Get Down On It: August 18, 2023 Edition

A weird thing is happening. I’m doing all sorts of “stuff” and the whole “don’t forget to tell people about it” thing isn’t my strong suit. This post is an attempt to try to rectify that. I may do this once a week going forward. If you have thoughts for or against this, get at me wherever. I’m open to suggestions. 

1. Breaking News Podcast: 2 episodes are out now. I’m stoked to be doing a recurring YouTube/podcast with Ben Hunt and Jack Forehand about breaking the news down. Not breaking stories. Not headline fodder. This is a(n adult) discussion about becoming narrative vigilantes with the way information is passed to us. The media is a problem and all of us, individually and collectively, can be the solution(s). I’ve learned so much from Ben over the years, now I’m hoping to share more of his beautiful brain with you. First two episodes are linked below, but check out Breaking News on YouTube or wherever you stream your podcasts. The inflation narrative discussion in #2 is one of the most important things to be aware of going into election season in the US. I really can’t believe the three of us are getting to make these.

2. The Education of a Financial Planner podcast: these go up weekly, but the last one Jack Forehand and I did solo about factor investing and planning… I’m a happy nerd, ok? I never got the whole “math is just music” pitch my teachers tried to throw at me. But you know what? I understand statistics (and factor regressions) because I understand music. In this episode I concede this point, and I think these overlaps in our professional curiosities are beautiful. Enjoy my weird and wonky joy. Which leads us to…

3. I wrote a piece this week called “Fred Armisen On How To Niche Down.” Somehow, probably because my brother and niece were visiting from France and I became very sleep deprived and 1/3 wine/whiskey/beer, I emailed out the wrong draft of the text. The website was right, but the email was not. This is a really important piece and I’m flagging it again here. To all my people who have been wondering how in the hell to find their niche – this one’s for you.   

Ps. Get down on it? Like the Kool and the Gang song? yes. Because how you gonna do it if you really won’t take a chance by standing on the wall? Get down on it. This is my self-motivating mood music and now the title of this topic. Did I mention the sleep deprivation and hydration choices?