If you’re like me, you’ve been put off from digging deeper into DeFi by the terrible signal-to-noise ratio of anything crypto-related on the interwebs. That’s why I found this DeFi primer (using Maker DAO as a specific example) by ET contributor and banking analyst Marc Rubinstein to be so fantastic.
Sometimes the most profound creative insight comes from the simplest choice: deciding that something is art because you say it is. This post captures a moment of street-corner philosophy that opens up bigger questions about perspective, agency, and the democratic nature of creative expression.
Quote from the (Personal) Archive: (choosing to see art everywhere)
“The point is, it’s a choice, and today I’m choosing to say it was art.”
It Takes An Outside Act To Have An Outsized Impact
Building on the theme of choosing unconventional perspectives, this post dives into why breaking norms creates breakthrough results. The framework here is simple but powerful: normal execution creates normal results, period. The magic happens at the edges, whether through brilliant innovation or boring persistence executed in extraordinary ways.
Quote from the (Personal) Archive: (on the power of operating outside conventional boundaries)
“Bottom line, normal creates normal results unless you think or execute in some abnormal way. Think outside of the lines. It takes an outside act to have an outsized impact.”
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Do you know Jared Dillian? He’s an investor, trader, author, musician, and still my favorite consumer of cat psychic services (plus now supporter of Northeastern PA based cat themed tattoo artists).
If not, allow me to introduce you. Jared is the author of six books including his latest “Rule 62: Don’t Take Yourself Too Damn Seriously,” writes the Daily Dirt Nap newsletter, manages money through his CTA, and somehow finds time to DJ and work on novels. I wanted to connect with him because he embodies something I value deeply: the courage to create authentically without waiting for permission or perfection.
Our conversation is LIVE now on the Just Press Record YouTube channel (and this Cultish Creative Playlist). Listen and you’ll hear us dive deep into anti-perfectionism, creative courage, and why authentic voice trumps technical polish every single time.
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Do you know Bryan Moore? Host of the Active Advisor podcast at Harbor Capital, former trading floor veteran who’s built ETF desks from scratch at major firms like Morgan Stanley, RBC, and WisdomTree, and one of the most thoughtful voices on how active ETFs are reshaping the investment landscape.
If not, allow me to introduce you. Bryan has spent over two decades in the trenches of financial markets – from trading futures in the Chicago pits to building international ETF operations to educating institutional clients about the evolution from passive indexing to smart beta to active management. I wanted to connect with him because he embodies something I value deeply: the ability to synthesize complex market knowledge with genuine curiosity about human behavior and psychology.
Our conversation is LIVE now on the Epsilon Theory YouTube Channel (and this Cultish Creative Playlist). Listen and you’ll hear how a colorblind kid from Virginia who joined the military became one of the most connected voices in ETF education, why he drives in silence to cultivate quiet thinking time, and his legendary Vatican trade story.’
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Jared Dillian came on Just Press Record to discuss his excellent new book, Rule 62: Meditations on Success and Spirituality – and he surprised me with this statement:
“You can teach pretty much anything in writing, except for two things: voice and imagination. You either have it or you don’t.”
But what if you don’t realize if you have it or not yet?
I’m only asking because I’ve felt this way before. More than once. In more than one domain too (I remember feeling this with writing music and writing words, very distinctly!).
So what is voice?
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Somebody was talking about the power of thinking big the other day. It was all about impact.
Then I saw somebody else talking about the power of thinking small. It was all about little efforts compounding today into bigger results later.
They’re both right and they’re both missing the real point.
It’s not about the size in the first step (although the size is obvious in end result).
It’s all about the action, today.
It could be brilliant business idea nobody has thought of before.
Everybody might say its weird or dumb or whatever, but it could change the world.
It could also be a boring act that everybody has thought of before but executed in a way nobody will ever attempt.
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Sometimes the most profound creative insight comes from the simplest choice: deciding that something is art because you say it is. This post captures a moment of street-corner philosophy that opens up bigger questions about perspective, agency, and the democratic nature of creative expression.
Quote from the (Personal) Archive: (choosing to see art everywhere)
“The point is, it’s a choice, and today I’m choosing to say it was art.”
It Takes An Outside Act To Have An Outsized Impact
Building on the theme of choosing unconventional perspectives, this post dives into why breaking norms creates breakthrough results. The framework here is simple but powerful: normal execution creates normal results, period. The magic happens at the edges, whether through brilliant innovation or boring persistence executed in extraordinary ways.
Quote from the (Personal) Archive: (on the power of operating outside conventional boundaries)
“Bottom line, normal creates normal results unless you think or execute in some abnormal way. Think outside of the lines. It takes an outside act to have an outsized impact.”
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Do you know Jared Dillian? He’s an investor, trader, author, musician, and still my favorite consumer of cat psychic services (plus now supporter of Northeastern PA based cat themed tattoo artists).
If not, allow me to introduce you. Jared is the author of six books including his latest “Rule 62: Don’t Take Yourself Too Damn Seriously,” writes the Daily Dirt Nap newsletter, manages money through his CTA, and somehow finds time to DJ and work on novels. I wanted to connect with him because he embodies something I value deeply: the courage to create authentically without waiting for permission or perfection.
Our conversation is LIVE now on the Just Press Record YouTube channel (and this Cultish Creative Playlist). Listen and you’ll hear us dive deep into anti-perfectionism, creative courage, and why authentic voice trumps technical polish every single time.
