Let’s try a thought experiment. Travel back with me to 1999/2000. Everyone knew the internet would change everything, but nobody could predict how and who the winners would be.

Until 1970, every major currency in the world was backed by gold reserves. The post-war Bretton Woods system pegged the U.S. dollar to gold at $35 per ounce, while other currencies (pound, franc, yen, etc.) were pegged to the dollar within narrow bands.

The world came to an abrupt halt in 2020 with the outbreak of COVID-19.

Overnight, streets emptied, factories shut, and economies froze. Echoes of the Great Depression resurfaced, marked by mass unemployment, food insecurity, bankruptcies, and even rising social unrest.

My grandfather spent his entire career with Indian Railways, retiring happily as a Station Master. Railways were the high-tech sector of his time.

In 1900, France had only about 3,000 cars on the road. Business was looking bleak for brothers Édouard and André Michelin, owners of Michelin Tyres.

In Afghanistan, U.S. Civil Affairs teams were deployed not just to be present, but to add value—to dig a well, install a pump, or build a clinic. As Olson puts it, “Presence without value is perceived as occupation.”

1. Neglecting Health
Smart people often work tirelessly, pushing themselves to succeed—only to ignore their physical and mental health. Eventually, they find themselves unable to enjoy the very fruits of their labor.

Why do humans believe in stories?

Because we are the only species that imagines stories, tells stories, records stories, believes in stories, and often, gets wealthy by investing in stories.

Humans are meant to move.
Move when the sun is up and sleep when the sun goes down. Align your body with nature’s rhythm.

We often believe something can’t be done simply because it hasn’t been done before. But once the psychological barrier is broken, what was once unthinkable becomes inevitable.