feed.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?><feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" ><generator uri="https://jekyllrb.com/" version="3.8.5">Jekyll</generator><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/feed.xml" rel="self" type="application/atom+xml" /><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" /><updated>2019-12-11T15:19:01-08:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/feed.xml</id><title type="html">Krystian Laskowski</title><subtitle>Krystian Laskowski - Software Architect, Coding trainer, Hobby investor.</subtitle><entry><title type="html">Fare Thee Well Friend</title><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/Fare-thee-well-friend/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" title="Fare Thee Well Friend" /><published>2019-12-10T00:00:00-08:00</published><updated>2019-12-10T00:00:00-08:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/Fare-thee-well-friend</id><content type="html" xml:base="http://klaskowski.github.io/Fare-thee-well-friend/">&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/1350/1*MW1zA7XYrwbJWyQl_hMWEQ.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;A few years ago, there was a certain video released by Prager University, whose intent was to extol the virtues of marriage and in this video it was mentioned that the married ma n spends less time with friends and more time working. This was being offered as a major selling point of marriage. It seemed as ridiculous then as it does now, at least to me. I recall not being alone in this and I remember thinking no man in his right mind would find that argument to be convincing reason to get married. The idea that spending less time with your friends was somehow a good thing specifically seemed ridiculous. Few years later I’ve come to realize both by way of observation and repeated reflection that there was something greater and indeed more sinister at work here. I say “sinister”, not in some dark conspiratorial sense, but rather that there’s something at work, ruinous to what historically had been one of the strongest human bond in existence — male friendship.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;romantic-dystopia&quot;&gt;Romantic dystopia&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;It doesn’t take a genius to make the observation that the current world is nothing less than obsessed with romantic relationships. Both men and women, but especially men. Both the “haves” in this matters, and the “have-nots”, spend endless amounts of time attempting to further extend their conquests and some even attempt to market out their strategies to earn a quick buck. &lt;strong&gt;That which they perceived to be the ultimate good, namely romantic female company, eludes them.&lt;/strong&gt; The most cursory look online reveal this rather readily. Think about all the time spent on the sermons, lectures, the riots, the rage about relationships, about men, about women, about dating, about marriage. Some people might argue that this is only natural as humans, above all men, esteemed such matters as being most important, but I would argue that this is only partly true at best. Some might argue that the reason for this is the admittedly horrid state of disrepair marriages and relationships are in, but again, I only believe this to be partly true.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Our friendships between men, faring any better.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/2000/1*YcHmo61c1OrRtm7_2yNpeQ.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The discussion of friendships, and what they mean to men, is a topic rarely broached and only hardly acknowledged at all to be worthy discussion to begin with. Why is that? Now it could be that fraternity and friendship are faring so well that no one feels the need to talk about it. It could be that things are just peachy keen and all’s well in so called “brotherhood”. And yet, looking out at the landscape of contemporary western world and even places far flung as Japan, tells a somewhat different tale. &lt;strong&gt;Social dysfunction is rampant as is substance abuse, depression, despair and all the attendant features of such a social dystopia.&lt;/strong&gt; If friendships and social bonds between men were going well, things would not be looking quite as grim as they currently do. If it all sat well with men, we would not see the large number of men, above all young men, looking to make any sort of social connection possible online, because &lt;strong&gt;if they had such connections in real life and they were genuine&lt;/strong&gt;, it would be very unlikely that they would be there in the first place. To be sure, there are other factors: lack of employment, and the meeting market, but I think there are other reasons why we hear so little in this matter. Reasons far more pertinent than most people care to think.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;turmoils-of-present-times&quot;&gt;Turmoils of present times&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;For decades now, we’ve seen a gradual reduction and attention paid to and care given to male interests. I’m using the “interests” word here broadly. By this I mean things that actually intellectually interests men, men’s natural behavioral proclivities and more recently — they very existence, assuming they do not meet certain predefined criteria. Criteria are predefined set forth by women, whether it is school and education (female teachers), the media market (female consumers), and even the simple perception of men (in general, as harmful, potential violent rapist). This all has become increasingly more difficult for men, partly due to the natural forces of technology and partly by design. &lt;strong&gt;One of the most unfortunate consequences of this has been the ever greater difficulty in forming close male bonds.&lt;/strong&gt; In fact, these days there is an active hostility to the idea.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The general thrusts of things in recent years has been that any close relationship a man has or can have will be with a woman or seen through a female filter. Have you ever noticed for example that virtually every young man, when either paying a compliment to, or simply expressing enjoying spending time with another man, &lt;strong&gt;he is required, as if by some cosmic law, to loudly proclaim “no homo”.&lt;/strong&gt; Perhaps even worse is the recent trend to declare any close male relationship to be so called “bromance”. Trying to find exact origins of these trends is difficult, especially in the modern context.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;linguistic-explanation&quot;&gt;Linguistic explanation&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;This is not an etymological investigation, where we can often pinpoint an origin of a word or even phrases but what we can do is offer an analysis of when and where it is used. Before I proceed, let me make it clear that I have no problems or issues with gay man or with homosexuality for that matter, lest I be accused of it, but the attempt to reduce every close male friendship to a so-called “bromance”, and &lt;strong&gt;the fear most young men expressed when they half jokingly, half seriously say “no homo” tells much of the story.