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Over The Hill At 40 – Age Discrimination In The Workplace

admin — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 09:00:21 +0000

Every large corporation has some type of annual “Diversity Training” course where we learn not to harass colleagues, send out crude jokes over e-mail, and discriminate against those unlike ourselves. Everything generally makes sense except for one rule that I once read: “One shall not discriminate against someone over 40.” I thought about this for a second, and I began to wonder if they had made a typo.

At age 40, one will have worked for 18 years out of college or 15 years out of graduate school on average. If the accepted age of retirement is 65, or 25 years away from 40, then the rule is implying that age discrimination starts before you are even half way through your average 40 year long career!

The other interesting fact is that most people are living longer nowadays. Forties are the new thirties as they say. People are looking younger and younger at various age milestones. Hence the question, why 40? Let’s explore the various reasons.

NEGATIVE PERCEPTIONS ABOUT OLDER WORKERS

Older workers are…….

1) Slower and less adaptable to change. In the age of the internet, if you don’t know how to write html code, or work your way around a Powerpoint or Excel spreadsheet, you might as well be a dinosaur.

2) Less loyal to the job due to family. Families result in more vacation time and sick days, and less desire to work weekends and put in the extra effort.

3) Less malleable for a mentor to mold. Instilling work culture is more difficult, and therefore older workers will have a harder time fitting in.

4) More expensive and therefore squeezes margins more intensely during downturns. Due to the lack of flexibility in pay, there is less maneuverability.

5) Uncomfortable working for someone younger than them. Younger managers feel their discomfort and therefore naturally tend to shy away.

POSITIVE PERCEPTIONS ABOUT OLDER WORKERS

Older workers are….

1) More knowledgeable and experienced where no amount of smarts can match.

2) More patient and mature. They bring different insights to solve difficult problems.

3) More dedicated to their jobs because they are not just providing for themselves, but for their own family and perhaps even their parents.

4) Have more savings and therefore are more flexible to take pay cuts during downturns.

5) Work well with younger co-workers because there is a natural tendency for older people to help mentor younger workers even if they are more senior.

AGE IS JUST AN EXCUSE

If you let yourself feel discriminated against due to age, it’s your fault for letting it get to you. We start blaming exogenous variables that should have very little to do with whether we succeed or fail. Yes, if you are working at a company where the average age is 30 and you’re 50, maybe you will feel the young guns are out to get you. Or rather, since you’re the minority, you’ll feel special due to your valuable insights. It’s really what you make of the situation.

You can argue either way whether older workers are better or worse employees. It doesn’t really matter because you’ll never convince the world conclusively that you are right. One can always find the positives and negatives in any type of person because our perceptions are all different. We just need to focus on what we can control, which is our attitude, presentation, and work skills.

CONCLUSION

Perhaps the reason why so many of us, including Lyndon and I would like to have the option of retiring by our early 40s is because we unconsciously don’t want to face age discrimination. We’re given subtle, hard-to-notice messages telling us that we have at most 20 years in our careers to be someone before others start taking our place.

We all have latent biases that cannot be clearly proven. Rather than dwell on exogenous variables which cannot be helped, let’s work on making ourselves invaluable so that even when we’re 80, we’ll be able to make a difference if we want to.

Readers, are you convinced age discrimination in the workplace starts at 40?

At what age do you think age discrimination starts?

What about reverse age discrimination against younger employees?

What pros and cons am I missing about older workers?

Regards,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

The Elegance Of Failure

admin — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 09:00:04 +0000

The following is a guest post from Neal Frankle at Wealth Pilgrim. Neal is a dedicated father, insightful financial adviser, and honorable Yakezie Challenger who always writes with a breath of fresh air. You can join his 2,500+ followers on Twitter @NealFrankle. Enjoy!

Failure is not only a necessary part of life, it can be a beautiful part of life.

This may sound like crazy talk.

After all, if you are a hardworking person, you work hard because you want to succeed, not fail.

And failure stings.

It hurts.

Man….it hurts.

That pain is real….but despite that temporary pain, those set backs are likely key ingredients to your future success. And the success I’m talking about dwarfs financial or career gains.

Let me explain by telling you about an experience I had several years ago.

BACK IN THE MOTHERLAND

When I was in my 20′s, I started a Masters program at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. My goal was to study in Hebrew with the local students and complete the degree.

This isn’t such a lofty goal in and of itself, but when you consider that I didn’t speak a word of Hebrew 9 months prior to my enrollment, I think you’ll agree that it was quite a challenge – if not insane.

