FALK REPORT: Issue No.3 - Poker, Medieval Gambling, and the Oregon Trail
This Report’s Agenda:
White Collar Recession: Move Like a Poker Player
Kings Play with Cash
Bet on Yourself: Increase Your Rates of Engagement
Cash Generating Income Ideas for Now
1980s Flashback: Areas for Growth
The New Time Value of Energy
Act Like a Wild Pioneer on the Oregon Trail
white collar recession
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white collar recession 〰️
FALK REPORT: ISSUE 3 | 6 FEBRUARY 2023 | 9:30 PM EST
The Poker Player: Elusive, intriguing, and flush with cash.
Disclaimer: This report is based on analysis and observation, but this is not personalized financial advice. There are a number of factors that go into building and optimizing the operational aspects of marketing your business, and for personalized advice you must book a strategy session with us.
Hello and welcome to the undeniable white collar recession!
Don’t fear, my friends. If you haven’t been hit by the latest elimination round of The Hunger Games, you may have just played your cards right.
But what are the rules of the game, you ask? Same as Texas Hold ‘Em.
To win you’ll need to be proficient in executing winning strategies, assessing probability (using statistics), comprehending behavioral psychology, and you’ll need to be a master of game theory. Yes, game theory.
If you’ve ever spent time around poker players who love a game of Texas Hold ‘Em, you’ll notice that they move in strange ways—and they all think their competition is peculiar. “Not your average guy. Weird.”
Why do they fixate on each other’s quirks? This fixation is their way to win… and win big.
Their quirkiness and their understanding of their competition’s quirkiness is just as valuable as the keys to their 2-door coupe—and can take them from 0-60 just as fast.
What most people don’t realize is that good players fold often and early—throwing in the towel more than your average Joe—because fixating on one bad game won’t stop them from piling up their cash. And they’re flush with cash.
Kings win games of probability, fools win games of bluffing.
Origin of Flush with Cash: “The adjective flush can mean plentiful or abundant. This definition originated in the 1500s. People used cash or other terms for money frequently as examples of something a person could be flush with since at least the 1600s.”
𝖈𝖆𝖘𝖍 is king
👑
𝖈𝖆𝖘𝖍 is king 👑
In our last report, we spoke to you about the new modes of communication that emerged during the Holy Roman Empire (as a result of the printing press).
And now, we’re taking you right back to that 1500s-1600s mindset with the phrase, “flush with cash.”
It’s a term we still use today to describe a person or an institution with an abundant amount of liquidity in their portfolio. Meaning: They’re not tied up in hard-to-convert assets. They are malleable with how, when, and where they will spend their cash.
Companies, investors, and wealthy individuals are striving to become flush with cash.
Every YouTube channel you head to will tell you, move into cash… followed by a long speech of reiterated information and not a whole lot of independent thought formation like a game of pseudo-intellectual telephone (more on that in the next section of this report). Add on top of this the supply chain issues, the cost inflation of supplies, the surging energy costs—and you have a full blown disaster in the eyes of the over-leveraged executive in charge.
In the short-term, this ‘arms race’ for cash has has consequences for everyday people. Corporate and institutional employees are experiencing the layoffs in troves, it’s The Hunger Games out there.
But are the corporate hunger games happening because organizations have overstretched themselves? Or is there something else driving this behavior?
The global economy is experiencing a massive shift, where supply chains of the 1980s are collapsing and information that was previously kept private amongst elite and insiders can now spread rapidly like a wildfire—causing market fluctuations, internal panic, false confidence, and perplexing chaos for businesses (both large and small).
The market at a global scale is volatile and there’s no safe space. All parties are treading with caution.
Disruptions in how business flows and operates throughout the globe is making almost everything more expensive and wildly inefficient. New supply chains have not been built yet, and overwhelmed executives aren’t seeing the forest for the trees. This disruption is priming company leaders to name all things as failed, rather than invest in building the economic systems of the future—and employees are taking the blame.
The people an be labeled as weak, underperforming employees, individuals constantly calling out sick, developing new [m.R.. n ..a induced?] disabilities, dropping dead in the night… or showing up to work half brain washed and half brain dead. Unreliable. Ineffective paper pushers. Is that 100% true though?
Don’t these companies fire just to rehire?
Aren’t there laws to prevent hunger games from happening in the first place?
If the institutions who wrote those laws aren’t holding any power, you’ll have to consider yourself to be living in the futuristic ‘wild west.’
Large corporations are the new kings. What they say, goes… and even our politicians seem to be at the helms of their glory. Looking down at the people akin to medieval serfs. Multinational corporations lobby to influence governments and the formation of our laws. For heaven’s sake, the average person can’t even take a vacation without formal approval from their corporate bosses.
