund help you put your money to work with minimum risk. Your cash generates up to an 8% return with compound interest year in and year out. Instead of earning less than 1% sitting in your bank account, the minimum investment is just 25 K. You keep getting paid until you decide you want your money back there. Decade plus track record proves they've always paid their investors 100% in full and on time. And I would know, because I'm an investor, to earn 8%. Hundreds of others are text family 266866. Learn more about Freedom Family Investments Liquidity Fund on your journey to financial freedom through passive income. Text family to 66866. Role under the specific expert with income property you need. Ridge lending Group Nmls 42056. In gray history from beginners to veterans, they provided our listeners with more mortgages than anyone.   Keith Weinhold (00:25:21) - It's where I get my own loans for single family rentals up to four Plex's. Start your pre-qualification and chat with President Charlie Ridge personally. They'll even customize a plan tailored to you for growing your portfolio. Start at Ridge Lending group.com Ridge lending group.com.   Ken (00:25:48) - This is Rich dad advisor Ken McElroy. Listen to get Rich education with Keith Reinhold and don't quit your daydream.   Keith Weinhold (00:26:06) - We're talking about how to profit more and faster than with buy and hold property with the BR real estate investing strategy will tell you more about a live virtual event tomorrow night, with more about it where you can attend from the comfort of your own home and have any of your questions answered in real time. And can is with me today to talk about it. Welcome in. Hello, Kate. Thank you. Thank you for the invitation to be.   Ken (00:26:32) - A part of the get Rich education podcast.   Keith Weinhold (00:26:34) - Oh, we're honored to have you. Tell us a little more about yourself. First, you're Memphis based and you're part of a real estate family. Your wife is a realtor.   Keith Weinhold (00:26:44) - Yes, that is true. I have been in.   Ken (00:26:46) - The real estate industry in Memphis, Tennessee since 1992. I believe I was born to be in real estate. If real estate's in my DNA. If you cut me open little houses, duplexes, commercial buildings and multifamily apartments will drip out. I am pure real estate.   Keith Weinhold (00:27:05) - And you definitely came up in the right place for that. For us major metros, you're in perhaps the best cap rate market. Now. A lot of people are familiar with fix and flip real estate, maybe something that they've seen on HGTV where you buy low, you fix it up and you sell it for more. In fact, a lot of people think that's what real estate investing means. And others, they think of real estate investing more passively by identifying a good property that's already fixed up for you with a tenant in it, and ready property management. That's sort of the turnkey way. Tell us more about the BR, where I think of it as using elements of both the fix and flip world and the buy and hold world, putting them together to produce high returns and even infinite returns.   Ken (00:27:54) - That is correct. So what we're doing and what we offer, it's a hybrid, turnkey and BR, we call it BR key a nice. So basically that acronym as you know it stands for buy, renovate, rent, refinance and repeat. And we've added the key to it because we do all of the turnkey worked for our investor clients. We do all of the heavy lifting. So we turn BR into a passive investment where we find properties through our sourcing, we vet the properties and then the properties are offered to investors in as is condition. We provide a desktop appraisal which provides a future estimated after repair value after the property has been renovated. We seek out appraisers who are certified, who are licensed in the areas in the markets that we provide properties in, so that we're not just shooting at the door on a future value, basing the values on what Trulia says or Zillow or Redfin and what have you. So it's a real certified value from a licensed appraiser. Then we have licensed contractors to provide the scope of work and an estimate on how much the renovations are going to cost.   Ken (00:29:24) - And then we do we have a relationship with an in-house property manager. The property manager markets the property, leases the property out, and our target market is partially section A, government subsidized tenants, because we found that in the Memphis, Tennessee area is that section eight pays more than market rate in most instances. And I like to say that section eight rent payments, the recession proof, they're Covid proof, they're pandemic proof. I have not received a call yet. And section eight says, hey, we could not get your section eight payment out because of Joe Biden not being able to sign the check, or he didn't work last week, or Donald Trump could not sign the check or what have you. But time and time again, those section eight payments, even during the pandemic, they always showed up at the beginning of the month without fail.   Keith Weinhold (00:30:25) - I have rented to section eight tenants myself, and I can attest to that. That check just keeps coming in. You have to have a case manager come in and take a look at the property.   Keith Weinhold (00:30:38) - Prior to that section eight tenant being placed. Section eight a government subsidized housing program for those that qualify. But now that we've talked about the tenant, some what which is the rent are if we look back at the first are in the borough that is the rehab. You could also call that first are renovation. And really what you're doing there is you're eliminating friction for a lot of people because one thing that turns. People away from the Bir or concerns them about the BR. Is that first r the rehab because they find it daunting or intimidating to manage contractors? A lot of people don't want to have to manage contractors, and those that do, they don't want to do it again. But the thing is, is that you formed a team of contractors, property managers, project managers to manage those contractors and lenders to assist with that entire BR key process, making it pretty hands off for the investor.   Ken (00:31:37) - That's absolutely correct. So we have the relationships with contractors your locally that we've vetted that have proven themselves.   Ken (00:31:46) - They're true blue and these contractors have withstood the test of time. We develop relationships with electricians, plumbers, heating and air conditioning guys, roofers, painters, flooring experts, guys that can do kitchen cabinets, countertops, everything from the router to the tuner. And we also have excellent relationships that we've developed not only with the big boxes, Home Depots, Lowe's, but there are actually many locally owned mom and pop family owned supply houses that we are able to get better prices on some items versus the big boxes. So if those savings are passed on to the investor clients that our project managers and contractors are renovating those properties for.   Keith Weinhold (00:32:41) - I want to talk more about how that's actually going the actual track record with that team. But before we do, if we talk bigger picture, let's look at some real numbers on an example property so that one can understand the overall process. On why BR is attractive to investors, and why they can put substantially less money into the deal than they can with what we would call a deal that's already completely done for you.   Keith Weinhold (00:33:08) - Turnkey.   Ken (00:33:09) - Yes, and I like to use a $100,000. It's a nice round number, right.   Keith Weinhold (00:33:16) - Inflation is basically it, but you can still find some.   Ken (00:33:19) - Yes. So an example said hypothetically, if we had a vetted property that was available to be purchased by an investor client, and that appraised value after repairs is estimated to be $100,000, we simply take 75% of that after repair value of $100,000, and we arrive at 75,000. So we work in reverse, in a sense. And if the contractor has estimated that the renovations, labor and material cost is going to be $25,000, 75,000, 75% of the 100,000, -$25,000 in renovation expenses that would leave $50,000. So the actual purchase price of the property would be $50,000 plus $25,000 in renovations. So the investors approximate all in is $75,000. That doesn't take into consideration title company fees, homeowners insurance. We encourage all of the investor clients to get a six months builder's risk policy from one of our sources that we use here locally, but of course, all of the investor clients are free to use or choose whomever they'd like to.   Ken (00:34:53) - So the property is purchased for 50,000. The renovations, which are high quality, are done for 25,000. So now the investor is all in for $75,000. Now we're at that second stage, and many times the renovations are completed before the property is rented. So though that second and third are kind of interchangeable, sometimes we the property's refinanced before it's rented, sometimes it's rented before it's refinance. So in a perfect world, the property has been rented to a client. So if the client's all in for $75,000 and we have what we created, our own 1% rule of thumb. So if the investor is all in for 75,000 and the numbers are still based on renting it for maybe 1% of the value. So we find that our rent versus price return is more than 1%. So in many cases we blow that 1% out of the water. We're talking about the.   Keith Weinhold (00:36:01) - Monthly rent being 1% or greater of the overall value or purchase. Price of the property.   Ken (00:36:06) - Yes, sir. That's true. That's correct. So after the property is rented for, let's say, $1,000 per month.   Ken (00:36:15) - Now it's time to get the property appraised. We do have lending partners that are very experienced with investment refinancing, whether it's conventional or whether it's DSC or refinancing. So now the appraiser comes out to the property after the investor client has made loan application. The investors appraiser comes out and voila, the property is totally renovated. It's rented out. The appraiser appraises the property for $100,000 plus or minus. It may appraise for 95, it may appraised for one T, and so on, so forth. So what happens with the investment refinancing the loan to value or LTV is usually 75%. It's not typical for the lender to refinance at 80% or 85% of the refinance. But with investment financing, refinancing nowadays is typically 75%, so the praise is for 100,000. The lender lends 75% of the 100,000, which is 75,000 on the refinance. So now the investor who has paid cash or possibly obtained a hard money loan or private financing in order to purchase the property, their coffers are replenished with it. 75,000 were either the hard money or the private.   Ken (00:37:42) - Long is paid off, and the investor now has a property that they've refinanced for 75,000. That's worth 100,000. But the key is now they've refinanced and they're at that final, or now they're able to repeat the process, rinse and repeat, re-up whatever you want that are to me. But it basically means you can reuse that $75,000 again to purchase your second property. Third property, you're able to scale quickly or pay off the hard money lender. And the hard money lender says, hey, I don't need this $75,000. Do you own it again to buy property number two? We're property number three. And it just goes on. And I'd like that word that to use key efficient.   Keith Weinhold (00:38:28) - Right. Because in at least one of the scenarios you described there, you would have no money left in the deal and 25% equity in the property.   Ken (00:38:37) - That is correct because even though the investor is all in for 75,000, that new roof, the new windows, the new luxury vinyl plank flooring, the new HVAC system and so on, so forth.   Ken (00:38:53) - Those improvements cause to happen is called force appreciation. It's worth more than $75,000 because of all of the improvements that have been made to $25,000 to new light fixtures, the pretty paint color, the new mailbox, the landscaping. So we found that many of the houses that we offer, they once were the ugly ducklings of the neighborhood. Now they're the beautiful swans of the neighborhood, and they're the homes and houses that people flock to that they prefer to living.   Keith Weinhold (00:39:30) - Yeah. So we're talking about some of those rehabs you might LVP the floor do a kitchen fluff up. By that I mean maybe you're saving and painting the cabinets, but replacing the countertops, new light fixtures, perhaps keeping bath tile in place, but glazing it and then bringing everything to code?   Ken (00:39:47) - Yes, sir. That's absolutely correct. And we do have a really nice design for our properties. We use really nice neutral colors when it comes to the tile, to the paint, the flooring, the vent hood color, so on, so forth.   Ken (00:40:02) - And you mentioned code enforcement, which we had excellent relationships with the Memphis Shelby County Code Enforcement officers, whether it comes to the electrical inspection, plumbing inspections, what have you, we have really good relationships with those government officials.   Keith Weinhold (00:40:20) - You might want exotic colors for your own home, but in a rental property you want to go neutral. It can take a while to rent a purple kitchen. Now talk to us about the the timeline to rehab and refinance a property. How many months or days does that take? And I'm looking for an not an optimistic scenario, but a realistic scenario and a real life track record of what you've done. Because I've known that our followers have bought a number of properties from you.   Ken (00:40:49) - Yes, our average turnaround time right now is approximately 90 days. The quickest turn that we've ever done from acquisition all the way to the final stage of refinancing was 32 days. But that particular property there was the scope of work of $15,000. It was really clean. Okay, already had a new roof, the AC system was already top knots, so there was just very few things that had to be delivered.   Ken (00:41:21) - But on average it's about 90 days from start to finish. And in this part of the country the weather's quite nice, especially during the summertime. It's very hot, but we are hit occasionally in the wintertime with snow and ice, and it paralyzed the city of Memphis because we're just not equipped the way the northeast is and some other parts of the country when it comes to snow and ice. So we push back our estimated time frame to complete a Berkey property during the winter months to about 120 days. But our average is 90 days, and we tend to we like to under-promise with the 90 days, but we may hit our target in 75 days or 80 days, and we just recently had some properties that we should be able to smash the all time record of 32 days, where we may be able to get from a buy to refinance done, and maybe 21 days.   Keith Weinhold (00:42:21) - Wow. That's the result of a well refined system. And I would submit to most any listener to try to do that across state lines or even in your own home market, as you're trying to manage contractors and codes and inspectors and appraisers and lenders and everything else, you're going to join us with our investment coach narration, co-hosting Gre's live virtual event.   Keith Weinhold (00:42:47) - Alex, a little bit more about what one can expect there. Attending the live virtual event to learn more about what.   Ken (00:42:54) - One can expect is that we will have, I guess, actual numbers on properties that are available, scopes of work, rental amounts that are based on our studies with the data that section eight provides, as well as the local market rents for cash paying tenants. So I do want to make it clear we do have cash paying tenants as well. But we do offer to the investor clients a choice. If we have a four bedroom property, for example, that section 8th May possibly pay 1700 a month for, and then all of a sudden we get a cash paying tenant that's willing to pay 1600. We present the information to the investor to say, hey, would you rather hold out for the $1,700 section eight tenant? Or would you rather go with the $1,600 cash flowing ticket that works at Blue Oval City, the electric vehicle plant that's on the outskirts of Memphis, about 30 miles outside of Memphis at the end.   Ken (00:44:01) - Who knows? Real soon. It was just announced yesterday that X, I and Elon Musk, they've chosen the city of Memphis to be the headquarters for the world's largest supercomputer. So we're looking forward to the benefits and economic boom that that's going to add to the Memphis market.   Keith Weinhold (00:44:23) - All right. So we've got some economic drivers behind this. Learn more about vetting tenants. Berkey and importantly, the value added here. By bringing that team, especially those contractors that are being managed for you with the Berkey join Jerry's live virtual event. It's where you can attend live in real time. You can ask questions if you wish that way, and you can do it all from your own home. Gree investment coach extraordinaire Naresh is going to co-host it along with my guest Ken. Here it is free to attend free learning and if you wish, expect a buying opportunity for property conducive to the BR. Often single family homes two, three and four bedroom properties in Investor Advantage Memphis, you'll learn which properties are right for this and which ones are not.   Keith Weinhold (00:45:10) - Attend tomorrow night it is Tuesday the 25th at 8:30 p.m. eastern, 530 Pacific. Attend tomorrow and sign up now at GR webinars.com. You can do it right now while it's top of mind for our live event that is at Gray webinars.com. Hey, it's been great having your insight. Thanks so much for coming on the show today.   Ken (00:45:33) - Thank you. You're welcome.   Keith Weinhold (00:45:40) - Between last year and this year, more followers have bought from this provider in this system than any other in the entire nation. Strong deals with less out of pocket for the investor. And maybe you don't prefer a section eight tenant. You can ask about that during the virtual event. And again, what was I saying here last week? This is the event that's a bigger deal than Olympic handball. Really though I would like for you to attend. This is entry level housing. So you're going to own a scarce asset that everyone wants. Expect to be in for a little of your own skin in the game, and you'll own a leveraged asset of tangible value that down the road.   Keith Weinhold (00:46:27) - Demographics say that people will desire to first rent from you and then later buy from you. If you think that it can benefit you and you like to learn, then I'd really like you to attend tomorrow night. I invite you Tuesday the 25th at 8:30 p.m. eastern, 530 Pacific. Register free now at Gray webinars.com. Until next week. I'm your host, Keith Wild. Don't quit your day dream.   Speaker 5 (00:46:58) - Nothing on this show should be considered specific, personal or professional advice. Please consult an appropriate tax, legal, real estate, financial or business professional for individualized advice. Opinions of guests are their own. Information is not guaranteed. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. The host is operating on behalf of get Rich education LLC exclusively.   Keith Weinhold (00:47:26) - The preceding program was brought to you by your home for wealth building. Get rich education.com.  

Dieser Podcast wird unter anderem präsentiert von TOUGH'N'ROUGH, der besten Fitness Competition in der Schweiz!Facts:Mixed Teams of Two5 Divisons: Elite, RX, Masters RX, Intermediate and ScaledNeu auch für Masters: Divison Masters RX ab 35+Total CHF 10'000 Cashpreise für die Podestplätze in allen Kategorien, auch Intermediate und ScaledRund CHF 2'500 für Elite Platz 1Wir bieten den grössten Competition Floor der Schweiz - über 700m2Geilste Halle der Schweiz, mit genügend Platz für alleGrosse Athlete Area, genügend Duschen und GarderobenGrosse Warm-up AreaViel Raum für die Athletinnen und Athleten.Zweitägiges Finale für alle KategorienViel Platz für deine Fans, Tribüne und Vendor Village direkt am FloorDer Online Qualifier ist "most accessible": 3 wods, alle individual machbar, alle bis zum letzten Tag der Quali machbar. Plus: wenn dein Teampartner oder deine Teampartnerin zwischen Quali und Finale ausfallen sollte, kannst du jemanden nachmelden, der mit dir am Finale startet.Wir arbeiten mit Circle 21 für den Qualifier. Anmeldung, Videos aufnehmen und hochladen alles in einer App.Daten:Online Qualification 14.06. - 06.07.24 --> 3 individual WorkoutsFinale 28. und 29.09.2024 in St. Gallen (Schweiz)Jetzt registrieren und mitmachen!https://toughandrough.ch/folge dem toughandrough Team auf Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/toughandrough_switzerland/PS: Unsere beiden Protagonisten Moritz & Dragan sind ebenfalls LIVE dabei ;)folge Moritz auf Instagram: moritz_fiebigfolge Dragan auf Instagram: brat_dragan

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 9, 2024 is: germane • jer-MAYN • adjective Germane is a formal synonym of relevant that describes something related to a subject in an appropriate way. // Her comments were not germane to the discussion. // While these facts about the witness may interest the jury, they are not in fact germane. See the entry > Examples: “Corporate retreats aren't just for fun and games; they are for tackling germane issues that are critical to the success of any such organization.” — Abiola Salami, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2023 Did you know? “Wert thou a Leopard, thou wert Germane to the Lion.” So wrote William Shakespeare in his five-act tragedy Timon of Athens, using an old (and now-obsolete) sense of germane meaning “closely akin.” Germane comes to us from the Middle English word germain, meaning “having the same parents.” (An early noun sense of germane also referred specifically to children of the same parents.) Today, something said to be germane is figuratively “related” in that it is relevant or fitting to something else, as when music critic Amanda Petrusich wrote of an album by the Chicks: “‘Gaslighter' is brasher and more pop-oriented than anything the band has done before. Part of this shift feels germane to our era—the idea of genre, as it applies to contemporary music, is growing less and less relevant—but it also feels like a final repudiation of country music, and of a community that mostly failed to support or to understand one of its biggest acts.”

The trial rages on.  The state calls their expert witness and the defense cross examines.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The trial rages on. The state calls their expert witness and the defense cross examines.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Germane hit one year on the final day of 2023, yep December 31, the December birthday meeting was awesome and with a very unusual occurrence of only having one guy celebrating. It's been an honor to witness his growth, his transformation over the past year. If you're not having a blast in your recovery, you ain't doing it right! And Thank you for allowing me to participate in my recovery in this manner today! Enjoy! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dan-reeves8/support

Pentru stânga germană, alegerile pentru „landtagurile” (parlamentele federale regionale) din Bavaria și Hessa, de la 8 octombrie, vor intra în istorie ca o „duminică neagră”. Toate partidele considerate de stânga au suferit pierderi masive.

