Don’t Major in the Minors 🛑

Yes. This is the CityChad, your money and lifestyle wingman, ready to help you fly higher than you thought was possible. Let’s take off now!

In this week’s edition:

• The Regional Bank drama continues, Fed raises rates

• Article: Don’t Major in the Minors

• News: Trump comeback?

• Travel Destination: Krakow

• Chad of the Week: Prince King Charles

MARKET REVIEW

Equity markets were down this week, and continuing from last week’s drama, the FDIC finally seized and sold First Republic Bank to JPMorgan.

Investors reacted positively to the news, and JPMorgan stock rose.

Will we see more regional bank failures? With rates rising at the fastest pace in US history, it could well be the case.

PacWest seems to be the latest bank in trouble in the regional bank failure bingo.

On that note, the FED raised rates again this week, as expected.

With strong economic data and high inflation, this was no surprise, and it could spell more trouble for investors.

In addition to all the above, there is concern about the US debt ceiling not being raised next month. Not the rosiest of pictures atm.

DON’T MAJOR IN THE MINORS

TLDR: Entrepreneur Kevin Dahlstrom dropped an awesome Twitter thread on focusing on the important stuff at the expense of the rest. Chad gives you his helpful tips on how to go about not majoring in the minors and why it is important.

• What is majoring in the minors?

• Why do we do this and how can we stop?

• Tools and tips for you

WHAT IS MAJORING IN THE MINORS?

A few weeks ago I came across a Twitter thread from Kevin Dahlstrom that stuck in my mind.

Kevin knows a thing or two about money and entrepreneurship. He is the founder of Swell, family man, passionate rock climber and a great Twitter follow.

I’m sure he didn’t achieve all of that by wasting his time on nonsense.

The thread zeroed in on a subject close to my heart that I keep reminding myself daily “Don’t Major in the Minors”.

Majoring is what Americans call their main university degree. Majoring in the minors, would mean becoming an expert in unimportant stuff. Usually a bad idea.

WHY DO WE DO THIS?

Essentially as entrepreneurs (and generally humans) we tend to often fall victim to what economists call “loss aversion”.

Basically, we worry more about losing $100 than making another $1,000.

For example, we may spend time doing the trivial stuff in our life and businesses to save a buck or two. But we lose sight of the big picture, and how we could use that time to make even more (and offset the loss).

And this does not just apply to money.

Loss aversion can also be seen outside of economics, like staying in the same relationship, friends group, or habits. Usually, there is logic to loss aversion. However, while the grass is not always greener, it is worth paying attention when it is.

HOW CAN I STOP?

The answer is quite simple.

Look at how you spend your discretionary time, does it make you happy? Is it the most productive use of your time? Can you pay someone to do it for you?

The classic example I give friends is taking care of house chores.

Some people find pride in it, enjoy it, and think it is not right to pay others to do it. But if you are not in that camp, ask yourself, how much would someone need to pay you to clean their house?

If it is a lot more than you are willing to pay someone else, then get a cleaner for God’s sake.

WHAT DOES CHAD THINK?

Any Chad knows that time is the most valuable commodity they have and you should treat it with the respect it deserves. It is very important to look at the marginal value or cost of your free time.

We all have the same 24 hours in a day.

But when you take away the time you need to sleep, work, eat etc., then the value of those remaining hours becomes even higher. Basically you really only have a few hours left to become a Chad or Chadette.

Use them wisely to invest in things that have the highest ROI (which is not just money, but the things that give true satisfaction now or later).

ARE THERE ANY TOOLS THAT CAN HELP ME?

Don’t complicate it my friend.

Rather than planning how your day will look going forward, actually look back at what you are doing on a daily basis and adjust to your comfort.

Look for the things that take the most time and provide the least value (e.g. cleaning and cooking), look for alternatives.

Do the same for work, how much time would it take to create a manual for a repetitive task that you can outsource to a Virtual Assistant? Try Fiverr or Upwork to find talent.

And what about absolute time wasters like social media? Set time limits on your phone and install the Timewarp Chrome extension. Focusing on the important stuff is a mindset, you’ll get the hang of it with time.

NEWS: THE RETURN OF THE DON AND GIGACHAD ARRIVAL

It looks like the Don is back to his old form, making headlines every other day again. He’s clearly aiming to make a massive comeback after years of seemingly endless controversy.

Some people thought it was unthinkable that he may run again, but his chances seem to be looking stronger by the day.

In his latest antics, he severely criticised Joe Biden’s reelection bid, calling him the worst president in American history. He also retired the famous “crooked Hillary” moniker to slap it to Biden.

Trump also confidently claimed to be able to end the Ukraine war in 24 hours from being elected.

While these statements are not unusual for Trump, it marks the start of the torturous US election campaign, where we may see another Biden v Trump standoff. All this while most Americans don’t want either of them to run.

Get ready for a lot more of this in the news, whether you like it or not.

GIGACHAD ARRIVES

In other news, Russia announced its own version of ChatGPT, GigaChat.

This may not seem that noteworthy except that the name bears an an awful resemblance to the famous internet sensation “GigaChad”.

He’s described in Urban dictionary as “a strong, tall and masculine alpha male. They even included a video of the famous Chad in their announcement tweet.

That could only bring a smile to our faces.

TRAVEL DESTINATION: KRAKOW

Continuing our Eastern Europe season, we did a whistle stop tour of Krakow, Poland’s second largest city.

Man, we wish he had stayed longer, the city has so much to offer and I see now why it has such a great reputation.

The city centre is beautiful, surrounded by greenery and beautiful architecture. It is a touristy place, but for a good reason. Don’t miss the Jewish quarter, which has some of the best restaurants and bars in town.

• Stay: Choose to be either near the Old Town or Kazimierz district (Jewish quarter).

• Work: Try Cytat Cafe for amazing coffee and interesting decor.

• Stay Fit: Try to walk as much as possible if weather permits, you will get to 10,000 steps in no time. Or if you’re feeling hardcore, try CrossFit Dekerta.

• Eat: We went for the tourist trap restaurants around the main square, we were in a rush. Can’t really recommend any others, but if you do, drop me a line!

• Go out: Lots of options for cool cafes and bars around the Kazimierz district, try Sasaba for amazing cocktails. If you feel like dancing, try Warsaw’s sister venue Teatro Cubano Krakow.

• Transport: As said before, walking is really a must, the city is not particularly big. Good ol’ Uber and Bolt, as always when needed.

CHAD OF THE WEEK: PRINCE KING CHARLES

This week is the coronation of King Charles III with the 74 year-old being crowned as King of the United Kingdom and 14 Commonwealth realms.

He has been the longest heir apparent in history, having to wait over 70 years to become king. Over the years he has had his fair share of controversy.

Most notably, due to his affair with his now wife Camilla Parker Bowles and during the death of Princess Diana in the 90s.

Most recently, the antics of his youngest son, Harry and his wife Megan Markle have added even more unwanted press to him and the Royal family as a whole.

But love him or hate him, he is a man who has led a very active life and not been shy to support the issues he feels passionate about. Environmentalism, Town Planning, Philanthropy to name a few.

He was able to survive the limelight and a fair amount of criticism along the way. We can say he did it his way, and deserves respect, so that makes him Chad of the Week. Cheerio.

CHAD MEME