meek-investor

  This week, you’re either on the bus or off the bus as we take off on a tripped out psychedelic adventure, man! Come experience a perception of the comic unity of a higher level. And a feeling of timelessness, the feeling that what we know as time is only the result of a naive faith in causality - the notion that A in the past caused B in the present, which will cause C in the future, when actually A, B, and C are all part of a pattern that can be truly understood only by opening the doors of perception an d experiencing it... in this moment... this supreme moment... this Kairos. I mean comedy. Yeah, comedy. This week, The Business welcome’s two guests, freshly returned from tours through the gates of inner-consciousness. Josh Androsky is one of the clowns behind Hamclown: Los Angeles comedy hotspot and a Skateboard Rabbi on Shrooms that OWNED the Price is Right. Keith D’Souza is a rare and beautiful bird. We will cage him for you and let you laugh at him. Your...

Selling is a mind game – much of it is psychology. Very often, we experience the bad side of it. Think Glengarry Glen Ross . We've all been on the receiving end of those tactics. It is selling as an adversarial pursuit of of someone else's purse. Nobody, except the vulture-like salesperson, enjoys that experience. Ultimately, it benefits nobody. Not even the salesperson. In the long run, they lose our trust. Trust is the key that unlocks our purses. Without it, the lock stays firmly shut. In this episode Paul and Roger discuss an email by Chris Brogan that starts with a declaration of intent. It intends to promote something that Chris hopes the receiver will buy. However, he advises strongly in the first paragraph that if you don't want to be bothered by a sales pitch, you should set the email aside. He doesn't want to waste your time or impose upon you. He recognizes that the recipient of the email will buy from him when they are good and ready. And when they do, th...

 There are times when you have to feel good about India. In the prevailing atmosphere of extreme negativity, it is easy to fall into the trap of despair. Patriotism may be the last refuge of the scoundrel (no thanks Samuel Johnson), but it has its uses and I don't mind being a scoundrel. The Republic Day parade is one such occasion, to feel good. I know very few watch the parade these days, but it is an eminently watchable spectacle. Other countries put on a show like this - the Bastille Day parade in France and the Victory Day parade in Russia, being the more prominent. But the Indian parade is extremely impressive and can raise goose pimples, especially if you can understand the honour and significance of it. It all begins with the laying of the wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyothi - the tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the sounding of the Last Post - a tribute to the fallen. The Parade itself is rich in tradition. The President's bodyguard gives the order for the National Salute a...

2012 was a year that was very tough to lose money in the equity market. I was happy that my portfolio gained in value but was sad that I did not benefit much from the mini bull market as I cut lost on about 50% of my equities in October 2011. I expected a further slide of about 20% to 30% in equity for the year 2012 but at the end of 2012 the STI was in fact up by more than 20%! Equity was my worst investment bet although I did make some money selling a large chunk of my remaining equities. As I was still cautious about the equity market, I further reduced my exposure to about 3.5% of my investment portfolio. I sold most of my Reits and dividend stocks and increased my purchase of SGD denominated Corporate bonds. Below are some of my new addition: 1. Aspial Corp, 5.0%, 3 yrs 2. Aspial Corp, 4.5%, 2yrs 3. Swiber, 5.8%, 1yr 4. Ezra Holding 5.0%, 3yrs 5. Maybank Perp 6.0% (secondary market) 6. ABN Amro 4.7%, 5 yrs (secondary market) 7. NOL 5.0%, 5yrs 8. Genting Perp, 5.13% 9. Wing Tai Pro...

