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Does AI in 2025 feel like the Internet in 1999?

These days with AI and LLMs feels like feel like Internet circa 1999. Agree?

In 1999, I was in my Senior year at Queen’s University, completing my Engineering degree.

I wasn’t an investor at the time, but I followed the markets a bit since I was starting to look into employment opportunities. I remember a distinct thought from back then: “Why am I learning C++? Every ‘hot’ job wants Java developers?”.

Anything internet related or with .com in the name was getting funded or and valuations were going to the moon. You have to understand the times: my university email was my first email address in 1996, and we were accessing it through Pine. (Sidenote: Hotmail and Yahoo mail only started in 1996 and 1997, respectively)

These days, AI seems to be developing as fast, if not faster, than the move to the internet. Every week, it seems like one model is leap frogging the other. Even developing new LLMs seems to be faster/cheaper because those models can be developed by training/prompting on existing LLMs.

MCP was introduced by Anthropic in November 2024 and it’s everywhere already. It now feels like a race to build “Whatever” (pick-your-niche) you can find and incorporate AI into it using the APIs. Just like there was a race to [English-word].com in 1999.

Don’t get me wrong, some amazing things have been built. But I’m not seeing any moat on so many of these businesses. It’s the AI wild west gold rush, just like it was the internet gold rush in the late 90’s.

All I know at this point is that this AI train is a major train, like the internet was over the last 25-30 years. Don’t sleep on it. Millions will be made, millions will be lost. But this will change our lives in the years to come.

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Is Golf Marketing is the easiest marketing job there is?

It’s a sport/hobby where a large percentage of your ICP has disposable income. It’s a game of mistakes, where least mistakes wins; therefore, your ICP has nothing but problems to solve. Every golfer (even a pro) is constantly striving for longer with more forgiveness (such that mistakes are less costly).

This came to mind, as I’m bombarded with Golf ads. And they are all so enticing for the exact reason above. “This next-gen technology delivers [PROMISE]”…

I’m currently gaming a Callaway Epic Flash driver. Top technology in 2019.

I went for a club fitting. I really wanted to test out these new drivers next-gen metals engineering and AI technology that widens the sweet spot. I mean, if a simple club change can add 10-15 yards and decrease my dispersion, that’s an easy button!

We looked at Swing speed, smash factor, distance, dispersion, spin rates, height, and all sorts of other stats.

I was shocked at the results!

12-yards further, same swing, same dispersion.

There was a easy button and I did leave spending $500

…but not on what I thought!!

Turns out my 2019 Callaway Epic Flash driver featuring Jailbreak technology for faster ball speeds, a T2C Triaxial carbon crown for higher MOI, a forged titanium insert, and adjustable perimeter weighting for control does just as well as the latest and greatest golf technology.

It’s the Shaft that made all the difference!!!

You know how many golfers I know chase the latest and greatest golf products in search of that easy button? They buy on feel. Granted, “Golf is a game that is played on a five-inch course – the distance between your ears”, said Bobby Jones (i.e., it’s largely mental) so I don’t dismiss the placebo effect.

Us golfers are such easy prey for marketers.

But not this guy anymore. I need proof from now on!

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Take that Vacation. Use your PTO

Take time off. Take that vacation.

Why do I always have to remind myself of this?

It’s in my nature to work. I’ve always enjoyed what I do.

I like to say: “I’m going to live to 120 and work ’til 118”

But living the everyday, one gets caught up in the hustle’n’bustle and there’s never a good time to “take off”.

Truth is, taking the time off needs to be part of the job. So many benefits like:

  1. Recharge batteries
  2. See your company/role from a different perspective (see the forest)
  3. Foster personal relationships (i.e. marriage)
  4. Meet new people
  5. Learn from other cultures/perspectives
  6. Try new experiences
  7. Discover new foods
  8. Make new memories (collect more stories)
  9. Time to think/reflect
  10. Appreciate what you miss from home

So, make sure to use that PTO.

You’re a better person for it.

It can enhance your overall performance.

FYI, I like to do things that accomplish multiple goals.

This post accomplishes 4 things (that’s a big win for a small post!):

  • Share a lesson/reminder that might be helpful to you.
  • Re-enforces this message within myself by writing these words.
  • Accomplishes James Altucher “10 ideas a day” exercise for today.
  • Gets me back into writing overall (I’ve been lagging lately). Tip: Writing is very good for you.

Happy Friday!