&lt;/strong&gt; It is doing two separate things. On the one hand it’s telling us that &lt;strong&gt;the only close relationship a man can have with another man is of romantic nature&lt;/strong&gt;, which ties it back in unsurprisingly to male-female relationships. On the other hand it is implying that &lt;strong&gt;if two males who are not related by blood express any degree of closeness, it must be homoerotic in nature&lt;/strong&gt;, since after the male-female relationship the only possible human relationship would have to be homosexual one. Because it is tacitly implied between the naturally sexual heterosexual male-female dynamic, the only alternative could be a homoerotic one.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;sources-of-erosion&quot;&gt;Sources of erosion&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;There is a twofold hostility at work here. One more obvious, the other less so. As pertains the more obvious hostility, this is manifested in the denigration of male friendship and male bonding. This blatant disapproval, it is effectively stating: “you cannot have that”, and to the extent that you can have it, it must be trumped by the male-female relationship, seen both in the term “bromance” and also in the heavy implication that only something born of the romantic could possibly be of any real value. Married men spend less time with their friends and it is nearly routine that a combination of new responsibilities as well as new active measures to make the married man entirely dependent on his wife as the only meaningful social connection ,contributes to this. In short, &lt;strong&gt;women perceive strong male friendship as a potential threat&lt;/strong&gt; to social and emotional control and therefore seek to undermine it. It is not enough that there is sexual jealousy when other females might present themselves as potential reproductive threats. The male threat is that much greater, because &lt;strong&gt;it is much more likely to be meaningful&lt;/strong&gt; and therefore must be undermined. It is an active attempt to cut a man off from the things he values most: his hobbies, his interests and spending time with his brothers, sometimes spiritual, sometimes otherwise. To her mind, she must be the be-all center of his universe, lest she be devalued. This mentality starts with terminology such as “bromance”, meant to trivialize the value and worth of male friendship and to ascribe to it something that could only manifest between a man and a woman, because value itself that is purported here, can only be found in male-female relationship.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/1000/1*xeHD2xpb-9j0zdPEJ32ekw.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;the-biggest-secret-of-men&quot;&gt;The biggest secret of men&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Someone with pink glasses could say, that it’s not a manifest of bad willingness but a simple misunderstanding. Ever wondered why males talk so avidly and at length about cars, movies, beer, history, politics, women? After a few minutes of “deep, sincere talk”, &lt;strong&gt;men switch to chit-chat about stuff, things, current affairs&lt;/strong&gt;. For decades women have given men stick about this very topicality, assuming men aren’t in touch with their feelings, or are repressing issues they find difficult, or are superficial. Implying, men have emotional needs only a women can fulfill. But &lt;strong&gt;the themes men talk about can function as mood-signals&lt;/strong&gt; — the way a man talks about, say, Top Gear, will reveal his feelings, as well as metaphors. An imagined perfect motorcycle ride might be a wished-for epiphany of the soul. A divulged memory of Manchester United’s glory days might be a longing for childhood. Trivia is, sometimes what we talk about when we talk about love. Women can’t quite get that, but so seem men, when they only brush the surface, not realizing what happens in their unconsciousness when having a chit-chat with a friend.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/500/1*BN7SasNgkEXqVuk8gBjaGQ.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Mesopotamian myths are one of the oldest traces of culture&quot; /&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;figcaption class=&quot;caption&quot;&gt;Our bodies might be distant, our words can be cold, but our souls can give warm embrace at the same time.&lt;/figcaption&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The other less hostile element is a subtle diggit homosexual man. For it is not entirely clear that women actually like gay man very much, and the reason for this is simple. The net of female influence is only as wide as the sexual and emotional allure she has to offer. Where there is none, as is in the case with gay men, there’s little to do and thus little to control. This is why you routinely see women trying to rope gay men into social circles as a sort of peer group. Not truly belonging, but under supervision observation and at least theoretically subject to the rules of female friendship, which largely circle around conformity, comfort and not offending anyone. At the same time, the overt hostility that can be encountered in male circles towards gay men, tends to drive them into those female circles. Therefore to suggest that the only thing that can exist between two straight men is a bromance, &lt;strong&gt;not as allegedly powerful as a male/female romantic relationship&lt;/strong&gt; and the implication that if such relationship exists, it can only exist in the context of a small, somewhat maligned population that is seen to be of little value to women.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;low-status-males&quot;&gt;Low-status males&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I should remind you the beta orbiter is never gay, but the modern obsession with relationships in marriage finds its most convenient victims in the so called “forever alone” men who’ve been made to believe that the only human relationships of any value are those with women. To the extent that such men do have friends, &lt;strong&gt;some of them believe that the purpose of these friends is to find them romantic partners&lt;/strong&gt; and that if your friends are not actively helping you to find a girlfriend or wife, they are deficient or bad friends and should be traded at one’s convenience for “friends” who will do this. The sexual market is indeed tough these days, but the implication bound up within that there is nothing else to offer in terms of human connection other than sexual market. Something which reveals itself to be a tacitly agreed upon consensus, if you spend some time looking at the world.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/1600/1*TFwOLS0xlX9IDOlEiu6wCw.