Background CD PROJEKT S.A. (WSE: CDR) is a Polish video game developer, publisher and distributor based in Warsaw. CD Projekt Red, best known for The Witcher series and the recent release of Cyberpunk 2077.
The CD PROJEKT Group currently conducts operating activities in two key segments: CD PROJEKT RED and GOG.com (originally as Good Old Games).
Hierarchy CD PROJEKT Capital Group is headed by CD PROJEKT S.A. A holding company which has five subsidiaries.
The subsidiaries are:
- GOG sp. z o.o (Similar to Steam, it is a distributor of games).
- CD PROJEKT Inc (Where all the game development happens)
- CD PROJEKT Co. Ltd (Only for selling games in China)
- Spokko sp. z o.o. (The mobile arm of CD projekt red)
- CD PROJEKT RED STORE sp. z o.o. (A new store of merchandise launched by the company)
GOG - Who have just released a 2.0 version called GOG Galaxy which subsequently entered its beta testing phase. The goal of the application is to enable players to integrate all their game shelves into a single library, to communicate with friends and to track their progress regardless of their preferred gaming platforms. Its functionality will span PC and console platforms, extending beyond the GOG.com user base. It's main selling points are that is uses the cloud, is DRM free and has a ton of old games such as Diablo, Destroy all humans etc on it's platform that Steam doesn't.
Steam is the single biggest distributor of digital games for PC, it's been dominating the market for years and has way more games than GOG does due to this. Especially as a lot of publishers do not want to host their games DRM free which GOG requires. It's very difficult to predict the future of GOG because Steam is a private company so we don't have access to it's numbers.
However the big benefit of GOG is that CD Projekt Red can sell and promote it's games directly through their own platform. The benefit being a much bigger margin on each game sold as 100% of the profit goes to CD Projekt red if a game is sold on GOG, whereas on Steam they take a 20% cut for the first $50m revenue of Cyberpunk.
One third of all digital PC preorders for Cyberpunk 2077 sales were on GOG which is an incredible achievement by CD Projekt Red considering Steams dominance.
This is probably the reason why CD Projekt Red has such a huge operating margin from 30% to 50% in recent years. They are involved in the entire process of making and selling their games.
GWENT: The Witcher Card Game is the first multiplayer game developed by the CD PROJEKT Group. It has been a hugely successful and highly rated game (which is impressive considering it's their first mobile multiplayer game). The reason why this game is important for the future is because multiplayer is the key to the cash machine which is microtransactions which the card game has.
Cyberpunk was released recently and had been in development for many years. It's sold very well but less than analysts expectations and there has been serious problems on console versions which led to sony removing cyberpunk 2077 from it's PS store for the time being. This caused the companies stock to plummet 37% recently.
I'll get into the numbers at the bottom for my reverse DCF that I did.
Cyberpunk Online multiplayer will definitely come at some point within the next couple of years. The reason being is that after GTA Onlines unbelievable success and constant revenue generation for Take Two then it makes sense to try and replicate this with Cyberpunk. This multiplayer will feature microtransactions and in my opinion is the way Cd Projekt red can really make the big $$ in the future. Microtransactions for cosmetic items like in game skins or packs (like fifa) are easy to implement and have huge operating margins as they take 0 CAPEX and virtually no time to implement due to being some simple code and designs. Here's a quote taken from their 2019 Annual Report for
Key Sources Of Revenue:
■ sales carried out through optional microtransactions in GWENT: The Witcher Card Game (incl. kegs and meteorite dust) via GOG, proprietors of console platforms (PlayStation, Xbox) and App Store (Apple)
Risks There are some huge risks with cd projekt red, here are the main ones:
- Neither IP, The Wither or Cyberpunk 2077 is owned by CD Projekt since the two series are based on a series of novels and a tabletop RPG respectively. So they would need permission from these license holders (the creators I think) to be able to do other spin offs for them. While it is likely the permission will be given due to the huge successes it's not a certainty.
- CD Projekt Red relies on a couple of block busters to make 80% of their revenue and earnings. The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 are the only revenue generates the company has (apart from GOG). If CD Projekt red messes up either of these huge IP's in the future (or like they just have with the console versions of Cyberpunk) then you can expect a huge and sudden stock price drop and potential damage to the company.
- Because of the few but huge releases, CD Projekt Red has very volatile earnings and revenue making it very hard to predict, similar to Take Two Interactive. You can see in the following picture how sales drop a lot after release.
Co-Founders and Board History CD PROJEKT has a very long tenure of the management board, all at least 10 years and 3/5 of them 20+ years. Insiders have a significant stake in CD Projekt red's stock, including the joint CEO's. This is great news for shareholders as the insiders have a big incentive to make the company work as they have big stakes in the company.
