Due Dilligence

Due Diligence is the reasonable steps required to gather information before entering into an agreement or taking action. Looking before you cross the road. Price is not value. Price is a signal of supply and demand. If something is incredibly valuable to lots of people, but is abundant, its price will be low. Whether your skills and knowledge are valuable is not in question. Meritocracy is not based on ranking skills and knowledge, it is based on barriers to entry. A competitive advantage is not what you are good at. It is why others cannot do what you are doing, which keeps it in short supply. Choices have consequences. We do not live in isolation. When it comes to money, you have to do your due diligence. You make money through the conscious construction of a container. It is not about respect or worth. That is your personal practice of conquering the demons in your head and heart. Money making is solving problems for decision makers with money. It is not about you. It is doing what you have to do, so you can do what you want to do.

Look before you cross the road

Needs Must

I had a two-year gap between School and University. These “Gap Years” are more common in the UK and Australia than in South Africa. I went to the UK to work as a Gap Student at a prep-School. During this time, I was able to give more thought about what to study. My choice was deeply pragmatic. It wasn’t realistic to study the mating habits of the North Sea Clam, or anything else that was simply a liberal education. There was a clear STEM filter. I looked at surveys of pay, challenge, ability to advance, work-life balance, supply, and demand. Of these, Actuarial Science seemed to best match my skills. As a 14-year old, my Maths teacher had mentioned the profession, but that was about as much knowledge as I had. “What is an Actuary?” was an interesting starting point for many 18-year olds who made the same choice. I like the idea of a liberal education that isn’t focused on putting food on the table. But needs must. I was lucky to have the choice, and grateful to those who had given me my menu.