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;everything-became-disposable&quot;&gt;Everything became disposable&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;There is yet another element at play. Modern American culture has dominated the globe and its outpourings of shape trends the world over. One trend, the obsessive consumer culture, has also come to dominate the human interactions, globally. We certainly see it in the sexual market with apps and swipes souped-up online dating profiles and the general tendency to commodify everything, starting with products and ending with human beings. The very idea that &lt;strong&gt;one can simply trade in some friends with some others&lt;/strong&gt; on a whim smacks of this commodification effect. It’s probably an additional contributing factor to the general disregard men have towards their own friends.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;When one pair of shoes gets old, you buy a new one.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;It’s just that humans are the shoes now. The net results of this is the standard fair-weather friend as a best case scenario. Someone who’s around for a limited quantity of time for the good times and gone the moment the clouds presage a coming storm. In fact, in most cases, I think &lt;strong&gt;the fair-weather friend is the only former friendship most men have ever experienced&lt;/strong&gt;. Needless to say, this was not always the case.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/875/1*qXmvZaVsPptXbZlWsMO0Eg.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Mesopotamian myths are one of the oldest traces of culture&quot; /&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;figcaption class=&quot;caption&quot;&gt;Mesopotamian myths are one of the oldest traces of culture.&lt;/figcaption&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;lessons-from-the-past&quot;&gt;Lessons from the past&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;It’s no exaggeration to state that the strongest human bonds on earth have been forged between men, forged in hardship, in battle, in survival. The first literary exploration of this, indeed the first piece of literature ever produced by mankind that has survived the historical record, makes highlighting the incredible bonds that can exist between men. One of its keynote stories embedded into a larger story. I am of course referring to the epic of Gilgamesh, whose cataloging of the friendship between the protagonist Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu presents a worldview that’s scarcely recognizable to the modern man. It’s clear from the text, &lt;strong&gt;the bond between Gilgamesh and Enkidu is stronger than any other&lt;/strong&gt;. When Gilgamesh spurns the goddess Ishtar and points out her fickle unreliable nature as a reason. She lashes out in vengeance, sending the bull off heaven after both Gilgamesh and Enkidu. The bull was defeated, but Enkidu is nonetheless struck down by the gods. This episode is so painful to Gilgamesh than it emboldened him to quest after immortality itself. A failed prospect to be sure, but such was the impact of the dead of his friend.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;envisioning-the-future&quot;&gt;Envisioning the future&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Male friendship has been tried and tested in the deadliest of circumstances, toughest of trials and unfortunately is a shadow of its former self. Some of this has arisen simply due to changing environment, and some of it is due to the active erosion and integration of the potential bonds men can have with each other. That is withered and attenuated. That does not mean however, that it cannot, at least in smaller circles, be resuscitated. To do so requires the awareness of the forces that seek to reduce it and ridicule it, and a refusal to give in into these forces. Something I fear for most men has already come to pass.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/1350/1*Yxans2IvX9xRtwH7G3rXBg.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Marriages between men and women crumble and fold, because a man forgot to take out the trash or do the dishes, but &lt;strong&gt;the bonds of male friendship have withstood the slings, bullets, spears&lt;/strong&gt; and indeed arrows of outrageous fortune, &lt;strong&gt;only to be renewed and strengthened&lt;/strong&gt;. Besought not to be forgotten, not now and not in the future.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Thanks for reading! 😊 If you enjoyed it, share it with your friends! Sharing is caring.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PS&lt;/strong&gt; Before you question my authority, please remember I’m a professional teacher. You should always listen to teachers 🙃&lt;/p&gt;</content><author><name></name></author><category term="blog" /><summary type="html"></summary></entry><entry><title type="html">Game of Life</title><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/Game-of-life/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" title="Game of Life" /><published>2019-10-09T22:10:00-07:00</published><updated>2019-10-09T22:10:00-07:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/Game-of-life</id><content type="html" xml:base="http://klaskowski.github.io/Game-of-life/">&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://klaskowski.github.io/assets/images/game-of-life.png&quot; alt=&quot;Screenshot&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://klaskowski.github.io/Game-of-Life/&quot;&gt;Demo&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Classic coding exercise with visualisation. (Due to Chrome API change, works on Firefox only)&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;What has inside?&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;ul&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;VanillaJS&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;</content><author><name>Krystian Laskowski</name></author><category term="project" /><summary type="html"></summary></entry><entry><title type="html">Don’t be a programmer</title><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/Dont-be-a-programmer/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" title="Don't be a programmer" /><published>2019-10-09T00:00:00-07:00</published><updated>2019-10-09T00:00:00-07:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/Dont-be-a-programmer</id><content type="html" xml:base="http://klaskowski.github.io/Dont-be-a-programmer/">&lt;h4 id=&quot;as-a-programming-trainer-i-get-questions-about-programming-which-i-dont-think-are-the-right-questions-questions-like&quot;&gt;As a programming trainer I get questions about programming, which I don’t think are the right questions. Questions like:&lt;/h4&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“How many languages do I need to learn?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“What languages do I need to learn to get to company XYZ?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“What is the difference between A and B? Which makes more money?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“What are the exact steps I need to take to become Z?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“What kind of program should I write to build up my resume?