Company shareholding structure is made up of the following people:
-
Marcin Iwinski (Joint CEO & Co-Founder) is
13% -
Michal Kicinski (Ex Joint CEO & Co-Founder) is
11% -
Piotr Nielubowicz (VP, CFO) is
6% -
Adam Kicinski (President & Joint CEO) is
3% Incentives for management:
Management goals are based 80% on net earnings and 20% on SP over the WIG index.
These are poor goals in my opinion. Net earnings can be enhanced by poor acquisitions and stock price is meaningless and should be ignored in incentives as it can produce short term motivations.
Management hit the majority of their goals for year 2019.Their goals going forward:
Goals for 2020-2025 Aggregate Net Income: 8,300 PLN or 1,660 PLN a year.
Optimistic goals for 2020-2025 Aggregate Net Income: 10,000 PLN or 2,000 PLN a year.
These goals seem too high in my opinion. Especially after their cyberpunk flop on consoles but it's still possible.
Competitors CD PROJEKT is well known for its biggest sales on The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 hype. However, there’s a lot of gaming industries that compete with one another.
Thus comparing its competitors such as Take-Two Interactive, Electronic Arts (EA), Activision Blizzard has more diversified games and games produced more frequently compared to CD PROJEKT RED.
CD Projekt Red's risk in terms of competitors is releasing a big game that clashes with another big game such as GTA 6. However all gaming companies have a good tailwind right now due to COVID restrictions and microtransactions are lifting all gaming companies margins. A rising tide lifts all boats.
Industry - CAGR 2019-2024 Video games and e-sports growth expected to be 7% (source: PWC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2020–2024).
- In 2019 the strongest strong growth was observed in the mobile and console segments. The former grew by 9.7%, reaching 68.2 billion USD, while the latter grew by 7.3%, reaching 45.3billion USD. The PC market reached a volume of 35.3 billion USD, having increased by 2.8%.The largest share of the global videogame market is currently held by mobile devices (46%), 80% of which are smartphone releases. Gaming consoles come in second at 30%, followed by the PC 24%. Mobile devices are projected to retain their top position, with their corresponding market volume increasing by 11.2% annually (on average) over the next three years. According to estimates, the volume of the global mobile game market will reach 93.6 billion USD by 2022 (it currently stands at 68.2 billion USD).
You can see from the above as to why CD projekt red is branching out to smartphones and China.
Reverse DCF Here's the original post and reverse DCF because
stocks does not allow images:
https://www.reddit.com/UndervaluedStonks/comments/kofhq7/wsecdr_cd_projekt_red_analysis_is_it_undervalued/ Conclusion It's been extremely difficult to project CD Projekt Red and even after doing research I am still very unsure on a bunch of variables. In my opinion the markets assumptions of CD Projekt Red's growth and margins as shown above in the reverse DCF is perfectly acceptable to me. Therefore I would not buy their shares unless they dipped to around 210 zloty~ as I don't think they are undervalued yet. given the risks.
Please comment if you see anything wrong with my valuation. This was a very difficult one for me.
Thanks
submitted by Background CD PROJEKT S.A. (WSE: CDR) is a Polish video game developer, publisher and distributor based in Warsaw. CD Projekt Red, best known for The Witcher series and the recent release of Cyberpunk 2077.
The CD PROJEKT Group currently conducts operating activities in two key segments: CD PROJEKT RED and GOG.com (originally as Good Old Games).
Hierarchy CD PROJEKT Capital Group is headed by CD PROJEKT S.A. A holding company which has five subsidiaries.
The subsidiaries are:
- GOG sp. z o.o (Similar to Steam, it is a distributor of games).
- CD PROJEKT Inc (Where all the game development happens)
- CD PROJEKT Co. Ltd (Only for selling games in China)
- Spokko sp. z o.o. (The mobile arm of CD projekt red)
- CD PROJEKT RED STORE sp. z o.o. (A new store of merchandise launched by the company)
GOG - Who have just released a 2.0 version called GOG Galaxy which subsequently entered its beta testing phase. The goal of the application is to enable players to integrate all their game shelves into a single library, to communicate with friends and to track their progress regardless of their preferred gaming platforms. Its functionality will span PC and console platforms, extending beyond the GOG.com user base. It's main selling points are that is uses the cloud, is DRM free and has a ton of old games such as Diablo, Destroy all humans etc on it's platform that Steam doesn't.
Steam is the single biggest distributor of digital games for PC, it's been dominating the market for years and has way more games than GOG does due to this. Especially as a lot of publishers do not want to host their games DRM free which GOG requires. It's very difficult to predict the future of GOG because Steam is a private company so we don't have access to it's numbers.
However the big benefit of GOG is that CD Projekt Red can sell and promote it's games directly through their own platform. The benefit being a much bigger margin on each game sold as 100% of the profit goes to CD Projekt red if a game is sold on GOG, whereas on Steam they take a 20% cut for the first $50m revenue of Cyberpunk.