San Francisco loves a home-grown star, and even though our guest this week now lives in London, he will always be the dude from SF that was in that movie where Robin Williams wore a dress.   Scott Capurro was reared in Daly City, California; at age 3, he swam the English Channel. Since 1993, he's avoided AIDS by telling unsavory jokes in every English speaking country. Described by San Francisco Weekly (free press, edited by lesbians and designed by trannys with large hands and hidden agendas) as "stand-u p in the very best possible sense - deadpan, ever-alert and hilarious". Scott has appeared in Mrs. Doubtfire, where, effortlessly, he played a homosexual; and Star Wars: Phantom Menace, where, breathlessly, he wore a body stocking. We are also happy to welcome one of Fresno’s finest, Raphi Barakat! And your regulars! Caitlin “Mrs. Apprehensionflame” Gill, Sean “Mrs. Concernedblaze” Keane, Bucky “Mrs. Badfeelingaboutthatspark” Sinister and Alex “Mrs....

Fire is powerful. It burns and destroys. Fire also warms and rejuvenates. It provides a place to come together. In a house around the fireside; outside around a campfire. It is where we gain comfort and where conversations are held. In his latest email, Chris Brogan uses the campfire as a metaphor for creating content and story around your business. Content so compelling that it attracts others to it and compels them to discuss it. Paul and Roger look at how we can apply this to our own businesses to make ourselves attractive to our customers. They also try to fit the campfire model into a rehabilitation programme for Instagram. You can listen to this week's podcast using the player at the top of the post or download it directly here: Business Jazz - 18th January 2012 . We're also in iTunes . We'd love it if you subscribed or left some feedback. Join Chris Brogan's Campfire 
If you'd like to get the warmth directly from Chris' campfire, you can subscribe to h...

A night of passion and intrigue! Marvel at the legal spectacle as a jury decides if Bjorn Faulkner threw himself out of his penthouse or if he was pushed to his death by his secretary, Karen Andre!!! Contemplate the heady moral nuances of contrasting ideas of individualism versus conformity! Wonder at which verdict the jury will return, IT CHANGES WITH EACH PERFORMANCE OF THE PLAY!! HOW NOVEL!!!! (It was also a novel.) …or we can just have a fun comedy show instead. The verdict is in on Brendan Lynch. He has been found funny by a jury of his peers (though we’re not sure they were really his peers, as they were all shorter than he is). Brendan Lynch has established himself as a comedian to look out for in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a regular performer at clubs all over the Northern California and has performed in the San Francisco SketchFest for the last two years. Don't be deceived by Brendan's low-key manner. Prepare yourself for an outrageous sl...

Isn't that a brilliant question.  This is a question asked by 7 year old Loulou.   This is part of Facebook initiative by the Holland based banking giant ING . Its is part of their recruitment portal called ING Careers and this idea is called Next Generation banking . In it they are asking children to ask simple questions and for prospective employees who wish to join ING to answer them.   Here are some of the answers   We need banks to keep money moving and safe Banks are also a safe place to put your money and not only that but the bank will even make sure the amount you gave them increases over time by using it in different businesses We need banks for your money: 1. To be safe - Your piggy bank can get lost, stolen or empty. 2. To grow - Do nothing and see your money grow each year because of interest. So banks were a place you could keep your money safe and also get some extra money if you agreed to pay it back soon So you see banks are there to help peopl...

Last week we talked about ambitions, execution and failure. This week, we riff off an email sent by AJ Leon in which he talks about the decision whether or not to give up. He recently stuck with something and ended up $8,000 lighter. Good decision? Bad decision? That's a key question we're all faced with. Is it better to cut our losses and abandon a road we've set off down, or should we push on? Chris Brogan gets his regular airing too as Paul and Roger discuss his recent email about the rise of bespoke business. In the podcast, Roger alludes to a story about Walt Disney being born in Mojácar, a village in Spain. It's quite likely nonsense, but you can find out more here: The Spanish Connection . You can listen to this week's podcast using the player at the top of the post or download it directly here: Business Jazz - 11th January 2012 . We're also in iTunes . We'd love it if you subscribed or left some feedback. Chris and AJ have bespoke insights for yo...