Germane Barnes knew he'd be an architect at age 6, before he even knew what that meant.Growing up playing basketball, he honed skills he now deftly deploys in his creative practice.After a tumultuous period spurred by devastating loss, he has taken the architecture world by storm. He's swept the most prestigious prizes and is poised to become one of the most notable architects of our lifetime.Images, links and more from Germane on cleverpodcast.com!Please say Hi on social! Twitter, Instagram and Facebook - @CleverPodcast, @amydevers,If you enjoy Clever we could use your support! Please consider leaving a review, making a donation, becoming a sponsor, or introducing us to your friends! We love and appreciate you!Clever is hosted & produced by Amy Devers, with editing by Rich Stroffolino, production assistance from Ilana Nevins and Anouchka Stephan, and music by El Ten Eleven. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Glaube doch bitte jede:r, was er oder sie mag. Die Gedanken sind frei, die Religion ohnehin und wer mit Dung gefüllte Kuhhörner im Acker vergraben möchte, soll es doch tun - wo ist also das Problem? Eine Folge über die Anthroposophie und zugleich ein Lehrstück darüber, wie leicht wir als Gesellschaft gewillt sind, alle Wissenschaft und alles kritische Denken fahren zu lassen. Zu Gast in dieser Folge ist Oliver Rautenberg, Journalist und Blogger, bekannt als „Der AnthroBlogger“. Anthroposophie begegnet uns in Waldorfschulen (wenig überraschend), in der Ernährung (schon überraschender) und in der Medizin (in der Medizin?!?). Ausgedacht hat sie der „Universalscharlatan“ und Hauslehrer Rudolf Steiner. Ein paar Fakten über Anthroposophie: Waldorfpädagogik ist nichts als eine Erfindung im Auftrag eines Zigarettenmagnaten. Waldorfschulen lehren Esoterik und Wissenschaft unterschiedlos nebeneinander. Ein Grundidee: Wir alle sind Wiedergeborene - allerdings ist der Prozess bei der Geburt noch nicht abgeschlossen. In 7-Jahres-Schritten erhalten Menschen Zeit ihres Lebens neue Körperhüllen. Danach bemisst sich, was ein junger Mensch kennt - und kennen darf. Fakten zum Beispiel seien in den ersten beiden Jahrsiebten schädlich. Anthroposophie ist damit auch eine Erziehung zur Unmündigkeit, die Kinder bewusst vor Fakten schützen will. Fakten erst ab 14.Auch schön: Jedes Kind vollzieht mit seiner Entwicklung die Entwicklung der Menschheit noch einmal nach. Dank Rudolf Steiner wissen wir: Mit zehn Jahren ist das Kind gerade ein Germane. Entsprechend sind bei den Zehnjährigen die Germanen dran. Anschließend Römer. Ist das den Schüler:innen transparent? Vorsicht bei Fakten im zweiten Jahrsiebt…Kaum sinnvoller in der Medizin: Apotheken verkaufen Mittel, die keinerlei Wirknachweis erbringen mussten (und es auch gar nicht könnten) - an Menschen, die glauben, dass ihnen das hilft. Damit veredeln Apotheken Pseudomedizin. Und Krankenkassen zahlen die Party. Man gehe einmal durch eine durchschnittliche Apotheke und suche zwischen Dr. Hauschka und Weleda die Hinweise auf anthroposophische Wurzeln. Ein erstaunliches Bild. Es gibt eine Linie nach rechts: Waldorfschulen - Impfskeptiker - Querdenker … und weiter. In der Pandemie waren etliche Waldorfschulen regelrechte Corona-Zentren. Möglicherweise noch schwerwiegender: Eines von 1.000 Kindern, das an Masern erkrankt, stirbt an der Krankheit. Kinder an Waldorfschulen haben ein 50fach erhöhtes Risiko, sich mit Masern anzustecken. Wer Mathematik nicht auf einer Waldorfschule gelernt hat, hat deutlich bessere Chancen auszurechnen, was das bedeutet. Die Anthroposophie neigt zu der Einordnung, Krankheit sei wichtig für die Entwicklung, also nützlich. Vielfach auch noch eine Art Restschuld aus früheren Leben, der Kranke also selber schuld. Was machen dann anthroposophische Krankenhäuser anderes als Medizin?Und dann ist da die Sache mit KackhörnchenWer ein „Demeter“-Siegel für seine Produkte haben möchte, muss (!) im Herbst mit Dung gefüllte Kuhhörner im Boden vergraben. Diese fungieren als Antennen und sammeln über den Winter kosmische Energie. Im Frühjahr werden die Hörner ausgegraben, der kosmisch aufgeladene Dung homöopathisch gestreckt, bis kein Dung mehr messbar ist, und das ganze dann auf dem Feld ausgebracht. Demeter nennt das biodynamische Landwirtschaft und kontrolliert das. Und könnte man das noch weglächeln, die Weigerung, Tiere zu Impfen oder anders als homöopathisch zu behandeln, verursacht echtes und vermeidbares Tierleid. Warum das Ganze ein Lehrstück ist? Es scheint, das Unbehagen mit Wissenschaft und Entwicklung ist so groß, dass auch noch die obskursten Alternativen eine gewisse Attraktivität entwickeln. Was wir im Kontext der Anthroposophie sehen, ist kein harmloser Blödsinn, sondern gefährlich, so Oliver....

Germane Barnes knew he'd be an architect at age 6, before he even knew what that meant.Growing up playing basketball, he honed skills he now deftly deploys in his creative practice.After a tumultuous period spurred by devastating loss, he has taken the architecture world by storm. He's swept the most prestigious prizes and is poised to become one of the most notable architects of our lifetime.Images, links and more from Germane on cleverpodcast.com!Please say Hi on social! Twitter, Instagram and Facebook - @CleverPodcast, @amydevers,If you enjoy Clever we could use your support! Please consider leaving a review, making a donation, becoming a sponsor, or introducing us to your friends! We love and appreciate you!Clever is hosted & produced by Amy Devers, with editing by Rich Stroffolino, production assistance from Ilana Nevins and Anouchka Stephan, and music by El Ten Eleven. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Best Video on How to Buy Precious Metals (Bullion): https://bit.ly/3iR8Rq3 TIMESTAMP: :33 a significant financial development may have just occurred that may impact the entire world. 2:43 who is responsible for the demise of our purchasing power? 5:41 This leads me to ask, IS THE UNITED STATES PAST IT'S PEAK AS THE WORLD'S RESERVE CURRENCY OR IS IT HERE TO STAY FOR THE LONG-TERM? 9:30 Germane to the subject of currencies, what are your thoughts on precious metals right now? Is this a good time to buy gold? 15:35 What about silver, platinum, and palladium? 17:14 Sticking the Americas, let's move to Latin America. What are the latest developments there that we should be concerned about? 21:50 india has just become the most populated country on the planet. Why does this matter? 27:03 is india an emerging economy or a third world country? 31:45 what is the birth-out-of-wedlock percentage in india? 36:00 40:38 Does apple see an opportunity in india? a sign of things to come? 45:04 Arbitrage opportunities? 47:28 how does philosophy apply to our discussion today? 49:20 when you change your hero's, you change your behavior 52:30 Tell us more about capitalism and morality and where will it be conducted this year? 53:37 previous speakers from capitalism and morality Website | www.provenandprobable.com

Germani so bili za Rimljane eni od barbarov, a hkrati tudi najsijajnejša in najtrajnejša stvaritev političnega ter vojaškega ustroja Rimskega cesarstva. Preplet med cesarstvom in germanskimi ljudstvi zunaj rimskih meja – npr. rimski zgodovinar Tacit jih v delu Germanija opisuje več kot štirideset – je zapleten tudi z današnjega vidika. Avstrijski zgodovinar Herwig Wolfram (1934), ki v delu Rimsko cesarstvo in njegovi Germani (Studia humanitatis in Založba ZRC SAZU, 2022) temeljito raziskuje ta odnos, zapiše, da Rimsko cesarstvo izumi svoje Germane. S tem misli, da germanska ljudstva tega pojma niso poznala in da si je cesarstvo samo ustvarilo sliko o njih, saj so o njih poročali samo antični avtorji. Več o tem pa s prevajalcem omenjenega dela in zgodovinarjem doc. dr. Milanom Lovenjakom z Oddelka za zgodovino ljubljanske Filozofske fakultete. FOTO: Wikipedija; prikaz bitke pri Mrzli reki na Valvasorjevem bakrorezu.

In this video, I sit down with Germane Barnes to talk about his career in architecture and he's been unapologetically him in various spaces. Germane Barnes Social Media https://germanebarnes.com/ https://www.instagram.com/gmane16 https://twitter.com/uncleremuschkn --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/blkwmnanimator/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/blkwmnanimator/support

Germane Barnes is the Principal of Studio Barnes, and Associate Professor and the Director of the Community Housing & Identity Lab (CHIL) at the University of Miami School of Architecture. Barnes' practice investigates the connection between architecture and identity, examining architecture's social and political agency through historical research and design speculation. Believing strongly in design as a process, he approaches each condition imposed on a project as an opportunity for transformation. Born in Chicago, IL, Germane Barnes received a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Architecture from Woodbury University, where he was awarded the Thesis Prize for his project Symbiotic Territories: Architectural Investigations of Race, Identity, and Community.His work has recently been exhibited in the Museum of Modern Art's groundbreaking 2021 exhibition, Reconstructions: Architecture and Blackness in America, and the 2021 Chicago Architecture Biennial. He was a winner of the 2021 Architectural League Prize for Young Architects and Designers, and is a 2021-2022 Rome Prize Fellow at the American Academy in Rome. His work has also been featured and added to the permanent collections of international institutions, most notably MAS Context, Milan Design Week, San Francisco MoMA, LACMA, The Art Institute of Chicago, The New York Times, Architect Magazine, and The National Museum of African American History and Culture where he was identified as one of the future designers on the rise.Additional Links:Vigilantism, edited by Germane Barnes and Shawhin Roudbari for MAS ContextCheck out Germane's website at germanebarnes.comFollow Germane on Instagram @gmane16Follow Germane on Twitter @UncleRemusChkn

What is Black Metamodernism? What distinguishes metamodernism from modernism, postmodernism, and hypermodernity? In this special Integral Stage episode, Layman sits down with metamodernist thinker and writer, Germane Marvel, to explore these questions, and to take a deep dive into Germane's thoughts on diunital cognition; the role of emotional intelligence in both/and thinking; nihilism and the meaning crisis; the concepts of meta-existence and metatheology; metamodern spirituality, Taoism, and Ifa; the nature of light surpremacy; and the contributions of the global south to the resolution of the postmodern aporia. Germane Marvel's Medium page https://medium.com/@germanemarvel Layman's write-up of Marvel's work https://www.whatisemerging.com/profiles/black-metamodernism Fathom app https://hello.fathom.fm/ Support The Integral Stage on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/theintegralstage Special thanks and big love to Shai Newman, Brandon LaChance, Mike McElroy, Brandon Norgaard, Brendan Graham Dempsey, Francesca, and all of our other Patreon supporters!

#037 Mal nicht ‘rumdeutschen (feat. Zwielichtweber) Milde Spoilerwarnung: - The Walking Dead - Die Barbaren (Netflix) Interessante Tools und Themen: - Komfortzone - Nachteile des physischen Buches - Lesen vs Hörbuch - Poesie/Lyrik Der Zwielichtweber ist zu Gast, erzählt von seinen Erfahrungen und begeistert Jabba und Lev. Lev belagert Steckdosen, lässt das Chaos zu und hatte keine Lyrik in der Schule. Jabba hat nen kaputten Rücken, wird garstig bei einer Abkürzung und hat wie eine Dönerbude Montags geschlossen. Mit Kacknoobs-Gütesiegel empfohlen: - Jörg Kastner: Thorag der Germane, Band 1 bis 4 - Die Barbaren (Netflix) Staffel 2 - Der Zwielichtweber, Kontakt via zwielichtweber@gmail.com - Youtube: “Alter Schwede”, Poetry Slam Beitrag von Lars Ruppel Wir im Netz: https://www.mf-kleineberg.com/kacknoobs-hub

Lanz und Precht. Barbaren der politischen Fernsehlandschaft. Precht ein zerstreuter Germane aus der Region Lippe sucht seinen Politicum Lanzum in dieser Folge. Nördlich des Teutoburger Walds fechten 3 Jünglinge diesen feurigen Kampf aus. In diesem Sinne Prost!

This week we talk with AJ Kerrigan (Twitter / LinkedIn) about Felienne Hermans' The Programmer's Brain, an important book we recommend every developer should read (at least once).Structure:After quickly discussing the gist of the book, we dive into some of the concepts it teaches:- Chunkability: for faster reading and comprehension of code.- Germane load: the work required to encode thoughts to long-term memory, and the value of "worked examples".- Semantic wave: needing to oscillate (as a teacher) between abstract and concrete as you learn.- Cognitive dimensions of codebases and tradeoffs in code you write and tools you use.- Practicing code reading (Code Reading Clubs): entry points and use of a debugger. Useful links:- PyBites #082 on type hints - A Case Study in Refactoring Python- CodeTour- Annotated Underscore.js Source Code- Inception Layers and Interruptability- Many More Much Smaller Steps- Code Reading Club- Writing Excuses- Pybites platform (check out the forums!)- And a special shoutout to the Teaching Python podcast as well.- Book AJ is reading: An Unintended Voyage (complete Pybites podcast reading list)

Cognitive Load Theory is a research-based tool for assessing the difficulty and pace of the tasks, assignments and instructions we deliver in-class to our students. In essence, when difficulty is high and pace is fast, then the cognitive load is high. When difficulty is low, and the pace is slow, then the cognitive load is also low. In today's episode, I describe the things teachers should do to create an appropriate cognitive load for each lesson, whilst building working memory, Germane load and long-term memory. This episode is accompanied by a blog post: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2020/10/25/what-is-cognitive-load-theory/ Outdoor Learning: Practical Ideas That Every Teacher Should Know [Blog Post]: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2017/05/07/outdoor-learning-practical-ideas-that-every-teacher-must-know/ Spatial Learning: A Powerful Learning Tool [Blog Post]: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2017/11/12/spatial-learning-a-powerful-teaching-tool/ Check out my award-winning book for teachers - The Quick Guide to Classroom Management: 45 Secrets That All High School Teachers Need to Know: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TVCWFZ4 Check out my blog for teachers: https://richardjamesrogers.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/richardrogersauthor/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/richardjarogers/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/richard_james_rogers/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgadlOMi7VPubiHKlcQSI3w

 Episode 223 (Season 6, Episode 4) Working with Humans Have you ever met a human? If not—or even if you have—and you're looking to brush up on your skills, check out this latest podcast. The Boom Team teaches you “best practices” for working with those darned humans. From working with agents to working with clients, we impart some hard-earned info for you to consider so that you can be the best human-agent you can be! Stick around to find all of our secrets to “Work With Humans” on the Boom Real Estate Podcast!   SHOW NOTES Christian is a multi-gazillionaire now [3:22] Todd's red hair looks even redder than ever [4:19] Bees are super sexist and everybody knows it [6:28] Megan sets the scene for today's content [7:21] “Germane” is a tough word to spell [9:44] Tip #1 - Be a student of the human race [10:40] Understand different personalities and how to relate to them [11:56] Understand that personality tests are just a tool [14:01]  Tip #2 - Use honey, not vinegar [15:00] It's easier to work with someone who isn't angry—ask us how we know! [16:43] Todd's Dad Jokes and Death [18:35] Terry practices his French language skills [19:39] The Boom Team adheres to a three-coffin-stack maximum—and for good reason! [21:01] Tip #3 - Play the long game [21:35] You can never over-communicate [23:35]   SHOW LINKS The Joy of Murder Hornets:  https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/02/us/asian-giant-hornet-washington.html A Free Enneagram Test:  https://www.truity.com/test/enneagram-personality-test Free Myers-Briggs Test:  https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test Geezer Gazillionaires:  https://www.forbes.com/sites/briansolomon/2013/03/14/geezer-gazillionaires-the-worlds-oldest-richest-people/?sh=602b18248eba Use Carrot Juice to Make Your Red Hair Even Redder:  https://www.lippiehippie.com/how-to-make-natural-red-hair-redder/#:~:text=%20How%20to%20Make%20Natural%20Red%20Hair%20Redder%3F,Henna.%20Henna%20is%20a%20type%20of...%20More%20 You Can Mix Honey and Vinegar:  https://www.benefits-of-honey.com/vinegar-and-honey/   BOOM LINKS Email: info@boomrealestatepodcast.com Web: www.boomrealestatepodcast.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/boomrealestatepodcast Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCt1P-rEDZ1h2UYT20EN4mYQ 30-Day Jumpstart: www.Boom30.com Coronavirus Playbook:  www.BoomPlaybook.com  

Joe sits down with Anete Germane from the Irregular Latvian YouTube channel to discuss the origin of her videos, life as an Latvian in France, intercultural customer service, and much more! You can check out her YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/c/GermaneAnete Opening and closing music: courtesy of Ausma Apsīte

Season 12 Episode 5. German Week. Jenna once again demonstrates that she is a fancy soda slut. We are so proud of Amanda this episode! Arguments are had about humid heat vs dry heat and honestly maybe just skip it, it's dumb as hell. Katelyn requests things be cut out and they once again are not! :) Thanks to Brian for all the good, good German pronunciations. Please excuse the background noises, we are doing our best! Just pretend we are in a really quiet restaurant together. tarttalk@outlook.com @tart.talk on instagram

Welcome. Marc Hershon here, your every-other-weekly host for Succotash, the Comedy Soundcast Soundcast. This is Episode 270 of the show that knows how…knows how to play clips of comedy soundcasts – a sort of Whitman's Sampler of audio treats, if you will – that gives you a chance to slip a taste of various soundcasts into your ears, take a nibble, and see if you don't want to go find the whole show and pig out, listening-wise. I had a week off from my day job for vacation last week and headed down to Los Angeles for some R&R. And I got a chance to hang out with some pals and chums, a few of them having been past visits to Succotash, including Travis Clark, Francis Cronin, Jon Manfrellotti, Matt Weinhold, Rick Overton, and Dana Carvey. It was a lot of fun, got a lot of nothing done, and feel rested up and ready to clip! Last week in this feed, for Epi269, my classy, crafty, and cogent co-host Tyson Saner not only served up some crispy clips from soundcasts Gluten Free Gaming, The Spawn Chunks, and Coffee With Butterscotch, but he also shared a big chunk an interview with the very funny Andy Kindler that he conducted over on his other soundcast, Anti Social Show, along with his co-host there, Hunter Block. If you missed it somewhow, check out any of the usual soundcast distribution points like Spotify, Apple and Google Podcasts, Stitcher, iHeart Radio, Audible.com, and more – or just visit our homesite, SuccotashShow.com, where you can find every damn episode of Succotash dating back 10 years to when we started. Which leads me to what I have in store for your auditory senses today. I have clips from The Ajumma Show, Geto Boys Reloaded, and Household Faces. In addition, I came across this funny musical clip comedian, actor, and perhaps future guest on this show, Patton Oswalt, found by Nick Lutsko, who took a bunch of whackadoodle rants by ultra rightwing nutball Alex Jones and turn them into a folk song. And we have a couple of calls on the Succotash Not-So-Hotline, including a new Runaway Truck Ramp report that came in over the weekend from…me. Yes, me, recorded as I was driving north on Interstate 5 on my way home through the stretch commonly called the Grapevine. And, of course, we're sponsored by Henderson's Pants brand new Toddler Trow. Before we get into the rest of this episode, I have to admit that I'm a little late recording this installment and posting it, but that's given me the chance to get a word in here about the passing of great comedian Norm MacDonald. He was secretly battling cancer for 9 years and lost that fight this week. He was one prominent comedian on the scene I never got to meet personally, but we had a lot of mutual friends in common and everyone has told me, over the years, what a great, crazy, funny guy Norm was. Germane to our show, he hosted an audio and video soundcast, Norm MacDonald Live, from 2013 to 2016, where he was interview guests – mostly friends from the comedy and acting world. Here's a clip I featured back in Succotash Episode 89 – two comedy greats we will never hear or see perform live again – Norm MacDonald interviewing Carl Reiner. CLIPS The Ajumma ShowOur first clip comes from The Ajumma Show, featuring a pair of queer – their words, no mine - Chicago comedians, Peter Kim & Eunji Kim. Peter actually started out as a San Francisco improvisor and took classes from me at the San Francisco Comedy College before helping to found the Endgames improv company. He then went on to Chicago. The Ajumma Show is a weekly soundcast examining love, politics, culture, personal victories, failures and sage advice through the judgmental glare of an ajumma. What's an ajumma? It's a Korean word for a married or middle-aged woman, which seems a little “judgy” itself.  I get the feeling it's someone who enjoys throwing shade on pretty much anything she doesn't like. In this clip, the Kims (who are not related) chat about racially specific activities. Geto Boys ReloadedI'm not exactly what you'd call a hip hop guy – I know, I know, hard to believe – and this next clip comes from a show that isn't exactly comedy, but when I saw that comedian Mike Epps was visiting hip hop legends Scarface and Willie D on their Geto Boys Reloaded soundcast, I figured it would be an excuse to bring a little culture into the room here. These guys tend to get a little deep, which is okay with me, as they converse about music, entertainment, social issues and awareness, among other topics. In our clip, the hosts and Mike get into their guest's story of leaving home for the first time and moving to Atlanta to start a career. Household FacesI just reviewed the show our next clip is from, Household Faces, for Vulture.com's This Week in Comedy Podcasts. (Obviously, Vulture hasn't gotten the memo on calling them “soundcasts”.) Hosted by charcter actor and improv comedian John Ross Bowie, he interviews other characters actors – those men and women with familiar faces that I am always pointing out to my wife when we're watching TV or movies and shouting, “I know that guy!” John got pretty well known from his appearances on The Big Bang Theory, and he recently spent three seasons as the dad on Speechless on ABC. The clip I grabbed is from the episode I reviewed featuring Xander Berkeley. Now, you may be saying, “I don't know from Xander Berkeley,” but you, sir or madam, would be wrong. This guy's been in over 200 movies and TV shows, including 24, The Walking Dead and, as they get into here, Terminator 2. That's what's in store for you in the latest installement of Succotash. If you stick around this feed next week, you'll catch Epi271 with co-host Tyson bringing you a swell collection of comedy soundcast clips and may some other surprises. Who knows? That's why they're called surprises! In the meantime, treat each other like humman beings, wash those hands, masks those faces, vax up and, if anyone asks if you've heard anything good lately, won't you please pass the Succotash? — Marc Hershon