One third of all digital PC preorders for Cyberpunk 2077 sales were on GOG which is an incredible achievement by CD Projekt Red considering Steams dominance.
This is probably the reason why CD Projekt Red has such a huge operating margin from 30% to 50% in recent years. They are involved in the entire process of making and selling their games.
GWENT: The Witcher Card Game is the first multiplayer game developed by the CD PROJEKT Group. It has been a hugely successful and highly rated game (which is impressive considering it's their first mobile multiplayer game). The reason why this game is important for the future is because multiplayer is the key to the cash machine which is microtransactions which the card game has.
Cyberpunk was released recently and had been in development for many years. It's sold very well but less than analysts expectations and there has been serious problems on console versions which led to sony removing cyberpunk 2077 from it's PS store for the time being. This caused the companies stock to plummet 37% recently.
I'll get into the numbers at the bottom for my reverse DCF that I did.
Cyberpunk Online multiplayer will definitely come at some point within the next couple of years. The reason being is that after GTA Onlines unbelievable success and constant revenue generation for Take Two then it makes sense to try and replicate this with Cyberpunk. This multiplayer will feature microtransactions and in my opinion is the way Cd Projekt red can really make the big $$ in the future. Microtransactions for cosmetic items like in game skins or packs (like fifa) are easy to implement and have huge operating margins as they take 0 CAPEX and virtually no time to implement due to being some simple code and designs. Here's a quote taken from their 2019 Annual Report for
Key Sources Of Revenue:
■ sales carried out through optional microtransactions in GWENT: The Witcher Card Game (incl. kegs and meteorite dust) via GOG, proprietors of console platforms (PlayStation, Xbox) and App Store (Apple)
Risks There are some huge risks with cd projekt red, here are the main ones:
- Neither IP, The Wither or Cyberpunk 2077 is owned by CD Projekt since the two series are based on a series of novels and a tabletop RPG respectively. So they would need permission from these license holders (the creators I think) to be able to do other spin offs for them. While it is likely the permission will be given due to the huge successes it's not a certainty.
- CD Projekt Red relies on a couple of block busters to make 80% of their revenue and earnings. The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 are the only revenue generates the company has (apart from GOG). If CD Projekt red messes up either of these huge IP's in the future (or like they just have with the console versions of Cyberpunk) then you can expect a huge and sudden stock price drop and potential damage to the company.
- Because of the few but huge releases, CD Projekt Red has very volatile earnings and revenue making it very hard to predict, similar to Take Two Interactive. You can see in the following picture how sales drop a lot after release.
Co-Founders and Board History CD PROJEKT has a very long tenure of the management board, all at least 10 years and 3/5 of them 20+ years. Insiders have a significant stake in CD Projekt red's stock, including the joint CEO's. This is great news for shareholders as the insiders have a big incentive to make the company work as they have big stakes in the company.
Company shareholding structure is made up of the following people:
-
Marcin Iwinski (Joint CEO & Co-Founder) is
13% -
Michal Kicinski (Ex Joint CEO & Co-Founder) is
11% -
Piotr Nielubowicz (VP, CFO) is
6% -
Adam Kicinski (President & Joint CEO) is
3% Incentives for management:
Management goals are based 80% on net earnings and 20% on SP over the WIG index.
These are poor goals in my opinion. Net earnings can be enhanced by poor acquisitions and stock price is meaningless and should be ignored in incentives as it can produce short term motivations.
Management hit the majority of their goals for year 2019.Their goals going forward:
Goals for 2020-2025 Aggregate Net Income: 8,300 PLN or 1,660 PLN a year.
Optimistic goals for 2020-2025 Aggregate Net Income: 10,000 PLN or 2,000 PLN a year.
These goals seem too high in my opinion. Especially after their cyberpunk flop on consoles but it's still possible.
Competitors CD PROJEKT is well known for its biggest sales on The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 hype. However, there’s a lot of gaming industries that compete with one another.
Thus comparing its competitors such as Take-Two Interactive, Electronic Arts (EA), Activision Blizzard has more diversified games and games produced more frequently compared to CD PROJEKT RED.
CD Projekt Red's risk in terms of competitors is releasing a big game that clashes with another big game such as GTA 6. However all gaming companies have a good tailwind right now due to COVID restrictions and microtransactions are lifting all gaming companies margins. A rising tide lifts all boats.
Industry - CAGR 2019-2024 Video games and e-sports growth expected to be 7% (source: PWC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2020–2024).
- In 2019 the strongest strong growth was observed in the mobile and console segments. The former grew by 9.7%, reaching 68.2 billion USD, while the latter grew by 7.3%, reaching 45.3billion USD. The PC market reached a volume of 35.3 billion USD, having increased by 2.8%.The largest share of the global videogame market is currently held by mobile devices (46%), 80% of which are smartphone releases. Gaming consoles come in second at 30%, followed by the PC 24%. Mobile devices are projected to retain their top position, with their corresponding market volume increasing by 11.2% annually (on average) over the next three years. According to estimates, the volume of the global mobile game market will reach 93.6 billion USD by 2022 (it currently stands at 68.2 billion USD).