….and what did that average person gain? Short-term stability or long-term impairment?
The mass layoffs happening today may not be caused by the inability for companies to carry employee salaries (for now), but more likely caused by their arms race for cash… they want to be flush with cash, just like the poker player.
At the poker tables, cash allows you to play the right game well. It gives you access to the right tables where you’ll receive the right information and be able to exit when you’ve hit the ceiling on the allotted losses for the night.
It’s less about the actual game, and more about getting a seat at the right table—a table that will increase your chances for success.
where’s your head at?
Probability theory was developed for high-stakes gambling circles in the late 1400s, early 1500s by some guy named Girolamo Cardano whose dad was bff’s with Leonardo da Vinci.
What can we learn from him? A lot.
𝖕𝖘𝖞𝖈𝖍𝖔𝖑𝖔𝖌𝖎𝖈𝖆𝖑 autonomy
〰️
𝖕𝖘𝖞𝖈𝖍𝖔𝖑𝖔𝖌𝖎𝖈𝖆𝖑 autonomy 〰️
With decaying supply chains and the slow emergence of a new digitally integrated world… there are no direct winners or losers in the short-term.
Every industry is going through its own shake-up—which means we are like poker players. Playing short games hoping for winnings that will last us through our next season with more than enough to take our tables up a notch in terms of buy-in minimums, and maybe then… just maybe… we’ll make enough money and connections to cash out of this winner-takes-all game for good.
The current economic landscape is a stressful, high stakes situation for many of us.
We’re not gambling with money. We’re gambling with our lives. Our careers. Our homes.
The key to staying nimble is to focus on cash generating income while also understanding when to throw in the towel.
Remember; Good poker players throw in the towel early. They don’t waste their time on petty losses from emotional haste.
In order to do this well, you’ll need diversification—which means you need to be playing in as many cash-generating games as you can without compromising your work’s quality—because the odds are only in your favor if you increase your rates of engagement.
This is the basis of probability theory, which also originated in Medieval europe around the 1500s.
Who knew the middle ages would be such an enlightening time to draw upon for strategies of how to survive the current market crash?
Probability theory, which we now teach in business schools to bolster success, was actually formed around high-stakes gambling by Italian polymath, Girolamo Cardano.
Today, most of us associate Cardano with crypto. Whether the name bears connection is irrelevant; crypto is a prime example of diversification. Think outside the box and don’t be afraid to try something new.
Chant the sports cliche, “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Now mix that with a little bit of intellect and here you are… master of your own psyche. Autonomous. Unprogrammed. Untrappable. Untraceable, and totally free.
If you want to get a sense of which industries might be great places to dive into, there’s a list below. Try to match them with your interests and skill-sets to create a plan of the next 3 steps you’re going to take to make it happen… and for those who love stock trading and long-term investing over cash generating income, there’s an info block for you, too.
Read it or weep.
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Flip money like a money magnet
risky business, so if you are willing to bet a portion of your money (and never see it return), look into throwing it into a market you can predict. Those who shorted stocks in the 1929 crash reaped immense rewards. You need to be a pro to do this effectively, so don’t bet the farm on it.
Once you flip that money, funnel it into building a cash-generating business,
Cash Generating Businesses that meet our needs right now:
Liquor (drink the blues away), remember velocity of money is available to you if you are willing to contribute the best service ever. This isn’t about the most expensive service, it’s about the most caring and thoughtful service
Construction/Handyman Work (remodeling): there are always people who profit during recessions, and they love to build and re-work their homes to feel as regal and unique as they are… this could be a more seasonal business, but it is something that people will always need because everyone needs a roof over their head so even if there aren’t tons of remodeling or construction jobs, there will be handyman work to be done… everywhere.
Cleaning Businesses: for businesses and for personal assistance, people always need help cleaning and you can get into this business for very little money
Care Taking: at-home healthcare services, dog sitting, and childcare are three items that fall into this category. People need help, and you can offer it to them.
Tutoring Services: traditional education systems are not built for the modern world, and many children are falling behind in school. This is a great opportunity to help boost the younger generation and aid in someone’s personal development journey
Wellness Professionals (fitness, massage, meditation, etc.): the general population will need help seeing that this is something they need as an essential service, if you can do that and are good with sales, this is a great role for you… especially if you’re passionate about it. Opt for short-term immersive programs rather than year long disappointments (like a gym membership).
Restaurants and ghost kitchens
Delivery services
Barbers, Cosmetologists, Nail Techs
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This is when the supply chain as we know it was formed. Take a look at this and let it inspire you. What worked then, how could some of this work now? This is just some food for thought.
What was successful?