808s and Mixtapes with DJ Z13 Exclusive Interview with Germane Hosted By: DJ Z13 aka Zachary Sinutko, Daunte Horton, and Collin Kennedy 808s and Mixtapes exclusive content is aviable on www.808Mixtape.com 808s and Mixtapes airs live on the WJCU app and website on Tuesday nights from 10PM-Midnight DJ Z13 alongside Collin Kennedy, Emily Davala, Daunte Horton, and Swayyyfather run the weekly show. 808s and Mixtapes is a weekly running FM radio show currently on WJCU 88.7 FM in Cleveland Ohio hosted by DJ Z13. Submit your music at the "Contact" page on our website www.808Mixtape.com to be featured live on the show and for interview requests. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/808mixtape/support

This week on WGYM we got a special guest. Germaine Barnes stops by to chop about the Joe Budden podcast while also telling us where he’s from, what inspires him, and his goals for the future. Sit back and enjoy the back and forth banter you’ve grown to love. Follow us at:Instagram: @whogaveyallmicsTwitter: @whogaveyallmicswebsite: wgympodcast.comGuest info:Germane Barnes:Instagram: @gmane16Twitter:Follow our host at:T:Instagram: @tstuddazTwitter: @tstuddazRuben:Instagram: @mr_youseeitCroslin:Instagram: @addicted2troubl3Six:Instagram: @justcallmesixDon't forget to tag #whogaveyallmics or @ us to let us know what you think of this week's episode!

In this episode we are joined by Germane Barnes. Barnes' research and design practice investigates the connection between architecture and identity. Mining architecture's social and political agency, he examines how the built environment influences black domesticity. His design and research contributions have been published and exhibited in several international institutions. Most notably, The Museum of Modern Art, The Graham Foundation, The New York Times, Architect Magazine, DesignMIAMI/ Art Basel, The Swiss Institute, Metropolis Magazine, Curbed, and The National Museum of African American History where he was identified as one of the future designers on the rise. This interview is part of the Lectures Interviews Exhibitions series at the Wedge Gallery. Learn more at wedgegallery.woodbury.edu.

In deze aflevering praat ik met Anne van Leeuwen, beter bekend als Vuurvrouw. Anne heeft zich in de afgelopen jaren toegewijd aan het sjamanistisch werk. Ze is ceremonieleider, teacher en geeft opleidingen. Bovenal is ze student van het sjamanisme. In deze aflevering praat ik met Anne over wat toewijding is, wat het betekent om met toewijding te leven en hoe het leven eruit zou zien zonder toewijding. Ook praten we hoe Anne steeds meer van het universeel sjamanisme verschuift naar het sjamanisme van haar eigen roots: het West-Europese sjamanisme, van de Kelten en Germane. Anne vertelt hoe proces van belichaming van haar roots en voorouderlijke kennis voor haar eruit ziet. Verder komt de rol van een teacher aan bod en hoe het ego mechanisme je kan verhinderen om de grootsheid van het leven toe te laten.Kortom, een interview met veel verschillende onderwerpen, maar bovenal veel diepgang, humor en liefde.  Veel luisterplezier!(Deze aflevering is vanwege technische redenen opgenomen zonder beeld, dus helaas is deze niet te bekijken (maar wel nog te beluisteren) via YouTube)Wil je napraten over deze aflevering? Leuk! Ik ben heel benieuwd wat je er van vond. Stuur me een berichtje via Insta (@desiree.weijs) of mail me (desi@selflove-academy.nl)Meer van Anne van Leeuwen zien en horen?Je kunt haar volgen op Instagram (@vuur.vrouw) of via www.vuurvrouw.mykajabi.com

