Recently by James Altucher: The 100 Rules for Being an Entrepreneur
I used to religiously read “Dear Abby’s column” as a kid. Then I would buy the collected columns (since she had decades worth of material) when they came out in book form. She had been doing it since 1956 and her daughter continues the tradition. And then there was “Ask Ann Landers” which was every bit as good and done by her twin sister. Of course they couldn’t use their real names. “Ann Landers” real name was “Eppie Lederer”. I fantasized they were related to me (my great grandfather’s last name was “Lederer”).
People would ask them anything. I remember one in particular. A woman followed her husband late at night to a strip club. The man went in the back with a woman. Later, under interrogation from the woman, he claimed that “all I got were sexual favors”. In other words, he was trying to say, no big deal. This girl wanted to know (from Abby, or Ann, I forget which) if this was ok.
I forget their response. Who cares. I wanted questions like that. I’d lay down the line for that poor woman and tell her what goes on in the real world.
The other day I tweeted I would answer any and all questions on twitter from 4 to 4:30 (making it easy for people who trade the markets since at 4 most markets are closed. The questions started coming in at 3:45. I loved it. It was a way to help people in short bursts. I tried to get as many answers in as possible before 4:30. I think I finished around 4:40. Below are the questions and my answers. In some cases I expand a little. I plan on doing this every week.
I don’t know if this works in column format (i.e. this blog post) but we’ll see. This is an experiment.
ONLINE DATING
@jaltucher What are your feelings concerning online dating? Would you treat it like a new business, considering the interactions?
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@jeehtoven i treat online dating EXACTLY how i treated starting a business. And don’t forget to cut losses quickly!.
Expanded answer: I was online dating before I met Claudia. I tried every service. Heck, I even created a service! I was online 3-4 hours a night (when I wasn’t on a date) sending out messages to profiles I liked. I spent an hour filling out the eHarmony form and only at the end they told me I wasn’t qualified (“Our research shows that people who are separated ususally do not have relationships that work out.
I cut losses very quickly. If a conversation started (some services allow for instant messaging) that I felt was going nowhere I stopped it. If a date happened and I sensed it wasn’t going to work out, I cut it short and that was that. Even if I felt like things could move forward, if I didn’t think it would end in long-term relationship, I stopped it.
I had very clear goals. I wanted to fall in love. I wanted someone to fall in love with me. I didn’t want any games where we had to pretend to not love each other while we slowly eased into it. I work pretty fast.
But it was work. Every day sending messages. Every day trying different services. And then the actual dates. If you just try haphazardly you will never get anywhere.
ADVENTURE OR INERTIA
kaisdavis: how do you take that next step towards living and adventure when life is full of inertia to stay silent and still?
Answer: @kaisdavis do both. have adventure. give yourself time to stay silent and still.
Expanded answer: I realize my answer now is not necessarily answering his question.
On any given day, the general tendency is to just do your normal routine. The “Normal Routine” is a jealous beast. It doesn’t want us to do anything new. So it basically has us in the routines that keeps us trapped into continuing its follies: We eat heavy, greasy food which weighs us down and keeps us sluggish. We drink – which further removes the methods by which we can escape out of the box we’ve carved out for ourself. We go to our shit jobs so we can pay back our student loan debts . We hang out with our friends. I would like to hang out more with friends. But it’s hard to do that and plan for the exciting future which we can rightfully claim to be ours.
The key ultimately is to first figure out how to get rid of the inertia and then the real LIVING will come.
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I’ve had periods of real inertia. Where all I could so was sit around and be depressed. The only way I’ve ever been able to come out of it was by following the ideas in this post:
How To Be the Luckiest Guy on the Planet in 4 Easy Steps
IS GREED GOOD?
@tradefast is greed good?
@tradefast greed is good because w money u can help people, help your descendants, and buy freedom to pursue spiritual pursuits. $$
Expanded answer:
The phrase “greed is good” has become a cliché for periods of excess like the 80s or the mid 00s. Where real characters like Ivan Boesky or fictional characters like Gordon Gekko use it as an excuse for their own illegal activities.
However, don’t believe the hype. Don’t just watch TV or read the newspaper headlines and nod your head with everyone else: “They are all out to get me with their stupid greed.”
I have greed to make money. I want to feed my family. I want them to have shelter. I want to be able to afford if they get sick. Furthermore, I might want to start new companies, or create new jobs, or work on other ideas and innovations instead of working as a salesclerk in the Verizon store (as the guy who caught Derek Jeter’s ball did, and he then handed the ball back for free instead of taking the potential $250,000 offered).
Greed is good if you are good.
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IS THE WORLD ENDING?
@ginger_gal (I can’t find her exact question) asked something to the effect: with Europe about to default, high employment, gold (the ultimate fear metal) on the rise, why should anyone still be bullish?
My answers:
@ginger_gal lowest yields in 50 years, highest profits ever, lowest P/E ratio versus yields, cheap large-cap stocks
@ginger_gal Gold is just as fiat as paper. The global economy is bigger than gold. I bet on innovation and not a rock
@ginger_gal dont forget in 1981 all South Amer defaulted (and we had HUGE exposure) and inflation was double digits and cold war
@ginger_gal none of those things have anything to do with wealth creation in this innovation world we live in.
Expanded answer:
The last two are the most important.
Fact: right now the top 5 banks in the US have 3% exposure to European debt. (How can this be? Becausee China is buying up all the European debt in their attempt to take over the financial planet).
In 1981 all of South America was in default. The top 5 banks in the US had 263% exposure to their debt. We had 17% inflation/bond yields. Millions of jobs were being lost because of the high rates and inflation. And we had the Soviet Union with thousands of hydrogen bombs pointed at your home. Not to mention the revolution in Iran, unrest in India / Pakistan / Israel, etc.
And yet what happened: a two decade boom?
Ignore world politics, ignore the government statistics, ignore the headlines which try to make you scared, ignore the pundits who sell newsleltters based on fear and greed.
They are all out to SCAM you. If you are putting your hopes and future happiness on the thought that the world is going to end you’re going to be dead wrong.
Here’s a link to my Dow 20,000 prediction.
Someone then asked me a related question:
IS IT POSSIBLE TO START A BUSINESS IN THIS WORLDWIDE DEPRESSION?
I couldn’t find who asked it but someone asked if its possible to start a business in this world Depression period we are going through. My answer:
jaltucher James Altucher
i forget who; someone asked if 1 can start a biz in this world depression. Groupon started in November 2008! Don’t let media fear stop you!
Expanded answer:
MANY people were critical of this answer. How come? Because of all the media hype pulling Groupon’s numbers apart and saying this is a horrible business.
FACT: Groupon is the fastest growing revenues business in history. They started less than three years ago and have 1.5 billion in revenues this year. The founders have already cashed out probably close to a billion dollars.