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;So why don’t I like these questions? Because it feels like people asking these questions, they are learning how to program just for the sake of learning how to program. But programming is just a tool! Being a programmer for me means you write code to automate things or to make things perform certain actions. For example programming a refrigerator to turn on the light when you open the door.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1000/1*xWqoSyXIuJsu9UQWyz9xbw.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;That's how refrigerator light is controlled.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;When you think about it, programming is actually kind of boring. You are just giving a series of instructions to the processor over and over again, until you get it right. I don’t want to speak for all of you, but I think if the pay wasn’t great, I don’t think a lot of you would spent hours and hours every night in front of the computer, trying to learn how to code or to just debug the program.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Sometimes we’re caught up learning languages or coding challenges or fantasizing about working for those big tech companies, that we forget why we want to learn programming in the first place. You want to program, not because you saw the amazing things built using programming. So don’t just learn how to program. Build something that matters, build something that solves the problem.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;You are effectively a problem solver, creator, innovator. You’re not a programmer. Programming is just a tool in your arsenal to build something amazing. You can be analytical, creative, empathetic. Programming allows you to express those qualities of yourself. But programming in of itself is nothing special. It’s like a pencil. You can draw a line if you press on a pencil hard enough and move your hand. That’s it!&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1500/1*pivxeC1KngrUU_mjCR7XTA.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Amaze the world with how you can use your basic skill and how you can mix it with your other skills and imagination.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;But with a pencil you can write novels, draw music, beautiful portraits, design skyscrapers or anything. You are limited only by your imagination. You do not learn how to program to get to Google. You learn how to program to build something meaningful, something that helps people with real problems.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Don’t be a programmer. Be a problem solver.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;My story as a programmer began when I was 14 years old. My friend already picked some programming skills and tried to make a simple, computer mini-game featuring our classmates. I was tech-savvy, so I jumped in to help him. Our debut become an overnight success. We were walking past school corridors like celebrities. Fame came at a price, as our fans expected us to release a second part. A full-fledged 3D game was what they expected! We started studying game development hard… and the rest is history.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Thanks for reading! 😊 If you enjoyed it, share it with your friends! Sharing is caring.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PS&lt;/strong&gt; Before you question my authority, please remember I’m a professional teacher. You should always listen to teachers 🙃&lt;/p&gt;</content><author><name></name></author><category term="blog" /><summary type="html">As a programming trainer I get questions about programming, which I don’t think are the right questions. Questions like:</summary></entry><entry><title type="html">Road trips, a.k.a “How infatuation poisons clarity of mind”</title><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/Road-trips/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" title="Road trips, a.k.a “How infatuation poisons clarity of mind”" /><published>2019-08-22T00:00:00-07:00</published><updated>2019-08-22T00:00:00-07:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/Road-trips</id><content type="html" xml:base="http://klaskowski.github.io/Road-trips/">&lt;h4 id=&quot;i-believe-i-discovered-a-100-working-way-to-fall-in-love-a-way-that-nobody-seems-to-talk-about-yet-people-seem-to-follow-it-intuitively-but-i-stopped-using-it-as-there-are-no-roses-without-thorns&quot;&gt;I believe I discovered a 100% working way to fall in love. A way that nobody seems to talk about, yet people seem to follow it intuitively. But I stopped using it, as there are no roses without thorns.&lt;/h4&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/2241/1*ZN9So8Pqrl8YrpOFIZOUZQ.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Modern meditation.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Before you start reading, I highly recommend playing this sound in background:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://youtu.be/gDE8MNiQVtY&quot;&gt;A sad song about a girl I no longer know&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Ever since I’ve got my first car, I would take road trips. The gas was costly for a twenty-year-old student, thus I wasn’t driving every day. But I loved the road trips, so on the weekends when I had nothing to do and had some saved money from my side job at the factory, I was hopping into a car (or a bicycle) and drive. I didn’t care where I go. I had no plans. Just driving for a while and see where I ended up. I drove for a long time. I drove for experiences obfuscated from urban life. I wanted to isolate myself from humanity and live in the world itself for a moment. I stop by a random scene of nature. I wanted to get to know the area where I grew in. My favorite directions to go were extremely rich and extremely poor neighborhoods.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I always took these road trips alone because it gave me time away from the academic hustle and bustle of student life. Night scene, parties, drinking with friends and strangers, various women that I succeeded with (sometimes) or failed with (mostly). Alone with my thoughts, thinking where I was going with my life. It’s very important at a young age to have a long-term plan.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“Where am I going?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“What am I doing with all of this?”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Because I was a little bit of a jokester growing up. I started joking less when I grew older. I’ve noticed, if you joke about everything, you take nothing seriously, and nothing has meaning. Problem was, I had nothing to believe in at that time, I had to search for it. Searching for it in a library was never going to work. So, I took these road trips, capturing all those scenic moments that stayed in my memory forever. That orange sunset, drunkards sipping vodka along the road, the sound of cicadas and a sweet smell of late summer. When you are alone, you capture surroundings with all of your senses.