On this episode of the podcast, we chat with the founder of Redboat animation studios and Brivvio, Adrian King. Adrian is a veteran of the animation industry who started his first business nearly 20 years ago after he became disenfranchised with not receiving the full fruits of his labour. His flagship company, Redboat, primarily works with government agencies and large businesses to create video content that helps explain complex concepts to the general public. Almost three years ago, however, Adrian noticed that many of his customers wanted simple brand elements in their videos and had to go to large animations studios to do so. After identifying this market gap, he began working on creating an iPhone application (Brivvio) that could help users, without technical experience, to create branded videos that looked professional. Whilst discussing his professional journey, Adrian addresses the lack of security many business owners face compared to regular employees and how this is the price people must pay to ‘be their own boss’.Additionally, Adrian touches on the differences between starting his first small business versus starting his new and much more ambitious venture. Specifically, he discusses how founding Brivvio has required him to seek out capital from outside investors and guidance from the various accelerator programs in order to scale the business up rapidly. With this being said, one through-line Adrian has ensured all his businesses have is being purpose-driven. Throughout the episode, he highlights how his commitment to running purpose-led companies has helped him weed out bad clients, communicate authenticity to prospective customers, and ultimately achieve long-term viability. What we talk aboutSacrificing stability in order to be your own bossRunning a startup vs a small businessThe importance of being purpose-led Links from this episodehttps://www.redboat.com.au/ (Redbot’s website)https://www.brivvio.com/ (Brivvio’s website)https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrianking/ (Adrian on LinkedIn)Find us elsewherehttps://futuretri.be/ (Future Tribe Website)https://www.instagram.com/futuretri.be/ (Future Tribe on Instagram)https://www.linkedin.com/in/germainemuller/ (Germaine on LinkedIn)https://www.instagram.com/germa_ne/ (Germaine on Instagram) Transcript Disclaimer: This transcript was generated automatically and as such, may contain various spelling and syntax errors [00:00:52] Germaine: [00:00:52] Hello, Future Tribe. Welcome to another episode of the podcast. On this episode, I've got Adrian King from two different businesses. Actually tell us a little bit about what you do, Adrian. [00:01:56] Adrian: [00:01:56] Hey, Germaine. Uh, yeah, look, uh, I've got two businesses, which is, seems like a crazy thing to do, but, uh, you know, one, one of them is very new and one of them's I've been there for about 20 plus years and you know, the one I've been.[00:02:06] Doing for most of my career has been animation and video production, more focused on the animation. And, uh, it's kind of led to the, the new business, which is really, really exciting. So the first one's called bread boats, which is the animation business, and we do a lot of animation for government, for technology, for science explaining tricky, complicated subject matter.[00:02:27] Sometimes very, uh, abstract ideas or complex ideas and distilling them down into really condense, smart, concise messages that can be transmitted to huge audiences in an animated format. And so I've had this career 20 plus years in video. And animation production. And what happened was it led to this new business because I had a client come to me and say, Hey, can you put all this sort of animated intro bottle onto our videos for us?[00:02:57] And we're going to make 30 videos every single week. And they're just a single shot of about 90 seconds. And we animated logo at the beginning and a call to action at the end and some branding on them. And I thought to myself, wow. That's really great bread and butter. I'm just going to make a killing out of doing this is great.[00:03:15] Just like, but then it's going to be really boring, right? Somebody is going to be sitting down, it's working. I'm going to have one of my team members working on this stuff all week, punching out the stuff, and it's going to be how I've got to be able to automate this. Right. It's got to be something that I can find a way to make this simpler and faster.[00:03:31] And that set me off on this path, which has now become revealed, which is a separate business. And, and that's, uh, the one that I'm kind of working pretty hard to promote at the moment, too. [00:03:41] Germaine: [00:03:41] Yeah, right. So red boat is a bit more of an established, um, business. And then you've got Brivvio how old is Brivvio?[00:03:48] Adrian: [00:03:48] About a year and a half, but we only really released, uh, on the app store in February, on Valentine's day, this year. [00:03:56] Germaine: [00:03:56] So Breo is, uh, an iPhone or an iOS app at the moment. Isn't it? [00:04:00] Adrian: [00:04:00] Yeah. So Brivvio is an app and a, uh, it's kind of growing into a bit more of a platform, but at the moment you, you you'd download the app on the iPhone.[00:04:08] And what it does is it enables anyone with zero training, zero skills. There are no how or anything like that. Pretty much anyone can do it to create branded and captioned videos really, really fast and really easily. So. Puts your tops and tail was you with your branding on it and add captions across the bottom.[00:04:29] Germaine: [00:04:29] And then where does the footage come from? Is that, can you shoot, just shoot that on your iPhone? Or can you bring in different bits and pieces of footage or [00:04:37] Adrian: [00:04:37] a mix? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So you can film within Brivvio so you can film a single shot. Let's say you want to do a 62nd or two minute video on your phone.[00:04:47] You film it in Brivvio or you can import a video that you've created elsewhere. [00:04:51] Germaine: [00:04:51] Right. And we were sort of really jumping into the, to the meat of the episode already. But tell me a bit about how you, like, did you get a team together to build the app? I know maybe the craziest sort of dropped off a little bit now, but, um, a few years ago everyone wanted an app for everything and you know, there's different qualities of.[00:05:11] Apps like there's and there's different types of apps. There's apps that you can download from an iOS store, but then there's, what's essentially a web app that you just use through a window on your phone. Tell me a little bit about how you put it together and who you use. [00:05:25] Adrian: [00:05:25] Yeah. Great question. Germane, because it was an Epic journey to get there.[00:05:28] Like we were really spent a year and a half developing this and I have no idea how hard that was going to be to, you know, to do the development. Bit of technical background in my skillset as one of the creative and stuff with the animation. But, um, yeah, certainly a journey and we tried several different technologies to make it work, including progressive web apps and, you know, Mo like multi-platform, but we ended up having to rebuild the technology from scratch in order to make it work, um, because, uh, it requires a lot of heavy video processing.[00:06:00] And so. Yeah. Some of, some of the initial attempts once a good, how it all started was I had this idea because this client said to me, we want to do this. I said, well, maybe I can automate this. And I had a bit of conversation with them. They said, yeah, that'd be great. If we could just kind of like upload the video and it just comes back to us.[00:06:15] That'd be great and thought, right, I'm going to make this systematized. And because I'm sure other people are going to want this. And so I built a prototype. I mocked it up. I did a little bit of basic. Prototyping, you know, actually the first thing I did was I built, I did the lean startup method.[00:06:33] Everybody's probably heard of the lean startup, if you haven't much definitely a book you should read. And so I did the lean stuff. I built a web form and I said, and it kind of mimicked the process of how to like field. So upload video here, putting your title, uh, uh, putting colors, choose a background and that kind of thing.[00:06:51] And it didn't really do anything. It just pretended to be the process of putting, and I showed a few people, I said, yeah, great. I can use this. And so that was kind of my first sort of validation. So then I've built a proper prototype and brought a developer on to help with that. And we built this very, very rough prototype and I realized, you know, I probably need to get some funding to develop this properly.[00:07:14] So. I started on that path. And I then met, uh, the Canberra innovation network and, uh, heard about the Griffin Accelerator. And so I applied to be to get on to that because they, they sort of mentor the people that get, uh, get into the accelerated program and then put a bit of funding into it. And. Uh, and I got in, we had to pitch it's a bit like shark tank except friendly.[00:07:38] And this is like 20 investors and mentors there. And I had to pitch for five minutes in front of them, answer all their questions and go, that was nerve wracking, but really worthwhile. And then I got in and so I spent like three to four months in an intensive incubator space or accelerator program.[00:07:55] Validating. The, this was a viable product and building the first expanding on the first prototype. [00:08:02] Germaine: [00:08:02] Yeah. Right, right. Wow. Let, let's rewind a little bit. Um, give me an idea of first of all, cause I've got a bunch of questions that I've just noted down. Um, but the, the first one is. How, how old are you if you don't mind me asking you've had a business for 20 years.[00:08:17] So I would assume you're at least 21, but how old are you? [00:08:21] Adrian: [00:08:21] Yeah, I am at least 21 enough to know better and young enough to not really care that much. [00:08:30] Germaine: [00:08:30] So, so you got into, did you start a business as soon as you left sort of traditional education? [00:08:37] Adrian: [00:08:37] No. I look up go way back. I grew up in the UK and although I've got family, the origin here in Australia, I was born in the UK and know family from both sides and do dual citizenship.[00:08:49] And I did uni in Leicester in the UK. And, uh, I was always fascinated by tech and design that kind of. Crossover in that. And I ended up getting a job in London, doing animation for computer games, which was really the dream job for a kind of. Early twenties, young guy, right. It was just back then. It was fantastic.[00:09:13] So, but then I kind of got a bit tired after a couple of years of doing that and, um, of London really, I was just it's England. And so, you know, I've been to Australia before and I knew I got family out here. I was like, I want to go and live in Australia for awhile. And so I moved out here, immigrated here and, um, did a bit of traveling on the way and ended up in a job out here.[00:09:32] So. It was two years of working in London, two years of working in Sydney, in post-production for TV and film. And then I. Then I set up my first business and it was like, ah, you know, what really set it off was I was always maybe a bit arrogant or ambitious. I just was like, I can do better than my employees.[00:09:53] And the way they're treating me is terrible. And I always thought, this is not the way it should work. Uh, I work, I found out how much money they were making from this project we were doing. And we were all working crazy hours and I was just like, no, that's not fair. So I went out and I set up that it was.[00:10:10] Back then nobody was really doing this kind of stuff and I just went right. I'm just, yeah. Am I allowed to swear? [00:10:15] Germaine: [00:10:15] Yeah, we'll just bleep it out. It's all good. [00:10:19] Adrian: [00:10:19] All right. So, uh, I just went and set up an ABN and started and I just started asking people, Hey, do you want some animation done for your TV thing or whatever it is, and, and started building up a client base.[00:10:31] And I was really lucky because I had a part-time job teaching animation. So [00:10:36] Germaine: [00:10:36] you're still in Sydney [00:10:37] Adrian: [00:10:37] at this point. This was back in Sydney. Yeah. Because I lived there for 18 years and so I had this part-time job and that was what helped me get started in my own business. Yeah. That, and then it took off and it was like, okay, I can't keep the part-time job now.[00:10:52] I just have to focus on my business. [00:10:54] Germaine: [00:10:54] Yeah. I mean, that's. That's a lovely way to do it as well. Right. Have a bit of, um, and, and, you know, I guess a few points to touch on there first it's I don't think it's arrogant to think that you can do it. You can do a better job. It's sort of what drives everyone to do.[00:11:08] I think all companies exist because you feel like you can do a better job. And, and, um, I, I talk about this a lot where some people sort of put their hand up because I think business exists to serve. And ultimately whoever serves. Better we'll we'll win. And some people might put their head up and go, no business exists to make money.[00:11:26] And you know, it doesn't matter how you make money. That's all that matters is that you make money. But I would argue that it sounds to me like you wanted to create a better way of doing something and. There's a reason that you would win out or, or you'd continue to like, you've, you've been around for 20 plus years in the business, and there's a reason why people would pick you over and over again.[00:11:47] And that is, that is because you provide value versus sort of necessarily just, you know, some other sort of, I guess, aspect or element to what you do. And then as an extension of that as well. Um, you talked about the fact that you essentially used a job to fund your ultimate goal and what you wanted to do, which I just think.[00:12:06] You shouldn't, it shouldn't be neglected. I think nowadays there's a bit of a culture of dump it all, you know, just, just go into your business tech, take all the loans that you can. And, um, and, and, you know, people talk about, Oh, in my first few years I was, I had five credit cards and I was maxing each of them out.[00:12:21] But there's something to be said for, for actually, you know, it's more sustainable to take money from one thing and pumping into what what's your, what your real passion is. Is that how you were thinking about it at that time? Was I'm just going to do this. Until I can move into this full time. [00:12:36] Adrian: [00:12:36] I look, I think my idea about why I set up my own business and why I was doing it changed and it evolved over time.[00:12:45] I think when I first started in it, I think it was partly about the money. It was like, well, I know I'm good at this job. And I enjoy doing it. So why don't I set up a business where I kind of make more money, basically doing the same thing and the challenge. I think those are the reasons why a lot of people go into business for themselves is.[00:13:06] Is they're good at what they do. And so, and they wanted kind of more, have more control over their own time and not be their own boss. And that was kind of partly it, I didn't really like working for other people. I just wanted to be my own boss and have more flexibility, but it actually turned into a situation where, and this is what happens for most people who go into business for themselves is you own your own job.[00:13:25] You still have a job, right? So you don't have an exit plan. You don't have a way out. And that was something I started to realize after a couple of years. And I realized, you know, I I'm still doing the same stuff. Uh, I just have a bit more flexibility with my time, but then, you know, that's kind of got a downside too, because I kinda ended up working in the evenings and gets really busy and stuff.[00:13:49] And you know, what, if I. If there's no work on then and no clients come in the door, then, Hey, I can't go on holiday because I don't have money yet. So it changes the dynamic. And I think what a lot of people don't think about when they go into businesses, what's the long-term vision, you know, with a, with a job, you've got a salary and at least it used to be anyway, on these days, it might be a bit different because.[00:14:12] Jobs are not as secure as they used to be, but the way it used to be as you have a job and that's your security set, whereas people get into business, there's less security, but you have a goal which is to build a business out, to bring on investors, to sell the business much, like you would build a property and sell that, and then you retire.[00:14:32] And so that, so after a couple of years of two or three years, I think I started to get that picture of, yeah. I kind of need to think of rethink how I'm doing business. And, and I brought on a close friend at the time who, uh, to become a business partner and we, we sort of changed the structure of the business.[00:14:48] We built it up and we did really, really well for five years and doubled our turnover every single year. For five years straight, which was pretty impressive from a garage thing. We didn't have any investors, no capital investment. And then we just totally bootstrapped the business. Um, but we did the classic thing, which is to overcapitalize and sort of over diversify too quickly and had overheads that weren't sustainable and, and in there was a downturn in the market and things.[00:15:17] Got really competitive. And then we had to sort of propose the business down. And so I scaled it back again. He went off to go and do something else and I scaled it back to what I was doing before and had to rethink the business completely. And then, and I've read this amazing book back then called, uh, what was it called?[00:15:36] The network economy or something like that by. Uh, I always forget the gods and I think he's a smart guy started like a wired magazine, I think anyway. So basically the concept was that the future of business is networked businesses, not these monolithic businesses, that own lots of staff and have big overheads.[00:15:58] The future is flexible businesses that cooperate and collaborate and that picture just stuck in my mind. And so I reformatted the animation business too. To be really low overhead, really flexible, really agile. And it let me travel that me live up in the Northern rivers for a couple of years, travel for three years whilst I kept this business going.[00:16:19] I traveled all over new South Wales and act how sitting and traveling and exploring a lot of Australia. And, um, Yeah, that was really interesting having this lean agile business model. But the problem with that, it was not as scalable. Yeah. So there's, there's all these different ways you can approach business.[00:16:39] But the thing that most people forget is to what's the end game, where are you going to go? What do you want to get out of this? Where you want to be in 10 years, five years, 10 years time. Do you want to build it [00:16:48] Germaine: [00:16:48] the way I always. Put it is, you know, you would never leave your house without knowing your destination.[00:16:55] I can't think of an instance where, where anyone could actually say no. That's exactly, exactly what I would do. And businesses are the same thing. But instead of thinking, you know, where am I going in the next 10 minutes? You've got to think, where am I going in 10 years time? And how can I sort of. Yeah.[00:17:11] What are the, what are the directions, whether it's the exact directions that I believe, or, I mean, not, not obviously business, you talked about how it's unpredictable, you've got control over everything, but the beauty of that as well is that there are things that you can control, of course, and you control as much as you can.[00:17:26] And. If you, you know, there's no, there's no ceiling to what you can do where in a traditional job for 10 years. Okay. There's that you can, you can get promoted and you can sort of move up the ranks, but at some point, unless you challenge the owner, um, you're not going to be able to keep moving up. Yeah, exactly.[00:17:45] And that limit is not really dictated by you either. It's sort of this, um, it's dictated by the parameters around who you work, for which to some people's. I mean, you know, if you like predictability, it's, it's wonderful, isn't it? Because you, you can map it all out and there's a fairly, you can, you can say, you know, every, every X, X, period of time, I'm going to get X promotion, which will come with.[00:18:08] X pay rise, which means that, you know, at this point in my life, I'll be on this much income and I can have this many dependents and this kind of learn. And it's beautiful. But if you like a bit of chaos and I'm predictability, you have to get into business and sort of, no, I think it's also always a fine balance of knowing that it'll be okay and it'll be fine.[00:18:30] But also wanting to work so that it'll be okay and it'll be fine. You can't just sort of dump it all and go tomorrow. I'm going to start a business and it'll be fine. And I'm not going to work towards it. I'm not going to put a plan around that. [00:18:43] Adrian: [00:18:43] Yeah. Yeah. That's really a really insightful germane. Like, it's it, it, you know, and when I first started having that job on the side really, really helped.[00:18:51] So, you know, jumping into stuff like if you, unless you have. The funds to be able to do it, like, you know, to be able to survive. And you've got like a year's worth of runway or more, and you're sorted, then you kind of have, just have to find a way to manage the chaos. Like you said, you know, you got the, the reliable income of a job or salary and, and that you can plan for life with that, you know?[00:19:17] Get married, have kids have a mortgage, et cetera, et cetera, have two holidays a year, all that kind of stuff. But when you go into business for yourself, it's harder to plan that kind of stuff. And so. You know, it's a challenge. And, and so being able to manage that is really, really important part of, part of actually running a business, being able to manage your life so that you sustain yourself is really important.[00:19:37] You know, a mentor said to me, years back, uh, one of my mentors back in Sydney said there are three rocket ships to enlightenment. He said the first one is to have your own business. So it's kinda like rocket ship. Number one, you want to get in alignment, have a business. The second one. Is to have a relationship.[00:19:58] So that's like rocket ship number two goes faster. All right. I guess high, third one is to have kids have a family rocket ship. Number three, these are the three rocket ships. I've only done. Number one. I've had, I've had rugged jet number two, but we crashed and burned a couple of times. [00:20:17] Germaine: [00:20:17] Hey, this is that a [00:20:19] Adrian: [00:20:19] couple of times too.[00:20:20] You know, that's number one. I haven't had rockets number three yet. But we'll see. Anyway, look, those, these are the things, you know, you go for the ambitious, like how much am I going to grow in my life? If I just keep doing this sort of pretty have a predictable, predictable life. It's great. I'm going to enjoy it.[00:20:38] It's going to be mapped out, map it out and I can. Create all of these, these things have a comfortable house and a life and all of that stuff. Or do I want to embrace the chaos and go for my ambitious dreams and goals and see what I can achieve. And, you know, it's not for everybody. I don't think, I think, um, there's pros and cons to both sometimes I think, yeah, it would be great to have a, just, you know, had a, a much simpler life and be able to predict all these things I could still do have great adventures.[00:21:09] Um, But, um, just different sorts, you know, [00:21:12] Germaine: [00:21:12] do you think that the people who feel like, you know, their goal or like part of their, not necessarily their calling, but you know, part of their purpose is to have a business, do you think. It's almost then, like, and I sort of feel this way. So I'm interested to hear what you think is I feel like it's almost my purpose.[00:21:33] It's almost like it'd be incorrect not to at the very least explore it. Like, okay. It can crash and burn. That's fine. But I, I, you know, if I feel like I've, I have that potential. It's it's almost, you know, unfair to myself, let alone the potential impact that I can have and therefore unfair to other people.[00:21:54] If I don't sort of explore it and to, and tap into it. Do you sort of agree with that? Or how do you sort of look at that drive that you might have that sense of entrepreneurship? Expiration innovation? [00:22:06] Adrian: [00:22:06] Yeah, I like that too, man. That's great. Um, I'm being unfair to oneself. Yeah, I think. Yeah. In some way. I, I agree with that.[00:22:15] It's like, if you have a creative desire, you have a burning desire. You want to do something. You want to create something, whether it be to make a piece of Marco sculpture to put on the wall or, you know, or to grab a family and create a wonderful stable environment for your family, or to create a business and to.[00:22:35] Do something like that, or to create a charity and do something great for the world. Uh it's if it's strong enough desire. And, you know, I think I come back to desire as far is where it is. People say desires as bad things and evil, blah, blah, blah. And it's the fruit of all evil and all this stuff. Rubbish desire is actually motivating us.[00:22:53] It drives us to do great things. Uh, sure. It can, you know, the wrong type of. Approach to desire can lead us astray, but it can be, [00:23:03] Germaine: [00:23:03] can just jump in there. It's it's more, what you've got to explore is the root of that desire. That could be a bad thing, right? Desire itself. Isn't a bad thing. It's it's if the root of it is to, you know, global domination that might not be, um, that might not be the best, but if the root of it, that desire is to help more people or to create a safer home for, for your family.[00:23:26] Like that desire then is. Oh, it's fine. Obviously then becomes a matter of what actions you take to make that, that desire reality. But, you know, that's what I would argue and sorry [00:23:37] Adrian: [00:23:37] to cut you off, but no, no, I think you're right. And this is important distinction, but I think also if your desire is to put world domination or to enslave the human race, then I think you're just missing the point.[00:23:46] Right. So just, you know, get with the program, uh, because. That's not the point and it's probably not the root desire of these. Yeah. That's probably coming from fear or anger or resentment or whatever it is, will control or that kind of stuff, you know? And when you do enough work on yourself and you clear your emotional.[00:24:06] Baggage and stuff you find that actually desire is a beautiful thing because we all actually have love in our heart and we all value contribution and get a real, real hit and a real buzz from contributing to the world and having a business with vision and purpose is know, and this is something I hear a lot recently over the last few years, is people talking more and more about the importance of having.[00:24:33] A mission or vision and a purpose purpose led businesses. And so, and how that really is powerful driver for business, not just a business model or a great product or great customer service or great marketing, but actually having something which is purpose led. And I think that's resonating a lot more these days with customers, consumers, the younger generation.[00:24:56] Having a purpose is very important. [00:24:58] Germaine: [00:24:58] Yeah. Well, I mean, they also look at it, I guess, the younger generation and with this freedom to access so much information, you can look into a business and a company and understand whether their values aligned with yours. Whether, you know, just, just yesterday I was talking to at a family dinner and we were talking about ethical sourcing and the freedom or the, the, the, the information that we can tap into these days that lets us educate ourselves.[00:25:24] On on the supply chain. And so ultimately even that, that level of transparency means that, um, I think businesses need to be better just, just even if, even if they were like, you know, I love Nike for example, but I think we were looking through how Nike defines what they do and why they do it. And you know, this might be, um, Improper of me to say, but I think what they, the way they've defined themselves is in, in a positive way so that the younger generation will keep buying Nike, you know, talking about sustainability and innovating in products to sort of enable everyone.[00:26:02] And, you know, um, Nike is for athletes and then there's an asterisk. And the asterisk says, Nike believes that if you're a human, you're an athlete and you know, it starts to get to me, that's commercially driven, but when you're starting a small business, You don't really have that freedom. You have to be good from the ground up because, um, you know, one or two customers can, can be 10% of your whole client base.[00:26:27] Adrian: [00:26:27] Yeah, that's right. [00:26:28] Germaine: [00:26:28] So there's sort of, sort of this importance for you to have be purpose led and truly purpose led as [00:26:32] Adrian: [00:26:32] well. That's right. And, and, and being purpose led, uh, not just for marketing purposes, you know? Uh, because like you can go. Yeah. Well, we were going to be a purpose led business, uh, because that's really good for marketing and it's going to get us more customers because customers want purpose that businesses.[00:26:50] And then, you know, you've just. Kind of shoot yourself in the foot, because all you're going to do is be trying to appear purpose led. And it's like, you got to tap into something which is more human. We got to tap into, you know, the business owners have to have their own personal reason for doing this and the same applies for the team.[00:27:06] You know, you've got to, if you're. If you're running a business, to be able to instill a vision and a sense of purpose to the team is a very powerful thing. If it's just done for marketing, then it's just not going to carry as well. You know, it's just not quite the same when you're maybe at a, uh, when you're global corporation, you can get away with that kind of stuff.[00:27:30] But certainly if it's small businesses, it doesn't resonate. You know, the thing about. Like some, some of the stuff we did for Brivvio is with  helping small businesses to connect with audiences, to reach out and create branded videos really quickly and easily. Right? So we have a lot of conversations with small business owners is about branding and reaching out to and connecting with audiences and.[00:27:53] What that means. And some of the interesting things about things that people have said to me as well, what is branding? What branding is the logo? Well, it's your color scheme or it's your image or it's your tagline? Is it, but then the really interesting conversations come back and there's like, no, no, it's none of that stuff, actually.[00:28:09] It's your promise. It's, it's your vision and your purpose and, and the, the message like your future theory and the promise you get to people, which you told me. Yeah, you're on. [00:28:21] Germaine: [00:28:21] Yeah, exactly. Just to make your goals come true, essentially. [00:28:25] Adrian: [00:28:25] Exactly. Yes. They're having a reason for doing it. Um, and that really is powerful on a small business level because the people that you, you reaching, whether it be through social media or your networks, Uh, putting out videos or social media posts or being in podcasts like we're doing now are going to trust you if you're a small business, because you're part of the local community.[00:28:51] There's an there's a much, I, what I'm trying to say is it's easier to trust smaller businesses who you are closer to than it is to trust a brand, a brand that is [00:29:02] Germaine: [00:29:02] that's just everywhere and ubiquitous. Exactly. Yeah. [00:29:05] Adrian: [00:29:05] Feel closer to the people of the business. And so, especially on social media and you're more likely to get a response from the business that is personal.