Here is your Seven-Bullet Monday
1. A quote I am pondering:
”Speak clearly, if you speak at all; carve every word before you let it fall.” - Oliver Wendell Holmes
So much is lost when we communicate, either because people can’t hear us clearly, or we are not articulating our message well enough. I love the phrase from this quote, “carve every word”, because it eloquently describes how we should be delivering the words we are speaking.
2. A question I am asking myself:
How do I respond to injustice in the world and in my own life?
We are profoundly aware of the enormous injustices in Ukraine and other places in the world, as well as the personal injustices we may be suffering. Thinking about how I respond to these is extraordinarily challenging because of the many different options I can consider. In all of this, I have to let my conscience be my compass because the answers aren’t easy.
3. A book I am reading:
Stillness is the Key: An Ancient Strategy for Modern Life – Ryan Holiday
This book is the fourth Ryan Holiday book I have completed, and I have found each one both thought-provoking and complimentary to his other books. As the title describes, his book is about the importance of finding regular times and places of stillness. He also talks about how many of our past heroes and leaders found their places of stillness. One story I enjoyed was how Winston Churchill took time off from public office to become a bricklayer and to learn to paint, and how this helped him prepare to lead Britain through World War II.
4. My favourite podcast this week:
What’s Essential: Come What May and Love It – Greg McKeown
I have listened to practically every Greg McKeown podcast, and he remains one of my all-time favourites, both as an author and podcaster. In this episode, his wife, Anna, interviews him about his starting a new podcast and their family moving back to the UK. They talk about leaving the existing and comfortable so they can build something better in the future, and how “Come what may and love it!” is the quote for their next season in life. What a great philosophy to have – come what may and love it - no matter what happens, you can’t be beaten!
5. Hugh-Tips
When investing, do your due diligence properly
In reviewing my investment performance last month, I got a rude awakening that an inflation-adjusted bond ETF I had purchased was nothing like the safe haven I assumed. As they say, don’t judge a book by its cover, and the same goes for ETFs. They may, in fact, be something different to what their title indicates. My rather expensive lesson here is to take more time with investment selection in the future and understand what will drive the price-performance rather than a simplistic assumption driven by a misleading ETF title. When considering the performance, it is advisable to think about different scenarios and the probabilities of each scenario and then decide. That way, you are thinking as a vector rather than a single line, and you can make a better decision based on different potential outcomes.
6. My highlight this last week
Having both of my kids home after too long
It’s been two and a half years since I had both my kids together with me in one place. Seeing them together this last week was fantastic, and we took the opportunity to take a quick photo. I feel so blessed to have these two amazing, talented and caring human beings in my life.
7. My challenge to you for this week
Take some time to reflect on your gains
Many of us are driven, continually striving to be more and do more. As a result, we often find ourselves frustratingly short of our ideals and disillusioned by this gap that we can’t seem to close. When we start feeling like this, it is helpful to take some time to look back at the gains we have made over the past few months or years. Thinking about our gains will help us feel better about ourselves, make us more positive, and give us renewed energy to tackle those gaps once again.
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