Why you still can’t speak Spanish or French — Most people think it’s easier for a young child to learn a language, compared to an adult. That’s certainly what the conventional wisdom says. We also have the anecdotal evidence that many people fail to learn a second language, but no one fails to learn their native language. But doesn’t…

You don’t need me to tell you that Harry Potter was a wildly succesful book series. But it might be somewhat of a mystery as to why. After all, weren’t they just kids stories? 1) It tells the truth

Exploring the gap between what you pay and what you get — I can still remember when I was suspended from school in 10th grade. I was embarrassed, I was frustrated with myself, and I was afraid. Part of my fear related to how my mom would react to the news. I didn’t think she would be mad, but even her disappointment…

Advice for young men struggling with one of life’s biggest decisions — My wife and I just celebrated our 11th anniversary. We dated for about six months before I asked her to marry me and we got married less than six months later. I have never once regretted asking Sarah to marry me. …

The comfort crisis is real — As far as I know, no one has ever been able to come up with a solution to the simple fact that life is hard. If you’re reading this right now, you’re more privileged than well over 99% of people who have ever lived. …

It’s time to start asking the big questions — When addressing the need to abolish slavery, Abraham Lincoln said that a house divided against itself cannot stand; America must become all one thing, or all the other. Fortunately, slavery was abolished in the 19th century. Unfortunately, in the 21st century, America is again becoming a house divided against itself. …

As of January 8, I’ve lost most of it back… — When my holiday break started on December 23, 2021, I had no idea that I was about to gain 11.4 pounds in 18 days. But that’s exactly what happened. Don’t get me wrong, I expected to gain weight. The way I look at it, all things should be held in…

The difference between investing, speculating, and gambling — Human beings are naturally terrible at gauging risk. Here’s one example: Many people are scared of flying, but not many are scared of driving. Both are relatively safe, but flying comes with fewer fatalities per million miles traveled. …

For most people: Their whole career — I’m reading a fascinating book right now called The Millionaire Fast Lane by MJ DeMarco. In the book, he does the normal personal finance routine of making fun of the average American who is broke as a joke. Then he does something a little more unexpected. He turns his sights…