Today’s Environment Doesn’t Change the Fundamental Laws of Success

2026-01-29

I’ve learned that culture isn’t something you write down—it’s something that emerges from how people actually behave.

The incentives you create, the feedback you allow, and the principles you enforce will determine whether an organization learns and evolves or repeats the same mistakes. If you want better outcomes, start by designing a culture that’s aligned with reality.

2025-11-11

When I was a young clerk on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in 1971, the US ran out of money and defaulted on its debts.

Now, they didn’t say it that way. But by moving away from the gold standard — the idea that people could exchange paper dollars for gold — money, as we understood it, ended.

I expected the stock market to plunge the next day, but when the opening bell rang the market was way up. And it went on to rise nearly 25%.

That surprised me, because I had never experienced a currency devaluation before. But when I looked into it, I discovered the exact same thing happened in 1933 and it had the exact same effect.

But in both cases, breaking the link to gold allowed the US to continue spending more than it earned, and so the value of each dollar fell.

2025-10-31

This simple animated video series answers the question, "How does the #economy really work?" Based on my practical template for understanding the economy.

This series breaks down economic concepts like #credit, #deficits and #interest rates, allowing viewers to learn the basic driving forces behind the economy, how economic policies work and why economic cycles occur.

This is Part 5, I hope you find these helpful.

2025-10-28

This year, the US will spend 40% more than it’s taking in. This number is increasing each year — and our debt plays a major role.

This is a big problem, especially because cutting our spending is a difficult political issue. And as we continue to add to the debt, the supply-demand picture worsens.

I fear that we are approaching the point where we won’t be able to rectify it.
@TheProfGPod

2025-10-24

The way I see it, any serious effort to solve the debt crisis will likely come too late.

It’s a timing issue. 2026 is a midterm election year — politicians won’t want to take the painful steps needed to improve our economic picture: cutting spending, raising taxes, and the like.

Any sort of bipartisan effort that comes after will both take time and be unlikely to be effective, because those commissions generally don’t work very well in practice.

That’s what it looks like to me. I’m curious to hear if you see things similarly.
@TheProfGPod

2025-10-17

Ultimately, it’s all about human nature.

In my view, the biggest risk we face are our own selfish, mutually-destructive tendencies. If we’re able to rise above them and find compromises, we can avoid the worst possible outcomes.

But to do that, we need to stop fighting with each other and align on policies that improve conditions for everyone.