I studied as hard as I could. I worked night and day using every opportunity I could to improve my language skills.

Sure enough my hard work paid off – sort of.

Within 9 months I passed the entrance exam and was admitted to the Hebrew University’s Masters Program for Political Science. My language level tested out as fluent.

And that’s when my problems started.

While my conversational ability was pretty good, I couldn’t understand a word my professors were saying from day 1. I mean not one meshugunah word.

I doubled my studying and put everything I had into it… but it was no use. I didn’t have the skill or ability to learn as quickly as I was required to.

Within 3 weeks, I dropped out and returned to America.

I felt like a complete failure.

It took me years to let go of that experience.

IN AMERICA WHERE MY BUSINESS GROWS

When I came back, I focused all my energy on starting a business and this time, the universe said “YES”. I was fortunate enough to build a very successful business from ground up.

You could say that the door had to close on my Hebrew Political Science dreams in order for the door to open for my business aspirations.

That’s true of course. But had I just stopped there I would have missed a gift far more valuable.

You see, I felt like a loser when I didn’t make it in Israel because I confused having limited skills (in this case, language skills) with being defective myself. Then I felt like a winner as my business grew.

My emotional peace of mind was completely tied and dependent upon my success or failure.

For me, that’ s no way to live.

The elegance is seeing that your success or failure in an endeavor, doesn’t say anything about you as a person. I have limited skills – we all do. So what?

It doesn’t mean you are flawed as a person.

You can apply this lesson if you have financial stress, problems in your career or trouble at home.

If something doesn’t work out, it’s just the universe’s way of telling you to try something different. It’s not a statement about my value as a human being.

There’s a lot of freedom in that. At least I believe there is.

Understanding this makes it easier for me to be objective about how I spend my time. I have less invested in the outcome. All I have to do is my best and let the result go. And if I do my best, what more can I do? In fact, if I have done my best, what right do I have the right to beat myself up?

Please don’t get me wrong. I still believe it’s important to do the best I can. Put everything I have into it. But when things don’t work out, I don’t want to repeat the mistake I made all those years ago. I hope you feel the same way.

CONCLUSION

Don’t let your outcomes define you. It’s unhelpful and it’s untrue. Failure is elegant because it provides a lesson in self that no other classroom or experience provides. It allows us to value ourselves separate and apart from what we can and can’t do.

Readers, what are some of your life failures? Was there ever a case where you were better off failing, than succeeding? Are you afraid of failure?

Keiju,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

The Art of The Interview

fs — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:00:26 +0000

“If there’s a mile long track, and the first lap you travel 30 mph, how fast do you have to travel on the second lap to average 60 mph for both laps?” asks the stuffy man in the corner office.

I bumbled and stumbled around until I responded, “Hmmmm, obviously it’s not 90mph, but…… let’s walk…. it through!” My instincts told me it wasn’t a straightforward answer, but I really had no idea how to solve the problem. Instead, I got the first part right by addressing the trick question, and proceeded to stall long enough so that he couldn’t help but tell me.

FIGURE IT OUT YET? NO CHEATING!

After about 20 seconds of thinking out loud, he blurted out, “Infinity Speed! Imposible!” “You see Sam, since it takes 2 minutes to average 60mph for both laps, you just can’t do it because at 30mph on the first lap, that already took you 2 minutes!”

I quickly chimed in, “Ahh, of course! You beat me to it!” Whew. Of course he beat me to it because if we continued talking for eight hours I still wouldn’t know the answer!

The interview process is absolutely the most vital portion of your job application process. I don’t care whether you went to Harvard, have a 4.0, and dance like MJ. If you come across as a pompous fool, or you don’t show that you really care about the position, you will never get the job.

Putting it another way, think about all the people you aren’t particularly impressed with at work. How did they get through security? They simply interviewed well. Once you’re in, it takes a long time to get you out!

Below are some helpful tips I’ve compiled after interviewing over 250 candidates in my career so far.

FINANCIAL SAMURAI’S TOP 10 INTERVIEW TIPS

1) Don’t be late or too early! Nothing drives an interviewer crazier than a late candidate, or a super early candidate. Half the time, the interviewer is there because it’s part of his job requirement, or it’s a favor to one of his colleagues. You won’t believe how many times I’ve heard an interviewer write-off a candidate just because he’s even 1 minute late. On the flip side, a super early candidate is annoying, because it puts pressure on the interviewer to alter his or her schedule. Arrive 10 minutes early and ask your greeter to announce your arrival 3 minutes before the scheduled interview.

