Author, Investor, Speaker, Mentor
On America’s Independence Day, it’s worth considering the role of trust and distrust. Distrust caused the British government to pass laws to better control its colonies. Distrust caused a political contest to turn into a shooting war. Trust allowed the various states to come together. Trust allowed the Americans to grant George Washington the power … Continue reading Trust Makes Our Lives Better
I tend to be a supporter of increased gun legislation. I don’t own a gun, I didn’t grow up with guns, and I don’t believe I’ve ever even held a gun or been present when one was fired. So from a practical and personal standpoint, I would prefer to minimize private gun ownership. However, I … Continue reading A Principled Argument for 2nd Amendment Rights
It’s no secret that I’m not a fan of President Donald Trump. I think that he is lazy, ignorant, incompetent, and as a result, a danger to our country and our world. But I think it is entirely possible that we may someday look back upon his election as lucky accident that strengthened the United … Continue reading Why America Is Lucky Donald Trump Was Elected President
Regardless of where people lie on the political spectrum (graph?), one thing I find remarkably unappealing is when people treat those who disagree with them with angry contempt. Since doing so doesn’t persuade or change minds, I fear that people behave that way because deep down they don’t believe in their own worth, and feel … Continue reading Be Civil
One of the paradoxes of my personality, which I think is actually a strength, is that I’m selfish and giving. I’m selfish in that I’m quite aware of my self-interest, and frequently take actions to better my self-interest. I’m giving in that I genuinely want to help people, and are quite happy to share my … Continue reading Selfish and Giving
Random Product Idea #1: Inbox100. It’s an email inbox where it has a hard upper limit of 100 messages. Once you hit 100 messages, until you archive or delete some current messages, no new emails come in. This forces you to deal with emails rather than allowing them to pile up. And the instant you … Continue reading Email Product Ideas: Inbox100 and InboxNow
It’s all about the mackerel. In the American prison system, prisoners use packages of mackerel as a medium of exchange because 1) the supply is inherently limited because prisoners can only buy 14 “macks” per week, and 2) no one wants to eat it. In other words, prisoners collectively decided to use a useless item … Continue reading Bye Bye Bitcoin Bubble
I’m currently in the middle of a week-long trip to Tokyo where I’m speaking about my books and meeting with startup and finance folks on behalf of the Women’s Startup Lab. While I’d been to Tokyo once before, in 1982, I was so young then, and the city has changed so much since, that it’s … Continue reading Adventures in Tokyo
I get a lot of crap from people because I argue that those of us who oppose the policies and behavior of Donald Trump should try to understand and empathize with his voters. If I were to summarize the criticisms from fellow Trump opponents, it’s that Trump voters are racists and bigots who made a … Continue reading The Hopelessness Behind Trump’s Support
“Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.” (The Dalai Lama) I recently read this longform New York Times piece on Amy Cuddy and the replication controversy in social science. The basic summary is that two big trends came together–the first was the rise of social science in popular culture (think Malcolm Gladwell and Dan … Continue reading Balancing Kindness and Rightness