The Monday Read: Memento Mori

Sometimes life gives you a little nudge

Last week I had a bit of a wake up call: talked about it in this YouTube video last week if you haven’t seen it already. Like the Roman emperors of old, I got a reminder that I am not in control of things, no matter how much planning and preparation I have done.

Had a similar lesson on Friday, when the flight I was supposed to be taking with some students to Cebu was cancelled just after we arrived in Narita Airport.

I am not used to having things happen to me against my will, so this was a great experience to go through. I was reminded of the necessity of going with the flow, of accepting that things you don’t like can happen, of making the best of the situation you find yourself in.

And of the power of a kind word. More on that in our latest YouTube video below.

Your First Ten Million Yen

We’ll be running our flagship personal finance course Your First Ten Million Yen again in February.

Sign up here to receive updates and have the chance to sign up when we launch next month. We have some new packages and price points, so there should be something for everyone this time.

If you’ve been meaning to get your finances in order but haven’t done so yet, this will potentially change your life.

RetireJapan TV S3E03

The next RJTV episode will be on January 20th, same bat-time, same bat-channel (from 20:00 on YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn).

Join us live to ask questions, join in the discussion, or just hang out while we talk about personal finance, investing, retirement, and life in Japan.

YouTube

Thank you for your support of the RetireJapan YouTube channel. Slightly overwhelmed by events, I made a short video at Gate 36 in Narita Airport on Friday afternoon.

The Forum

Speaking of which, the Forum is doing well (39,235 posts so far). The forum rules are here. In essence, they are:

1. Be nice
2. Ask any question you like
3. Only answer questions when you have relevant knowledge or experience

Here are the latest active threads:

This week’s books

I read 100 to 1 in the Stock Market: A Distinguished Security Analyst Tells How to Make More of Your Investment Opportunities. It was written in 1972, but still kind of interesting and inspiring. Might do a blog post reviewing it properly.

Also read The Quarry, by Iain Banks, on the plane to Cebu. It was good. Really reminded me of The Wasp Factory.

And I just jumped into The City and The City, by China Mieville. Started off normal and got weird very quickly. I think I am going to enjoy this one.

This week’s links

1. The weak yen continues: Yen at ¥156/$ Thanks To Expected Trumpflation
2. I have an unlucky year in 2025 apparently. Yikes: In Japan, Murphy’s Law Depends on Your Age
3. Nice: If you’re so smart, why aren’t you rich?
4. This was good: Not “CAN I retire early?” but “HOW do I retire early?” Making a Retirement Plan When You’re Still Young
5. Not to be all gloomy, but this list is a bit underwhelming: Seven quiet breakthroughs for climate and nature in 2024 you might have missed
6. These take a bit of time to work through if you do it properly: I Have A Few Questions
7. This hit quite hard: Easier for Rachel
8. Not quite yet: Signs of a Top
9. Buyer beware (not all Akiya are bargains): Marginal living
10. It seems every article about China is either really positive or really negative: Stagnation With Chinese Characteristics
11. Huge roundup from Sean: Restless 26 – End of 2024
12. I really enjoy Trung Phan’s newsletter: 11 Best Things of 2024
13. I would love to see this nationwide: Major Japanese city is abolishing extracurricular activities at all of its middle schools
14. Are they including mortgages in that average debt figure??? Pretty ugly stuff: Bankruptcies and suicides rise as Japanese struggle with mounting debt
15. No thank you: Is Japan ready for 60 million tourists?
16. Ooops. That sounds far too easy: North Korean hackers accused of bitcoin theft from Tokyo firm

What do you think? Anything interesting in there?

If you enjoyed today’s Monday Read and want to contribute to our costs, you could buy me a coffee (more like some web hosting, amirite?). All donations much appreciated.

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