You can see from the above as to why CD projekt red is branching out to smartphones and China.
Reverse DCF StockMarket does not allow images so you will need to view my user to see the reverse DCF
krisolch if you want to see it.
Conclusion It's been extremely difficult to project CD Projekt Red and even after doing research I am still very unsure on a bunch of variables. In my opinion the markets assumptions of CD Projekt Red's growth and margins as shown above in the reverse DCF is perfectly acceptable to me. Therefore I would not buy their shares unless they dipped to around 210 zloty~ as I don't think they are undervalued yet. given the risks.
Please comment if you see anything wrong with my valuation. This was a very difficult one for me.
Thanks
submitted by My name is Jared A. Brock. Having just turned 35, I sat down to reflect on everything I’ve learned so far and made a list of the things I wish I learned far sooner. None of these are rules or commands for you to follow, just personal reflections from a decade of journaling. I hope they save you a lot of time, energy, and struggle:
1. “Save the best for last” is terrible advice.
A French monk taught me this one. Every morning, I put on the newest pair of socks in my drawer. Why wear the rattiest pair? When I sit down to eat, I eat the tastiest bits first. Why let them get cold? After every shower, I put on my favorite clean t-shirt. I have a great bottle of 10-year-old Laphroaig scotch in my cupboard, but I probably won’t drink it for months because I received two bottles of reactor-aged Lost Spirits single malt for Christmas.
Why? Because life is hard enough and we aren’t promised tomorrow. This doesn’t mean we should throw caution to the wind and “live in the moment” at all times, but it does mean we should try to find the golden middle and glean a little bit of pleasure from every day we’re blessed to live. “Save the best for last” is poverty-mentality thinking. It expects worse in the future. Enjoy the best right now — in your marriage, parenting, work, travel, faith, friendship, contribution. Keep all the chips on the table. Be ready at all times to leave without regret.
2. Tools use us.
A hammer literally cannot hit a nail without using a human. A saw cannot cut through a board without using a human. A phone cannot deliver ads without using a human.
3. Avoid false dichotomies.
When given two great options, choose both. When given two horrible options, choose neither.
4. Failure is overcome by one word.
“Next.”
5. Ambition is ruinous for your happiness.
Most goal-setters (myself included) live much of life in anticipation of tomorrow, and when that day arrives, they’re either disappointed by their failures or underwhelmed by their successes.
Instead:
trust the process. Whiskey, pasta, bread, beer, and cereal all require just two ingredients — wheat and water — but the outcome is completely different based on the process. Identity precedes action. Determine what you want to
be, then find the process that will get you there every single time.
6. Forget what the market wants.
Listen to your gut. Your body knows the difference between good and great. Someone said you should never record a song or code an app or write an article unless it makes you laugh, cry, or orgasm. If an idea doesn’t move you, it won’t move an audience, no matter how “commercial” you think it is.
7. Give yourself a shove.
The best way to eat more candy, drink more vodka, and smoke more cigarettes is to leave them in the middle of the kitchen counter.
You get it. Willpower is useless. Instead, line up a series of little nudges to automatically get you through your day. If you want to work out, leave your shorts by the door or your cleats in your fridge. My blue diode glasses rest on top of my laptop so I have to protect my eyes before logging online. I can’t
not see my vitamins when I brush my teeth, or chia seeds when I reach for the Brita. There’s a book beside my bed, toilet, desk, and car’s gear shifter.
Line up enough nudges and you can shove yourself in the right direction.
8. Grandma didn’t use toilet paper.
She used pages from the Sears catalog. Splinter-free wasn’t available until 1935. The Romans used sponges. The Greeks used clay. Francois Rabelais recommended using “the neck of a goose.” Arabians used their left hand.
Never assume our extremely unique cultural moment is “normal.”
9. Ninety-nine isn’t enough.
Water boils at 100 degrees Celcius. The difference between 99 and 100 is the difference between zero and one. Not-boiling, boiling.
Corollary: 101 doesn’t make it any more boiling.
10. Old people know better.
Honoring our elders is one of the most underrated practices in our newness-obsessed society. Sure, there are a ton of old crazy far-right conspiracy theorists, but there are also good people who have survived four wars, six recessions, and twelve presidents and are somehow still smiling. Get to know them.
Also: meet your old-person self. I try to invent a new word every week — one of them is
preflection. To ponder the present through the eyes of your future self. Take an hour in silence to listen to your eighty-year-old self. They might know something you don’t.