 The Business has elemental riches! Our lush lands are bursting with precious metals. You can’t dip a pan in our rivers without coming up with gold. .. HEATHER GOLD! Our guest this week is none other than sweet cookie Heather Gold. Heather Gold is a writer, performer and audience involver whom boingboing calls "brilliant" and "one of our favourite comedians." She scales conversation and public intimacy. Her mission is to create a space and a world where we can be ourselves together. Heather emcees and performs for venues and clients across North America, and contributes to magazines and newspapers like The San Jose Mercury News, the Toronto Globe & Mail and CBC Radio. Heather hosts the weekly podcast Tummelvision.tv the leading show about social engagement in a networked world. She’s been quoted and covered in places like WIRED, Salon and NPR. Of course, your regulars will be there as well. Though Mike Drucker will always be IN The Busin...

Alongside  wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy and gluttony - the seven deadly sins - should surely be added "money". For it is now proving to be a deadly sin even in the Vatican. News came out on Wednesday that all forms of plastic money - ATM cards, credit cards, debit cards, etc have stopped functioning in the Vatican. So if you want to visit the Sistine Chapel, you have to fork out cash for admission - cannot wave your plastic. This has happened because the Bank of Italy (Italy's Central Bank) has suspended all electronic operations by banks inside the Vatican in exasperation at the Vatican's continued inability to follow anti money laundering and anti terrorist financing regulations. This has been going on for a long time - the Vatican does not meet the anti money laundering requirements that all countries have to meet and has not been able to set this right for years. Part of the problem is "Ramamrithamisque". Regulations demand all sorts of KYC for...

Voilà . The real Ramamritham has been found !! He does exist. Hurray !  Or at least he did. See this post from my good friend Sriram for irrefutable proof !

It's that time of year again when we tell ourselves we're going to put our best foot forward - change a few things. Some changes will be quite radical; some less so. They will all make our lives better. Change isn't easy, though. Before you know it, your resolutions are in the waste paper basket, along with last year's. Chris Brogan has a suggestion for you. Instead of committing yourself to radical change in the shape of ambitious resolutions, he recommends choosing three words that will act as your guides in the year ahead. They will be beacons for you to steer a course by; criteria on which to base decisions. Paul and Roger discuss this concept and reveal some of their words for 2013. They also talk about the inevitable: Failure. At some time in 2013, we will all fall down. Most probably, we'll do it repeatedly. Then what? You can listen to this week's podcast using the player at the top of the post or download it directly here: Business Jazz - 4th January...

Roland Emmerich guest directs this very exciting edition of The Business, in which we will face off with Godzilla in a terrible storm that happened cause we flooded the atmosphere with carbons while we were fighting aliens for our Independence. We have guest stars to help us! (and they are the good kind that will survive til the end of the movie! … OR WILL THEY?!?!) Jules Posner! Jules Posner is a stand up comedian and San Francisco native. He has been described as a comedian who, “puts the ‘b’ in subtle”. Jules performs all over the country and is a regular at the SF Punchline. Jules Posner has been featured on Jokes.com, Hulu, and SF Sketchfest 2011-2012. Tony Camin! Tony has appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Real Time with Bill Maher, and lots of others that have been cancelled. He's has performed at The Just For Laughs festival in Montreal as well as The HBO US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, as well as the Melbourne Co...

The birth of a new year is a time of rejoicing, of drink and dance, of fireworks, of endless wishes, of resolutions and maybe the odd wistfulness of a year gone by. It is also a moment to reflect on the passage of time - of years whizzing by. I was prompted by this brilliant article in the FT   to muse on what sort of a world are we leaving for the young - for it is they who shall inherit the earth. It is the fond wish of every parent to care and provide for his children. Yet collectively, humanity seems to be doing the opposite. How can it be that a powerful motive for the self, disappears when it comes to the whole ? December was an awful month for the young. The shooting of school children in Newton, Connecticut and the rape and death of a young lady in Delhi would have shocked the most hardened of souls.  But those awful incidents have to stand by the side of equally awful things we do to the young Many children under the age of 5 die. Its a shame on humankind that 19000 c...