[00:29:16] And so it's easier to build that level of trust. And so. Yeah, there's much, it's a very different experience to, uh, you know, approach the social media and brand and brand message if you like [00:29:28] Germaine: [00:29:28] well, and even having and having that purpose, I've found at a, at a more even operational level, um, makes it really.[00:29:36] Easy when we're making, trying to make decisions. Um, for us internally, we were on a mission to use sort of pre recording of this episode, um, that we look at rebranding and sort of explaining our position and, you know, making decisions along the way. One thing I turned to is. How does it sort of answer, how does it serve our ultimate goal?[00:29:58] And it becomes very easy. For example, like part of, part of it is that we, we want to employ people locally, get people on the team, get people in person. I think moving forward, especially there's this, this is huge thing. We've probably, you know, every generation has heard it where technology is going to.[00:30:16] Kill X amount of jobs or get rid of X amount of jobs. And, and we're seeing that, like we do, um, you would have, you would have seen that from, from sort of the animation side, because people are gonna say, well, technology means that, you know, you can just outsource it to X, Y, Z, or you can just automate it for us.[00:30:34] That's websites, companies like Squarespace, who just go do it yourself. But for us, what it comes back to, and I would hazard a guess that if we use the same, is that. We want to assemble a team of humans who want to help humans and who want to communicate with humans. And ultimately, no matter how good AI gets, no matter how good software gets, they can think like a human, but they can't.[00:31:00] Think as a human, if, if that sort of is a distinction enough. So for us, it becomes, you know, serving people fundamentally is going to mean that we, we will serve people and therefore we can't be removed because, because it has to be a human in this equation. And for you, you're using software. Yes. Uh, through abbreviate, but.[00:31:23] Ultimately that is designed for people and there's going to be a limit to, you know, in skilled hands preview could be, would be much better than in less skilled hands because you still got to get the, get the message right within the video. You've still got to identify who you're talking to and talk to them how they want to hear you.[00:31:43] Versus just making a video because that can be anything, right. I'm sure you've experienced the whole spectrum of good to bad videos. Hello, feature tribe. I just wanted to take a break from this episode. Talk to you. Yes. You about the fact that you are listening to this episode, but you're not subscribing.[00:32:04] So go ahead. Hit the subscribe button right now. It really helps us out. I should also ask you to join our Facebook community. There's a link in the description. Check out the YouTube channel for an edited full end clips of the podcast and tell your friends, ask them to subscribe. If you have any suggestions of who we should try and get on the podcast next and who we should have a conversation with, reach out to us.[00:32:27] All our social links and contact details are in the description. That's it for me for now. Back to the episode.[00:32:38] Adrian: [00:32:38] Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. I'll tell you a little story. When I first started, I got, my whole career has been behind the video camera or looking through the lens of the screen and editing and post production. And so I scrutinizing every little pixel. And with Rubio, I started to have to put myself in front of the camera to actually show how this works and do my own little videos.[00:33:01] And, and I go on the first time I put myself on camera, I was terrified I was doing an interview for something. And I was just telling I was, I froze up. I couldn't speak properly. I sounded weird. I was like, I don't know what to do with my hands. Should I look at the lens. I was just like, Oh crap. And so, yeah, even with it's career of directing and so on other people, it was hard and it, because there's, there is that human element to putting yourself in front of the camera.[00:33:36] Um, and so, yeah, it was definitely a journey to be able to present and put your camera. And there are a whole bunch of things that you can learn and tips and tricks, tricks, and techniques, and to learn that stuff and anybody can do it really. It's just a matter of going, you know, going through the process of getting comfortable with it, learning a few tricks and tips.[00:33:56] Tips and techniques, but yeah, that's, I think what you were saying, going back to the AI sort of thing about, you know, replacing people's jobs and things is you can't really replace the why y'all don't you can't, I don't know. Maybe you can, but maybe one day we'll be able to, but I don't think at the moment you can get things like artificial intelligence and machine learnings to kind of really have a fully conceptual reason reasoning or understanding of why.[00:34:19] We should be doing something. Why would you do this instead of that? Or why X, Y, Z is better than this. And that's where the human judgment comes in. And it's a very subjective thing. So yeah, I think those types of jobs where that level of reasoning come in, creative reasoning things that will be very hard for AI to, uh, to replace, um, Going off on a tangent here where they are, but Hey, it kind of still comes back to that human thing of, of purpose and you know, why are we doing stuff?[00:34:51] You know, what are we doing here on the planet? The more we connected with Y like, okay, can I just start verge into another little story, go for it. The animation business. Thanks. I love this is another little one that I was doing a, I've always been doing lots of trainings throughout my life. I've always been.[00:35:08] Putting myself into new learning experiences, trying to kind of advance myself and grow personally. And one of the ones I did was in Sydney, out of. Five or six years ago. Uh, I did the entourage training with Jack Delosa team in, uh, in Sydney. And it was great. It was really, really good. I mean, people, some people love it.[00:35:31] Some people hate it. I had a great time. I went through that whole training. One of the most important things I got out of, it was the. Connecting with, uh, the vision for the business. And so the previously right back, we did a lot of advertising marketing. We were studied a little bit of technology stuff, a little bit of science communication, and.[00:35:54] Um, when I connected with the, the real vision for the business, this sort of sense of purposefulness that changed the business. And I'd always had this conflict with me as like, yeah, I'm good at what I do. I grew up good at running this business. We do great on emotional, got a great team of animators designers and people that we rely on and we do great stuff.[00:36:15] Right? Skirt, riding, all of it's fantastic. But. A lot of it's marketing, it's been sort of like, you know, selling stuff. And I had this push pull of like, well, there's something else inside me as a person that wants to express itself, uh, that wasn't feeling like it sat perfectly well with the business, which was about communication and marketing.[00:36:37] And when I resolved that it all clicked into place and that was getting in touch with this one little set of words. And that was why. Why am I doing this? And that is to move human thinking forward. And I have, sorry, somebody's pinging me on Slack. That's right. When I got those words and I was helped by the team and the entourage to kind of connect with that, it was like, Oh yes.[00:37:03] If I can make my business a manifestation of this purpose, it's kind of like my personal reason for being here on this planet to move human thinking forward, it felt. Emotionally like, ah, I'm fulfilling something in myself personally through my business and the business is creating value for the planet.[00:37:23] The people, the customers, everything it's a win-win win, win, win all around. Yeah. It changed the business and. Over the next couple of years I had, I, without even really trying, just having that statement present for me and repeating that and even putting it on the website. That's my vision. That's the vision for the business.[00:37:42] Just seem to attract different customers. And we started getting really big, interesting projects that were about, um, Uh, the great barrier reef or environmental staff, um, helping people with, uh, understanding government policies or, uh, the Marine parks or blockchain or technology, really interesting things.[00:38:06] And the marketing and sales stuff, which was more advertising type stuff for products and things started to just drop away. I don't even have to do anything to actually try that. It was just connecting with the vision, made a huge difference in the business. Somehow on some level, I don't know how it works and the mechanics of it.[00:38:25] Germaine: [00:38:25] I mean, I guess there's surely an element of you, especially when he's starting off the individual is the business, right? So I'm sure as an extension of you thinking that way, the business, to an extent also thought that way, because at least initially when you're starting off. For all intents and purposes, that is you are the business and therefore you, how you think is how the business thinks.[00:38:47] I, I can't believe like genuinely, um, I wasn't expecting the purpose behind what you do to be so separate almost cause I've always wondered, like I know why we do what we do and now to come now, come to think of it. It's almost really quite, quite separate, but. You use that information to move human thinking forward.[00:39:11] And I just didn't think that that that's where this conversation was going to go. But that is, that is I can see how that could be so enlightening and so powerful because then that, that informs the decisions that you make. And, um, You know, you might not do it sort of very manually and you might not do it intentionally, but it would also affect who you work with and the types of projects that you do.[00:39:35] We we've got that to an extent as well, where again, the more we've started focusing on why we do what we do. We've. Being even more comfortable saying no to projects. Like a few months ago, there was a project that came in, it would have been humongous. This person wanted to start essentially his own little car sales and car sales is a really big website, but it was all money-driven.[00:39:55] And I could tell from the conversation, the fact that, you know, in the emails are short, it was just like, This suspect's just give me a price. I said, that's not how we work. And we mate, I don't want to meet, just give me a price. Just give me a price. I just want to get this done as cheap as possible. And when we ask ourselves the question of, is this what we want to do is this, you know, okay, we talked about making goals come true.[00:40:16] Might this be this person's goal? But I guess as a, as a layer of that for us is also making, asking is this is this for the, for the better of, you know, bettering of society communities, is this helping someone. W we sort of came back to, this is just going to be helping some guys so more caused that it could be of questionable quality could be, it could be.[00:40:39] Amazing quality, but, but ultimately it doesn't sort of fit in and, you know, even, even for you, I'm sure you've found this as well. Where when you ha, when you've taken on projects, sometimes there are moments of maybe not for you, but for me, I've definitely had moments of sort of financial desperation of like, we just got to accept this because it's, there's not enough money in the bank to make payroll next week or whatever.[00:41:01] And you take on a project and you realize this thing just. It doesn't align with what I'm trying to do. And therefore it's a chore it's gone from, you know, you could animate one thing that is beautiful. I can, you just wouldn't well, how much time that, that you don't don't even feel tired POS and you could spend office time on something else and go at that felt like it took four times longer because.[00:41:24] It doesn't align with ultimately, and the beauty of, I guess, being your own boss of Matt, being the business, um, is that you can decide to say no to projects and you don't have to, you don't have to push your morals and ethics sometimes where I know people who, you know, We're in very, even like sales assistants who have to sort of blur their own morals and ethics because, Hey, you've got KPIs.[00:41:48] I to, and if you don't, the retail is going to really blast you and your manager's going to be in trouble and you don't have that control. Yeah. [00:41:55] Adrian: [00:41:55] Yeah, yeah, totally. Uh, it's, it's such an interesting subject. Like, you know, I've certainly had times where it's been hard to meet all of the obligations of running and owning a business.[00:42:08] At, uh, that's just part of having a business is you're always aware of that and it's sometimes it's easier and sometimes it's harder. Um, there's always challenges, but then there's also this thing of taking on projects for money versus taking on projects for purpose, you know, doing the right thing or the thing that's right for you as a business, as a people, as humans and.[00:42:39] In my experience, every time I've taken on a project, which has felt more about money. And that kind of what we need to make, make ends meet an oil. We need to put money in the bank, and this is a good opportunity to make some money. And it's not necessarily aligned with the vision every single time. It's been harder, more difficult, and usually not as profitable as the things that are.[00:43:07] More purpose led. I put it down to when things are purpose led and you're sort of aligned with them and it feels good to be doing them to doing the work. It's easy to get out of bed in the morning and roll into work and do it because it feels good. There's a, a sense of, um, I suppose, optimism and reason for doing it.[00:43:27] That is beyond the money and that's powerful. Whereas, if you're doing some things, because you have to, it doesn't feel great, you know, a trap it's harder and that somehow creates resistances and complexities in the workplace and the job, the client relations and all of that kind of stuff that might make it harder.[00:43:48] Financially profitability, just more difficult in, in the long run. So. Yeah, it'd be fascinating to see if anybody's done any research, somebody off somewhere. I've probably done some research looking at that type of yeah. To see whether there is profitability differences between purpose led and nonprofit, non purpose led businesses.[00:44:08] It'd be really interesting to see. [00:44:10] Germaine: [00:44:10] It probably has a lot to do. I mean, talking about the fact that inevitably, you know, when, when you don't necessarily do. Take on stuff. That's purpose led that tends to be more issues that tends to just, it just tends to not, not work as well. I'm sure it's something to do with mindset as well.[00:44:25] Right? Because if it's something that's purpose led a problem might not look like a problem. A problem might just look like a little, little road bump on the wave versus a huge closed gate that keeps you out. So, um, I'm sure I'm sure [00:44:39] Adrian: [00:44:39] exactly. It's the attitude is different. But, you know, it doesn't mean that we should all run around, you know, being a charity cases without businesses, suddenly Trump spending all of the profits on we're still got personal goals and visions, uh, for profitability.[00:44:54] So it's, you still have to have all of that business logic and business models and, and, and be accountable, uh, as a business. It doesn't mean you just suddenly go off and start trying to save the planet because you can't do it. It's gotta be sustainable. [00:45:09] Germaine: [00:45:09] Well, exactly. Ultimately, Just because you're doing, doing something purpose led the realities of the physics, the, the fact of how everything works does it, don't just cease to exist.[00:45:21] Right. Just because you're doing, trying to do something purpose led the, you know, your electricity provider, isn't going to say, don't worry about it. That electricity is free or whatever it may be. So it's ultimately. Got it got to sort of work. Like it's one thing that I had thought about when I got into the business full time was if I had to work and at the time it was, you know, if I had to do like a, a sales assistant type role on the weekends, or if I had to, um, you know, finish work at five o'clock at six o'clock start cleaning someone's someone's office, um, until nine o'clock to then fund the business, I was willing to do that.[00:46:00] I was like, If that's what it takes, knowing that that's not forever. It's just when I'm starting off, when things are quiet, when they, when you're trying to build things up, it's, it's sort of, you know, for me that wouldn't have been much at all. It would've just been a way of accepting the realities, the physics, the, the things that life entails and the systems that we've built, just realizing that.[00:46:23] I've got to play the game. I can't, I can't sort of go, I am going to remove myself from these things that dictate everyone else's life like bills and, and the need to eat. For example. Um, I'm just going to look at ways where I can. I can still do it all. Um, and, and, you know, make some money separately. If that was the problem at the time, I did have another question.[00:46:47] This goes back to way earlier when you talked about so many tangents, but that's, that's what this is all about. I, I, I love, I, I love this. Um, you talked about accelerator, so you went to Griffin accelerator. I want to just talk to you a little bit about. Y Y you went to an accelerator. What you, how you thought about that and how you chose to take, what is that?[00:47:14] I would assume there was some investment monetary investment there as well. And why you, how you sort of factored all that into the decision that you made versus just trying to self-funded for example. [00:47:25] Adrian: [00:47:25] Yeah. Yeah. Good. That's a brilliant question. Germaine opens up a whole load of really interesting subjects.[00:47:32] Um, so when I first. Okay, so I'll backtrack a little bit more. Uh, one of the other things I learned when I was around about the time that I was getting in touch with my division that we've spoken about was this concept of. What is a startup, what is the business life cycle from startup proof of concept, MVP, startup to growth, to scale, and then to exit.[00:48:04] And there's this kind of like curve that it kind of starts off slow and then growth and scale, and then exit. And well, sometimes IPO for the big ones and this kind of curve that goes up was kind of new to me. And it goes back to what we were mentioning earlier when we were discussing this, the reasons for getting into business and the not, and must be when not having an idea of an exit and, and seeing this picture really clearly for me.[00:48:32] Gave me a sense of, ah, uh, well, how do you go on this journey to have, like, let's say a five or 10 year journey with a business where you can exit at the end of that and sell it and then have enough money to pay off your house or, you know, start up another venture or maybe retire. And when, when I say retire, I don't mean going live on the farm.[00:48:55] I mean, do whatever you need, want to do in life fruit out to, [00:48:59] Germaine: [00:48:59] yeah. For money to not, not be a constraint. [00:49:01] Adrian: [00:49:01] Yeah, exactly. And so this sort of picture of the business lifecycle made me understand the value of capital and the value of investment in businesses and why people raise capital at startup stage.[00:49:15] And. Uh, and growth stages and the business and things like seed angel investors, uh, seed and seed funding series, a series B funding and IPO's and what that does for a business. It gave me a picture of, Oh, I'm just understand one of those things of a valuable now, because the more money you have at the beginning, the more capital you have in the business at the beginning, the faster you can grow and otherwise you have to bootstrap it and it's a slow journey.[00:49:43] And. You don't necessarily have the scale to be able to the funds to be able to put on a business development marketing manager or whatever it is to be able to do some advertising, to bring in more sales, uh, or to develop that product, that's going to open up into a new market. And so that's the value of home capital.[00:50:00] And so though I realized when I had this idea for Breo, I'm going to be some money and I don't really have enough money to do this by myself. How am I going to do this? And I now have this picture of it. Well, I can go and see if I can find some angel investors to put some money in, to own a little bit of equity, and I understand what they're going to get out of it.[00:50:19] Their, their vision is. So get a particular return on their investment. They might want to get 10, 20 times return on their investment, which is obviously a lot more than you can get in a bank or a fund. And they'll spend a little bit of their cash to be able to take apart. And. Yeah. If they believe in the business and if they believe in founder.[00:50:40] And so I stopped look at that as an option for Brivvio . And I thought, right, well, I'll put together pitch deck. And I started to show it to a couple of people who I knew were working and had connections in this space and to float the idea of, you know, could I raise $150,000 to make this a fast growth business?[00:51:02] And. What I realized was actually, no, it was a course. I did. It could the Canberra innovation network that was about negotiating term sheets. Um, that was fantastic. And I went and did this course at Canberra innovation network taught that was a simulation of negotiating with investors to raise finance.[00:51:24] And, uh, it was fantastic. It was, it was such an eye opener that I realized. I'm going to be eaten alive. If I can try and do this now without some sort of mentor and coaching and the right type of people around me to grow my skillset, to get my confidence up, I will. Just get eaten alive, you know, that just gonna I'll end up with nothing of the business or something like that.[00:51:51] So I thought, well, you know what? I need to find that place where I can get that mentorship. How am I going to learn all this stuff? Because I've never done this stuff before one, I started looking at lots of books. I was reading books about venture capital, startup funding, all that kind of stuff. And I learned a lot through that, but really it was when I found out about the Griffin, et cetera, whatnot.[00:52:13] Three or four months of dedicated immersion in that, and really kind of having mentors around me that I can talk to all the time on call would be fantastic. Um, and so yes, it meant giving up a little bit of the business, like giving a percentage of the business stuff, but it also got a little bit of injection of funds to kickstart it as well.[00:52:34] And so I thought, well, that's, I'll, I'll give it a go. And see, see what happens rather than me trying to go straight out there and raise funding without that level of mentorship on, uh, I'll I'll do this first. And that was my decision to apply for the Griffin accelerator program. And I think that it paid off in that respect.[00:52:52] Germaine: [00:52:52] Yeah. And then I think one of those realizations that I had over over the years is that. Money is a tool rather than this thing that you necessarily had to accumulate. It's just a, it can be an exchange of, um, you know, in a business it's, it's a tool, but also, um, it's, it's something that someone gives you an exchange for value that you present to them, right?[00:53:16] So it's this thing that can take different shapes and forms. And, um, I think there's. For different people and you met, you can make a mistake of it, right? You can take, take on too much debt because money is just a tool. And, um, and then you can really, in-depth damaging yourself. And that's the sort of look at in credit card debt and things like that.[00:53:35] But then you look at it as a tool, as a tool for a business, and it's a tool that can unlock, you know, more personnel. It can unlock. Rapid growth, hockey stick growth. It can, it can do, do more. And it's, it's a conversation that I have with people sort of close to me in my life who. Uh, so did they work traditional jobs in the and things like that?[00:53:57] So they look at money as this thing that they, they work, they earn, they like, there's a, there's a, there's a very finite cap around the parameters to which they can, like, they can't just, you know, earn more money tomorrow than they did today. It's sort of very limited. But then when you're running a business, I think you've got to, you've got to obviously respect to that.[00:54:19] That money is, is, is sort of something that you need to keep the lights on to pay people. This is someone's abilities, but at the same time, it's this tool that there's no, there's not a cap to how much, you know, there's nothing stopping a business from earning more money tomorrow than they did today, or 10 times more money in two days than they did today.[00:54:36] Um, so you've got to sort of look at it as a tool and it looks like. That is sort of that decision that you made and obviously tapping into the expertise and the personnel and the network around you that you would have got access to through Griffin accelerator as well. That would have been [00:54:49] Adrian: [00:54:49] invaluable.[00:54:50] Yeah, absolutely. I mean, yeah. I vividly remember some of the conversations that were very challenging, turning with mentors who have successfully built up a business over 10 years and sold it for millions of dollars. Right. And they ask hard questions. Questions. I would never ask myself. And a lot of them I didn't want to hear.[00:55:09] And you know what, that's, that's valuable stuff, right? To have access to a pool of mentors who can ask those. Hard questions and challenge you a little bit, but also access to investors as well, to be introduced to potential angel investors. Is this valuable because how else do you meet them? If you've just got an idea and you don't already work, walk in those circles of what they could talk about, what they call other people's money, network investors and stuff.[00:55:38] Yeah. It's a great way to find that because otherwise you're reading books, you're watching stuff on YouTube. This new audio books and all that kind of stuff. Maybe doing some online courses, it's armchair stuff. Right. [00:55:49] Germaine: [00:55:49] You can only go so theoretical sexual on jail until, you know, you actually have to do it [00:55:56] Adrian: [00:55:56] and [00:55:58] Germaine: [00:55:58] have to sort of execute on that.[00:56:00] I mean, uh, I, I'm sort of, we're looking at a similar thing of how can we. Sort of further outgrowth because for, for, for the last few years, it's very much been just reinvesting reinvesting, taking low pay so that we can reinvest more into the business. But you know, that that too reaches a limit because, um, below a certain threshold there's costs of living that that have to be.[00:56:27] Have to be sort of accounted for. So you can't just go into, go to zero or, um, no matter how hard you try. So, um, that's what I thought. I'd sort of pitch that question to you. See how you sort of approached it and how you sort of answered those questions for yourself now. Um, As we sort of wrap up, what do you hope to do moving forward within the two different businesses?[00:56:49] Will they, are they, are they sort of, has red boat continued to sort of stay at the same size? Or are you looking at sort of trying to scale that up as well or how you're handling the two businesses? [00:57:01] Adrian: [00:57:01] Yeah. Yeah. Interesting question. So, you know, the vision red boat, I love the red boat. It's not something that I'll ever let go of or, well, I mean, look Brivvio is on a trajectory to growth.[00:57:13] So that's my real passion baby at the moment is growing that. And so I put a lot of energy into that. And so, you know, that's, that's got a huge potential red boat is harder to scale, but it's such a valuable business. I love the work we do. And. It's, uh, I love it. It's, it's wonderful thing that we create beautiful animations that really help people and for worthy causes and stuff like, you know, right now we're doing one for the United nations environment program about the reef and staff.[00:57:41] And it's just beautiful. It's about saving reefs and stuff and dealing with things. I did one recently for a new technology for which is addressing climate change, sort of emissions and stuff, dealing with what's doesn't address. Climate is it's part of the solution anyway, so. Stuff like that is always valuable.[00:58:00] And I want back to continue. So my vision for robot is to continue that and to grow that gently enough so that it can become something that sustains its self, maybe bring on some new partners, there's some collaborate with the right people or the right groups or other businesses to be able to take that further.[00:58:19] Then I can by myself and with Bravio, uh, yeah, that's, that's something that is good. A lot of growth ahead of it. And we're right at the beginning of that, really? So we really, I mean, you know, we launched the app in February. We're still kind of in prelaunch, really for where we were at Kango. So it's early days, it's early stage and a very exciting time for it because we're still developing and evolving it and pivoting it.[00:58:44] Germaine: [00:58:44] Yeah. That's extremely exciting. Um, and, and I can tell from sort of how you talk about it, that you just can't wait to see, see where you can take it. One last question before we sort of get into the top 12, when is there going to be an Android app?[00:59:01] Adrian: [00:59:01] That's the million dollar question. You know, if, uh, if I had a dollar for every time somebody asked me that question, we would have an Android app right now. So it's partly cashflow. It's partly sort of, you know, when we, when we. Yeah, we've been refining the product to get it right. And, uh, over the last six months, and we've got a really good solid base products.[00:59:20] Now the app is really a great platform, but, uh, and, and there's still lots to love. A lot of new things we can do with that, but it is on the roadmap to do the Android version as soon as possible. And so it's partly a matter of, um, getting the capital to do it, getting the right partners, the right people to come on board to help with that.[00:59:41] And so, yeah, we were actively. Sort of [00:59:44] Germaine: [00:59:44] working towards this. Yeah. Well, and once you get the iOS app at a place where you guys are happy with it, then it's much easier to then go to someone and say, this is the iOS app, make an Android app. That is, that is the same. Because then, then the question becomes, what technology do we need to use rather than.[01:00:01] What are we building? What technology do we need to use? What does it look like? How does it function? All that stuff as well. So I'm just, yeah. I just use Android devices. So that's why I asked. [01:00:11] Adrian: [01:00:11] Yeah. Yeah. I would love to say here it's really put it it's high on the agenda and, um, Yeah. I can't say anything more.[01:00:20] Germaine: [01:00:20] I mean, it's, it's a measured thing, right? Like it, you can't do everything in one go, you've got to be careful about it because if you overextend yourself, just develop an app that could say the business going under completely. If you sort of overcapitalize there. So it's all part of these calculations that you've got to make.[01:00:35] Looking at the ultimate destination. And if it takes you 12 months longer, but then you end up with a better end roadmap and a more sustainable business. That's always going to be better than just, you know, answering the annoying Android fan boys like me, who just wants an app to check it out. But saying that we're getting, once the new iPhone gets announced, we