11. Fire all your employees.
The employer-employee relationship creates an unhealthy power dynamic between humans that simply didn’t exist when we worked cooperatively to feed our clan or village. I love my work life so much more now that I only work with independent entrepreneurs who are my equals. For me, it’s either a one-man show (my writing business), an equal partnership (my film company), or a co-operative endeavor. Life’s too short to be a boss or be bossed around.
12. Accept that you are a voracious locust of doom.
Nail a roll of paper to the wall and write down everything you consume for a year — food, toilet paper, electricity, car fuel, movies, music, social media content, other people’s time, everything. See what I mean?
Saint Augustine said that the human heart can only fully be satisfied by one thing aside from God himself:
everything. All the sex, all the money, all the power, all the possessions, all the glory. All of it. Nothing short of everything could ever fully satiate the human heart. We are wired for
more.
Understanding this truth is the first step toward real contentment.
13. Awkward is awesome.
My best friend says that
The Office gave society a beautiful gift: the ability to embrace cringe. When you meet someone new and it’s slightly weird, pretend you’re Michael Scott. Just glory and bask in the discomfort.
You can awkward-proof your life by being bold: Ask for discounts. Ask for refunds. Ask for phone numbers. Ask for pay raises. Ask inappropriate questions at inappropriate times. Lather yourself in awkward and pretty soon nothing sticks.
14. Happiness isn’t the purpose of life.
Hitler really was following his bliss by offing millions of Jews. I’m sure Jeffrey Dahmer genuinely enjoyed the taste of human flesh. Bernie Madoff seemed content to bilk charities for decades.
Happiness isn’t the purpose of life. It’s not even in the top ten. Happiness is a seasonal fruit, not a foundational root. Find firm and fertile ground.
15. There is no ugly.
My grandpa re-proposed to my grandma on their fiftieth wedding anniversary and called her the most beautiful woman he’s ever known.
Old wrinkly grandma? Yes. Because we choose our definition of beauty through our thoughts, disciplines, habits, and patterns, be they conscious or otherwise.
16. We are what we consume.
The statistical average American is a walking bodybag of sugar, alcohol, caffeine, porn, pills, and digital stimulus. Imagine how different life would be if our only inputs were nature, sleep, sunlight, organic food, and embodied human interaction?
Guard your inputs carefully.
17. We’re going to die quite soon.
Make sure you live first. Practicing memento mori will help.
18. Fame is poison.
One in four Gen Zers thinks they’ll be famous by age 25. One in 3.9999999 Gen Zers are going to have a miserably disappointing life.
Why do people desire the attention of strangers? Because we all need to love and be loved, to know and be known, but are too afraid to risk personal heartbreak to seek it out. Attention is not affection. Influence is not intimacy.
19. Boomers are to blame for half our troubles.
The Me Generation took a free ride at the planet’s expense and are hellbent on taking the rest of it with them. They’re statistically low on empathy — blame the lead, asbestos, and hairspray if you must — but at least acknowledge the reality that life is hard for everyone, and no one has it easier.
20. Children are dope.
Kids are the blood transfusion in our sick system. We need to stop manipulating, brainwashing, colonizing, and propagandizing them, and learn from them instead.
21. It doesn’t have to hurt.
Joy is a choice.
22. Watch comedy before calls and meetings.
Five minutes of gut-busting laughter will prime you for even the most tedious conference call. Your co-workers and customers all have tough lives like everybody else, so brighten their day by pre-brightening your own.
23. No ragrets.
Tattoo it on your neck. Most people play it far too safe. Instead: optimize your life for the least number of regrets and the most amount of selfless contribution.
24. There are better ways to vote.
I’ve manned several local voting stations, and I’ve also hob-nobbed with politicians in Canada, America, and the UK. The reality is that they don’t work for us. They work for their corporate sponsors and private interests.
Democracy isn’t dead. It just hasn’t happened yet, with all attempts to date being stillborn or aborted. Democracy = one voice one vote. Athens wasn’t a democracy — women, slaves, and tenants had zero say. America isn’t a democracy either — no representative system is, because it’s far too easy for private interests to buy politicians. The charade of voting is illusory. All elections are sham elections.
So what to do? Vote with your money and time and attention. One sham vote every four years versus tens of thousands of dollar-votes each year? It’s a no-brainer. My wife and I haven’t stepped foot in a Walmart in more than a decade because thousands of its suppliers are based in China, the billionaire heirs are anti-democratic tax-avoiders, and they treat their employees like indentured servants. Vote for pro-democracy third-party candidates if you must — just understand the game, and vote in the ways that actually matter.
25. Everything easy has already been done.
So run a little further.
And if it hasn’t been done, it won’t be as easy as it appears. The question to ask is: what’s been standing in the way this whole time? Achievement is all about knocking down obstacles. Just make sure what’s on the other side is rightly worth the effort.
