Joseph's "Just My Thoughts"

Greed isn’t about how much you want, but about wanting something without paying for it. Nothing in this world is free; everything has a cost, whether seen or hidden. Trying to get something for nothing leads to problems and consequences. What am I actually paying now, and for what? It’s useful to think about this from time to time. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

What is the most interesting story you know in your life? Why was that story interesting and engaging? A detailed analysis of the reasons reveals what kind of story material attracts people and how they respond to sharing these stories. Sometimes, the way you tell the story and the grammar of your words matter, and the impact of my message varies greatly depending on which aspect of the same material is emphasized. As the story unfolds, you must convey what you need to get across. Increasing sales, raising investment, and persuading others all depend on storytelling. People always gather around those who tell interesting and meaningful stories. Attention asset: attracting people’s attention creates an asset. However, managing these attention assets is a challenge of its own. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Storytelling is the foundation and framework of communication. It’s essential to convey values in an easy, engaging, and emotional way. The world is filled with stories, many of which are reborn with different values depending on how they are processed. Investment, management, and love are all forms of storytelling. This world craves stories. Myths in ancient times, religion in the Middle Ages, and media today all process and share stories. Entrepreneurs are storytellers. However, most people in business tend to overlook telling stories and only focus on presenting products and services. No product or service enters the world without a story. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

For a good to be distributed in the market, it must have value. Its value stems from several factors. In a complex world where networks and communication have advanced, values are assigned to groups with similar preferences. So, now, more than in previous eras, business is more prominent in the mania class, such as online clubs. The same applies to digital assets like NFTs. Ultimately, to be recognized for an unseen value, it must first be distributed by a group with the same preference that recognizes that value. Therefore, digital assets are mainly created by clubs, and to be acknowledged for their worth, the story behind the digital asset is absolutely essential. Storytelling has always been a very important asset. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Threshold. A boundary value at which a physical phenomenon begins to change. This world is constantly evolving. It doesn’t stop at change but also significantly influences other elements and the surrounding environment. Just like the slightest movement of an Amazon butterfly can trigger a storm across the Pacific Ocean. We live in a world where even small changes can have major impacts and outcomes. Recognizing the threshold before a shift occurs can help us prepare for hardships and alert us to danger. These thresholds exist in various fields that make up our world. It’s just that we often don’t know or suspect them. Surviving in this era is an achievement. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Consilience. When information is gathered to form knowledge and then used to gain insight through inspiration, it becomes wisdom. The world we live in is now multidimensional and a complex system. You can’t correctly interpret and understand it using only the simple patterns of a limited worldview. After collecting and discarding fragments of information and scattered knowledge, we must reconnect them to discover new patterns. Consilience is the ability to see wisely in a world filled with significant volatility and uncertainty. It’s a world where mistakes are easy to make if we only focus on one side. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Egoistic Mind. Traditional education that emphasizes social interaction often views ‘selfishness’ as a negative trait. However, selfishness is a necessary component for survival. The problem arises when selfishness is solely focused on oneself, as it can damage social bonds and community life. I believe that selfishness and sociality are qualities that should be balanced and complemented, not seen as mutually exclusive. Ultimately, selfishness should align with social interests. I call this positive form of selfishness “altruistic selfishness.” It means making choices that satisfy your own needs first, but ultimately acting in a way that promotes happiness for both yourself and your neighbors. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Tracking. Media has existed since primitive times, including the Middle Ages. Although the forms of media have been different, their core properties have remained the same. Marshall McLuhan’s definition of media, “the medium is the message,” remains relevant and will continue to be so in the future. Regardless of the form media takes, this definition indicates that the medium itself does not leave the message frame. By observing the interaction between media messages, the audience, and the environment, we can improve our ability to judge the world and understand the crucial contexts of this era. Media also influences the economy, and the same applies to politics. Without the ability to understand media, we cannot judge the world accurately. This ability develops from constantly observing how media messages react with audiences. Therefore, maintaining a mindset of continuous pursuit allows us to read the narrative that drives the world, and the judgments based on this understanding can ...

The world we live in is not a simple system but a complex one. However, human history has often been seen as a simple system due to religious beliefs and ideology. Science was also viewed as straightforward. But as quantum mechanics advanced in recent times, it has become increasingly difficult to explain or interpret the phenomena of this world from the perspective of a simple system. The world of wealth-generating investing is no different. In a simple system, the ability to perform multiple functions at once, called ‘multi,’ is beneficial. Yet, in a complex system, having ‘insight (meta)’ to understand multi-dimensionality becomes crucial. Intuition to grasp connectivity has gained more importance. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

People don’t work efficiently at first. Efficiency comes from trial and error. In other words, if you don’t try, your chances of becoming efficient are slim. The navigation system only works when the destination is entered. More importantly, it only functions well when the starting point is input accurately. The system recognizes the starting point automatically and guides you to the destination, but if the origin is wrong, problems will occur. Change, growth, and progress only happen when you confirm your identity. You need to ask more than ten people around you to understand who you are. The most reliable method is to look in the mirror and wipe away the stains from your face. If you try to remove a stain by guessing, you might sometimes succeed by luck, but that’s just called ‘hard work.’ - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Salary isn’t just ‘my money.’ It’s money that should be spent considering yourself today, your future self in 10 years, and your future self in 20 years—that is, your future self together. Therefore, my current income is always, in a way, public money. We need to get approval from our future self before spending now. A bright future is only guaranteed if the future self agrees to the spending. It’s inconvenient to spend other people’s money on your own terms, and thinking of your own money the same way you see others’ cherished money will help you develop good habits for the future. I don’t have an exclusive claim to my own money, as if there’s no such thing as my own air in this world. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Moderation. Greed and despair stem from the same root: excessive desire. In investing, profits and losses are unpredictable, and the chance of losing is usually higher than the chance of gaining. It’s natural to want to make big profits with minimal damage, but the truth is that it’s not always possible. Ultimately, a disciplined person stays moderate through both profit and loss. It all requires courage. Temperance fosters consistent investment behavior. Without persistence, achieving great things in any area becomes difficult. It’s not easy, but in investing, only those who can stop and accept gains and losses as they happen are true winners. Greed is simply the seed of downfall. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