It was on this particular day, in an Airbnb near to the Johannesburg airport, it occurred to me that I might be a strong contender for the title of world's preeminent dumbass. I woke up, bags packed, ready to head out when I was struck by a realization: I had failed to secure a visa for Vietnam, my intended destination. Without that visa, I wouldn't be able to enter the country.As an American, I'm somewhat accustomed to presenting myself at the gates of a country and announcing, "I'm ready to come in now." A boy is then sent to collect my baggage, and I'm received in celebration as a hero of capitalist tourist bucks. I can show up pretty much anywhere on the globe and expect this sort of treatment. Vietnam is not one of those places. And while some countries will process an online visa application in a matter of minutes -- I once obtained an Australian visa between the time of my arrival at my airport of embarkation, having only then discovered one would be required, and the departure of my plane -- the one for Vietnam takes a least a couple days to process. Between the breathtaking heights of my smugness and my profound inability to accomplish even very simple tasks, I think my girlfriend, Haily, was pretty impressed.Working within the available parameters, a plan was formulated posthaste. I would go to the airport, as originally intended, and smile real big at the airport attendant checking my papers. Perhaps I'd be able to pull off the subterfuge of slipping onto the plane without proper documentation. If I made it that far, I'd be able to deviate from my stated itinerary by stealing away during my layover into a country that would allow me in sans visa.Owing both to the ingenuity of the strategy as well as my aptitude for covert action, the plan worked. I was on my way to Hong Kong.And what a truly delightful thing it was to find myself on a flight to Asia. For in performance of my usual ritual at the outset of a flight of any significant length -- to scroll though every available in-flight movie, consider the potential merits of each at length, and mark the ones with promise for potential viewing over the next twelve hours -- I discovered a cinematic work that aroused in me a great deal of interest. It was a Chinese movie -- clearly a rip off of the lucrative Todd Phillips flick, the Hangover -- called "Girls versus Gangsters."The film details the initiatives of three protagonists -- Xiwen, Jialan, and Kimmy -- young women from northern China of approximately marrying age, whom, having between intimates of long-standing though not always amicable relation, set off together to celebrate the impending nuptials of their friend, Jinjin. As is the standard motif in the genre, the action begins when, after a night of especially vigorous carousing, the trio awaken to discover that they have failed to maintain an account of the whereabouts of their compatriot. This sets (as they say in the script-writing business) a clock. For their misplaced friend is to be married in a matter of hours. The objective of the trio is to set off into the Vietnamese jungle -- the treacherous environs in which our heroes now find themselves -- in order to locate Jinjin and ensure her safe and timely return for the ceremony.In the scene of crucial plot-thickening, the trio wake up on a beach. They are naked, though they remain semi-modestly buried under the sand. "Semi-modestly" because the sand around each of them has been sculpted to resemble a nude and voluptuous female form. Jialan and Kimmy -- whom we've learned are, if not quite full-on nemeses then engaged in rivalry -- are hand-cuffed to a heavy box, one on each handle. A familiar train of dialogue (though with the novelty of transpiring in Mandarin Chinese) follows."What happened last night?" asks Jialan."Where's Jinjin?" asks Xiwen. Having failed to provide an answer, she exclaims, "I lost Jinjin!""Xiwen," says Kimmys, "When did you get a tattoo?"Covering themselves in banana leaves, à la Adam and Eve, the trio teeter through the jungle. At length, they come upon what is evidently a Korean café. Why there is a Korean café in the middle of the Vietnamese jungle is a question no one poses."Maybe there's a handsome Korean guy inside," says Kimmy, optimistically.Then the audience is treated to a moment of pure movie magic. The girls hear a series of thunderous stomps. The camera pans from the ground up in slow motion. There are Jurassic Park style rumbles with each step. A nearby glass of water trembles. Eventually the camera reveals who has emerged in such dramatic flair from the Korean café. It's Mike Tyson. Shirtless.Romantic music plays. Jialan stares at Mike, mouth agape. Mike bites his finger provocatively. He bites his lower lip. The jungle gets even steamier.Abruptly, Kimmy interrupts the fantasy. In English, she says, "Excuse me, do you have any clothes you can lend?" In a clever turn of conversational redirection, Mike Tyson responds, "What happened to you?""We just woke up on the beach like this," says Kimmy."Listen," Mike relates sagely, "trust me. S**t Happens. And I know too well. Man, alcohol's hard to resist, right?"Right, Mike."Hey, just come to my room with me," he offers. "I'll see what I can find for you girls to wear."They enter Mike's room-slash-hut-slash-café. On the wall are pictures of Mike slugging people in the face. Also his belts.Jialan: "You have got so many championships."MT: "You like watching boxing? I'm half American, half Korean, and I won most of my fights in the US and Korea."Jialan: "You are mixed?!"MT: "Yes." (He isn't.)"Do you speak Korean?" Jialan asks.Mike replies, in Korean, "My name is Dragon. You're so cute.""Thank you Dragon oppa," says Jialan, also in Korean.Mike goes to peruse what sartorial options he might be able to offer the girls. There is, of course, a tiger in Mike Tyson's closet. The tiger's name, also of course, is Tony. MT dismisses Tony and the jungle cat never makes a reappearance.As it turns out, Mike Tyson only stocks boxing trunks. No tops of any kind. Which he elucidates in the deft line "Nowhere. There's no top. I'm the topless king." The girls, having no other recourse, each hike up a pair of trunks to their chest, in a kind of MMA-fantasy romper."Wow, good looking ladies," remarks Mike, conveying a sentiment that is semantically, if not syntactically, clear. "Looking really good."Then Mike turns to the problem of the box and chain. He can't break the chains, because his hands are weak after so much fighting. He mentions a friend who is a locksmith. We never meet this friend.Remembering their mission, the girls take leave of Mike Tyson.Jialan: "I'll be back soon."MT: "Please. Please come back. Come back. I love you so."At this point the movie begins to lose the thread of the plot. Or at least I didn't have the exegetic tools to keep up with what was going on. What I can tell you is, at length, and for reasons I failed to ascertain, Mike reenters the plot. While Jialan is otherwise occupied, he engages in a heartfelt conversation with Xiwen."You find your friend yet?" asks Mike. The answer is obviously no, as she isn't with them. Xiwen points this out. "Ah," he offers in consolation, "don't worry she'll be fine."Mike hands her a bottle of green tea."Want a soda?" he asks. Mike evidently doesn't know what green tea is, despite being the proprietor of a Korean café in the middle of the Vietnamese jungle. Xiwen nods assent.Mike tries to open it. He can't. Weak hands.Then in a bid of romantic endeavor, Mike asks Xiwen about Jialan's interests. The main thing is Korean dramas. A show called "Descendants of the Sun," in particular."She watched it four times," says Xiwen."I watched it five times," he says."Wow," says Xiwen. "Why?"Then Mike Tyson spots Xiwen's tattoo and on that basis makes a diagnosis: "Vietnamese fiancé?" Xiwen is surprised at Mike's powers of inference, to have derived this fact on the basis of such scant evidence. He indicates toward the tattoo. "Now, though I'm not that good at my Vietnamese" -- why in Vietnam then, Mike? -- "it does appear to be Vietnamese."Later on, the climax of the film begins when the girls find themselves critically imperiled, yet on the verge of reuniting with Jinjin. Heroically, MT emerges onto the scene. He is wearing military fatigues, in what is evidently an homage to a Korean drama, probably, I imagine, Descendants. There is a car chase scene. Then a Mike-Tyson-bursts-out-of-his-clothes-like-the-Hulk scene. Then a boat chase scene. Ultimately, Mike proves victorious over the nefarious forces that be (the "Gangsters" of the title, as it were). He sees the girls off as they make their way back for Jinjin's ceremony."Oh!" calls Mike to Jialan at the last second. "Can I have your WeChat number?"In the denouement, we learn that (spoiler alert) Jialan breaks up with her boyfriend -- whom no one really liked anyway -- and ends up with Mike Tyson. It was with this perplexing and strangely enticing series of images seared into my mind that I found myself arriving on a new continent.I would soon be landing in glorious, glorious Asia.To arrive somewhere with fresh eyes is a special thing. It is enthralling to find oneself in a place one has never been. A sort of virginity, it is a moment that cannot be reclaimed. But there is also something about having been somewhere, left it, and finding oneself returning to the place one has been. It is to be received as an old friend. A recognition that, yes, some things are just as I left them. Yet some have changed, and I am unlikely to encounter them restored to their previous state in any medium save for memory. To return is to have an established relationship with a place, and to feel that relationship -- as is the nature of every relationship -- evolve with time's restless shifting.It was this sense of returning that I felt upon landing in Hong Kong. It is a place I have found myself drawn back to over the years. The city -- the island, the culture, the harbor, the Chinese Special Administrative Region, whatever it may most accurately be called -- holds special meaning for me. In my first trip as a solo traveler to Asia, as a fresh college graduate, this was my first port of call. To me it will always symbolize a sort of gateway to this continent, which for the rest of my life will call me back to savor experiences new and old, to unexpected enlightenments and familiar joys. Not entirely unlike Istanbul on the opposite end, it is a juncture of East and West. It is a place I knew. It is also a place that, impressed somewhere deep within its eternal memory, knew me.My first call was at my hostel. I had booked a single night there, confirming the transaction and shutting my laptop just as I was about to hop on the plane. Hostels in Hong Kong aren't as appealing as they tend to be elsewhere in Asia. In most Asian cities, hostels are a kind of minor resort for tourists, with ample room for beer pong, late night dance parties, and then, for the professionals, another round of beer pong. In Hong Kong, they are essentially just apartments with decently large square footage. A couple barracks rooms and a couple bathrooms. Several stories up. A check in counter maybe.I had gotten into the airport around seven in the morning. I arrived at my hostel well before check-in. I made it nonetheless into my building, and when I finagled my way into the apartment door of the hostel I spied on the desk a number provided for early or late arrivals. I texted it, and a few minutes later a sleepy figure emerged through the doorway and reluctantly but mercifully set me up with a bed. The place seemed good enough, spare though it was. I liked the location, in the heart of Kowloon. Most crucially of all, it had solid air conditioning. I booked a spot there for my remaining nights.Coated in the grime of long distance travel, I was eager to take a shower. This provided another reminder that I was now in Asia, though a slightly less welcomed one. Germane to these tightly packed Hong Kong hostels are the cramped showers. They are undifferentiated from the bathroom area as a whole. In space of about three skinny Chinese chaps, there is a toilet, a shower head, and a sink. Whatever business you intended to do, it can be done here -- though not always with an overabundance of grace. Almost immediately, I succeeded in getting myself wet, along with everything else in the restroom. I tried to spare the toilet paper, but to no avail.Freshly laundered and eager to engage the city, I took leave of the hostel. It had been winter when I left Africa, having come from the southern hemisphere. Now I found myself in the sweltering Asian summer. It took me all of about thirty seconds after leaving the hostel to become comprehensively sticky in a coat of sweat. It took me another thirty seconds to become thoroughly confused by the sights and sounds of Hong Kong. (Actually not even that: a delivery guy had to help me negotiate the building's exit, as it required I pressed a button before leaving; it'd been a while since I'd been confronted with that technology.) Kowloon is intensely Chinese, in the overwhelming way that all Chinese things are intense to one unaccustomed to encountering them. Many of the city's façades are covered in bamboo labyrinths, which act as scaffolding for the not insignificant number of buildings under construction. Piled high, story upon story, are signs, banners, and advertisements, contending for attention. The mass of them are so aggressively seeking one's notice as to be almost indecipherable -- presumably, even if you speak the language -- like so many beggars hassling tourists in an urban corridor. I had become acclimated to the mellow pace of Africa. Being in Asia made me feel like Will Ferrell's elf in Time Square.Time to get down to business. 10:30 in the morning. Five different breakfast establishments on my street. Each one of them full of patrons. All with pictures in the window of dishes I wouldn't normally associate with breakfast. The furthest one had a small queue, only one couple, and I took the wait to be a good sign. I saw they had pineapple buns, which is what I'd been hoping for. Then I spied an attractive dim sum stall across the street, where I could get my food for takeaway. I took a moment to contemplate the tantalizing prospect of dim sum. But then when I took another look at the queue for the other place I saw it had grown to a half dozen parties of Hong Kongers. I wasn't about to give up my spot.At length I earned a seat in the restaurant. With Hong Kongers always having one eye on efficiency, I was seated at an otherwise full table top with three other mostly silent eaters. My first round was a p-bun and a cup of coffee. Contrary to its name, the traditional Hong Konger pineapple bun has no pineapple in it, but is basically just crusty white bread sprinkled with sugar. The top is dimpled in a manner resembling a pineapple, if one is willing to look at it with a certain level of generous imagination. It comes with a pat of butter, several times overgenerous. The coffee is what we typically think of in the West as Vietnamese coffee, which is basically coffee-flavored condensed milk. My serving was delivered to me approximately three and a half seconds after I ordered it. Promptly, I drank my coffee -- which proceeds from the cup at the rate of molasses -- and distributed p-bun detritus on my lap and the table before me. I ordered another round, and enjoyed my bun and coffee as the morning transitioned to midday. The restaurant was a flurry of constant activity. People waving over waiters. Parties coming and going. The bussing of plates. Even the lobsters seemed industrious. My colleagues-in-consumption stared fixedly at their phones. I stared at them. I was officially in Hong Kong.As I had only really ingested sugar so far, I did go across the street for dim sum. I looked up at the cashier and contemplated my options. The cashier gave me a look that said, "For f**k's actual sake, please order something so we can get on with it." I picked something, then handed the cashier a fifty. I reached down to jingle around in my pocket for coins, but she had already produced my change before I could even retrieve the currency from my pocket. I took a seat on a nearby stoop to dive into my steam-emitting box of treats. It was only while biting into the first pan-friend dumpling of scalding broth and meaty goodness that I seriously injured myself. I consumed the second one unharmed, which I think implies that I'm something of a quick learner. As I enjoyed my dim sum, several questions occurred to me. How, for instance, did I manage to cover myself in sticky dumpling residue so quickly? The observation that I had somehow contrived to spread it all the way down to my ankle aroused in me a certain scientific curiosity. And why put the soup in the dumpling? Why not just put it in the bottom of the box where it invariably ends up anyway? Biting into one of those little suckers is like biting into an over-inflated balloon: it requires a level of pressure slightly beyond what you'd like to give, which you must achieve experimentally. Eventually, and always unexpectedly, it explodes in your face in dramatic fashion. It's lack gnawing on a frag grenade, but tastier.I sat on the steps of a bank on Kowloon's main drag, Nathan Street, and watched Hong Kong go by. It occurred to me that I was the only person in the city who didn't have an urgent need to be somewhere. So when I finished my dumplings, I strided off, pretending that an important person in a high-up office somewhere was tapping their watch and expecting to receive the quarterly Wellington financials from me, like, yesterday. My striding, blessedly, took me to that beloved old haunt of mine. Nowhere in particular.One of the enigmatic thrills of Hong Kong is that is one is dripped on by innumerable urban waterfalls fed by unseen tributaries. In a city of high rises rarely outfitted with central air conditioning, there are a practically infinite number of AC units to rain condensation on the heads of passersby. Chinese banyans line the urban thoroughfare of Nathan Street. These trees consist of many constituent tines, which seem to vie democratically for the direction in which the tree as a whole will grow. Further down past the banyans, the sidewalk is dotted with Indian gentlemen, who, upon identifying a white guy in their midst, thrust a business card in his direction, promising bespoke suits and shirts at a "very good price for you, my friend." An industrious segment of them quietly offer intelligence about where to purchase weed -- more likely oregano -- from undisclosed suppliers. The jewelry shops are innumerable. Every single person seems to be wheeling around a suitcase. Where they're all going, I have no idea. I thought about making my way down to the waterfront to the harbor, which is the best part of urban Hong Kong, maybe the best part of the urban world. But I decided to wait to savor it until sundown. It is after nightfall that one see's the true glory of the fragrant harbor from which Hong Kong takes its name.Given that my circadian rhythm was still on Africa time, I was ready for a respite in the AC. Maybe also to grab my suitcase before I head out again. I retired to my hostel and settled in for a world class Africa-Asia nap.In the evening, I entered the metro station at Tsim Sha Tsui. Of a sudden, I was engulfed in a squall of Hong Kongers, more being pushed and pulled by human current than coherently moving in any direction. (One doesn't necessarily walk the streets of Hong Kong so much as negotiate them.) I was fortunate to find a break in the current long enough to swim my way over to an "Add Value Machine," so I could re-up on transport funds. Experimentally, I put my Octopus card in the slot and began to work my way through the labyrinth of available options. Though I had been the only one at the machine moments ago, I was now the lead of a queue. Then a voice came from behind me."What are you doing?" said the woman.Oh, I wondered, am I not doing it right? I retrieved my card from the machine and inquired as to what course of action I might otherwise take. She grabbed my card, shoved it back in the slot, and tapped away on the screen."See?" she said.Having elucidated this gambit, she proceeded to snatch a fifty from my money clip and feed it into the machine. That wasn't necessarily what I had intended to do. It wasn't necessarily against my wishes either. I just hadn't planned that far ahead yet. I withdrew my money clip before she could donate more of my cash to my Octopus fund."That's great," I said. "Thanks." She handed me my card back, and I immersed myself once again in the convective swirl of human activity, praying that it swept me toward the appropriate subway line. Whereas Kowloon is a world built on the capital of traditional China, Hong Kong Island is devoted to the monetary capital of the Chinese nouveau riche. On opposite sides of the harbor, these are the two main hustle-and-bustle areas of Hong Kong. They provide a compelling juxtaposition. It's not that one is devoid of tradition and the other is not. But while Kowloon holds up its aging buildings with massive latticeworks of bamboo, the Island side's central district has no need for such erections, with its rows of Gucci, Patek, Hublot, and their ilk. This is the part of the city designed to satisfy the seemingly infinite capacity for Chinese consumption of the gaudiest and most expensive trimmings of Western culture.My first call of the night was at a cocktail venue, The Quinary, notable for a drink they call the Earl Grey caviar martini. On the menu, it's described as vodka, elderflower, "Earl Grey caviar and air." What the "air" refers to is essentially Earl Grey bubble bath piled high atop the martini glass. It's a non-standard ingredient, and so it wasn't immediately apparent to me how such an ingredient was intended to be consumed. I sucked in a breath-full (as one is wont to do with air), which was so aggressively flavorful as to inspire a brief but enthusiastic coughing fit that all but blew off the top of my martini in the manner of the Big Bad Wolf. The "caviar," I was delighted to find, consisted in a small deposit of Earl Grey mini popping boba at the bottom of the glass. Popping boba -- which are marbled-sized saccharine capsules of flavor that can usually be ordered as accoutrement in one's bubble tea -- are, in my opinion, a most underutilized cocktail ingredient. Taking a look through the rest of the menu, I inquired about the nature of their wasabi-infused vodka. The barkeep embarked on a lengthy discourse on its origins and constitution, then offered me a taste. I believe she was under the impression that I was a cocktail critic of some note, because I was there early in the evening, making technical inquiries, sitting on my own, and jotting down my reflections. I was then treated to a sample of their marshmallow vodka. It came in a miniature Coke bottle, filled with what is pretty much an alcoholic version of the marshmallow fluff that one can buy in a jar. It was delightful. The good news for The Quinary is that my review is two thumbs up; the bad news is that I'm not actually a cocktail critic.The bartender who had offered me the gratis drinks introduced herself as Shao Li. It being too early in the evening for the crowds to roll in, she occupied her time by chatting with me and engaging in the repetitive activity of relocating a tincture from a large glass to a smaller one with an eye dropper. She performed this activity for about thirty minutes, conveniently located at a station adjacent to where I sat. In my mind, I knew it was a ploy to be in my presence in order to drum up conversation with me. Not to mention that it was a thinly veiled metaphor for coitus. Alas, I was too poor to afford another drink at this bar, even a free one. Our dialogue winding down, I agreed to come see her when I next visited HK. She waved as I walked out. As soon as I did I realized I was still wearing the jeans I had changed into so as not to look like a schmuck at a cool bar. I considered whether I should go back in, change in the restroom, and reveal myself to be not only a schmuck but an absent minded one at that. Not at chance. I chose to remain sticky and uncomfortable. Sometimes the moral victories are the hardest to endure. Fortified by the heady assurance that a sizable number of our planet's women have an undisclosed desire to sleep with me, I made my way to a spot of familiar joy. An alleyway carved into the crowded hillside of the Island's commercial zone. There one can find kind all the artifacts necessary for happiness. Steaming woks of amalgamated flavors and spices. Tiny red plastic stools. Sweating bottles of cold everyman's lager. Making my way through, I inspected the dishes of each patron until I found one I liked, and put in an order for "that one" at the appropriate stall. The lady indicated that it was "pork rib in salt and pepper." Which wasn't my interpretation of what I saw, but I was willing to go with it. Much to my chagrin, I could not afford a Tsingtao ("Ching Bao") beer to go with it since I only had enough cash for the meal. Soon enough, the dish came, which presented me with an occasion to consider the conventions for anglicization of Chinese cuisine. "Pork rib in salt and pepper" neglects to disclose, at the very least, the presence of chilis. At any rate, I was happy. Next I called at 7/11 for reunion with my old friend, Pocari Sweat. Pocari Sweat is a glorious beverage, a milky white electrolyte drink with a crisp, Columbia blue label. The stated marketing pitch of the company is that it "resembles" the body's "natural fluids." I don't know if the company's executive board has ever seen sweat before, but it isn't the bodily fluid that is most directly imitated by a milky white solution. Setting aside any discussion of its actual merits, the drink reminds me of my first time in Asia.At this point in the evening, I was overcome with a desire to go back to the Quinary to see if Shao Li was still there. It was nice evening. I wished I had someone to share it with. Perhaps she was about to get off from work and wanted to go out for a beer. Alas, just because one is inclined toward creepy and deranged thoughts does not mean one is required to act on them. So I didn't. Instead I took the Central-Mid-Levels -- which has the distinction of being the world's longest outdoor escalator promenade -- up until the hillside of Hong Kong Island becomes residential and sleepy rather than bustling and studded with hip restaurants. Then I descended further until it was again commercial and posh. I was quite lonely by the time I got to the bottom of the hill. I thought of the insight Chris McCandless jotted down before perishing, alone and unkempt, in the Alaskan wilderness. "Happiness only real when shared." Hoping to inspire a rebound in my spirits, I headed toward the Hong Kong harbor ferry. This is what I'd most been looking forward to since stepping foot in Hong Kong. The harbor is truly a magnificent sight. Viewed from the Kowloon side looking toward Hong Kong Island, the commercial high rises put on an epic display of urban lights against the backdrop of the world's most delicious hillside. Beholding this sight is like conducting an orchestra. It is the feeling of watching something so splendid and so tremendous unfold before your eyes. Each section performs its own part, while inexplicably remaining concerted with the rest. Taking the ferry across, I squished into a corner of the boat, on the upper deck with about 100,000 Hong Kongers. They were all carrying on in conversation and not, I couldn't help but feel, at a whisper, either. Disembarking from the ship, I covered the waterfront. My hope at this point was to repair to a dreary pub where I'd sit alone at the bar and the man behind the counter would tersely serve me an ice cold Tsingtao. I searched for a while in the streets of Kowloon. No dice. So I settled for a bubble tea and retired for the evening. Before doing so I was presented with the evening's final joy. I went to the ATM to withdraw some currency. The transaction ended with the directive, "Please take advice." It means 'receipt.'As our double-decker bus made the bend, the top of it seemed to lean into the oncoming lane. It put me in mind of the bus scene in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which darts through the road with such belligerent haste as to imperil the story's hero. Or at least it would have, if I wasn't scared for my life. Sitting on the upper deck, I was confident in my assessment that the bus was actually tipping across the other lane of traffic and over the sheer cliff on the other side. I swear I could see down to the bottom of the gulley below. It was a hot day. The air was solid with humidity. Not entirely unlike trying to breathe Earl Grey air, actually. It was the kind of hot that would be of interest to scientists hoping to induce a chemical reaction or a breakfast-enthusiast attempting to fry an egg. I was going hiking. That is, if I didn't succumb to the driver's psychopathology first.Hong Kong is actually famous for having some of the world's greatest hiking trails. Or at least they're good ones. I'd heard they were world-class. But it's not immediately clear to me what would so distinguish one hiking trial from another in any objective sense like that. At any rate, I was to tackle the fabled trail known as the Dragon's Back.That was my plan. It was also the plan of a non-negligible number of Chinese tourists. The bus screeched to a halt at a nondescript location where there appeared to be an opening in the otherwise impenetrable thicket of brush lining the roadside. The driver called for Dragon's Back. I alighted along with a good deal of the rest of the bus. I was eager to get out ahead of them, so as not to be caught in a traffic jam. Mercifully the open stretches of the trail were partially covered. I followed the rascally meandering dirt road lined with brush. Slight uphill. Even with a healthy shade, I was drenched in sweat by minute fifteen.Shortly, I came to the kind of staircase one climbs in a movie to reach an ancient master of an esoteric martial art. Thin wooden steps, rising approximately forever into a thin cloud cover. The top of the hill became apparent only at the culmination of the steps. Or at least the local maximum. The ridge fell and rose with a consistent periodicity, rather like a dragon's back, as it were, or at least the scrawny, undulatory Chinese conception of the creature. I emerged into a cleared hill top, which became a punishing landscape without recourse to the cover of flora. It did, however, unveil a spectacular view. Before me was a glittering sea of Hong Kong's islands. Situated on a peninsula was a scattering of urban settlements. My sweat was thick and dense. I took a polaroid.As a consequence of my dillydallying, I became intermingled with pack of young Asian women. One had on a miniature Marc Jacobs backpack and a flannel, like it was the first day of 8th grade and not a death march through HK jungle mountains. I felt that demonstrated a lack of respect. From the apex of the ridge I felt that I could reach up and touch the sun, hot as it was. I was perspiring about a liter per minute by now. In the distance the sea continued to sparkle and the ridge to undulate. The islands gave the appearance of an old Chinese painting, depicted in geometric rather than linear projection. The lot of them proceed towards heaven rather than into the distance. I jetted past the Asian girls. Reaching the crest of another notch in the dragon's back, I could see freight headed for Hong Kong harbor. Azure water. Gum-drop islands. Glimpses of far-off settlements. Other islands could never be so verdant, or have such perfectly sculpted mounds or sit in such a blessed, glittering sea, or periodically expose the brilliant high-rises off in the distance. I was in a watercolor painting. It was unfairly beautiful.Taking creative measures to deal with the heat situation, I took off my synthetic shirt and put it under my baseball cap so it draped over the back of my neck. I put on a tank top in order to retain a semblance of decency. I looked like an a*****e. But I didn't care. The shirt was cool and damp and protected my delicate skin from the sun. Relinquishing into mercy, the trail dove into a cover of eucalyptus trees. Using this respite into coolness to reapply my eighteenth round of sunscreen for the morning, I was overtaken by a white man forty years my senior. I heard him pass the Western couple behind me. He greeted them, "Pretty warm, eh?" The man was tan and spry, obviously a retiree. Also obviously a hiking enthusiast, the kind that having a job doesn't allow for. As he zoomed past me he gave me his signature "Pretty warm, eh?" I nodded. I looked like a sea monster, one who required constant moisture or will otherwise shrivel and expire. He looked prepared to take the trail. He didn't have a shirt draped over shoulders like a jackass.Dragon's Back Log, 11:00 AM. Supplies check: Water, two-thirds gone. Sunscreen, running on empty. Position, maybe a third of the way through the trail. Only one party member remains alive.I passed a couple going the other way. I greeted them with a "Pretty warm, eh?" They agreed, then shot one another a look to suggest that they may have missed a key memo on standard greetings while hiking in Hong Kong.Soon enough I came upon a creek, which ran through the trail. A Chinese couple had stopped to dip towels in the water for placement under their hats. They didn't look like dumbasses. They looked like geniuses. It occurred to me that this was probably an obvious thing to do for anyone who had ever been on a hike before. I scurried by, not wanting them to think that it was their ingenuity which gave me the idea. Fortunately, I soon came to another creek. I removed my head dress to douse it. I wanted to remove all of my clothes and submerse myself in the fresh, clear water. But I thought better of it, given that my retiree friend was also refreshing himself in the running water.I decided not to linger, so I could get a head start on him. Alarmed by my sudden progress, he put his cap back on and gave chase. To his credit, I doubt he had come all the way to Hong Kong to be bested by some punk kid with a shirt on his head. He soon overtook me without a word. There was nothing I could do about it. It was evident that he had no intention of taking names. He was only here to kick ass.The trail swung onto the backside of the mountain, under the merciful cover of foliage, safe from the sizzle of the open sky. I was happy to trade temporarily the glories of the sea and islands for protection from being broiled alive by what at this point seemed the unnecessarily proximal star at the center of our solar system. Now rather acquainted with the trail's flora, I started the notice the fauna. There was a spider the size of Papua New Guinea. Its legs were longer than mine. It looked like it could snatch a bird from the sky, like a baseball player straining to catch a ball at the top of an outfield fence. Only instead of a baseball, it would be a robin or a small eagle. Eminently creeped out, I scuttled onward. I added this spider to my list of concerns, which at that point contained looking like a foolishly novice hiker, sunburn, dehydration, and tigers. If you were on this trial, I think you'd be concerned with each of these as well.At length, I reached a juncture at the bottom of a slope. I saw the retired man inspecting a map. When he noticed my approach he took off. I followed his course. There were signs for "big wave beach." Periodically, he checked behind him to make sure I was in his wake. We were on a paved road now. I dodged back and forth in the lane to remain under shade cast by surrounding foliage. I stopped at another look-out point. I could see several communities of high-rises, erected in uniform pylons. They were so tightly packed and similarly constructed that they looked like the spiky erections of iron dust when a magnet coaxes it skyward. As we made our way closer to the beach, I saw the retiree split off on a more direct route. Neither wanting to deliver the blow of whooping his ass in the final stretch nor to let him have the satisfaction of whooping mine, I continued on my present path which would descend with unhurried leisure toward the bottom.Then the beach came into sight. In a flash of sudden insight, I understood the objective measure of a world-class hiking trail. To have all that previous wandering be rewarded with this? Just perfect. The hill from which I was descending swaddled the beach in a lush wrapping of vegetation. In some mirror image of the circles of hell, it formed a concentric ring of utopian vision. At the heart was the bay, ensconced in the Platonic ideal of white-sand beach, opening up into the luxuriant hillside. The name "big wave" less described the largeness of the surf at this particular beach as much as the smallness of surf in these parts generally. I took off my hood so as not to gave myself away as a schlub, in case I ran into Shao Li on the beach. Only having breached noon, the beach was still uncrowded. Maybe a dozen or so families. It felt like my own little share of real estate in Hong Kong heaven. When I turned the corner from path to beach, the sea was spread out before me as it faded from cloudy and sandy to idyllic cerulean. It was spangled with the same intensity as the view above, though now I could reach out and touch it. The water was warm, like a tepid bath. I waded in and immersed myself in the the strip of infinite blue. As the beach began to fill up, I noticed there were, in my estimation, entirely too many families and not enough bikini-clad women. I did not, for the record, encounter Shao Li.In the water I roamed like a wild animal, with no pattern to govern my behavior. Sometimes floating, sometimes swimming; sometimes shallow, sometimes deep. Never with any particular destination in mind. The only sounds were those of the happy children and the waves languishing along the shore. Intermittently, there was the gentle awk and splonk of the neophyte standup paddle boarder capsizing.After about an hour of grazing in knee deep water, I reemerged from the water and repaired, still wet, to the beach café where I acquired a well-earned Dragon's Back pale ale. While enjoying my beer I spotted a couple long-sought bikini girls from afar. I finished my beer and reequipped myself to go back in the water. Upon entering I realized it was a false alarm -- a mirage of sorts -- and dripped out of the water, this time to enjoy a Big Wave IPA. As soon as I did, the girls came back. I swear.Satisfied with my experience in the out-of-doors, I headed toward the nearby lot where a van waited to take beach patrons back to civilization. On my way I acquired a mango popsicle. Then I spotted a sign that promised "Ancient rock carvings - 330 m." I debated momentarily whether this was worth extending my time in nature. I decided to go back home. Who gives a s**t about rock carvings anyway? I boarded the van to take me back. Waiting for the vehicle to fill up, I saw another sign. "Ancient rock carving - 500 m." I pretended not to notice, failing to fool anyone involved in the situation. It was then I remembered who gives a s**t about rock carvings. I do. F**k it. I got off the bus, put on my headdress, and went back toward the beach in search of rock carvings.Eventually, I found them. Doubling back on my previous recollection, I now remembered why no one else gives a s**t about rock carvings. The delta between rocks and rocks with ancient carvings in them is not, as it turns out, that great. The saving grace of the endeavor was that I did, on my way back to the van, acquire another mango popsicle.Taxi hour. The time in the middle of the night when the streets are devoid of all vehicles save for a trickle of black and yellow cabs. Some zip by on their way to the airport. Some return a pair of lovers to wherever it is they plan to spend the remaining hours of the night. Some just idle on the side of the road, killing time until called into action. One night I couldn't sleep and so found myself on the streets of Hong Kong, the lone soul wandering the streets in human form.My time in Hong Kong was coming to a close. Visa issues sorted, I would soon be reunited with Haily. I had loved my excursion to Hong Kong. But I had also missed Haily. In case you couldn't tell, a part of me longed for a companion to enjoy it with. Happiness only real when shared.And so we would be together again soon -- elsewhere in Asia. We continued as we had before, in our summer devoted to going places and seeing things. Her family in Vietnam. Taking the train though Java. Bali. Friends and family in Singapore. There are stories to tell from those adventures, too. But I will leave them out of this collection, to allow them to remain as stories that belong only to us.The final episodes in the season take place at another time, in another season of the year and another season of life. They skip sideways along the Asian continent, to a portion of South East Asia on the same latitude as Hong Kong. The Buddhist stronghold of dark political history, still processing its own militant reaction to a colonial past. South East Asia's largest country by land area, but one of its smallest in terms of tourist figures. A place that I fell in love with from the moment I first stepped a dusty sandal on its soil. The final destination of the first season of Notes from the Field: Myanmar.Next Episode:Thanks for checking out Season 1 of Notes from the Field. If you’ve enjoyed it, please consider becoming a premium subscriber. I’m trying to do more of this kind of travel writing in the future. But as you can imagine, it’s hard to have these kinds of experiences while also holding down a job. Your subscription goes a long way toward helping me to do that. Use the link below, and you’ll get 50% off an annual subscription. Thanks! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit codykommers.substack.com/subscribe