26. Broccoli still tastes terrible.
But you’re not a child anymore. Adults do hard things.
27. Fixed-order scheduling > fixed-hour scheduling.
Discipline is great, but it’s also subject to the law of diminishing returns. Life is just too dynamic to schedule with military precision. Free yourself from the tyranny of “only people who wake up at 5 AM are successful.”
All hours are not created equal. It depends on your sleep drive and chronotype. Know yourself. Unapologetically get more sleep, then do your best work at your best time in your best state.
28. “Freedom” isn’t freedom.
America wasn’t founded on freedom. America was founded on violent autonomy.
The ancient Greeks had an entirely different definition of freedom: it was
the ability to choose the right regardless of circumstance.
“We talk about freedom all the time, but we’ve stopped talking about freedom a long time ago. Now we’re talking about autonomy. Freedom is different than autonomy. Freedom has boundaries. Truth is one of those boundaries. And morality is one of those boundaries. Autonomy is the ability to do whatever you want whenever you want in whatever way you want. The problem is this: If I’m autonomous and another person is autonomous, and I have preferences and those matter more than the truth, and that person has preferences and their preferences matter more than the truth, when two autonomous preference-seeking beings come together and their preferences don’t match, who is going to win? If truth is on the bottom shelf, truth won’t decide. What will decide will be power. And isn’t it ironic that in our quest for “freedom”, someone gets enslaved?” — Abdu Murray
29. The Marines were right: slow is smooth, smooth is fast.
As teenagers, my friend Tyler and I were in a hurry to get somewhere quickly so we drove 120+ miles per hour for forty-five straight minutes before nearly crashing when the speed burned a footlong gash through the tire. By the time we replaced it with a spare, we were late to our destination by more than an hour.
But nevermind driving. Pump the life-brakes sometimes, or at least, let off the gas. You might get there faster, with less wear-and-tear on the engine.
30. The quest for wealth is destroying life.
We’ve commodified land, water, shelter, clothing, art, time, and nearly everything else. Very little remains, and it’s amassing into fewer hands.
We need a shared global vision. My invented word for it is
benevitae: the sustainable flourishing of all creation. Our collective goal should be socioenviroeconomic sustainability. Where to start? We’d do well to let biology determine ecological sustainability and real democracy to determine economic fairness. Our current trajectory is worse than the Space Shuttle Challenger.
31. Most “leaders” aren’t leaders.
Celebrities, politicians, and book-hocking business gurus all call themselves leaders. They’re not.
Real leadership is
influence that serves. True leaders are selfless and servant-hearted. They put the best interests of others ahead of their own. Politics and media, by comparison, attracts sociopaths like flies to firelight. Never give power to those who seek it. Nearly everyone worth following is dead.
32. Divide-and-conquer is a business model.
Near the end of high school, dozen friends and I binge-watched multiple seasons of LOST in our friend Mike’s basement. It was one of the most hilarious, riotous, enjoyable experiences we had as a group.
And it was the last show we ever watched together.
People used to go to restaurants in large numbers, to the movies by the dozen, climbing over each other for one of the limited video game controllers, packing out our churches, cheering on our sports teams by the busload. We were almost never alone, and we were far happier. Now we order in, watch Netflix, stream Minecraft, catch the highlights, watch porn, and go to bed. It’s killing us.
Resist the urge to be alone. It’s too easy, and it’s the exact opposite of what we really need. The #1 thing that’s correlated to human happiness is human togetherness.
33. Self-improvement won’t save us.
The great lie of individualist-consumerist culture is that we can improve our way to personal perfection and communal utopia. But it’s incrementalism at best.
It’s just chasing infinity.
34. We know nothing +/-.
On the scale of all that is known, and all that is knowable, our individual understanding is essentially mathematically zero. The entirety of human knowledge is a rounding error.
This is the beginning of humility.
35. The sun is not on fire
I was at an observatory in the Davis Mountains in Texas, and it was the first time I’d paid attention to astronomy since grade school. For three decades, I’d wrongly assumed the sun was a giant ball of flames.
But there’s no fire in space because there’s no oxygen in space. (It just looks like fire because of how our eyes perceive light through the atmosphere and prism.) As I stared at the real-time image of the sun on the observatory wall, I nearly wept. The sun actually looks like a giant, boiling, grey brain.
And then it hit me: I have so many assumptions to set aside and so much left to learn. So pay attention. Don’t worship the “question everything” mantra, but instead spend your life seeking truth, and wisdom, and understanding.
You know what you need to do to get where you want to be. Hi all! I was going through some things from my ex boyfriend and I had a date book compiled, and thought I'd share some of the ideas here before I toss the book out.
Bob Ross Follow Along: Bob Ross has his own Youtube channel that you can go to. Scroll through the video selection and choose a painting that looks appealing to you. Buy canvases and paint and a bottle of wine and have a fun night in following along with Bob.
