Daily Intent

Santa Barbara, CA
A man passes away leaving his wife and young children without a male role-model.  The wife reaches out for male support for her children as there are no uncles around to aid in raising the kids.

 A husband walks out on his wife and child amidst an economic nightmare, leaving her to fend alone for her boy.  The boy’s female teachers think the world of him.  They want to see his dreams fulfilled.  They reach out for a male role-model.

A child grows up under an alcoholic mother and/or father.  The child is brilliant and ventures out into the world alone, a safer alternative than staying home.

These children will have a much tougher battle in succeeding, based off their circumstances, than those coming from a stable, loving two-parent family.  They will have a much steeper mountain to climb.  The terrain more technical.  The path longer.

There was a study of 730 geniuses.  The study watched these geniuses grow up and followed their life path.  There were successes and there were failures.  “In the end, only one thing mattered: family background.”  - Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers.

The good news: World influence and impact does await them at the top of the mountain.

However, they won’t be able to make it alone, unless they are extremely lucky.  “He had to make his way alone, and no one–not rock stars, not professional athletes, not software billionaires, and not even geniuses–ever makes it alone.”  -Outliers, The Story of Success.  Malcolm Gladwell.

The odds will be much better if they pair up with a guide.  It would be best if this guide were extremely consistent, smart, resourceful, and supportive. 

People need a community to prepare them properly for the world.  They need guidance in communicating with their culture and community.  They need help in how to present themselves in a way others can understand, accept and foster future experiences and successes.  For you can be a genius, but without proper communal support and parenting, your social skills may very well hinder you from success.

We have all seen this story told in many different ways.  “Good Will Hunting” exemplified a genius struggling with how to use his intelligence in an honorable way.  He had very little communal support, but did have a man, actor Robin Williams, that consistently challenged him in emotional ways and perspectives.

We’ve also seen movies like “Blindside”.  An incredible talent taken under the wing of a supportive family with resources.  Without the resources the talent more than likely would have gone undiscovered, left to flounder in the streets and possibly end up like his childhood friends, lives cut short due to violence.

This is a quick reminder to us all.  Should we have the opportunity to step up and be a role-model for a young child without a father, mother, or community of positive influence, that we be the consistent support, guide and friend. 

Or should we find ourselves as one that lost a father or mother at an early age or didn’t have a supportive family and/or consistent mentor, that we recognize we don’t have to go it alone.  We should seek out a positive, consistent influence.

Increase your odds and others in having a positive impact on your business, your community, your state, your country, your world.  And please be sure to thank those that have played this role in your life. 
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PLAN
Catalyst for Thought.  MINDS executive lunch.  Next up, May 27th, Yulun Wang - Founder and President of InTouch Health and past founder of Computer Motion.  Both companies are leading the medical industry into the 21st Century.  Register at www.CatalystforThought.org to ensure you receive the registration emails.
Team in Training.  Bachelor and Bacherlorette Auction.  May 13th.  Canary Hotel.  Plan on bringing all your wealthy single friends.  We’ll “auct”-ually have a great time.
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LEARN
Buzzword: Mint Ratio
“The mint ratio is equal to the price of an ounce of gold divided by the price of an ounce of silver.  Gold and silver are measured in units called a ‘troy ounce,’ which is equal to 31.1034768 grams.  The mint ratio is a measurement of the relationship between gold and silver prices.  For example, if the price of gold is $1090.83 and the price of silver is $16.57, the mint ratio would be 1090.83 / 16.57 = 65.83.