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here's the thing, right?   the reason that the topic, check your ego came up.  talking about editing. And I was like the hardest thing  to do is take your ego out of the situation when you edit it. It's not necessarily hard for me. I don't think it'd be hard for anybody else, but at least our team, , because we want to see each other shine. Right. But I know for a fact that that's not always the case.  So I was like, ah, I think that's something that could be touching on that. That's something that needs to be touched on because how many times do you deal with somebody that's on the same team as you, but they not on the same team as you,  so just looking out for number one. Yeah. Yeah. I ain't gonna lie, but personally for me, , to being on a team, you want to make sure that everybody has the same goal. everybody has that one mission and then not one drop.  and to be honest with you, , I always like to make sure that I came my part. I don't want to be the weakest link. I grew up to never, ever be the weakest link because the weakest link is basically,  the reason why you would win or you would fail. Okay. , and my thing, Jermaine, I hate to lose it. I'm not a, I'm not a loser look, I'm not a loser. So you, when you started saying it, like that's when your ego starts to Vigo. Exactly. Right. , when you're talking about with the editing  it's funny how you brought that up. ,when I was doing the editing process today, . I kind of felt that, during the process, I didn't know how  everything came out from my mouth. But it made me,  look at it in a different view where it was like, man, I had to come in and I had to cut this apart from me, what I said, Oh man, I did. I said something about this. I want to cut this part. it was funny, what I realized when I kept on cutting up clips , that was conversation pieces , that originated, you know, for me. , if you played the whole clip, right, . When I edit out and everything, it doesn't make any sense.  when my whole team came in the. , and spoke , what they did, because, , so what are you saying that it changed your view set from me to we exactly. Right. cause look, the thing was, I was focused on  me. I only added me. Right. I was only focusing on me. And when it came to realize that when you put the focus on two weeks, It brings out a better look of the whole team. Not because the look I got to say  I know for me personally, editing the podcast, the mindset went quickly. It was like, all right, how do I make all of us shine? Because I though I might have a powerful voice. So I might say something that's extremely impactful, but I'm not the only one that's doing it, but how do I take that? And put it into a situation where when the listeners sit down and listen to the podcast, They're getting this much out of it as possible. How do they get the best jewels that I could possibly pull a rang out of this podcast? and that's hard, to do when you want a team setting and you're not checking on everybody else when you are on that,  I mentality, which is nothing wrong with having a high mentality. There's nothing wrong with being selfish. But you got to look at selfish from a different perspective. When you think selfish is,  if I advance myself, it has to bless the entire team. I think that's the best way of looking at it. So it's not altruism, like where it's like, Oh, I want to help them out and make them shine. It's not that it's, if I'm shining, they're shining. They're shining on shiny. If we shine it dang. Right.  That's all. That's all. I've always looked at. Leaving my ego at the door because helping the overall team,  for example, when I'm doing stuff here at this church, like the streaming, I have to make sure  , everyone is doing their part. And before I can ask anyone to do their part, I have to make sure I have everything on my part completely done. , well, prepared and just make sure that I'm like on top of every single point, . You can't ask someone to be on point. If you're not on point, that's like all the gears ain't ordered up correctly. Right. The success machine won't work.  if you want to be successful, the only way that it's truly possible is to make sure everything works and according to how it's supposed to.  sometimes you could think that you blessing the entire team and really what you're doing is helping yourself. Right? The problem is knowing when to keep that balance, because yes, you do have to balance. It's tough. It's tough. because you can't, you can't go a hundred percent just for the team. And you're,  making yourself sad, doing everything for the team, but you're not. Making stuff for you to be happy as well. Right? That's week that he was talking about earlier. the weak link is the actual strength of the team. if it fails, we fail. If it's strong, we're strong, right. Without the actual strength of the team is the weakest possibly. Right. , say I'm the one that's not studying hard enough. I'm not putting no effort to really give real content and y'all see that. And then y'all, don't say nothing that makes the podcast week. Right? Right. You're like, Hey bro, maybe you could, you know, Hey, let's adjust. And you know, Here's a book that I just got through reading, but you want to check that out? You know what I'm saying? when you build somebody else that's on your team, you build yourself, right? technically everybody should be a leader in a team. Yeah, for sure. That's how I should be. I hype man. Can I ask you something?  what would you say for instance, the weakest link being let's say , if it's the captain of , the basketball team that you have here, prime, right? Yeah. And, you see that he has the highest temperament , not makes him a weak link just because of the fact that he could get fouled easily. People know,  that he will be able to be. this focus from the game,  yeah. But this guy is actually talented. So how would you look at that? as being, we're talking about like at the same time as like, you know what I mean? Cause truth be told everybody has a. strengths and weaknesses. Right? Right. So the idea is with that situation, if you know, okay, , we made him a captain for a reason. So now we put him not on a pedestal,  even though he has this temper, we know this, but he got talent. . So all we gotta do is figure out how to balance them out. And get him to understand that, Hey, I am the weakest and I'm the strongest at the same time, I have to find that equal balance. I'm now under the leader, but I'm also a follower as well. Yeah.  without the team, I couldn't be where I'm at and what I need the team couldn't be where they are. Right. So we need each other. Right. in that situation, I would just. You'd probably go with someone that has the opposite strengths and weaknesses to be compared to wisdom. . If I'm the captain and you're the co-captain right. I want us to work together so we can we could win and ships. Yeah, no doubt. how can we win championships? How can I approach this game? , how my leadership is going to affect other teammates. , this is all questions  I'm going to be asking myself if I'm the captain of the team, you know what I mean? Even if you're not, it's a, it's a conversation that you have. If you have a team, there is no getting around that. Yeah, that's right. If you don't have that conversation with yourself, it's like you hurting the team as well. Yeah.  what you're saying is,  you could be a bench warmer that plays about like two minutes, ? per game. And you should be asking the same questions. Yeah, yeah, no, no. Yeah. Just making it clear. Yeah. It's negative because even a bench warmer,  if they don't get an, a game, they can think when they're in practice, since he's going to be in a game, I had to go hard at them just to get them prepared. Right , if he's not getting himself prepared  you can also use it as your opportunity to go to the leader. , I here's how I can help in this situation. This guy is not that strong in this area and you  if the leaders like the coach, you can show the coach what he's weak at, and that way he can give you a chance to go in the game for that specific purpose. Not only that, but. You a bitch or for that moment, you got to remember that it's gonna come a time when you have to shine through the rest of the team. you'll be thinking about, okay, when it is my time, how can I bless the team?  if it makes me think of the, forgot that one player on the last dance that Michael Jordan kept getting on. Michael Jordan was just, he was on this player all season. And , this guy never plays. Right. So he would always just like, just tell him you did this, you saw a few, all that just for, he can prepare him. Cause he knew it needed him down the line in a playoff game. So he's trying to get them mentally tough, but yeah. It works like, you know, I can't say a series against Charlotte. He scored like 20 to 28 points, a bench player.  my main point is . He always stayed on him. He was thinking of the future, right? Like how can I help the team? Even though it was at the moment, it was harsh against that player, but he was thinking about the advancement of the team. So what you're saying is checking your ego is, enhancing your vision of the future, right. And making, the tough calls that you need to make. So preparation is required. At all times at all times. Yeah. So when you practicing physical practices, never enough , mental practice creates mental toughness, which is a necessity for great teamwork, I agree because the repetition. When you're in the game is just as important. when you're off the court. I think that having the mental aptitude , to, withstand, all of the pressure, you're facing, when you're in the game, basically getting into like preparation right now. that really is  one of the hardest skills to acquire and to be consistent with oh, yeah. , well, I think it's . What's tough about it. Germane, if there's nobody watching you, there's not a crowd  you've got to hype yourself up. Like, is it like you got to ask yourself, am I still playing? Is it still worth it? That's the thing, like how I use it. It's still weighted as important. as if I'm actually playing in the game. Yeah. So that's where you got to really check yourself, check your ego. So then you're saying that your ego  mainly outside the game when nobody else is looking. Of course, of course.  what are you asking yourself? When you look at yourself in the mirror? Because most I ain't there. Yeah. You know what I mean? That's stuff you got to ask yourself, right. And tell yourself I want to be great. And to be great, you got to stay in it. Even when everyone's not watching, I can kind of hide that. I can be played a devil's advocate with that. on one hand. That gets into skill versus talent cause saying that you great and actually being great tends to be two different things, but then I'm not saying, I mean, like to hype yourself up and be like, bro, I want to be great. This is what I want. This is, I am great. Yeah, of course. You have to have action behind, you know. Matter of fact, I was just doing this to my brother actually. earlier today we was talking and he just went to read counting all these things that I've done. And I'm like, wow. He's like, bro, listen, you can't see what other people see. Like you've done this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this. And I'm like, yeah, to me, that's not even like, that's just something that I do. It's normal, bro. That's not like for me, it's normal. Right. But to other people has been great.  I might not consider great in the same aspect that other people do. And most people that are like the grades look at it, like, nah, I just Yeah. That's what it is. How do you make yourself never satisfied with where you stand at when you look in the mirror? the reason I say I'm playing devil's advocate is because when you look in the mirror, do you tell yourself I am great or I will be, I will be. I will be great. Or do you say in order to hype yourself up at that moment? I'm great right now, right now. I'm great. This is what it is, or I will be great, even though I know I've accomplished a thousand things. I know that people right now will tell me I'm great for this, this, this, and this. Do I say, nah, I'm going to be great. When I pass, like, do I look all the way into the future and say, when I pass, I want to be at, I accomplish this, this, this, this, and this and this, right. Or is that an ego thing?  should you check your ego in that aspect? at that moment? Do you say I move forward and focus is, this is all it is. I'm not great yet. Even though they're telling me I'm great. I don't feel like I've achieved the things that I wanted to achieve. Yeah. I can't be great once I finished when I said I came here to do right. I can't be great. Yeah. So you gotta get into  the fundamental principle of what we know as humility and  the aspect when you have somebody that's the captain of the team. . . And he has a special talent to him. If I'm  the coach, , I'm gonna want to be able to build that kid's humility up. Right. because I know for a fact that he has so much pressure on him and  the pressure ain't the same to a gaint  when you were a kid and , it's something that you do on a regular base ! Think about how many talents or kids that just, they just freaking insanely, talented that you just like, this is just ridiculous, bro. His pressure's not the same as a kid who don't have the same amount of  on talent. Depression isn't the same, he might be extremely tiny and not even be the captain. , I questioned where's the line with humidity and ego. am I building him up by telling him to be more humble or am i, breaking him down and stopping his shine by telling them to be more humble. So what , I would say from Jermaine,   I'm the coach and I'm telling my, player that,  has great potential. and he is the leader of the pack, right? I am going to be, focused on his ability to remain in character in the most tough, situation. So when he's in the most, when he's in the oppression, the pressure. Cooking and it's hot, right? It's on the line. I'm going to need some, results. I'm going to look to my captain , to be able to have the, courage and to  step up and just show that to be the great player that he is. Right, right. But at the same time before he got into that situation, I want to build that player up as into being, team player you don't want him to drop the bond. We don't want you to talk about, let me ask you this, right. Let's let's talk about , why do people consider LeBron James, one of the greatest players all the time? Is it because he's extremely well versed when it comes down to the game and his skills that he can pretty much do anything. Right or is it because he's a team player and he knows how to pass that ball and get other people to shine? Is it because he got extreme confidence in itself? Yeah, of course. Right. Or is it because he's humble? Cause when you sit down and you asked him if he's the greatest of all time for a long time, he wouldn't even say that. He said I got to put something on this. a board before I can say I'm the greatest amount of time. Right? what makes LeBron gray? Is it his ego or his, his humility, or is it a balance of both , I mean, it comes down to a little bit of a balance of both, definitely when he first came into league, he was. more past first, always try and get his teammates involved. But as he matured,  towards Miami years, he realized that  he needs to be able to take some of the responsibility every now and then  he got to make that big shot and make that big play himself and not always pass, give it to someone else. that also came through. Experience  being defeated and all that again. And again, I think him a real realizing that him being him not taking the shine sometimes when he should, was like, what's his like, downfall because he got so used to like, just thinking of everybody else that , he became unbalanced because he wasn't. He wasn't thinking of like him being at him, actually being aggressive is actually helping the team. So he decided, , I think it's something he always wanted to do, but the outside pressure got to him. So, yeah. Yeah. It's more of the, what people were saying about him.  it kind of humbled him in that regard. Like, he was like, you should be shine and that you're not shy. Yeah. I think that's, I think that's where his humility came for him. do you think that built him up? Do you think that built up his ego or it brought down his ego? I think it brought, it, brought him down to the level that he needed to see where he was actually at. Like, like he's not. Like, where are you supposed to be? So he wasn't doing his potential. Yes. I'm a great team player. I'm great. I got great skills. I am a, I am a leader, but then I'm actually not leading because most people are saying he wasn't clutched. So yeah, after that 2011 finals, that's why, that's why they said, that's why he said he was like in his room for like two weeks. They didn't talk to anyone. I think at that time he just had it. He took a long, hard look in the mirror, like, man, I'm really not that dude. So I got to go back in the lab to make myself that dude, not that he wasn't dude, not that he wasn't the dude, he just wasn't aware of his weakness at that time. And his weakness was I'll say it to him. If you asked him, he is, he would tell you himself, he wasn't that dude to himself. Oh, okay. Okay. So outside looking at it, we would definitely say, yeah, he's still that dude. But to him, he was like, nah, I ain't that dude. Yeah. After, after the 2011 final he's like, nah, I ain't, I ain't it yet. I'm not there. I'm not there. that's the answer to checking your ego at the door, check your ego at the door in order to see your real vision, see your reputation. It has to be some sort of self awareness for sure. you have to realize that what you accomplish. It's just, a daily,  task because the next task  is going to be bigger and greater. You don't have to come to the, you don't have to go to all I'm saying is like, you have to go to the next success. You still need people. , you do need that, constructive criticism. we always. Yo, we always need it. You know? it don't matter what position you really in. sometimes , it's hard to be self-aware without someone at least irrigated on a little bit like, Hey yeah. You know, read, like there has to be that. What do you two guys operate better on? Like, do you guys operate when people are patting you on the back or like when people are criticizing you, criticism is where I, where I get it. It's cousin asked me on the back all the time. I feel like that it's not, it's not sincere because I know, I know that I have some type of, like, I know I got a lot on me. It's not perfect. But see that's , when picking the right people and having the right team is important,  that's critical to true success. think about it, everybody  that was successful , they all had , That one friend. And that was always like, man, they used to Brown me on a time, bro. Like every time I turned around, that's all needed, bro. I got wrong because I got tired of listening to, I listened to what he said and took off with it. I mean, like I get, I get scared when a bunch of people started patting me on the back. I feel like I'm being choked for real. I feel like I'm like, Whoa, Whoa, Whoa, hold on. That's that's two different types of pressure right there too. So we can go back to the yeah. Brusher being critique, and then the pressure of success right there. I'd rather have the mean you gotta be able to find a way to thrive with both. But if I had to choose, I'd rather have the pressure of like everyone down me all the time. I like, is there really a thing where it's like, how did, how did they say, you can't take a compliment? Have you ever heard that you can't take a compliment? Yeah. Oh man. I didn't have some females that you just can't take a compliment. I'm like. That's cause I want to grow. I don't know if the company, like, I don't feel like it's as simple as that, but isn't it the same time it's like kind of like, checking that ego too at the same time. When, when you're saying you can't take a compliment, you know what I mean? It like, you, you, you, you can't take a compliment. You, you really, you really not gonna accept that. Like y'all, ain't like for real, I mean, in my answer, my answer was always the same. It was always well, okay. If you're going to give me a compliment, don't just give me a compliment. Oh, you give me some constructive criticism as well. Like if you really, if you really, really deal with me on that level, don't give me one without the other. You know what I mean? It's not fair. Like when I sit down, not like, for instance, when I'm compensating with y'all I don't wanna just tell you. Oh, you're amazing. No, I'm like, all right, but we also need to work on this because if I just give you, if I just say, Hey, V you're fucking amazing. I'm excuse me. You're amazing all the time. Or you really could see me as a teammate. Yeah. He just thinks I'm amazing all the time. That's great. Yeah. It's really boring when someone's like that too. And you lose weight behind your words, respect. I can't respect you. When are you telling me that I'm freaking borderline kind of creepy to them. It's just a tablet stuff like that. Creeps me out. Think about, think about this, right? Okay. When you're dealing with a female, right. And y'all in a relationship you cannot possibly sit down and be like the whole time. That'd be a beautiful, she goes, that shit. Ain't going to be, you know, You said you beautiful on a regular basis? I don't mean that in right. You gotta buy, you should've thought this instead, you know, like, or like joke with her or whatever, you know, how they go, but yeah. Keep it interesting. Yeah. And like, it's the same, I think it's the same dynamic when it comes down to any kind of relationship, you know what I mean? So in a team setting, I think that's the same thing. It has to be open and honest all the time. Yeah. Cause if it's not broke, I would not. I can't be around people that I feel like are not going to be honest with me. I don't like if you go side with like, you know how people like they'll be talking to you, but then they tell the side where you're like, ah, okay, just be straight forward, bro. Like as a team, that's something that has, you gotta be able to be blunt. You know what I'm saying? All the times we do show. Cause if not me not telling you, you suck. And this is going to put me in a situation later on down the line, and it's going to put everybody else in the situation. We're not trying to be in the West of situation instead. I'd rather be like, Hey, if it's gonna hurt your feelings, we'll get past it. You, you you'll do it. You'll get past it to help you grow. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, so that's what people don't understand, or it helps in the long run to be straight forward when you're, when you're always like dancing over the truth, man, it just causes. The one situation that you were trying to avoid in the first place it's way worse when we arrive to it in the future. Right? 