Those memories are going to be my alone forever. They become my secrets, in a way. These beautiful quiet moments that only I had in mind. I never felt more at home than moving more than 100 kilometers per second on a highway, listening to Polish rap and American emo-core songs. Except for one situation, that I will describe later on.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;what-exactly-was-about-the-road-trips-that-i-loved&quot;&gt;What exactly was about the road trips that I loved?&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;But most importantly: what knowledge could I derive from this love to road trips about psychology? They were like an unfolding story of changing itself. The subjective beauty that can be found only in change. And it was also very important, something that built up my individuality. The beauty and the worth of changing sceneries, going into a Chinese bar (with Vietnamese food, just like every polish “Chinese bar”) on a lazy Saturday evening, somewhere on the opposite side of the town, many kilometers from where I lived or studied. Having a conversation with a homeless man who “guarded” my bicycle when I was away, listening to his stories.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Stories that I’ve gained over these trips became stories of my life. And no one else has access to them. And that’s what is important!&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Let me tell you: if you ever liked a girl, and you take her on a road trip, there is no oneitis in the world like the oneitis you will develop on a long road trip.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I can tell somebody about these road trips, but they will never see them through my eyes. They never lived them. This is part of differentiation and individuation. Pushing away everybody else, pushing away the world, living in solitude. I’ve gained first-hand knowledge from these travels. I theorize this increasing sense of self-reliance and self-worth wasn’t dissimilar with forging a tribe, in a way.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Except, I was the only member.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I had only taken one trip like that with one woman at that time. Just her and I. Let me tell you: if you ever liked a girl, and you take her on a road trip, there is no oneitis in the world like the oneitis you will develop on a long road trip.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;“Alone with the woman that you love.”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;That will really get into you.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The women I took the trip was physically attractive to me, but we never considered ourselves more than just friends. I had no feelings to her whatsoever, I was more interested in one of her friends. The road trip was just an experiment of sharing the experience.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;She was tanned and had dark hair, while I preferred light skin tones at that time. Her smartness frustrated me at times. But the more time we spent together, the more I discovered her true nature. She seemed to be an intellectual type but had a hidden trickster, concealed adventurous, party-like side. She didn’t state that openly, but I suspected she was also hypersexual. When she was talking about other guys, she had many excuses. “He’s just a friend”, “I only like that he is tall”. But I like that she was cunning and sort of clever, and she had charisma and charm of put you at ease, even if she did something wrong. I realized later that she radiated no guilt. I sensed some guilt but I felt no guilt at all. I think that’s how liars form.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;We were both more listeners than talkers. Between many moments of silence that didn’t feel awkward, she had some interesting stories about her youth that didn’t fit her observable nature. For example, how her stupid schoolmates always got more attention, so she had to use more dubious tactics to get the attention, or else merge into the background, into the shadows, and make things happen there. She liked to portray herself as introverted and shy when everything about her screamed “good friend/girlfriend/ material”. I couldn’t comprehend how wasn’t she popular in her social circles.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Sure enough, a romance developed between us. And this team, or tribe, emerged.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Except for this time, a tribe of two, instead of one.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I theorized the road trip was the grounds that romance to form because of the myriad shifting location. She and I were the only fixed things amongst the changing scenery. We went over half of a country!&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;What I’ve learned, though, is that there is very, very strong tribal side of every human psyche. At least, it was for mine. And I think it is this all-in tribalism that drives us to pair bond. It’s what I’ve wanted for a long time. I’ve never believed in soulmates as a concept, but I wanted a woman that was good enough that “we worked” together, that we have some sort of functional team. It is only after I begin to realize, that it was my hormones, that crafted my attraction. It’s pure brain chemistry that made me like things I would despise. Things that objectively weren’t that great. She’s a compulsive liar, she’s a compulsive sex addict, all this stuff. But it was her humanity I was really interested by. That humanity became pronounced and revealed because of the road trip, because of the changing scenery. That, I think, is the core of what people want in love. That‘s what people are looking for. This desire to be a tribe of two.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Us against the world!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;That’s romance! The “man up” argument that traditionalists use. It’s that there is true passion there. Not sure if I should call it “emotion”. The real romance was always an open road for me. Taking a woman with me on my adventure. We would be trailblazers together, relying upon one another. That’s what I’ve wanted — that tribal feeling. That was the “passion” to me. An interesting thing about “passion” is that it overrides everything else (at least for men), at least if you let become inundated by your passion. It warps intellectual detachment, it warps thought. I am a young man, still, and I was an even younger man, in the prime of his hormonal profile. In those moments I felt I can do anything. I tell myself:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;I’ve seen the statistics, but if I love this woman, I would move mountains I would do anything for that woman! I would fight, protect, do everything she wants!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;That’s the power of true passion. It’s euphoric to override logic, to override reason, a rational view of the situation. That’s why I never become hateful to the traditional conservative narrative.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;If you are a real man, you will be enough! A real man risk it! You are just afraid of the commitment! You are just afraid of committing to a woman! Be brave!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;It preys upon a very fundamental aspect of men nature. We can be carried away by courage, passion, anger as well, the desire to conquer, the desire to defeat the odds, to be the exception. Every man has within a hero and if we’ve been told hero’s journey involves fighting for love, over and over again our entire lives, what are we going to believe?
