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...