2) No limp handshakes or sweaty palms. Studies show that a first impression is impossible to shake. If you come out with a limp and sweaty palm, your interviewer is going to remember this because this will be your only physical contact. Keep a small hand towel, perhaps with some talcum powder to keep your hands dry. Shake firmly!

3) Dress appropriately. I’ve had many guys and girls come in dressed like they were about to go clubbing with their mini-skirts, and corduroy jackets. This isn’t Tryst in Vegas. Dressing inappropriately conjures up images of immaturity and trouble. Always dress equal to one half step better. See “You Aren’t Going Clubbing, Interview Attire 101”

4) Maintain eye contact, but don’t stare. If you’re constantly looking at the floor or wandering, you will give your interviewer the impression that you have no confidence, and/or that you don’t care. FBI studies show that during the shake down process, liars have a difficult time looking their interrogator in the eye. At the same time, you don’t want to have crazy eyes and pretend it’s a staring contest. You will make your interviewer uncomfortable, and wonder if there’s spinach in his teeth. Maintain eye contact and practice looking away briefly during times of thought or transition.

5) Research the heck out of the company. If the company recently reported fantastic first quarter results, read all about it and figure out what drove earnings. Understand the company’s strategic vision, which will hopefully jive well with your own. No company has grown in a straight line, so pinpoint the stumbles as well, but understand how they learned from their errors and improved.

6) Research the heck out of your interviewer. More often than not, the HR person will give you a heads up on who you will be speaking to. It’s important to research the person to the point where you are like a CIA operative. Know everything you can about the person and their accomplishments. If they studied Polish in college and like corgi dogs know it. The idea is to not reveal to them everything you know, for that would be stalkishly freaky. Instead, it’s important to be able to weave related interests with your potential colleague at choice times.

7) Interview them as much as they interview you. After a certain number of interviews, you should have a sense of whether they want you or not. At this point really start using the opportunity to ask them about their experiences, likes, and dislikes about the company. It’s unacceptable to not have any questions at the end of each interview. You may be speaking with someone who actually hates his/her job, but have no idea because you aren’t asking about him/her. Ask and investigate without being too nosy. “How many years do you think the average person has been with the firm?” is a good question to always ask.

8) Always bring enough copies of your resume. The idea is to make the interview as easy for the interviewer as possible. Unless you’re speaking to HR, the interviewer is not a professional interviewer. They could be speaking to you in between meetings on a hectic day. Bringing your resume and other information for them to look over shows you are thoughtful and prepared. The average time spent looking at a resume is 10 seconds, which also equates to the average amount of time an interviewer prepares to interview you!

9) Be self-effacing while showing signs of brilliance. The arrogant interviewee will get booted faster than a rat on your favorite lemon meringue pie. Talk about your failures and how you’ve overcome them to succeed in new ways. Provide concrete examples of success, backed by results i.e. sales grew in my department by 25% after introducing a new method of selling. Stay humble but show them your confidence.

10) Always follow up within 24 hours with a thank you e-mail or card. In each e-mail or card, do not write a generic message saying. Instead, pick out a critical moment in the interview where you think brings out the best in you, or gives you the opportunity to show your skills further. Perhaps the interviewer asked you about your most difficult moment, and you didn’t answer it well. Use the thank you note to address the question further.

CONCLUSION

The number of qualified resumes are seriously piling up on my desk, making competition that much more difficult. Focus on these initial tips to help yourself get ahead. As a potential colleague, we just want to work with someone who shows promise and is a good person. Don’t forget that when you do get accepted, to treat your job as if you won the lottery and not take your good fortune for granted!

Readers, any other interview tips you’d like to share? How is the hiring front looking like at your company? Did you get the answer to the beginning of the post right without cheating? Any good tough interview questions you’ve had?

Keigu,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

The Katana: A Week Long Celebration of Love

admin — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 17:15:00 +0000

A Sliced Heart

With Valentine’s Day coming up, I thought it’d be nice to dedicate some of this week’s posts to relationships. Few things are as rewarding as finding the one you want to grow old with. I can be stranded somewhere in Kabul, and so long as the one is beside me, I am happy.

That said, does true love have a price? If a genie gave you the option of having $100 million dollars but never finding the love of your life, or finding that special someone but always living just above the poverty line, which would you choose?

Before answering the question, think about all the fun times you had in your prior relationships, some that could have been. Not all bad right? Now think carefully whether after a certain point, more money can really bring you more happiness.

My theory is that “love” will be the landslide victor, however, at the margin men will have a greater tendency to choose money over love, while women will gravitate towards love over money.