For so long, I’ve wanted to create a perfect love through these road trips, with somebody. But it was only the lone trips that I’ve really found value in, in the end. Now that I reflect on every road trip I took with a woman, they “worked” . It made them have feelings to me, I had feelings for them, but it was a waste. The only road trips worth it were the road trips I took alone.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;time-and-perspective&quot;&gt;Time and perspective&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;There is a reason the elders try so hard to impart the wisdom on the young men. The young men are the most susceptible to the traditional narrative. “If you are a true man, you control the outcome”. Men have a nature to be responsible and accountable, whether it is by nature and biology, or by education, or both, it is what it is. It takes a lot for a man to decide to go his own way.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/2241/1*kb70xLQCSJYGMULly-luAw.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Walk into the dead end.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;In our socio-cultural system with legal precedence, wherein everything is vested into a woman in the relationship, the man is at the woman’s mercy. It creates an unhealthy imbalance in that relationship, and at that point, we can’t express our natural desire to give guidance to that relationship. To lead something bigger than the road trip. &lt;strong&gt;The life trip&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Thanks for reading! 😊 If you enjoyed it, share it with your friends! Sharing is caring.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PS&lt;/strong&gt; Before you question my authority, please remember I’m a professional teacher. You should always listen to teachers 🙃&lt;/p&gt;</content><author><name></name></author><category term="blog" /><summary type="html">I believe I discovered a 100% working way to fall in love. A way that nobody seems to talk about, yet people seem to follow it intuitively. But I stopped using it, as there are no roses without thorns.</summary></entry><entry><title type="html">What weightlifting can teach you about everyday philosophy?</title><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/What-weighlifting-can-teach-you-about-everyday-philosophy/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" title="What weightlifting can teach you about everyday philosophy?" /><published>2019-08-08T00:00:00-07:00</published><updated>2019-08-08T00:00:00-07:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/What-weighlifting-can-teach-you-about-everyday-philosophy</id><content type="html" xml:base="http://klaskowski.github.io/What-weighlifting-can-teach-you-about-everyday-philosophy/">&lt;h4 id=&quot;no-matter-if-you-are-an-entrepreneur-a-software-engineer-or-you-work-in-an-international-corporation-if-you-feel-a-disconnection-between-your-mind-and-body-or-your-wants-and-haves-or-you-feel-depressed-weightlifting-can-strengthen-your-body-soul-spirit-and-understanding&quot;&gt;No matter if you are an entrepreneur, a software engineer or you work in an international corporation. If you feel a disconnection between your mind and body, or your wants and “haves”, or you feel depressed. Weightlifting can strengthen your body, soul, spirit, and… understanding.&lt;/h4&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/2500/1*QlrzssYBoBpoZwSHhRt8nA.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Modern meditation.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I have been an existentially perturbed kid. I didn’t work out hard, because I didn’t see a purpose. “You know, I could go above and beyond, but in six thousand years, all the molecules that comprise me at present will dissipate throughout the galaxy. Nothing will remain”. I always had that in the back of my mind. Talking about what this nihilism and sort of meaninglessness brings, I always thought caring about your body and physical proves is ultimate defiance against vagueness stupidity of existence. “Let’s move some weight, why not?”. And that’s how I ripped a tone of benefits. They were not physical benefits necessarily. Let me go over 5 top reasons that are not physiological per se (even if they have physiological components).&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;1-it-increases-your-positivity&quot;&gt;1. It increases your positivity.&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;It moves away your mind approaches seemingly insurmountable obstacles and problems.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;It presents your mind a way to surmount the insurmountable by persistent willingness to fail.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;When I see a guy who seems overwhelmed or depressed, I can’t stop myself from not inviting him to a gym. I think at least male depression is often rooted, at least in the most part, when a man faces many problems in his life that seem overwhelming or they cannot overcome. They believe they will never overcome and they lose hope. I think lifting is the best solution here. It will not solve all those other problems directly, but it will give you a sense of control over your own life. It will give you a sense that at least physically you are progressing. This is something. This is a small victory that most depressed people lack. I think &lt;strong&gt;the “victory orientation” of the brain is the most important component of all&lt;/strong&gt;. It rewires the brain to show you the worth of trying when you don’t have to try. You can just give up, obviously. That option is always there. But lifting teaches you that if you don’t give up on your problems and instead just keep smashing against them, &lt;strong&gt;eventually you are going to break right onto the other side&lt;/strong&gt;. 
“You’re wrong! Lifting is a false equivalence fallacy. Lifting weights is nothing equal to the problems I face.”. There is some truth to that. There are people who can say “I tried already and my problems didn’t disappear”. But that’s not what I’m saying. Lifting is a cool thing because you will likely make progress for that effort. It teaches you that if you push hard enough, you will see the reward. That’s a really important thing to teach your brain. Even if all these problems presently seemed insurmountable don’t disappear, it will change how you think about them.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;2-instills-the-down-to-earth-sense-of-humility&quot;&gt;2. Instills the down-to-earth sense of humility.&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;It doesn’t matter if you experience the highest highs or the lowest lows, the iron will never lie to you. 45lbs plate always weights the same 20kg. That’s not going to change (even though conversion between the imperial metric system introduces inaccuracy). You may be changing around it, but in the end, it’s 45lbs of weight, no matter what. More than 35, less than 50. The weight doesn’t become lighter or heavier and that is grounding. It gives you a point of reference in your life. A reality check. 
