Market Meltdowns

Tings Newsletter #4

Every month, I send out a newsletter of random thoughts on random tings. Who am I? I'm an ex-founder figuring out what to do with my time and money. I started Otis (acquired by Public) and Skillshare. Subscribe here. 

1. I wrote a Twitter thread on the state of the market which got over 10K likes. This was written back in April. Interesting to see how the markets have played out since then.

2. I have no idea what will happen but I don't think we've hit the bottom yet. My plan is to dollar-cost average over the next 12 months regardless of how the market performs. Takes the stress out of timing it.

3. WTF is going on in crypto? LUNA crash. Celsius freezing withdrawals. 3AC insolvent rumors. BlockFi FTX bailout. I'm still bullish on the long-term potential of a decentralized web. But, we need more use cases than pure speculation and degen DeFi.

4. I'm at the end of a month long dopamine detox. My goal was to limit my impulsive behaviors, which has worked somewhat. I haven't used social media in 30 days. I haven't purchased anything in 30 days. But it was a lot harder than I expected.

5. I'm turning 40 next month. My goal is for my biological age to be that of a healthy 30 year old. And my mental age to have the wisdom of a 50 year old.

6. I'm currently reading Second Mountain as I think about what I'll be doing in my 40s. Our first mountain is the pursuit of self-interest: career wins, status games, and nice material things. It's what society tells us is important. The second mountain is focused on a life of meaning and purpose: family, vocation, philosophy and community. 

7. Damn, this is the first time I actually feel old. But to be honest, I'm getting excited about my 40s... to climb a second mountain and find ways to give back.

8. I like this bit on creative independence. We talk a lot about financial independence but none on creative independence: "the ability to express ourselves in the ways that we want without the need for external validation or approval."

9. Financial Freedom --> Time Freedom --> Philosophical Freedom.

"Once you have financial freedom, then you can get to personal freedom, you can decide what you want to do. With your day, you can decide how you spend your day, you can decide how you spend your money. And then finally, you can get to philosophical freedom, which is your ability to think freely or critically." - Codie Sanchez

10. I like all the new Youtube creators who are showing alternative paths of making money. Codie Sanchez on buying boring businesses. Robuilt on building a STR Airbnb empire. Ali Abdaal on becoming a Creatorpreneur.

11. Speaking of content... I'm noodling on a Podcast concept called the "Good Life". I'll interview successful entrepreneurs, creatives and anyone I find interesting to talk through everything non-business: parenting, personal finance, happiness, having fun, etc. I'll mix this with recurring podcast guests where we shoot the shit and talk about random Tings, similar to this newsletter.

12. I'm looking to buy a new camera for my future Youtube channel. Sony just came out with with ZV-E10 designed specifically for vloggers. Yay/Nay?

13. My friend Thompson Harrell launched a new bourbon brand called Frank August. "At 100 proof, it is a perfect balance of heat and smoothness that warms your mouth, while hints of brown and malt sugars begin to present themselves." You can buy some here.

14. My friend Nick Gray wrote a new book called The 2-Hour Cocktail Party: How to Build Big Relationships with Small Gatherings. It's a great step-by-step playbook. I plan on  hosting small events here in Durham to build a local community and network.

15. Raycast is a solid all-in-one launcher app I've been using on my computer. It allows you to search files, create snippets, and re-size your windows.

16. Pachinko is a great show on Apple TV. The show "chronicles the hopes and dreams of a Korean immigrant family across four generations as they leave their homeland in an indomitable quest to survive and thrive."

17. We took a family trip up to New York and stayed at Innes. Great design. Fun golf course. It was created by Taavo Somer who also created Freemans Sporting Club. He basically started the “urban woodsman” look — flannel shirts, Red Wing boots, rolled selvedge jeans in the 2010s.

18. Starting to get into vintage t-shirts from the 90s and 00s to relive my you. Skateboard brands like Alien Workshop, Birdhouse and Hook Ups. Music shirts like early Nirvana and RATM. Where's the best place to buy these outside of eBay?

19. Not into the new Drake album. But the new Post Malone album is 🔥. If you haven't already, check out Posty x Nirvana tribute.

20. Ending on a positive note. They most likely found the cause of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome).

That's it for this month! Until the next one...