The term mint ratio also refers to a fixed rate of exchange for gold and silver.  The United States, being a large producer of both gold and silver, at one time participated in bimetallism, a monetary standard where the value of the monetary unit is defined as the equivalent of either a certain quantity of gold or silver.  Such a system establishes a fixed rate of exchange for the two metals - or a mint ratio.  If the mint ratio was 15, for example, one could trade 15 ounces of silver for one ounce of gold. “  -Investopedia.com

  Six Points to Ponder:

   1. Two Steppin Markets.  The Dow throughout the week took two steps forward and one step back.  They were positive on the week.  The Dow: UP - 11,160. The S&P 500: UP - 1211.  The Nasdaq: UP - 2517.  Oil: UP - $84/bbl.
   2. Game Changer.  Congress is making it evident the rules of finance will be changing soon.  Who will win and who will lose?  The markets eased after President Obama’s speech.
   3. Happy Home Sales.  Those in the real estate are happy about home sales picking up the most in 47 years.  The homebuyer tax credit ends next week.  Be sure to get into escrow by the end of April and close by the end of June.       
   4. Bountiful Corporate Books.  Amazon, Amex, Microsoft, Pepsi, Hershey’s, EBay, Starbucks, AT&T and Apple.  All companies offered their investors short-term data points about which to cheer.
   5. Blunderous Blastoff.  The Icelandic volcanic eruption has disrupted air travel across the Western World, most in particular European travels.  $1.7Bn estimated loss.
   6. Underdogs Return Home.  Home court proved helpful for the OKC Thunder and Chi-Town Bulls as they took down the top two teams in the NBA last night.  NFL Draft.  The number one pick of the 2010 NFL Draft, Sam Bradford to the St. Louis Rams.

Positives:

    * Your 401Ks, IRAs, stocks, bonds, and any other investments tied into the markets should have seen gains this week.  We’re clawing back up the cliff aside which we fell over the last couple of years.  The ledge is still far above, but progress is progress.  Take a rest and get some food.  Then return to strategizing how you will make it up the next length of climbing.
    * Despite the intense desire by President Obama and many others in Congress to change the rules of the financial game, the market walked out of the meeting feeling okay.  The repositioning would not be as bad as expected.  Obama wants to make sure “gambling” is taken out of the equation.     In the next few weeks we’ll have a more clear view on what is to come and how your lives will be positively and negatively effected. 
   * The incentives put in place for buying homes have had positive effects on the industry and will continue doing so.  People are doing as one would expect.  They are buying homes.  The good energy presently experienced by home buyers should support the industry even after the tax credits are gone.  The busiest time of year for real estate is from now until September.  Expect heightened activity.  Moreover, low rates will continue fueling this reality.  Rates aren’t expected to increase until the fall/winter months.
    * Starbucks took 13 months to get back on track.  Many others felt the same relief in their quarterly reports.  The majority of big name corporations are making significant profits.  Some are being propelled by sale increases in the United States, while others are feeling a laggard in American purchases, but support in foreign sales, most often Asia.
    * I do believe the Lakers and Cavaliers will win their respective series, but it is nice to have a series.  Both lead their series 2 game to 1.  Being that sports are fun because of the anticipation they promote, these teams’ losses last night only spur on greater anticipation and “what if’s”.  What if the Cavs lost game four?

Negatives:

  * AT&T is learning that an Apple, or a few thousand Apples, per day keeps the angry investors away.  2.7 million iPhones were activated this past quarter.  Their wireless business continues to grow as people buying iPhones pay higher fees on average than other phone purchasers.  Yes, this is a short term positive, but the long term prospectus is greatly dampened by this reliance. Should Verizon at some point solidify a deal with Apple, AT&T will suffer.
    * As we saw with the California fires over the last couple of years, the recent Haiti earthquake, and now with Iceland, natural disasters are extremely expensive.  Man may have solved many problems caused by weather, but Mother Earth still rules the land and skies.
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GET INVOLVED
Local:

Gunter Pauli
Where:  Santa Barbara City College.  Fe Bland Forum
When: Tonight.  Friday, April 23rd.  7:30pm
Cost: $15
Why:  Learn about building the “Blue” economy.
For other fun ideas, go to www.lovemikana.com

Live and Be Well,

Jeff Bochsler