And I believe it also instills a &lt;strong&gt;natural sense of stoicism&lt;/strong&gt; as well. Because regardless if you are coming to the gym happy or depressed, you still have to prepare yourself to that 220lbs bench press, or the barbell will smash your ribcage. It’s the &lt;strong&gt;visceral focus&lt;/strong&gt; that you get prior to that lift, heightened awareness and toughness, that allows you to hit your new personal records. This keeps you &lt;strong&gt;grounded&lt;/strong&gt; and &lt;strong&gt;sane&lt;/strong&gt; because you have to reach that, dig deep into yourself. It’s almost like a form of meditation.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;3-it-fosters-and-improves-the-relationship-with-consistency-and-discipline&quot;&gt;3. It fosters and improves the relationship with consistency and discipline.&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Everyone has their own lifting system that works for them. When I lift, I usually do it 5 times a week. Many people would reach burnout because they try to give 100% out of themselves. Giving out 100% almost every day, being fatigued… “Oh my… I have to beat my personal record again?”. It burns them out. A lot of seasoned lifters would say “you should only lift 3 times a week” because training more will raise cortisol. I would say — just feel it out. Experiment with different forms and see what works for you. Everyone’s physiology is different. If I lift only 3 times a week, I don’t reach my full potential, but I know many people who make great results training 3 times a week. I’m not going to the gym, telling myself for a whole day “oh, it will hurt again, it will be strenuous ”. I’m just coming to see what happens. I’m a competitive guy. But sometimes, I don’t feel like I can give 100% out of myself. &lt;strong&gt;Sometimes I can only give 60%. But I still show up&lt;/strong&gt;. And that’s the most important thing for me — &lt;strong&gt;keep a habit&lt;/strong&gt;. Because if you want to make it a part of your life, you keep it a habit. You will see the incredible progression over time.
Sometimes you see those guys going to the gym for two or three months 6 times a week, making some gains, burning out, and giving up, saying “it is what it is”. Sometimes I’m tired of giving 100%, but the beauty of the gym is, &lt;strong&gt;if you keep showing up, you will progress&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;4-its-really-useful-to-be-strong&quot;&gt;4. It’s really useful to be strong.&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I used to always have a strong grip in everyday life. But in these days, we often forget how useful it is to be strong. It’s no longer necessary, perhaps, in the hunter-gatherer sense of the word, but if you’re strong, people sense physical strength a lot more than looks. You can have someone who is huge, and size will always be a factor of intimidation to bullies, but oftentimes you will find people who gained functional strength, even if they still slender. They &lt;strong&gt;radiate that confidence&lt;/strong&gt;, strength. It’s good because it signals to potential douchebags that &lt;strong&gt;you’re not to be played with&lt;/strong&gt;. 
Everything that requires strength, now you don’t need to ask for help. For example — moving houses. Everyone moves from time to time. Levarages, pulleys, etc. are no longer needed — you can use your natural strength.
Self-defense is always a factor. &lt;strong&gt;Man is a wolf to another man&lt;/strong&gt;. It’s not ideal, but it is what it is. Most men are not looking for your best interest. The power of arguments has to step back for the power of fists. You might have only a couple of situations in your life when you have to fight. Hopefully, you won’t have any. But if you find yourself in that situation, those situations happen fast. Maybe some crazy hobo throws at you. You cannot prepare for that. Seconds can separate you from a disaster. Even if you know martial arts, street fights become messy. Strength will be your last resort in those situations.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;5-it-increases-your-overall-sense-of-wellbeing&quot;&gt;5. It increases your overall sense of wellbeing.&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I find when I’m lifting, it’s the time in between the gym I enjoy the most. It’s sort of equilibrium of contentedness life and usually, everyone is sitting at that point between 1 and 10. Let’s say somebody is at the point of 4 just resting happiness, or resting contentedness. When he begins to lift, he might be unhappy going to the gym sometimes: “It sucks, it’s going to hurt”. But even though he’s going to have these spikes of unhappiness when going to the gym, the overall level of happiness that he will have will reach higher plateaus.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://miro.medium.com/max/3125/1*lPYQK5VruOirmAmvOBnfzw.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;One thing… is lifting.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;From all the things I’ve tried in life, to improve my overall quality of experience, lifting has been far and away &lt;strong&gt;the single best thing&lt;/strong&gt; I’ve ever done in terms of &lt;strong&gt;increasing the quality of life&lt;/strong&gt; at that resting period, just between the lifting. I hope you consider picking up some weights, too!&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Thanks for reading! 😊 If you enjoyed it, share it with your friends! Sharing is caring.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PS&lt;/strong&gt; Before you question my authority, please remember I’m a professional teacher. You should always listen to teachers 🙃&lt;/p&gt;</content><author><name></name></author><category term="blog" /><summary type="html">No matter if you are an entrepreneur, a software engineer or you work in an international corporation. If you feel a disconnection between your mind and body, or your wants and “haves”, or you feel depressed. Weightlifting can strengthen your body, soul, spirit, and… understanding.</summary></entry><entry><title type="html">2 biggest myths about personal finance</title><link href="http://klaskowski.github.io/2-biggest-myths-about-personal-finance/" rel="alternate" type="text/html" title="2 biggest myths about personal finance" /><published>2019-07-17T00:00:00-07:00</published><updated>2019-07-17T00:00:00-07:00</updated><id>http://klaskowski.github.io/2-biggest-myths-about-personal-finance</id><content type="html" xml:base="http://klaskowski.github.io/2-biggest-myths-about-personal-finance/">&lt;h4 id=&quot;why-do-personal-finance-gurus-intentionally-keep-you-poor&quot;&gt;Why do personal finance gurus intentionally keep you poor?&lt;/h4&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I’m a software developer trainer. I teach people how to program computers to become powerful overseers of the machines.