Joe Biden is losing his mind. Poor man made himself look like a fool last week on CNN. How do the 2020 presidential candidate options keep getting worse? Sign up for our email list here --> https://mailchi.mp/644bb32f036b/gre-vocab-yo --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/grevocab/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/grevocab/support

Pff, de unde începem? În podcastul din această săptămână am dezbătut despre calculele făcute fie înaintea, fie după ultima etapă din primele ligi engleze. Premier League ne așteaptă cu dueluri fascinante în lupta care încă se dă pe trei fronturi: calificarea în Champions League, în Europa League și evitarea retrogradării. Cine își închipuia că ultima etapă va fi o alergare ușoară în parc trebuie să se gândească din nou. Ne așteaptă Leicester v Manchester United și Chelsea v Wolverhampton, dar și meciuri cheie pentru cele trei echipe care încă speră să se salveze de la retrogradarea în Championship. Și fiindcă am menționat Championship, ce etapă finală am avut! Trecem în revistă cum a ajuns West Bromwich să promoveze din nou în Premier League și toate trăirile fanilor lui Brentford, Fulham, Nottingham Forest sau Swansea, dar și cum echipe ca Luton, Barnsley, Charlton sau Wigan s-au salvat sau suferă în zona retrogradării. Am vorbit, pe undeva prin podcast, și despre semifinalele FA Cup și, nu în ultimul rând, am vorbit despre transferurile dintre echipe din Germania și Anglia cu Mihai Rusu, una dintre vocile radio-ului Europa Liberă, printr-o intervenție inedită de la Munchen.

Ashley and Erik speak with Germane Barnes about life under quarantine at home in Miami, Florida. Germane is an Assistant Professor of Architecture and Director of the Community, Housing & Identity Lab (CHIL) at the University of Miami and principal of the research and design practice, Studio Barnes.

Barnes' research and design practice investigates the connection between architecture and identity, examining architecture's social and political agency through historical research and design speculation. Learning from historical data and perspectives from within architecture as well as cultural and ethnic studies, he examines how the built environment influences the social and cultural experience. Born in Chicago, IL Germane Barnes received a Bachelor's of Science in Architecture from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Architecture from Woodbury University where he was awarded the Thesis Prize for his project Symbiotic Territories: Architectural Investigations of Race, Identity, and Community. He believes strongly in design as a process, and approaches each condition imposed on a project as an opportunity rather than a constraint. Architecture presents opportunities for transformation – materially, conceptually and sociologically. Currently he  is an Assistant Professor and the Director of The Community Housing & Identity Lab (CHIL) at the University of Miami School of Architecture, a testing ground for the physical and theoretical investigations of architecture's social and political resiliency. In the episode we talk about his background, where he comes from and what experiences he had that made him think architecture was the best career to pursue for him. He tells me about the time he got arrested in his very own front porch, because he "fit a description of a black guy that had stolen some shoes," and he also tells me about the constant discrimination that he was faced with by his veryy own professors at his undergraduate school. We then talk about his trip to Cape Town, South Africa, where he did pro-bono work for low income families, which changed his whole understanding of architecture completely. We then talk about where he is at now, fighting against racial discrimination in the most violent neighborhoods of Miami, Florida.   --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

A conversation about the current state of the architectural design profession and its institutional and educational biases. How far has the profession evolved and the work that still needs to be done within the context of inclusivity and social justice? Listen and join the conversation - leave your comments and questions. Guest Germane Barnes Germane Barnes is an Assistant Professor and the Director of The Community, Housing & Identity Lab (CHIL) at the University of Miami. He is also the Director of Studio Barnes, a research and design practice that investigates the connection between architecture and identity. Mining architecture’s social and political agency, he examines how the built environment influences black domesticity. His design and research contributions have been published and exhibited in several international institutions. Most notably, The Museum of Modern Art, The Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, The New York Times, Architect Magazine, DesignMIAMI/ Art Basel, The Swiss Institute, Metropolis Magazine, Curbed, and The National Museum of African American History where he was identified as one of the future designers on the rise. About Urblandia Urblandia is an emerging platform focused on amplifying impact entrepreneurship. Join us on urblandia.com

Marius Ghinea este cu siguranță cel mai experimentat și emblematic redactor de jocuri din România: a scris pentru LEVEL și Chip încă din perioada de început, a continuat să colaboreze cu proiectul NIVELUL2 și momentan lucrează la proiectul jurnalistic personal leftclickghinea.ro. Participanții pe care îi puteți asculta în acest episod sunt: Vlad, Kimo, Mihnea, Mihai și invitatul special Marius Ghinea. Dacă vă place ceea ce facem și vreți să ne susțineți proiectul, ne puteți oferi o bere pe Patreon. În semn de mulțumire, veți primi acces la conținut exclusiv printre care se numără și revista NET LEVEL în format digital: https://www.patreon.com/nivelul2podcast Printre subiectele pe care le discutăm alături de Marius Ghinea se numără: – Primul contact al lui MG cu mafia chineză; – Singurul redactor LEVEL care ar putea să termine toate misiunile din GTA 3; – Simulatoare auto și piloții de Formula 1 care le testează în perioada pandemiei; – Machete de mașini, volane și diferența dintre simulatoarele auto de pe PC și console; – Actuala revistă Chip; – Jocurile din seria The Elder Scrolls și de ce Oblivion este mai bun decât Skyrim; – Jocul la care Marius Ghinea lucrează momentan.

For this Podcast episode, an extensive discussion on Health tech was made with Kyle Puckhaber. Kyle has over eight years of experience in product management, and he’s working in various capacities in health tech companies. He has worked as a product manager for health tech in the long-term care industry, and currently working in the fitness industry with his brothers, helping people achieve and maintain their fitness goals. Kyle started his career as a life insurance representative for six months and then decided to focus on Health care domain, by being an account manager for a Health care firm. His enthusiasm for health care software made him become the product manager. This position made him dig into thorough research about the product they were giving to medical practitioners. Key Takeaways · Incorporation of technology in Health-care bolsters productivity. · Price of services rendered to body-fitness customers must worth the value added to them. · Understanding the dynamics of target groups within health and fitness niche aids substantial growth. Key Moments 1:23 - Kyle talked about the early stage of his career. 2:43 - Activities that stimulated Kyle’s Career as a product Manager. 3:58 - Developing software to support Medicare and Medic-aid system. 5:00 - Drafting Health-tech software from drawing-board to production. 5:30 - Solving problems by understanding government regulations, and challenges in the industry. 8:30 - Current challenges in Health-care industry. 11:27 - Coping with health and fitness industry amidst COVID-19. 15:23 - Kyle elucidated how to leverage online technologies for health benefit. 17:03 - Effect of cost on health and nutrition services. 23:00 - The means of reaching out to the target group in fitness industry. 24:55 - How to use technology to add value to business. 28:48 - Obstacles in business growth. 36:16 - Germane pillars for a business foundational growth.

Apropos of absolutely nothing at all, Genevieve and Andrew take a look back at some of the best (and worst) hand-washing PSAs of all time. Also, Andrew learns that he was actually right about something!

Metamorfoze jeb pārvēršanās no vienas formas otrā laikā uzrunājusi ne vienu vien mākslinieku, ļaujoties iztēlei par krasām esamības vai apkārtējās pasaules pārmaiņām. Mākslinieces Margaritas Germanes laikmetīgās tēlniecības izstādē Rīgas mākslas telpā ar tieši šādu nosaukumu „Metamorfoze” ir vērojama kā pārējas process, kad esi vairākās izmaiņu stadijās vienlaikus. Savā pirmajā personālizstādē Margarita eksponē darbus, kas tapuši metamorfozes procesā starp Venēciju un Latviju. Rīgas Mākslas telpas Intro zāle piepludināta ar intensīvu zilu krāsu, uz kuras spoguļburtos izkombinēts ekspozīcijas nosaukums „Metamorfoze”, kā arī dzirdams Sarmas Gabrēnas un Agitas Reķes speciāli izstādei komponētais skaņdarbs.  Tāpat telpā sastopama masku trijotne, savīta no dažāda biezuma metāla stieplēm, un sievietes ķermenis pusguļus stāvoklī, kas darināts no sīkām metāla skaidām. Sievietes sejas vietā – askētisks, spīdošs galvaskauss. Vai to varētu interpretēt kā visa cilvēciskā sākotni? "Nē, tas nav sākums. Dīvainā kārtā vai likumsakarīgi galvaskauss ir kā vainagojums visam procesam. Skulptūra sāka veidoties pati no sevis. Es tikai palīdzu tai rasties. Galvaskauss izrādījās, kā domas utopiskais redzējums un plāns par apgaismību," skaidro Margarita Germane. Margarita Germane absolvējusi Latvijas Mākslas akadēmijas Vides mākslas dizaina nodaļas bakalaura programmu maģistra studijas turpina Latvijas Mākslas akadēmijas Tēlniecības apakšnozares programmā, studējusi arī Venēcijas mākslas akadēmijas apmaiņas programmā. Piemērīt, gan pārnestā nozīmē, Margaritas Germanes maskas Rīgas Mākslas telpā būs iespējams līdz 1. martam.

Four New York City friends and occasionally guests of varying age, background, sexuality, etc. meet over drinks to discuss all topics life. The goal: to express themselves, enjoy each other’s company, think and hopefully learn something in the process.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/barflysbflies)

Deeeeeeng this episode is cray! Middle school drama yo. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/grevocab/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/grevocab/support

Fanfara Banater Musikanten Ansamblul German din Jimbolia - 2016 Ansamblul German din Varias - 2013

Aaron Bronsteter recaps all of the craziness of UFC 239, was the main event more about Jones or Santos, should Rockhold or Holm call it a day and why the outcome of Masvidal and Askren was so surprising. Joining the show this week are Germane de Randamie and Urijah Faber, who compete on this weekend's UFC Fight Night card in Sacramento

Aaron Bronsteter recaps all of the craziness of UFC 239, was the main event more about Jones or Santos, should Rockhold or Holm call it a day and why the outcome of Masvidal and Askren was so surprising. Joining the show this week are Germane de Randamie and Urijah Faber, who compete on this weekend's UFC Fight Night card in Sacramento