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- How Not to Use a Lawyer - A Personal Case Study (Plus: Protocol Marketing correction)October 29
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- Rethinking Investing: Common-Sense Rules for Uncommon TimesOctober 21
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- 9 Tricks for Getting a Table (and Being a VIP) at Hot RestaurantsOctober 20
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How do you skip the line and get the corner table? (photo: Thomas Hawk)An evening out should be special, especially if it’s an expensive evening.
But too often it’s a disappointment. Does the following scenario sound familiar? After weeks of trying to score a reservation at that new restaurant that just got a great review, you finally get one – only to find yourself waiting until 9pm for the table you were promised at 8pm. When you’re finally seated, you find yourself waiting – for a drink, for your food, for your check, even for your coat.
It might be somewhat tolerable if you looked around and saw that everyone was treated the same, but that’s rarely the case.
There always seems to be at least one table getting the VIP treatment. It’s like a little oasis: The diners aren’t kept waiting; the waiters are particularly attentive; and the chef may even come out to say hello or send over some extra desserts at the end. Who doesn’t want to be treated like that?
I’m not fussy and I’m not high maintenance. I think those are two reasons I stumbled upon the secrets of being treated like a VIP…
For years, I was editor in chief of a publishing house and edited cookbooks by some of the world’s best chefs – so my fr
- Investment Series Preview: The “Good Bye and F__k You” LetterOctober 18
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Is this a hedge fund manager? (photo: dannyhammontree)I’m in the process of preparing a series of posts on the investment lessons I’ve learned in the last 18 months.
To preface the series with some humor (and insight), I thought one particular farewell letter would be appropriate. The author is hedge fund manager Andrew Lahde, who produced a one-year 866 percent return betting on the subprime mortgage collapse.
Today, he announced he was leaving the hedge fund business with a rather hysterical letter…
Today I write not to gloat. Given the pain that nearly everyone is experiencing, that would be entirely inappropriate. Nor am I writing to make further predictions, as most of my forecasts in previous letters have unfolded or are in the process of unfolding. Instead, I am writing to say goodbye.
Recently, on the front page of Section C of the Wall Street Journal, a hedge fund manager who was also closing up shop (a $300 million fund), was quoted as saying, “What I have learned about the hedge fund business is that I hate it.” I could not agree more with that statement.
- Deadline in Less Than 7 Hours - An Important Bribe (Plus: Happiness Research for Economic Crashes)October 13
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Take 10 seconds today to fill up your karmic bank account. (photo: woodleywonderworks)Part 1 - The Favor and Bribe
This two-part post is interrelated, so I recommend you read both sections. If you take 10 seconds to do the first part, it should — based on the research — make you a happier person.
The first part is simple. I want to give ten of you $150. More on this a little later…
There are less than 7 hours left to help 100,000 public school students get $1.5 million dollars in much-needed funding for their educations. A single click here is all I ask of you, and I sweeten the pot with a bribe below…
First, from the woman who convinced me to put up this post:
Where you grow up shouldn’t determine the quality of the education you receive. To help level the playing field, I propose giving 100,000 children in low-income communities the books, technology, and other materials that they need for a proper education.
The non-profit Donorschoose (who appear on the dedication page of