The Samurai Fund: -3.13% YTD vs. the S&P 500 -4.4%. Lenar +15%, Berkshire +11%, GE +4% and STE +6.15% continue to be stars. While MWW -18% and Toyota -11.3% are the biggest dogs. If Toyoda-san didn’t apologize on Friday, I would have sold the stock in a heart beat.

Samurai’s Alexa Ranking Challenge: Is growing strong! I’m very happy to see so many people progress and support each other. Forget about all about SEO, link ratios, and yourself. Keep up the content and the promoting of others! If you would like to join, read the post, let us know in the comments section with your rank so Daniel-san and I can track.

HIGHLIGHT POSTS OF THE WEEK

* “Winners And Losers Of The Obama Tax Plan” over at Darwin’s. I feel bad for the losers, especially charities.

* “Deliver Away Debt Joins The Millionaire Club” by Jeff shows his “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” creativity.

Winners of “Secrets of A Stingy Scoundrel“: Ernest S., and Charlie! Pls send over your mailing addresses for delivery.

Keiju,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

Chaos Is an Inspiration For Change, But Don’t Wait

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 10:00:11 +0000

This is a guest article by one of the community’s most well regarded bloggers, Flexo from Consumerism Commentary. Flexo is currently on a ten-day, ten-venue tour. You can follow him on Twitter @Flexo. Please enjoy and share your thoughts!

Three of my friends experienced difficulties in their lives around the same time, about ten years ago. I’ll call them Alex, Brian, and Chris. Each had their own problems to deal with, but they chose to ignore their difficulties and search for easy answers that focused on short-term solutions rather than long-term success. Before long, their lives erupted in chaos. That chaos helped them make positive changes, but the outcomes would have been predictable to anyone paying attention.

Alex worked for a non-profit organization since the day he graduated college. It was a great job and he loved his work. He could have chosen any career with his wide variety of talents and his strong aptitude. Alex had the potential to earn signficiantly more money than he would while working for that organization, but he knew since high school he wanted to move his life in this direction. Living with this job was difficult, however.

Alex chose to remain in an apartment near his friends so he commuted three hours total every day. For his meager salary, he worked 80 hours a week including weekends. Even if he wanted to earn extra income on the side, he had no time because his life was completely consumed by his job. And it continued to affect him financially, unable to afford rent, food, and basic necessities.

After a late night at the office, Alex returned to his apartment and found all of his belongings removed from the bedroom and piled in the living room. He hadn’t paid his rent for a few months, nor did he communicate his problems, so the unofficial landlord kicked him out.

Brian had an entry-level job with a major fiancial firm. He had opportunities to advance far within this company. He, like Alex, could have chosen any career but he saw potential in the financial industry. Within six months he was promoted and within another six months he was promoted again.

Everything was progressing as planned — even his co-workers wondered how soon he’d become the CEO — until Brian’s carpool group dissolved. I’m not sure about the details, but I knew he was never someone others would describe as a “morning person.” Maybe it was the idea that no one would be picking him up in the morning, but from this point he rarely made it to work on time.

After Brian’s boss was promoted he began reporting to a new supervisor, one who was less permissive of a flexible starting time. Before long, the company was “rightsized,” and he was one of the first employees eliminated within his division.

Chris was a teacher, but that’s irrelevant to this story. After graduation, he continued dating his college girlfriend although they moved to different states. She never wanted to drive to visit him, so Chris traveled hundreds of miles by car to spend every other weekend with her at her home. This routine continued for over a year.

Their relationship wasn’t progressing, however, and although they were still together, they were growing apart. Chris met a young woman, someone available and living close, and he began seeing her as well. Chris’s best friend Dale eventually let the college girlfriend in on the secret, and that was the end of that relationship.

All of these situations ended in chaos, but none of these outcomes were unpredictable. They only occurred because Alex, Brian and Chris all ignored their responsibilities and continued doing what was easy until their lack of action backfired. That’s a perfect explanation of chaos: a natural disorder that follows patterns, that increases in complexity due to non-action, and that could be predicted if the variables remain simple enough.

The causes and effects are clear. Don’t pay rent, lose your apartment. Don’t show up on time, get fired. Cheat on your girlfriend, get dumped. All of these outcomes could have been avoided by taking action to improve the situation through better decision-making.

CONCLUSION

Chaos is good inspiration. These results inspired our three actors to change their lives. Alex found a new, more stable job, and now uses his free time to explore the pursuits he once treasured through his vocation. That may not be the right approach for everyone, but it works for Alex because he has satisfied the need to afford his necessities and more while still finding an outlet for his creativity.