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Lit Video Books: Great Summer Idea for Kids

Kids started summer break this week. If we said nothing, they’d spend every hour of every day gaming. During the pandemic, I introduced “Papa School” to keep them learning.

Papa school activities are always a delicate balance of wanting them to learn, but not making them miserable.

I found this cool service called LIT Videobooks. They create 1-hr videos of popular non-fiction books. Fantastic quality productions done in collaboration with the authors.

This summer “Papa School” is at least 1-hr outside and “watching” a book a week. There will be a quick comprehension survey and a book discussion.

If they don’t finish the last week’s book, they lose gaming privileges until they catch up.

Truth be told, I think I’ll benefit from this service as well. There are several book here that are on my reading list.

I used to subscribe to Blinkist, which would summarize books into a 15-mins read. That is a great service/product, but sometimes they were a little too much to the point, lacking context/color to hammer the points home.

Audiobooks are great too, but often way too long (some are 8-10 hrs).

1-hr with audio and visual is a great balance. Even shorter if listened to at 1.25x or 1.5x speed.

Seems like it’s at a good price point too.

Even better when it’s 50% off, which you can get here:

http://litvideobooks.refr.cc/inbox1

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A poem about GRIT

by Kerry Hew (and ChatGPT).

Well, really it’s by ChatGPT, as directed by Kerry Hew. 😋

AI is blowing my mind right now. It’s getting scary good. We are about to take a radical turn.

Instructions: Write a poem about a positive outlook, and grit, after failure in the style of Dante.

OUTPUT:

In the depths of despair and failure’s woe,

We must hold fast to our faith and will,

And never give in to the world’s great blow.

For though our plans may falter, our dreams may fall,

We must rise up with grit and determination,

And face each challenge with a heart of gall.

For though the path ahead may seem uncertain,

Our positive outlook will guide us through,

And lead us to a brighter, better future.

So let us not despair in moments of defeat,

But embrace each challenge with steadfast resolve,

And rise up with the strength of our own two feet.

For in the end, it is not our failures that define us,

But the way we face them with courage and grace,

And strive towards success with a steadfast heart,

And an unbreakable spirit, filled with boundless hope.

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Bitcoin: Supply & Demand

This is a thinking exercise in calculating Risk/Reward.
As of this moment, Bitcoin is valued at $44,600.

It’s down from it’s All-Time high of ~$68K, but $44K is still a significant amount for something you can’t touch, feel, or even comprehend. I mean, this started at $0, only 13 years ago.

We know that there can never be more than 21M Bitcoin ever mined.
The SUPPLY is FIXED.

In fact, one can argue it is well below 21M and shrinking!
1M is locked up in the mysterious creator, Satoshi Nakamoto’s, account.
There are umpteen stories of early adopters who had hundreds of thousands stored in hard drives and lost it. Individuals lose their keys everyday. Without the keys, it’s virtually destroyed.

So with the Supply side fixed (or shrinking), what about the Demand side?

Consider the following:
Microstrategy bought and keeps buying more. Other corporations have followed suit, like Square (now Block), Tesla, and more. KPMG just announced that they are adding Bitcoin to their balance sheet.
→ The odds of more companies adding Bitcoin to their balance sheet FAR outweighs the odds of the early companies selling. As more money enters the market, the price stabilizes. As the price stabilizes, more money can enter the market. DEMAND from corporate balance sheets will go UP.


Microstrategy bought and keeps buying more. Other corporations have followed suit, like Square (now Block), Tesla, and more. KPMG just announced that they are adding Bitcoin to their balance sheet.
→ The odds of more companies adding Bitcoin to their balance sheet FAR outweighs the odds of the early companies selling. As more money enters the market, the price stabilizes. As the price stabilizes, more money can enter the market. DEMAND from corporate balance sheets will go UP.

El Salvador has declared Bitcoin legal tender. There is rumor of another South American company following suit. India has stepped back from the position of banning Bitcoin outright, and is looking at how to regulate it. Russia recently announced they are looking to regulate, and even mine Bitcoin themselves with excess energy. Seemingly, every week we hear of a US politician expressing their support of Bitcoin. Even the IMF, who condemned El Salvador’s move, recently invited Strike’s CEO, Jack Maller, to speak with them to educate them on Bitcoin and the Lightening Network.
→ The odds of more countries removing their skepticism/banning of Bitcoin to support and regulation FAR outweighs the odds of banning it. As more regulation is accepted, the more participants feel comfort in participating. DEMAND from country citizenry will go UP.