Read more at cultishcreative.com
Modeling Common Knowledge by analyzing Missionary statements and their reverberations works. Except when it doesn’t.
What do you get when you give a Raccoon billions of dollars AND invisibility from regulators? Collusion and insider trading.
Most of us are under the impression that a protracted conflict within China will increase national unity. Not this time.
Recent Notes
Chapter 5: The Axe that Never Was
Our brains evolved to tell stories before they evolved to speak.
This has fundamental implications for our susceptibility to communication in the networked age.
Chapter 4: Out of Eden
If we care about the influence of social networks on our minds, why are we talking about bipedalism and the 8 million year cycle of co-evolution it kicked off?
Because it defined how our young were parented, how we taught them, and what they were exposed to. Because it changed how our symbolic brains evolved.
Intentional Investor #19: Yuri Khodjamirian
Join host Matt Zeigler as he interviews Yuri Khodjamirian, Chief Investment Officer at Tema ETFs, in this captivating episode of The Intentional Investor. From his early years during the collapse of the Soviet Union to building innovative investment products today, Yuri shares his remarkable journey through the world of finance and entrepreneurship.
Chapter 3: Caliban’s Garden
Man’s road to becoming a storyteller began with a single step.
That step kicked off millions of years of co-evolution of the human brain, society, language – and our relationship with story.
Chapter 2: What is Story?
There are a lot of ways to define a “story.”
But to understand how story interacts with human consciousness requires us to be more specific.
Intentional Investor #18: Jason Buck
In this fascinating conversation, Matt Zeigler sits down with Jason Buck, co-founder of Mutiny Fund, to explore the unexpected intersections between entrepreneurship, risk management, and personal development. From selling mixtapes in rural Michigan to developing real estate in Charleston and ultimately founding an innovative investment firm, Jason’s journey challenges conventional wisdom about success and risk-taking.
Chapter 1: Overhearing Ourselves
Shakespeare invented the human by inventing a device which spoke the language of consciousness:
Story.
Introduction: David Bowie’s Alien
David Bowie was right.
Social networks aren’t a tool. They are an alien force that transforms human consciousness.
Making Sense of Markets in a Post Election World | Grant Williams and Ben Hunt
Matt Zeigler is joined by Ben Hunt and Grant Williams for a candid discussion of the 2024 post-election landscape and its implications for markets. The guests explore how trust, or lack thereof, shapes both political and market narratives, examining the transformation of capital markets into what they describe as a “political utility” where “number go up” has become the prevailing faith.
I Think Representative Democracy is a Good Idea and We Should Give It a Try
I am 60 years old.
I am a (very) patriotic American.
I have never felt represented by any elected official.
Never.
Cursed Knowledge #30: The Road to Hell
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. But how often does that actually happen? Why do good intentions go so wrong? And what makes it so difficult to course correct? Those are the questions explored by Harper Hunt and Rusty Guinn in this episode of Cursed Knowledge.
Intentional Investor #17: Jared Dillian
In this episode of The Intentional Investor, host Matt Zeigler sits down with Jared Dillian – former Lehman Brothers trader, acclaimed newsletter writer, and author – for a captivating conversation about the unexpected paths that shape a life’s work. From his early days as a Coast Guard officer to becoming a Wall Street trader, and ultimately finding his voice as a writer, Dillian shares candid insights about his journey.
Walking Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is a young city chock full of kids. They are everywhere, and they bring a positive energy, warmth, and joy that no amount of adult diversions — no amount of bars, casinos, exceptional cuisine, and museums — can replicate, because nothing warms the heart like a big smile from a tiny face.
I, Nazgûl
Being clear-eyed and full-hearted doesn’t mean being passive, weak, or silent.
It means resisting every effort to supplant our autonomy of mind with symbols of identity, no matter the source.
Intentional Investor #16: Remi Tetot
Join host Matt Ziegler as he sits down with Remy Tetot, the mind behind The Mad King newsletter and former co-founder of Real Vision, for a fascinating journey through the intersection of technology, finance, and personal growth. From washing dishes in Spain to revolutionizing financial media with Real Vision, Remy shares his remarkable story of constant reinvention. Learn how he transformed from a self-taught coder into a macro analyst under Raoul Pal’s mentorship, helped build Real Vision from the ground up, and navigated both spectacular successes and humbling failures in the crypto markets.
Apocalypse Always
Extreme language during election season isn’t anything new.
But this time it really is different. Our response must be different, too.
The Open Window
Creating two tightly bounded political extremes is NOT opening the Overton Window.
It just adds a second, equally closed window behind which all of our worst ideas can and will fester.
Remembering the Face of Your Father
For the past 28 years, since the death of my father, I’ve been hearing a steady tick-tock in my head.
How do we tell our stories to our children and our children’s children before it’s too late? Before we pass as all humans must pass?
Generative AI is a communion machine.
Intentional Investor #15: Brent Donnelly
In this episode of The Intentional Investor, host Matt Zeigler interviews Brent Donnelly, a veteran forex trader, financial writer, and mentor. Brent shares his fascinating journey from aspiring journalist to Wall Street trader, and how he eventually combined his love for writing and finance.
Cursed Knowledge #29: Allergies
Allergies. We either have them or know some one who does. Ranging from life threatening to mildly irritating, they’re one of life’s constant annoyances. And they’re getting worse. We have more allergies now than ever before. Rusty Guinn joins Cursed Knowledge to talk about why allergies are more common, and if there’s anything we can do about it.