Brian now owns his own business and sets his own rules. If he doesn’t want to work before 10:00 am, he doesn’t have to. He probably should have pursued this path from the beginning rather than waiting to be fired. Because he waited for someone to make the decision for him, he missed out on several years during which he could have been building his business.

Chris needed some time alone to contemplate his choices. He spent many months by himself before he was ready to form or rebuild relationships with friends and new acquaintances. When he returned, he seemed like a new person. After I was confident he was ready to respect relationships I introduced him to the woman he eventually married.

Everything has worked out well so far, and perhaps this might not be the case if Alex, Brian and Chris had not faced their sets of challenges. If they saw and didn’t ignore the signs of impending chaos, they might have made necessary changes sooner. These three can’t get back the years of their lives they wasted and the money they didn’t earn while moving in the wrong direction. When life is as short as it is, every day should be a step in the right direction. That’s accomplished by making decisions and having an effect on your own life rather than avoiding change and waiting for chaos to take over.

Readers, what type of chaos have you experienced that has affected the way you lead your life? Why do you think we let chaos exist in our lives? Thanks for sharing this post with us Flexo!

The Best Post on Craigslist, And It’s All About Love And Money

admin — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 09:00:22 +0000

Craigslist is such a fun place to surf and save money. I’ve sold a lot of junk, found some last-minute tennis partners, and even purchased some cool retro Air Jordans on the site. There’s a sale everyday on Craigslist, hence why would you ever pay full retail?

I admit that I’ve clicked on some of the “Personals” section links in the past for fun (you know you have to), but no “Woman Seeking Man” post is funnier than the one you are about to read (originally posted circa 2007). The great thing about the post is that it’s all about personal finance!

Thoughts That Crossed My Mind When Reading:

Can’t live with them, can’t live without them.

Does she really think her first post wasn’t a little over the top?

Wow, she is a woman who knows what she wants! Sexy.

So this is where gold diggers roam. Must take notes.

Damn, that guy is funny, but what a prick, no wonder why I didn’t major in finance.

KAPOW, good counter, but why does she have to talk about receding hairlines, that hurts.

Is the counter response someone else? “She” writes a lot, and needs to type shorter paragraphs.

She has a trader boyfriend already! What’s she doing seeking more men?!

Hmmm, better find a way to make more than $500K a year!

Enjoy and happy first weekend of the decade!

WOMAN SEEKING MAN: “What Am I Doing Wrong?”

Okay, I’m tired of beating around the bush. I’m a beautiful (spectacularly beautiful) 25 year old girl. I’m articulate and classy.

I’m not from New York. I’m looking to get married to a guy who makes at least half a million a year. I know how that sounds, but keep in mind that a million a year is middle class in New York City, so I don’t think I’m overreaching at all.

Are there any guys who make 500K or more on this board? Any wives? Could you send me some tips? I dated a business man who makes average around 200 – 250k. But, that’s where I seem to hit a roadblock. $250,000 won’t get me to Central Park West. I know a woman in my yoga class who was married to an investment banker and lives in Tribeca, and she’s not as pretty as I am, nor is she a great genius. So what is she doing right? How do I get to her level?

Here are my questions specifically:

Where do you single rich men hang out? Give me specifics- bars, restaurants, gyms
What are you looking for in a mate? Be honest guys, you won?t hurt my feelings
Is there an age range I should be targeting (I’m 25)?
Why are some of the women living lavish lifestyles on the upper east side so plain? I’ve seen really plain jane? boring types who have nothing to offer married to incredibly wealthy guys. I’ve seen drop dead gorgeous girls in singles bars in the east village. What?s the story there?
Jobs I should look out for? Everyone knows – lawyer, investment banker, doctor. How much do those guys really make? And where do they hang out? Where do the hedge fund guys hang out?
How you decide marriage vs. just a girlfriend? I am looking for MARRIAGE ONLY

Please hold your insults – I’m putting myself out there in an honest way. Most beautiful women are superficial; at least I’m being up front about it. I wouldn’t be searching for these kind of guys if I wasn’t able to match them – in looks, culture, sophistication, and keeping a nice home and hearth.

PostingID: 432279810

MAN’S RESPONSE TO WOMAN:

I read your posting with great interest and have thought meaningfully about your dilemma. I offer the following analysis of your predicament. Firstly, I’m not wasting your time, I qualify as a guy who fits your bill; that is I make more than $500K per year. That said here’s how I see it.