Computers, Apple, Microsoft, Nike
What was taking place?
New manufacturing and supply chains
“The one bright spot area on the dreary American economy in the 1980s was the continued rise of the computer industry. Developments in the personal computer, in its hardware and software, opened the computer market to the average American and made fortunes for those behind those developments. It was an industry that would continue to grow and evolve, changing the way Americans conducted business and their personal lives in the decades to come.” - read more here
1980s stocks: the best and worst
Consumer staples
Financial Stocks
Specialty stores, department stores
How does this mirror what’s happening now? And with new supply chains arising, what will change within the next 5 years when it comes to tech, motivational branding, and personal health/development?
Time value of 🄼🄾🄽🄴🅈 or 🅴🅽🅴🆁🅶🆈?
Energy is the new currency. How are your energy levels?
illusion of ΜӨ𝕟€𝓨
〰️
illusion of ΜӨ𝕟€𝓨 〰️
Adaptation is advantageous.
So what do you need in order to adapt?
Autonomy - you can’t adapt well if you’re following the crowd.
Good Health - if you’re sick, drowning in brain fog, and overall just unwell, you will not be able to adapt as quickly or effortlessly as you would be able to if you are healthy. Eat healthy foods. Avoid processed ingredients with strange chemicals. Cook or invest in someone who will cook for you and truly make things from scratch. Go for long walks everyday. Keep in simple, keep it consistent.
on the road again
〰️
on the road again 〰️
Move like a pioneer on the Oregon Trail.
Your life might get a little heavier, dirtier… rugged. Embrace it and adapt to your best ability because if you adapt well now… your life will blossom on the other end of your destination.
What does this all mean for you?
Whoosh! This was a lot to take in, so let’s just recap everything that’s happening right now…
Highly skilled workers may have a tougher time finding high-paying jobs.
White collar recession means your top level strategist who has helped make businesses millions of dollars is now doing cashier work at your local store to pay the bills… because high paying jobs that match that person’s expertise and skill level are hard to come by while companies are hoarding their cash and laying off employees in troves.
Build up your streams of income to avoid this pitfall. Play, have fun, and let yourself discover new ways to grow.
Large corporations are controlling the masses the way Kings did “back in the day.”
Corporations don’t feel they owe much to the everyday worker. The worker is there because they say it’s okay for them to be there, and the worker should feel lucky that they are treated fairly. For heaven’s sake, they could be locked up in a barn and set on fire the way Vlad the Impaler did in 15th century Wallachia.
To exit this medieval peasant paradigm, ask yourself: What could I do to make an additional $500 this month outside of my regular job? Then up the stakes next month, make it $1000 and do this every month until your income from your regular job matches your extra earnings.
The less dependent you are on a corporate entity to give you wads of cash, the less your lifestyle resembles a 15th century serf.
Prioritize your psychological autonomy.
It’s easy to feel helpless in a world that has no stability. Culture is changing, economies are collapsing, wars are erupting. If we switch on the news and follow the crowd we will be destined to live like the crowd.
Improve the content you are consuming. Look to empowering ideas, strategies, stories. A few movies that may help: Molly’s Game, The da Vinci Code, Catch Me If You Can, and Avatar.
Value your energy more than you value your money.
The time value of money is used to help borrowers understand whether the money they borrow now will be worth more (or less) in the future based on currency value + interest and inflation rates.
Consider Tom going for a $50,000 loan.
He pays it back over the course of 5 years. At a certain interest rate, that $50,000 loan will have a better time value of money than receiving $40,000 in cash today.
Swap this concept for your own energy and you will start to view the way you spend your time much differently than if you’re merely showing up to pay the bills and just get through the day.
Is the energy you give out today depleting your value reserves or strengthening them in the long-term?
You have value. Show us what’s possible for you and showcase what you have to offer. You have a gift to contribute to the world.
Sharing this gift is how you open the channels to receive more effortlessly in today’s world than being tied to a ruffy-tuffy soul-sucking job.
If you cannot share your gifts with the world because you’re too drained, too tired, too depressed—then you’ll always stay stuck, losing out on the time value of your energy.
Great tip to help you decide if something is worth it, ask: “Will I regret not doing this in a year?”
show them what's possible
〰️
show them what's possible 〰️
Remember: Adaptation is advantageous.
NEXT REPORT’S AGENDA
FALK REPORT: ISSUE NO.4 | 6 MARCH 2023 | 9:30 PM ESTIssue No. 4 will cover the topics listed below:
RESILIENCE: Overcoming Hardship
THE RULE OF 5: Upgrading Friends and Foes
Come prepared to our YouTube live stream debrief with your homework from the Intro Issue, and your take on what this means for you and your small business in 2023.
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