USA surpassed $30 trillion in debt. The money printer continues to go brrrrr. Do you think that is ever stopping? When looking at the value of Bitcoin in USD, if that flood of USD supply keeps going while the supply of Bitcoin shrinks, where does that tilt the balance of the BTC:USD ratio?

Bitcoin’s market cap is ~$846B. Gold is at ~$10T.
As a store of value, ask anyone under 30, which store of value do they prefer?

I am NOT saying go put your life savings into Bitcoin.

One of the biggest mis-conceptions: “I can’t afford a Bitcoin”
Bitcoin is divisible into Satoshis (Sats). A Satoshi is one hundred millionth of a single bitcoin (0.00000001 BTC).

I’m constantly “Stacking Sats”. $50 here, $100 there.
Once every couple of weeks. Seems like a good risk/reward trade off for a small percentage of my savings.

I still think it’s pretty early.
What do y’all think?

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Parenting Kids that Game (A LOT!)

3 Questions

My kids game a lot. Do yours? Probably not ideal, or so I thought.
I’ve discovered a “Parenting Win” from this…

We’re a household of two parents working from home, and we need to keep the kids occupied. Gaming is regular part of their day.

I recently discovered Jane McGonigal. She’s a PhD Game Designer who evangelizes the use of games to help people learn real-world skills, improve attitudes, and build self-esteem in children.

To turn gaming into a productive, positive experience for you kids, engage in conversation with your kids around what they’re playing. Here are 3 powerful questions to ask them about their favorite game:

  1. What does it take to be good at this game? (what skills, what personality, what strategies)
  2. What have you gotten better at since you’ve started playing this game?
  3. What’s the hardest thing you’ve accomplished in this game? (how’d you do it?)

Based on her research, people that can talk about these learned skills tend to transfer them better to the real world applications/scenarios.

So, don’t feel guilty if your child is gaming a bunch. There are some real life skills they can be learning/absorbing with the right nurturing.

BTW, she also believes the tipping point to too much is ~21 hrs/wk.

Happy Parenting. Now get back to work!

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Do you have to experience extreme lows to experience extreme highs?

Do you have to experience extreme lows to experience extreme highs? If so, is it worth it?!

Mental health is in the headlines these days; so let’s discuss.

When my youngest, Dylan, was ~2.5, he broke his femur bone. Yes, the FEMUR; that’s a hard bone to break! I watched it just collapse on him. 😢

He had to wear a spica cast for ~8 weeks. Uncomfortable. 2-yr old level communication. Still in diapers. …Misery for all.

After a few days, I got him a floor scooter board. I remember playing with these in elementary school gym class. I figured it would give him some freedom of movement.

The happiness you hear/see is off the charts!
That video still brings tears to my eyes…

I’m not sure that I’ve ever felt as happy as Dylan seems to feel there. On the flip side, I’ve never felt misery, like I imagine he felt for several weeks, either.

Not saying one is better than the other. I’ve always been even keel (emotionally moderate, some might say stoic). I see Dylan there and I feel FOMO. But is this level of happiness worth the journey?

I’m a student of psychology and I enjoy studying happiness. I don’t have all the answers, but I’m in a perpetual search for knowledge.

I guess where I’m going with this is that when you feel an extreme low, think of the potential extreme high on the other side, and muster the #GRIT to power through.

It helps A LOT, if you find the right partner. I love you Heather Hew!

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I Joined The Power MBA Program

I don’t have an MBA. It’s something I always contemplated pursuing, but never did because of time/cost.

I’ve always believed that most of the value of the MBA is not really the education, but the network you build.

A strong, influential network is invaluable.
There is value in exclusivity; that’s the current MBA model.

That said, a Harvard or Stanford or other “prestigious” MBA is probably worth every penny and more. But the hundreds of others? I don’t know if the ROI is there.

Then I found ThePowerMBA
Interesting model.

At under $1K, I signed up.

It presents an interesting risk:reward opportunity.

It provides a structured, organized, biteable micro-lessons.
I’m going to assume the educational material is good, based on reviews, so I’m okay to invest a few dollars in that.

The upside is the network. It doesn’t present the exclusivity value, but it does have the potential for scale. And early indications are that they are trying to engage the community/network a lot.

My cohort is just starting, so I’ll let y’all know how it goes.

If you’re a fellow student or alumni, I’d love to connect.
I’ve said before, there is a Strength in Weak Ties.

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