Your offer, from the prospective of a guy like me, is plain and simple a crappy business deal. Here’s why. Cutting through all the B.S., what you suggest is a simple trade: you bring your looks to the party and I bring my money. Fine, simple. But here’s the rub, your looks will fade and my money will likely continue into perpetuity…in fact, it is very likely that my income increases but it is an absolute certainty that you won’t be getting any more beautiful!

So, in economic terms you are a depreciating asset and I am an earning asset. Not only are you a depreciating asset, your depreciation accelerates! Let me explain, you’re 25 now and will likely stay pretty hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. Then the fade begins in earnest. By 35 stick a fork in you!

So in Wall Street terms, we would call you a trading position, not a buy and hold…hence the rub…marriage. It doesn’t make good business sense to “buy you” (which is what you’re asking) so I’d rather lease. In case you think I’m being cruel, I would say the following. If my money were to go away, so would you, so when your beauty fades I need an out. It’s as simple as that. So a deal that makes sense is dating, not marriage.

Separately, I was taught early in my career about efficient markets. So, I wonder why a girl as “articulate, classy and spectacularly beautiful” as you has been unable to find your sugar daddy. I find it hard to believe that if you are as gorgeous as you say you are that the $500K wasn’t found you, if not only for a tryout.

By the way, you could always find a way to make your own money and then we wouldn’t need to have this difficult conversation.

With all that said, I must say you’re going about it the right way. Classic “pump and dump.” I hope this is helpful, and if you want to enter into some sort of lease, let me know.

WOMAN’S COUNTER RESPONSE TO MAN! (Is this the same woman responding?)

Dear Sir,

I must confess that I was somewhat taken aback upon reading your email. Indeed, it has taken some time for me to sufficiently recuperate from my surprise. Lest your confidence quickly inflate for little reason (as we know is the predisposition for Wall St. types), allow me to hasten to reassure you that the source of my surprise was neither your candor nor the accuracy of your perception. Indeed, it is your “claimed” success in light of your poor grasp of economics which has me baffled. If the standards required to meet with financial success on Wall St. have sunk so low, perhaps I should indeed “make my own money”, except for the fact that the effort/reward ratio is far too high for my liking - especially when so many of your ilk have displayed a far more cogent grasp of market realities than you have.

By now you are likely scratching your ever-vanishing hairline in confusion, so allow me to elaborate, dear man. To build some credibility I will tell you a bit more about yourself. Though you did not mention the details of your occupation, it is clear that you are an investment banker and not a trader, as any good trader would understand that human courtships are based upon a semi-efficient open market, and not an investment banking cartel. However, your inability to grasp the realities of the dating market is not surprising, given that you have successfully employed the tools of collusion and market manipulation rather that true acumen in your supposed wealth generation.

If your grasp of finance were not a minority partner with your ego, you would realize that the “outflows” associated with my depreciating “assets” are quite certain, and therefore subject to a low discount rate when determining their present value. In addition, though your concept of economics evidently failed to move past the 1950s, advancement in plastic surgery is not subject to the same limitation. Thus, with some additional capital expenditure, the overall lifetime of “outflows” generated by these assets is greatly increased. Sad that Ashton Kutcher has demonstrated understanding of the female asset class which you, in all of your financial “wisdom”, have not.

You, on the other hand, are, given the uncertainty of the Wall St. job market, more of an inflation-indexed junk bond with an underwater nested call option. Though you may argue that you are more of an equity investment, my monetary minimums required from you do not change, and if you are unable to pay them, I will liquidate you without the benefit of a chapter 11, just as you would me.

Because your outflows are so much more uncertain with respect to mine, I require additional compensation in the form of a underwater nested call option on your future assets. I say underwater because, even taking into account the value of your junk bond coupon payment to me, the value of my “outflow” is in excess of the market price of your equity (which is quite low due to its riskiness associated with your poor grasp of finance and my existing claim upon your junk bond coupon).

I must thank you though for raising the question, despite the reputation cost of subjecting your weak logic to such widespread scrutiny. This took either considerable courage or ignorance on your part- and we’ll give you the benefit of doubt, just this once. My current boyfriend (a trader who lives in Central Park West, of course) and I thoroughly enjoyed discussing your response and we wish you the best of luck in your unhappy pursuit of that elusive market inefficiency.

Readers, who do you empathize more with and why? Would you rather be amazingly beautiful as a woman, or filthy rich as a man?

Keiju,

Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS feed.

