There is this very popular ad campaign run from a sports apparel manufacturer, which claims that “Impossible is nothing.” This is also a very popular saying among many “inspirational”-kinds of people. (Be it coaches, speakers, or whatever else they claim to be.) I don’t think this is true. The fact of the matter is that Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #33: Impossible is something[…]
So, I was listening to the mayor of Limassol on the radio the other day, commenting that according to a study that Deloitte did, the best thing to do with the Enarios area of the city, is to build high-rise buildings, in order to maximize profit. That may be the case indeed, except the aim Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #32: Our responsibility in setting our own KPIs[…]
I was watching a documentary on National Geographic the other day, about life in the Savannah. At one point the camera was focused on a caracal that hadn’t eaten for days, following repeated failed attempts at ambushing its prey. The caracal caught the smell of a carcass eaten by two jackals nearby. Thinking that they Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #31: The trap of flexibility[…]
A couple of weeks ago, I was contacted by a student from the US, asking me for help with her thesis. Her questions mostly revolved around business valuations, with a secondary focus on ratio analysis. I usually refrain from helping others on a one-to-one basis, because, practically speaking, if I said “yes” to every such Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #30: It’s all relative[…]
The European commission issued its Eurozone forecast update this week, only a couple of weeks later than the ECB, which had published its own forecasts in June. Both authorities agree that economic growth in the Eurozone will be somewhat weaker in 2019 compared to 2018 (1.2%, compared to 1.9%) owing primarily to the unpredictable nature Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #29: Eurozone 6M19 forecast[…]
One of the things that I am often requested to do, is to improve (in other words, bring up to professional standards) the financial models that some companies are either creating in-house, or are procuring from inadequate (read: cheap) financial modelers. (Ironically, this also means that they end up paying way more than what they Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #28: Efficiency at work[…]
The former President of the Republic of Cyprus passed away yesterday (I write this on Saturday). It was immediately declared that Tuesday (the day of the former President’s funeral) will be a public holiday. Why is that I wonder? Out of respect one would probably reply out of the top of their head. Which wouldn’t Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #26: Distinction[…]
It’s only been a couple of hours as I am writing this on Saturday morning, since the international news agencies have started reporting that the massive extradition protests in Hong Kong have achieved their initial objective: That of the suspension of the controversial plan to allow extraditions to mainland China. Of course, since the ultimate Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #25: Extradition protests in Hong Kong achieve their initial objective.[…]
The much-advertised FCA – Renault merger didn’t come to pass after all. Very unfortunate in my view. I was surprised to see however that other people were happy by this fact, citing concerns over the potential reduction in competition among carmakers. I believe such a view is flawed, and here’s why: As things are at Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #24: The big-5 that were not meant to be[…]
They say that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Which is probably correct. They also say that, in general, appearance doesn’t matter. Which is also probably correct. Should appearance matter? For rational people appearances don’t matter. All they care about is getting what they want. Continuing on from the example of the book, Read more about Something’s Gotta Give #23: But the cover matters![…]