I also accumulated a decent capital and a vast knowledge of personal finance. Part of my journey to financial freedom was following finance gurus. It was a time waste. But since now I’m a teacher, I can give you a personal finance lesson 🤓.
&lt;img src=&quot;https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*Gq61oZ10J7WyFMKoyXxvhg.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Facts and Myths&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2 id=&quot;cut-back-on-lattes&quot;&gt;“Cut back on lattes”&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I love a good latte. And I buy it as much as I want! Yet, I’m quite successful in the finance department. How is that possible, despite breaking the single first rule of every financial guru?&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;First, I &lt;strong&gt;sorted out fundamentals&lt;/strong&gt;: job, raises, investments, debt. Finance gurus are crazy about cutting back every single penny. Instead of focusing to earn more to have big wins, to make big moves where it counts, they get distracted.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Cutting a few bucks on coffee &lt;strong&gt;doesn’t even make sense from a mathematical perspective&lt;/strong&gt;. How much are you going to save a year? In Poland, that could be 800PLN, which is less than the minimum monthly wage. Does it make you significantly richer? Saving this $200–$300 a year could make you live off passive income in the next… thousand years.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;That made me thinking - how I would use the extra 800PLN a year?&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I would buy myself a latte once or twice a week to feel better and achieve more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;That’s what the money is for. That’s why we are trying to be efficient in making money - to buy stuff that makes us feel better or “less bad”.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Or you can always cut back on everything to swim in money when you retire.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*FscHCAPEM-rvTLDMqjGDOA.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Spend your money where it matters, guys! Unless you want to fill your swimming pool with coins.&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h2 id=&quot;invest-in-bitcoin-or-stocks-or-any-other-financial-instrument&quot;&gt;“Invest in Bitcoin or stocks (or any other financial instrument)”&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Do you know anyone who started with almost nothing and became rich on any of these “100% investments”? The Bitcoin bubble created many more suicides than millionaires. The average stock market return is around -5% a year. Yes, minus 5%! On average, most people are losing money on stocks. Even if we assume that you are experienced trader - could you make over 10% a year consistently? I’m almost certain you couldn’t, but it would still mean that your main source of income is your salary. Unless you inherited some large sum of money that you will sink in the stock market.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Pss… let me tell you a secret. There is a better way to invest your savings, which offers almost unlimited returns.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h3 id=&quot;its-investing-in-yourself&quot;&gt;It’s investing in yourself.&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Buy a book. Learn a new language. Go to a coding bootcamp (My bootcamps guarantee you landing a job for over 100,000$ in Silicon Valley! 100% guaranteed!!!). Go to some workshops. Develop soft skills. Any skills in demand. Make yourself more &lt;strong&gt;useful to the world&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;So far, this has been the most sustainable, efficient and effective way to improve my finances. I’ve double my income every two years, on average. I’ve started from the bottom, earning minimum wage. After years of consistent growth, I’ve entered the top 1% national earners and I still don’t see the ceiling. There are many skills to improve, many ways to become a better person to society.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Focus on big wins instead of small savings. Deliver value to your tribe, improve  consistently , and you will never run out of money.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;

&lt;p&gt;You can lose your job. You can be robbed. Your house can be burned down or collapse. Your country’s economy may collapse. But if you are a high value yourself, if society needs your skills, you will get everything back quickly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Let’s come back to the main question of the article.
Why finance gurus are intentionally keeping you poor?
They don’t know how to become rich. They don’t hold any secrets. They have not discovered a repeatable way to success. Most of them &lt;strong&gt;became rich by selling books and courses&lt;/strong&gt; about:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;How to get rich by cutting back on lattes&lt;/li&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;Reinvesting small savings on the stock market&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;

&lt;p&gt;They never got rich on by of those.
Don’t listen to people’s words. &lt;strong&gt;Observe their actions&lt;/strong&gt;. What did the gurus do?&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;They became proficient at something. In their case, I would say it was mostly marketing themselves as brands.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;They put &lt;strong&gt;little attention into investing&lt;/strong&gt;. Usually, they follow a ready template (like 80–20–1) and trends. It feels like their hobby, not a significant source of income.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;They don’t rent a flat. Rather, they own it, even if their advice is to “stay free” from commitments and mortgages.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;There are many more points to be made, but they all have the same in common. &lt;strong&gt;Inconsistency and dishonesty&lt;/strong&gt;. Their words are disconnected from their acts. Correlation doesn’t mean causation.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Thus, by their fruit, you will recognize them.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Personal finance is simple and difficult at the same time.  Financial gurus give us golden recipes that make us feel enlightened, but we still fail at our goals. &lt;strong&gt;Focus on big wins&lt;/strong&gt; instead of small savings. &lt;strong&gt;Deliver value&lt;/strong&gt; to your tribe, &lt;strong&gt;improve  consistently&lt;/strong&gt;, and you will never run out of money. Only so much to understand, and so much to do.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;hr /&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Thanks for reading! 😊 If you enjoyed it, share it with your friends! Sharing is caring.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PS&lt;/strong&gt; Before you question my authority, please remember I’m a professional teacher. You should always listen to teachers 🙃&lt;/p&gt;</content><author><name></name></author><category term="blog" /><summary type="html">Why do personal finance gurus intentionally keep you poor?</summary></entry></feed>