Creating A Masterpiece By Failing Forward

admin — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:00:26 +0000

David by Michelangelo

Here’s a guest post from Ryan at Planting Dollars. I was intrigued by one of his comments of “failing forward” (not falling forward) and asked him if he’d be interested in writing a guest post about the topic. Please enjoy and visit his site afterwards. He has my envy of living in Hawaii and pursuing his dream of being a shark photographer! Best, Sam

Have you ever noticed that some of the most successful people in the world seem to just naturally fit in their role? It’s as if they’ve been perfectly sculpted to be the best actor, businessman, or even blogger.

I have a secret to tell you… It’s because of their previous experiences… The one’s you didn’t see before they became wildly and unbelievably successful. These people are actually the biggest failures in the world! But shhhhh, I didn’t tell you that…

Don’t believe me? I want you to try something… The next time you talk to a successful person simply ask them this question:

“What failures have you experienced on your journey towards being where you are today?”

They’ll probably talk your ear off for hours and you’ll begin to realize this: They’ve just swung the bat of life a few more times and eventually hit one out of the park.

SCULPTING A MASTERPIECE

Think of your failures as the strike of chisel. Each chisel strike adds a little more depth and a hint of uniqueness to the block of marble your live started as. Each new experience and failure is a lesson in life that teaches you something. Now, if you decide to not take risks, to be complacent, avoid new experiences, and ideas your life will not change much. You’ll still be just a hunk of un-sculpted marble waiting, just waiting, for someone to come along and call you a masterpiece.

But if you take risks and fail, and fail you will, you’ll be chiseled into greater and greater detail until finally, you’ve become a masterpiece. A masterpiece that you’ve made yourself. Through failing forward.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO CREATE THIS MASTERPIECE?

Dive In! Just Jump! Feet first, eyes wide open!

If there’s something you’re curious about, simply try it. You’re going to suck at it, I guarantee it. In fact, you’re going to look like an absolute moron, but you know what? Who cares? You’re still alive so just laugh about it, get up, brush yourself off, send me an email about how horrible it was then go try again. You should be excited to fail forward because you’ll be learning new things, constantly growing, and becoming step by step closer to your very own version of success! How is that not exciting?

THERE’S FAILING, AND THEN THERE’S FAILING FORWARD

There’s a big difference here. Einstein said it best when he said:

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

If you’re not constantly failing forward, you’re probably not aware you’re failing at all. Be honest with yourself, see the signs, take a step back, and swallow your pride. If you’re not happy, if you’re not growing, if you’re not trying new things, you’re probably failing. Once you’ve realized you’ve failed there’s only one question you need to ask yourself to fail forward:

“Why did I fail?”

Was it because you didn’t try hard enough, was it because the other person was better prepared, was it because you were going in the wrong direction, was it because you’re overweight and frankly, she doesn’t dig fat guys? It could be any number of reasons, but ask this question to yourself, and more importantly, ask it from other people who’ve seen you fail. They’ll often give you priceless feedback that you can learn from.

PUTTING MY MONEY WHERE MY MOUTH IS: A COUPLE EXAMPLES

A One Way Ticket to Hawaii from Wisconsin: That’s what I bought two months ago when I took a risk and decided to follow my passion of scuba diving. I rolled the dice of chance to follow a dream without regrets. Turns out I didn’t have anything to be scared of. I snorkel in my free time, still work off my debt, and landed a job in a field I enjoy M-F, 40 hours a week. Meanwhile back home they’re getting snowed on! I think this might not even be a failure, but if it was… It would’ve been me failing forward…

This guest blog post. I’ve never written a guest blog post before. Especially not for a blog ranked in the Alexa top 100,000. This is intimidating and odds are, it’ll fail. But here I am, jumping, throwing my self out there so you can tell me how crappy this article is, but yet how I can improve it (hint hint… comments much appreciated). However, tomorrow I’ll know that I did something completely new, something that’s scary, and something that made me grow.

CONCLUSION

I challenge you to do the same, to leap, to jump, to try something new. Once you’ve failed, realize that by doing so you’ve just become a little bit more chiseled and one step closer to becoming your very own masterpiece.

Ryan is a recent college graduate who blogs about personal finance, financial freedom, nomadic living, and following your passions. One of my favorite articles of his is “How To Live In Honolulu for Less Than $1,000 A Month”!

Readers, how have you “failed forward”, and what have you learned from the experience?

I tried to teach my wife how to surf yesterday and failed forward. She told me to leave her alone when I tried giving her a push a couple times when the waves came. I was annoyed she didn’t want my help, because the iddy biddy waves weren’t big enough for her to catch on her own. However, I knew she’d figure this out eventually, so I left her alone, not wanting to fight. Besides, I think she was nervous, wanted to acclimate on her own, and felt bad “wasting” my time.

