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Aging & Perspective: What's in Our Self-Interest

  A daily habit among the aging, both Boomers and Gen Xers, is monitoring the Dow in real time, along with Futures if we stay up late. That's happening even if we had been purpose-driven workers, not consumed with salary, perks and maxing retirement-account contributions.  With Futures in the 400s - positive - last night, we slept soundly. Today, joy overtakes as the market opens at: Dow Jones Industrial Average Index Index: DJI Compare 51,813.93 USD ▲ +611.67 (+1.19%) today June 15, 9:31 AM EDT   No ambiguity. Our perspective is narrow. Essentially it's one-dimensional about our money. Yes, we are also concerned about other issues. But that can remain primarily limited to how world events and domestic whatevers impact our money.  See, longevity - and its keeps getting longer - is what's boxing us in. Clint Eastwood is in his late 90s. So is Dick Van Dyke. Gene Shalit made it to 100. Betty White almost got to that point. Meanwhile, Leslie Stahl still has a big job a...
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Your 2027 Social Security COLA: Suppose it's 4.7%

  Given the surging inflation, it's not unthinkable that your 2027 Social Security retirement COLA could hit 4.7% or even more. I had ChatGPT look at that. Let's assume your current monthly payment is $2,071. That's the current average. With the 4.7% boost here are the numbers, calculated with AI: The new average monthly benefit would be approximately $2,168 per month. Monthly increase: about $97.34 Annual increase: about $1,168.08 ($97.34 × 12). Other good news is that in some locations rent increases have halted. Those I speak with in the midwest gleefully share that their landlord hasn't boosted the rent at lease-renewal time. Also, folks get it that groceries are expensive. It's back to BYO when coming over for whatever. In hosting your Super Bowl party you might not have to be set back hundreds of dollars. Just mention that guests can bring over a dish and beverages.  In coaching I guide clients on the new frugality. Yes, it's proper to ask...
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Smart - That Has Less and Less to Do with Your Success and Ours

  Evidence that once-hot media platform BusinessInsider  has lost traction is this: It has a column "Smart People Say."  Incidentally, in the past three years BI has lost 27% of paid subscribers . I am there, but only as a freeloader. One of the Everyone-Knows is that smart per se carries less and less weight in getting, holding and moving on to better earning opportunities.  You have to be smart to be admitted to Harvard Business School and make it through, right. Yet almost a fourth of those recent MBAs didn't land jobs three months after graduation. About 43% of baristas have college degrees. If you're over 50, as ProPublica documents, smart won't save you from being forced out. Another Everyone-Knows is what really counts is access to insider intel (the legal kind).  For decades since I had worked for Big Oil, I follow Ed Yardeni.  He may or may not be smart. The stickiness comes from his ability to source information about global energy, then conne...
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"Fairstead, et al. v Paul, Weiss" - Yet Another Early Test of Scott Barshay's Leadership/Management

  Malpractice lawsuits happen from time to time for law firms. Until they gain traction such as proving plaintiff has standing they are just allegations.  So, today, that's where "Fairstead et al. v Paul, Weiss" is - an accusation. ( Copy of the Complaint , filed yesterday)  As such it may not constitute a test of the leadership/management skill of the law firm chair Scott Barshay. However, if the lawsuit is found to have merit, Paul, Weiss and its key players, present and past, could be in for more scrutiny. For about 15 months it and they have been the subject of extreme controversy. The matters range from the deal cut with the Trump administration to lift the Executive Order to relationship disclosures in the Epstein files to the termination of litigation associates.  In this malpractice lawsuit involving accusations of a conflict of interest, as  Bloomberg Law reports, it's alleged that: "Paul Weiss placed a priority on its relationship with the wealthy Tis...
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All That Free Food at Work: Unethical?

Food. Free. And way too much of it in a work setting, every day. Posters on Reddit scream about the consequences. For instance, here are some snippets for Big Law: "I gained 80 pounds in my first 5 years in big law" "I gained 15 pounds in 4 years" Summer interns also often chime in on that weighty matter. Some completed the season $45k richer and pounds heavier. This isn't inevitable, other posters declare. For instance, bring your own lunch and restrict the eating to that. Don't peek at the food. Even one bite can set you off. But coping isn't the issue here. It's the whole matter of free food at work. Is that downright unethical at this time of a growing number of health problems associated with improper eating patterns? They range from diabetes to clogged arteries to obesity. Even supposed "healthy" food could get you in trouble if you consume too much of it. Yet some businesses position and package the food as a perk. At a gig in cu...
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Bring in New Business, Make Client Relationships Sticky: That's the Game Kathy Ruemmler, et al. Had to Play, But ...

It's now a what-everyone-knows: It's rarely good work per se that gets you to the big titles, big influence and big bucks of a Kathy Ruemmler, Brad Karp, Leon Black and even myriad contract players. Nonono. What counts is the sustained ability to develop new business and prevent churn among current clients/customers.  That explains what Ankush Khardori describes in The New York Times  as the:  " ... gravitational pull of his [Jeffrey Epstein's] rarefied social network." In this particular case, Khardoni is discussing the motivation of Ruemmler to launch and cultivate a relationship with Epstein. Sure, there was the pedophile's documented charm. But there are plenty of charmers out there. Unless they can provide what Epstein could and sometimes would they wouldn't merit the careful care and feeding that some of the most ambitious in professional life had conducted. Epstein had the connections. Through them they hoped to bring in new business and create the...
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Kathy Ruemmler, et al. - Epstein Ties Going Another Round (or maybe more)

 Just when we assumed weighty financial issues were cooling the heat on the tedious fallout from Jeffrey Epstein associations, we might be returning to the hardening of outrage and punishment. For example, the knock is being put on Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon for requesting Close Friend of Jeffrey Kathy Ruemmler to stay on. That's both internal and external. FT tells the internal piece. Bloomberg Law reports on an external development, which could pick up momentum: "David Solomon’s decision to keep Kathryn Ruemmler at the bank once she steps down as its general counsel 'calls into question' the CEO’s 'professional judgement and fitness to continue leading ...' Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, both Democrats, wrote in a letter to the executive ..." Today Bill Gates is also being "grilled" (term used by broadcast news media) in Congress about his relationship with Epstein. Lots has tumbled out such as the admissi...
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