4/21/2024

Stupid loss, when I had all in my favor (after my counter-part accepted a Vienna Gambit!)

Stupid loss, when I had all in my favor (after my counter-part accepted a Vienna Gambit!) The level was really low from my side, a quick reminder that my level is still very, very low! :-) Looking at the bright side, can only improve.

- Pedro

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WEO - April 2024 - > “Soft”, “Slow” and “Scarred”

WEO - April 2024 - > “Soft”, “Slow” and “Scarred” Key takeaways Fears of stagflation and global recession are materially subsiding World GDP 3.2% for 2024 and 3.2% for 2025, despite a tightened monetary policy to control inflation, Global inflation projected to decline, 2024 US GDP projected to be sound → 2.7% 2024, China → 4.6% and EuroArea only → 0.8%, UK→0,5% Main Risks → inflation can persist, financial sector woes, geopolitical tensions, disruptive fiscal adjustments. press briefing → WEO 2024 https://www.youtube.com/live/AQT_dG0P8a4?si=P2oonnLWGJYwdoFU https://youtu.be/JR9gvqlTSkg?si=Qmr0gIfJ_u7gy-Ke

- Pedro

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How a home-improvement subsidy is wrecking Italy’s public finances - by the Economist

How a public policy, with good intentions but with incorrect incentives and deployment, was pushed into the Italian economy and its overall damaging repercussion into the fiscal stability! Many lessons should be learnt from this case to not repeat in other countries. How a home-improvement subsidy is wrecking Italy’s public finances https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2024/04/17/how-a-home-improvement-subsidy-is-wrecking-italys-public-finances from The Economist

- Pedro

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The CEO's Guide to Costs and Growth - Executive Perspectives

A great small document by BCG on how CEOs see 2024: Macro environment, Top priorities and key success factors to achieve the overall objectives. https://web-assets.bcg.com/cd/6d/9e4da59a44f284f79af41c7115ea/etude-bcg-the-ceo-guide-to-costs-and-growth.pdf

- Pedro

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How to make great question by Arnaud Chevallier,

How to make great question by Arnaud Chevallier, strategy professor at IMD Business School! Richard Feynman said “Knowledge is having the right answers. Intelligence is asking the right QUESTIONS. Wisdom is knowing when to ask the right questions.” Based on the author there are 5 types of questions to solve complex strategic problems: Investigative → What is known about the problem or potential solutions - use the 5 “Whys”. Here you go deep, Speculative → What if that allows innovative thinking, scenarios thinking. Here you go wide, Productive → Now what kind of questions. Are we ready to decide, where are we vs. the plan, Interpretative → So what type of questions e.g. What are we trying to achieve, what have we learnt, Subjective → Question related with the decision makers. E.g. How do you feel about this problem, etc…. Few leaders have been trained to ask great questions. That might explain why they tend to be good at certain kinds of questions, and less effective at other kinds. Unfortunately, that hurts their ability to pursue strategic priorities. Arnaud Chevallier, strategy professor at IMD Business School, explains how leaders can break out of that rut and systematically ask five kinds of questions: investigative, speculative, productive, interpretive, and subjective. He shares real-life examples of how asking the right sort of question at a key time can unlock value and propel your organization. With his IMD colleagues Frédéric Dalsace and Jean-Louis Barsoux, Chevallier wrote the HBR article "The Art of Asking Smarter Questions." https://podcasts.apple.com/es/podcast/hbr-ideacast/id152022135?i=1000652609745

- Pedro

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Chess -> Quick win

Very solid game using King’s Indian Attack. One of my best matches, won in 14 moves.

- Pedro

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The “Monty Hall” problem

The “Monty Hall” problem, one of the most famous probability problems that most people get wrong simply explained in the YouTube video by “numberphile” and on the newspaper article by Marilyn Vos Savant. https://youtu.be/C4vRTzsv4os?si=Hd_hKWE_lHy5ZFCc

- Pedro

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