When I returned 20 minutes later, she was exhausted and realized she needed some help. On one of the very last attempts, I gave her a push, and she stood up for a good 20 yards! Success! Sometimes she’s stubborn when it comes to learning new things as many of us are. I feel that each time she pushes me away and fails, she realizes that I’m only trying to help. This is my small story of failing forward towards better communication and understanding as a couple. What’s yours? Sam

You’re Rejected! How I Use Rejection To Motivate Me Every Single Day

admin — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:00:31 +0000

Unless you’re perfect, there will be times when things don’t go your way. You’re last to be picked in PE class, Yale says, “thank you, but no thank you”, and your girlfriend/boyfriend dumps you for another man/woman. Do you start sulking? Or do you get up, get angry, and prove to yourself you’re worth it?

Some people are so afraid of rejection, they never put themselves out there. They reject themselves before even giving others a chance!

Lame Excuses:

“Why would this school accept me?”

“Why would she want to talk to me?”

“I don’t deserve a raise so I’ll never ask.”

“I’m not good enough to work for this firm, so I won’t bother applying.”

“What if everybody thinks what I say is stupid?”

“My writing is horrible, why would anybody want to read anything of mine?”

These types of thoughts crush dreams, lead to low-self esteem and mediocrity.

Change the way you view rejection with these 5 strategies:

1) Always ask yourself, “What is the worst that can happen?” On a scale of bad things, 10 being some terrorist attack and 1 being a puppy pooping on your carpet, getting rejected by a firm, girl, anonymous publisher is around a 3. It’s no big deal!

2) Success is a numbers game. When guys go out to bars, those who don’t care about rejection (point #1) usually succeed because they ask the most amount of women out as possible! If your chance of scoring is 10%, and you only ask 2 girls to have a drink with you, you’re going to have a snowfall’s chance in the Sahara of getting the girl’s number. You need to ask 10 girls to even have an opportunity for one to not think you’re a creep!

You may think your green marble has nothing to offer, but I bet if you put it up on Craigslist or Ebay there will be someone looking to buy it. The scale of these two sites is huge; you are maximizing your numbers game. It’s the same for finding a job. Make enough phone calls, ask enough people and attend enough networking functions and you will get there.

3) Put your rejections in plain site as a badge of honor and take some of them personally! I’ve got my college, work, and publisher rejection letters all taped up on my refrigerator and office wall for me and all to see. Six months ago, I approached some personal finance network asking if I could join and they told me to go away. Awesome! Every time I see the e-mail, it motivates me to write more and grow the Financial Samurai brand. I’ve asked a couple of the major PF writers for help before, and some have never bothered to reply back. Sweet!

The best rejection that keeps on giving is my college wait-list rejection. Being rejected from one of my target schools has given me 15 years of non-stop energy to prove their decision wrong. It’s a gift that keeps on giving! I must admit it’s an interesting scenario when I have to deal with interviewing candidates from this particular school. Honestly, it makes me absolutely giddy to watch their football team crash and burn this year!

4) Seek out rejection! Rejection is like adrenaline during a fight or flight scenario. You’ve heard about people lifting cars and doing miraculous things because of their body’s natural defense mechanism kicking in. Whenever you attempt something new, seek out somebody at the top of his or her game and get rejected. Turn your rejection into Popeye’s spinach and pound away. Benchmark yourself to them and work your butt off to prove them wrong.

I remember when I was in my mid-20’s, I was rejected from joining my senior colleagues on a client visit because they said, “it’d be too crowded.” What they really meant to say was I was too junior, inexperienced, and they didn’t believe I could hold my own. They may have been right, but I enjoyed taking their rejection to mean they were embarrassed of me. I used this rejection to work an extra 20 hours a week on my communication skills, while buttressing my knowledge of my particular product area so I would come across as the consummate professional. It worked, and I was promoted a year later.

5) Know that even the best get rejected. Michael Jordan got cut from his sophomore high school basketball team. President Obama went to Occidental for undergrad because he couldn’t get into any of the Ivy League schools. Sandra Lee from “semi-homemade” got rejected by all the TV execs before becoming ubiquitous in the food network space. Look at them now.

CONCLUSION

So I ask again, will you let rejection crush your spirits, or raise your determination? You need unwavering focus in order to succeed in a world full of talent. You have seen many examples where you know you can do better. Effort requires no skill. Go out there, get rejected, knowing that each time you do, your hunger grows until you finally succeed!

Readers, how do you deal with rejection? What are some of the things you use to get you all fired up to succeed?

Keigu,

Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

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