In primitive times, there was no such thing as ‘coincidence’ because all unknown and unpredictable events were interpreted as divine revelation. This reflects a religious and deterministic worldview. Since Christianity was dominant in the West, science also developed based on this deterministic perspective. However, with the rise of quantum mechanics, it has been revealed that the natural world we live in exists in an indeterminate state. Matter is in an uncertain state and becomes determined only when observed by an observer. In other words, the act of observation influences the behavior of the object being observed. To exist and to observe is a deeply metaphysical phenomenon. Do coincidences truly exist? When a decision was made in an undecided state, did God already know the outcome? How much freedom and discretion do humans really have? Does free will truly exist? - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

The Industrial Revolution and advances in science and technology have caused an unprecedented rise in the production of industrial goods. When products made to meet demand cannot be sold, they remain in inventory. If inventory isn’t managed properly, the ability to fulfill purchase requests quickly declines, which harms both producers and consumers. Depreciation is an accounting method that accounts for the decrease in value over time and includes these losses in production costs. So far, the global economy has experienced repeating cycles of booms and recessions. One of the main triggers is inventory. Inventory is a crucial factor that can lead to business failure, but effective inventory management can help promote greater business success. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

Entrepreneurship involves starting to invest in the stocks of my own company. However, unlike open-market stock investments, here you invest in your own business, not someone else’s. My company’s performance directly affects my shares. To excel at investing in your own company’s stock, focusing on one key area can significantly boost your chances of success. Conversely, to be good at investing in others’ stocks, it’s better to understand multiple business sectors rather than just one. Since investing in stocks focuses more on minimizing risk than maximizing returns, diversifying resources across several areas makes risk management more effortless. If you master risk aversion, you can reduce losses and increase your chances of surviving in a volatile market. If you are knowledgeable and well-informed, I recommend investing in others’ stocks rather than pursuing entrepreneurship. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

The market exists in our minds. Spatial and physical markets are exactly aligned with our brain’s perceptions. If you think small, the market remains small, and if you think big, the market expands. To broaden people’s perceptions, my thoughts must first be large and powerful. When my thoughts collide with those of others, perceptions shift, and markets fluctuate in sync with these new perceptions. That’s why we want to use media to send our messages to the public. It’s also why I need to examine my thoughts carefully before developing markets and understanding them. If I think small, the market also shrinks. Think big and powerful. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

If you are intelligent, your chances of becoming wealthy are relatively high, but being smart alone doesn’t necessarily make you rich. Wealth can only be achieved when other vital factors come into play, such as those who understand how to judge legal rights in transactions beyond just intelligence, and those who can establish governance or maintain relationships. Luck refers to a situation where all these different conditions are easily satisfied. This happens when I acquire it because all important and diverse conditions align at the same moment and place. Therefore, a deal or opportunity that genuinely works for me shouldn’t be complicated. The more complicated it is, the more likely I am to be scammed. The human brain is wired to seek simplicity. Our brains consistently choose efficiency. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

We describe the size and qualities of a human being’s capacity as a ‘bowl.’ People often say that luck or opportunity that exceeds the size of one’s bowl is rather harmful. That’s why people advise you to either seize the luck and opportunity that fit your bowl or make your bowl bigger. So, how do you determine the size of the bowl? Congenital conditions may also influence it, but acquired experiences and self-reflection are factors that shape the size of the bowl. Since I can’t force myself to create luck and opportunity, all I can do is develop my judgment and have the courage to accept or reject. The key to judgment is to avoid underestimating or overestimating yourself. Ultimately, it is most important to understand your own identity properly to make a true bowl. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

We don’t care about money deposited in the bank. If we ask the bank for money, I believe they will certainly return my funds. However, as shown by Lehman Brothers ’  bankruptcy during the 2008 financial crisis, banks cannot guarantee 100% of depositors’ money. In South Korea, according to the Depositor Protection Act, only 100 million won (about USD 71,000) is protected, including principal and interest per person. Anything beyond that is actually at risk. In other words, money deposited in the bank is vulnerable to losing the principal. Investing means willingly accepting the risk of losing the principal while seeking profit. Whether we like it or not, we are always investing in our daily lives. Just because a risk doesn’t materialize doesn’t mean it’s gone. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”

In business, the term ‘business funds (capital)’ has two very important meanings. One refers to the initial resources of the business and serves as the standard for measuring profit, while the other indicates that the owner of the business funds owns the business. If the profit rate is high, it shows the business is strong, and the amount and type of business funds needed depend on its size or nature. To start a large-scale business, you need substantial funds. If your funds are not enough, you will have to borrow from someone else or close the business. Until you pay it back, it’s not truly your own business. Business funds reveal everything about the business. In other words, the source is capital, meaning ‘root.’ It’s false to claim the business was successful without any of its own funds. A business must have some form of funds—cash or otherwise—to survive. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”