November 2025

I have always thought the yin and yang is a beautiful concept and illustration. It parallels a deeply kabbalistic concept of Ratzó v'Shov, running and returning. Maybe a year and a half ago I would go on a deep spiritual discourse about the hidden meanings behind these concepts, but now my newest ego and evolution wants to be simple concise and concrete. Life is full of ups and downs, positives and negatives, and they both must coexist. Yesterday I had an amazing day where I was on fire, spiritually, mentally, and physically. Today was slow, rainy and low energy. Both are okay, and necessary. Most interestingly on my mind is how these concepts apply to business. 6 years ago someone called me impulsive, and it stuck with me. At first I thought it had a negative connotation, as in I do not put thought into my action. But now I think I have a much more nuanced understanding which will connect to the yin and yang. I have always felt I process a huge volume of data quickly, intellectually and emotionally, that others perceive. Based on this premise I act quickly when something clicks. I do not skip thinking, I compress it. I deeply trust my quick reads because it is built upon pattern recognition. This kind of intelligence works faster than pure analytical reasoning. I think this is why I have always been good at math as well. When someone says I am impulsive they are misinterpreting speed as shallowness when it is actually depth operating efficiently. My impulses come from excitement, curiosity, and creativity. I feel a deep fast moving order that is hard to explain. How this relates to business is as follows. When you make your first sale on your own, sell something you made, you are super excited. It is proof that what you are making matters. The excitement is pure and can be conflated with greed if you are not careful. The natural reaction is you want to make more sales, more money. For me it is not solely for the money, but for the creative response that a sale can make. To create something, to better the life of someone else. Of course the money is nice and can be used as a tool for the future. So the natural "impulsive decision" is to try and make as many sales and money as quickly as possible. I have quickly realized that this innate nature is not the best for new businesses. The ratzo (running) is the impulse, the creative energy that closes that first sale. The shov (returning) is the grounding, reflection, structure. It is the energy to slow down a process to refine it, to perfect it, and most importantly, to make it palatable to a customer. Without shov, ratzo burns out. Without ratzo, shov stagnates. The art is keeping both alive in the balance, in the yin and yang. The key takeaway is the energy that starts a business is not the same energy that scales it. The early drive is vital, but to alchemize that drive and instinct you need patience and reflection.

Lovely readers, I have just arrived in the southernmost country of Central America, Panama. A country that is typically overlooked in the ire of travelers, but do I have some treats to tell you! Kyle and I arrived to Bocas del Toro yesterday afternoon by land and boat. From Puerto Viejo, CR. Bocas del Toro is an island archipelago off the north east coast of Panama. I have never heard of this place until recently, when talking with my Panamanian from Jacobo. I have done land boarder crossings, 3 times now, Thailand -> Laos, Laos -> Cambodia, and now Costa Rica -> Panama. It always shocks me that even thought there is some fictions line in the sand border between two places, you can immediately feel the cultural differences. Costa Rica is known for the "Pura Vida" lifestyle. To put it bluntly that just means they are a bunch of rasta hippies. It is really cool and chill in some regards, but from a cultural standpoint it is kind of bland, in food and in spirit. Coming to Panama, even though I have only been here for 24 hours, I feel a change. Walking around the main town of Bocas del Toro I really enjoyed it. There are lots of viber cafes and a community field. The locals and the tourists are intermingled. In Costa Rica, it kinda feels like hippie westerners took over and the Ticos are cool with it. I like places that are culturally rich and authentic, but also have the positive western influences. To this point I really love viber cafes. Cute cafes where you can get Kombucha, Matcha, nice seating, work, and hang with other vipers. Obviously this is a western import into these backpacking hubs. But slowly I have realized it really impacts my likings of the community. Bocas del Toro reminds me of a Siargao. As time goes a long here I will report back. But all of this is coming to mind as I explore where I want to live and give a real shot at settling down. It is a little cheaper in Panama compared to Costa Rica which is interesting. So the things that matter to be in choosing a place are : Weather, Cost of Living, Culture, Activities, Walkability, and viber cafes.