Murder Mystery Dinner: This would be fun for an at home double date. I found a cheap kit at Tj Maxx but you could also probably find ideas online or a cheap kit online. My kit had invitations that were to be mailed out to guests inviting them to the dinner (could use fb invite), pamphlets with the characters background for the guests to study, dinner ideas (could be as simple as spag and meatballs) and a storyline to follow to solve a murder.
Make Tipsy Bartender Drinks: If you like drinking you could have a fun night in by going to Tipsy Bartenders Youtube and see if there are any drinks you have the supplies to make laying around. He has drinks of varying budgets so if you need something simple and cheap hes got you.
Board Game Night: If you have some board games enjoy a night in playing them. If you don't there is a website called Board Game Online that I find quite fun that you could burn some time on. There is also Drunk Pirate for an online drinking game.
Science Experiments: After a quick trip to the grocery store for some supplies you can enjoy a night in doing various different science experiments such as making a rainbow jar, aqua sand, slime, and whatever other fun experiments you can find online.
Make Clay Sculptures: You can buy a packet of clay at Walmart and mold some figures with it. Let it harden overnight and enjoy date night #2 by painting them.
Fantasy Box: Fantasy Box is a really cool company that creates boxes for different sexual desires. They have costume boxes with fantasies like playboy bunny, school girl, as well as bondage boxes, playful boxes, etc. The boxes are already pretty cheap compared to buying the items individually but you can also find referral codes online for an additional $20 off.
Break a World Record: Look online at Guinness World Record and see if there are any records that you and your S/O can break.
Time Capsule: Buy a lunch box and find various items around the house that are memories that signify your relationship. This could be photos, receipts, trinkets. Put them in the box and open in 1 year with a bottle of wine.
Make each other t-shirts: Buy plain white t-shirts, fabric pens, different craft supplies and decorate t-shirts for each other.
Decorate kitchen supplies: Buy ceramic markers and mugs/plates/shot glasses/etc and decorate some kitchen supplies.
Answer Questions: There are various websites online that have long lists of silly/serious/romantic questions to ask your s/o. Sit down with some mixed drinks and go through the lists with each other.
Puzzles: Find a puzzle that you both like and get to completing. Once done buy some mod podge to seal the puzzle and use it later to decorate your living space!
Draw/Paint Each Other: Depending on your budget this could be as simple as paper and pencil or canvas and paint or both. You can choose to paint each other live while looking at each other (might be harder) or print photos of each other to paint.
$10 Dollar Tree Challenge: Go to Dollar Tree with each of you only allowed a budget of $10 = 10 items. Buy the randomest stuff that might make the other person laugh. My boyfriend and I found minion night lights, anal wart cream, douches, etc.
Youtube Challenges: Do various popular Youtube challenges. Boyfriend Does My Makeup, Chapstick Challenge, Tincan Challenge, Chubby Bunny Challenge, etc.
Buy Books For Each Other: Go to a library and find a book for the other person without telling them what it is. Get home and curl up with each other and read the books.
Taste Test Chocolate & Wine/Cheese & Wine: Buy chocolate and wine and taste test different chocolates with the wine. Could do the same but with cheese and wine instead.
Date Box: Datebox creates a fun, unique date night, and sends you everything needed to enjoy it with your special someone. Each month you get something new and exciting. They have an online only version for a cheaper price or a box you'll receive in the mail. There are referral codes online you can find to make that first box cheaper.
Hunt a Killer Subscription Box: This is an interactive box that takes place over a 6 month period. You will get a new box each month that gives you clues to solve the murder mystery. There are various different themed boxes.
Massages: Buy some massage oil and set the mood by setting up a room by laying a sheet down on the couch/bed, placing a pillow, and playing some peaceful music.
Newly Wed Game: Typically this would require a group of 4 and you can definitely double date and play that way. However, you can also just play with your s/o by printing out the questions, answering them separately then comparing together. Loser could take shots or take a sip of their drink.
Personality Test: You can take a free version of the Myers Briggs personality test and see how your personalities mesh with each other.
Instant Chemistry Compatibility Test: Take a dna test with your s/o by sending in your saliva and see how compatible you really are. These tests are on sale for Valentines day.
Tie Dye: Buy white t-shirts and a tie dye kit. I found one at Walmart that included the ties, bottles and dye. Use a giant plastic tub or your bathtub to make the shirts to save a mess.
Fondue: There are various different fondue recipes online whether it be chocolate or cheese related. Find a recipe and recreate it at home.
At Home Photo Shoot: Use your phone camera, a cheap throwaway polaroid or buy a fujifilm. Set up a room with a backdrop and do photo shoots with each other. You could make it silly by picking out each others outfits for the photos.
Paint Each Others Body: Buy edible paint if you're into that to lick it off each other. Or buy non toxic paint and paint actual art creations on each others backs.
