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Every two weeks, I share my writing on investing, career transitions, meaningful work, parenting, living intentionally, and other topics that engage me.

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Field Notes Edition #6

Welcome to another Field Notes edition of Beyond the Cove. I’m experimenting with a looser approach that's quicker to write and, hopefully, just as interesting for you to read.

In these emails, I’ll share a few things I noticed lately that made me think, smile, or look twice. Maybe they’ll do the same for you.

Please share any feedback or ideas. Just hit reply.

Let's go...

• Clear Communication This week, I extended my Readwise daily review streak to 1,800 days. I love the product and enjoy reading highlights regularly, so why do I care about a streak? Is the streak overshadowing the activity? 🤔 In any case, on day 1,800, I welcomed Kim Scott's reminder about effective communication. This one resonated since my days are increasingly spent discussing investments with private clients with less experience (or interest) in this area. The point is not necessarily to "dumb down" the message, but to consider the context of the other person so the key points of your message can be received as you intended.

• One-Page Productivity In his latest episode of Deep Questions, Cal Newport proposes a strategy to destress from managing complex productivity systems to avoid burnout. He suggests downshifting to a minimalist 'maintenance mode' twice a year for 3-8 weeks at a time. As you probably guessed, this approach relies on a single page and a calendar. That's it. The key insight is that you need breaks, but abandoning everything leads to chaos and more stress.

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• Avoidance List We all have things we know we absolutely must do but don't. These are not "shoulds" but absolute necessities in our lives. Maybe it's initiating a difficult conversation, creating a budget, or breaking a bad habit. We know that ignoring the thing doesn't solve the problem or make us feel better. It gnaws at us. Distracts us. So then, why do we avoid the first step? On an obvious level, these items are usually uncomfortable. But on a deeper level, the resistance is usually rooted in fear; either we're afraid of doing the thing itself, a "truth" we might uncover, or what might happen afterwards. In an attempt to take action (usually a good start), I drafted an "Avoidance List" to shine light on each of these items and identify what I'm trying to accomplish and why. The plan is to attack one item each week. Hopefully, this exercise can help you attack your list. If you have other strategies that have helped, hit reply and let me know.

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• 45 Million People Have a Student Loan, 24% Are Delinquent I ripped the headline from the author, Torsten Slok, Apollo's Chief Economist. Frankly, I was struck by the magnitude of the issue. In Slok's brief note, you'll also find a link to a comprehensive chart book with lots of insights. For example, more than a quarter of delinquent borrowers are in the 40-49 age cohort, and roughly half are 30-49. This situation, combined with rising delinquency trends across all consumer lending categories (see page 13), presents a significant headwind for consumers not exposed to the ongoing march higher in risk assets.

Small Sparks of Joy Sometimes it doesn't take much. Just over the past few days, I've felt a spark from each of the following:

• Early one morning, I thought I was spending some time alone, floating along on Casco Bay. Then, to my surprise, a curious seal greeted me. Over the next few minutes, he popped his head out of the water several times to observe me, working his way around the boat. And after he determined I was neither a threat nor food, he went off on his day.
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• On a Friday night cocktail cruise, we narrowly evaded a major thunderstorm, watched it pass, and then enjoyed a rainbow as our just reward.

• A friend texted to say he enjoyed Riff Raff, a movie purportedly set in Yarmouth, Maine. The movie was solid despite weakish reviews - tons of big stars like Bill Murray, Ed Harris, and Jennifer Coolidge. But as a resident of Yarmouth, Maine, I can attest that our seaside town looks nothing like the mountain landscape featured in the movie. The film was shot in NJ. My favorite highlight was a shot of a map showing Yarmouth (population 9,026), located in the right spot, just above Portland, but written in much bigger letters than the state's largest city. 🤷

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• A great conversation on the Eastern Promenade in Portland over wood-fired bagels from Forage. Thanks, J, for making the trip north.

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• A painful dad joke from D.
  • Q: Why don't ants get sick?
  • A: Because they have "anti-bodies". I know. But I legit laughed. I'd better leave it there...

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And a Farewell Photo...

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