Bubble Bath: Set up a nice warm bath with bubbles, a bath bomb, dim the lights, and play some ambient music.
Paint Snow with Food Coloring: Buy some bottles of food coloring and after it snows go outside and decorate the snow.
Make Maple Candy with Snow. After a fresh snow take some of the snow inside with a tub and take 100% maple syrup and drizzle it along the snow. It will harden into maple candy.
Make blessing bags for homeless: Make a trip to the Dollar Tree. Buy bags, gloves, snacks, hygeine products, etc. Go home, stuff the bags. Then put the bags in the back of your car and whenever you see homeless you can give them a bag.
Travel to new country via Internet: Open up your laptop and choose a country. Travel to that country via the internet. Open it up on Google Maps. Look at local images, learn some words in that language, watch videos.
Karaoke: Open up Youtube and find different Karaoke compilations that have duets.
Dance Lessons: Youtube has various step by step dance videos. Find one that you both like, clear out the living room, and get practicing.
Build a Snowman: After a sticky snow, gather some supplies around the house and go build a snowman outside.
Scratch Tickets: Go to the gas station and buy $10-20 in scratch tickets. Spend some time in celebrating or contemplating how much money you just lost.
Half Hand Video Games: If your s/o and you have a ps4/xbox/nintendo etc you can play this. Each of you get half of the controller and you have to work together to finish the game. This can be fun for games like Spyro, COD and Mario Kart.
Cook-Off: Choose a meal that you both have to prepare such as strawberry short cake or apple fritters. Each choose a different recipe and make your own style. When you're done post on social media and see what your friends and family think on who did best.
Strip PokeStrip Trivia: Get a deck of cards or find some trivia questions online. Loser removes a piece of clothing each time they lose.
Glowstick Party: Go to the dollar tree and buy a BUNCH of glow in the dark sticks. Decorate the room, turn off the lights, play some music, have some drinks, and PARTY.
Walmart/Car Bingo: Make bingo cards for every time you go to Walmart or go on a road trip. The Walmart bingo could be like the people of Walmart. Everytime you see someone without a shirt mark here. The road trip could be signs that you see or things like cows or planes.
Green Eggs and Ham: Want some nostalgia? Remember Dr. Seuss? Prepare green eggs and ham and watch one of the Dr. Seuss movies.
Cartoon Night: Get in your pjs, get some of your childhood favorite cereals and sit down in front of the tv like its Sunday morning and watch some old childhood cartoons.
Meditate: Set up some space in your living room, lay down a blanket, and pull up Youtube videos that will play calm music and instruct you when to breathe in and out.
Yoga: Set up some space in your living room, lay down a blanket, and pull up Youtube videos that will have an instructor telling you what positions you need to do and how long to hold them.
Make a relationship montage video: Depending how long you've been together you probably have a lot of photos and videos. Get sappy and pull up Imovie or Windows Movie Maker and compile all these memories together in a video that you can later watch together.
Themed Country Date Night: Pick a country. For this example I'll use Italy. Make an Italian dinner like pasta or pizza. Dessert could be Italian ice. Play Italian music while you eat. Watch movies based out of Italy.
Learn Your Love Language: There are five ways people receive and process love. Receiving Gifts, Quality Time, Physical Touch, Words of Affirmation and Acts of Service. Take the quiz with your s/o and see which one they are and incorporate it in your relationship.
Airsoft Gun Fight: You can buy a really fancy one or get really cheap ones at the dollar tree. Set up the room for battle, load your guns and get shooting!
Goodwill Trip: Go to Goodwill and go seperate ways and pick out outfits for each other. The crazier the better. Than go somewhere in public wearing them.
One Actor Movie Binge: Choose your favorite actoactress and make a list of movies they're in. Spend a night binging those movies.
DIY Escape Room: There are various DIY tutorials for this online with different themes. Essentially set up the room with different mysteries for your S/O and have them solve how to escape the room with you.
Rainbow Dinner: Prepare a rainbow dinner for your S/O. Ideas could be a colorful pizza, acai bowl with fruits, peanut noodles, etc. There are various recipes online.
Name That Treat: Have your S/O go in the kitchen without you and grab 5 different items. You follow them and grab 5 as well. Feed each other these items and see if they're able to name them. You could also go to the grocery store if you want to make it gross and pick up stuff you don't think they'd guess.
Iron Chef: Prepare a meal where one ingredient is incorporated in everything. For example chocolate. So chocolate needs to be in the app,entree, dessert and drink.
Hawaiian Vacation in your living room: Lay down a tan sheet to look like sand. Lay down another small blanket or towel above it. Set up a mini picnic with foods that are Hawaiian themed. Make a trip to the Dollar Tree and go to their luau party section and buy cups and different decorations to fit the theme. Make a mixed drink like pina colada. Play tropical music.
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