Episode 10: Feeding The Homeless

Episode 10: Feeding The Homeless

Wait, What?

Yes, I know. This isn't exactly something I just learned about, the servants of hope have been doing this for 14 years now.

Yes, I know. I've attended a few of these over the years.

Yes, I know. It's at Pigeon Park, the heart of the Vancouver's downtown East-side.

Yes, I know. They feed hundreds of people on this one night.

Yes, I know. Those interested in offering donation or wanting to help can call Sean at 604-720-9335

So Mass, what exactly was it that you learned this week?

Well, firstly, I learned that December 20, 2019 at 6pm is when this years annual Feeding The Homeless will take place.

Secondly, sometimes its nice to look back and re-learn something as if it was the first time. I learned that we have to appreciate and value everything we have, and that it just takes one act of kindness, and selflessness to create something wonderful, that helps so many. 

Episode 9: Forex Trading Part 2

Episode 9: Forex Trading Part 2

This week I continued growing my knowledge of Forex trading. To some, this might go against the essence of learning something new. While I would tend to agree, I believe I have yet to fully understand Forex trading. While I could have moved on, and covered another topic, I am not satisfied  with all that I've learned and thus compelled to learn more.

Originally it was suggested I get MetaTrader 4, set up a dummy account, and practice Forex trading. I did just that, but I didn't understand anything I was supposed to be doing. I was supposed to be following certain people to understand what they were doing and learning from them, but it was just too steep a learning curve.

While I wanted to give up, I realized I needed to take a step back and start at the basics, because that my friends, is how I do my best learning. So I watched a few YouTube videos, I chatted with a few friends, but I still wasn't understanding everything, and I still don't.

I did however come across a program called GoForex, which is available on Android, IOS, and Windows. This is a great program to introduce anyone into the world of Forex trading. The program begins with teaching the basics, one chapter at a time. Before progressing to the next chapter, you must correctly answer a quiz, proving you've understood the knowledge. It then allows you to play through a simulation Forex trading environment, where you start out with $1000.

GoForex

After a few hours on the GoForex simulator, I was down to $750. I went back to re-learn some of the lessons. My third day of Forex simulation trading, and I was making some great trades and was up to $1600, and finished off that days trades at $1480. 

I think I'm beginning to get the hand of this this, I'm going to keep at it a bit and let you know how it goes. I may even attempt to set up a real account, so stay tuned.

Before ending this blog post, I want to let everyone know that GoForex is a free program, and that I was not paid to endorse this product, nor do I receive any form of funding from them.

Also if anyone else knows of any great programs to test Forex Trading on, I encourage you to please let us know by sending a message or down below in the comments.

Episode 8: Forex Trading

Episode 8: Forex Trading

I had no idea, that you could trade foreign currency, on an open market as you would with stocks. I was always under the assumption that this process was only reserved for financial institutions, or governments. I was also under the assumption that if you wanted to participate in the trade of foreign  currencies, you needed a license, as needed for those shops you see when travelling on vacation, that will exchange your money for you.

Well, you don't know what you don't know!

It seems this week I learned that foreign exchange trading is a real thing. Anyone with a computer/smartphone can set up an account and be trading within minutes, no license required.

This is what wiki has to say...

The foreign exchange market (Forex, FX, or currency market) is a global decentralized or over-the-counter (OTC) market for the trading of currencies. This market determines foreign exchange rates for every currency. It includes all aspects of buying, selling and exchanging currencies at current or determined prices. In terms of trading volume, it is by far the largest market in the world, followed by the credit market.[1] (click here to see the rest).

I just started learning, and haven't dared to invest any real money yet, but it seems exciting. One of the benefits of Forex trading is that because of these micro transactions, you aren't spending a vast amount of money, and that $100 can get you started.

I'm not going to make any recommendations, as I'm still learning and trying to understand how to use the software properly. However I am thinking this might be a topic that will take a few more weeks... 

Stay tuned

Episode 7: Life Is Precious

Episode 7: Life Is Precious

Getting back into blogging has been a good way for me to slow down, and re-evaluate the important things in my life. I am living during a time gifted to me by my ancestors, where my life, while hectic by modern standards, pales by comparison to the plight of previous generations, whose survival depended on the provision of food, clothing, and shelter. I have been afforded the opportunity to shift my focus away from the monotony of day to day chores, so as to fill my little bit of extra time expanding my knowledge of the world around me. Even though the shackles of survival have been cast off, constraints of time, destiny and fate continue to disrupt our path through life.

What I have learned this week is a lesson I've regretted learning so many times in the past. Be it the loss of a family member, a friend, a colleague, or even an acquaintance, nothing prepares you for the sadness and emptiness that death brings.

Normally I would be creating content for this blog, by researching a new topic, to share with all of you. This week however I will be attending a funeral, and as I write this I remember back to all the others that death has taken from me over the years, quietly saying a prayer for all of them.

Thanks for understanding, and I will return next week with new content.

Episode 6: Moral Licensing

Episode 6: Moral Licensing 

Wikipedia describes moral licensing as follows...

Self-licensing (aka noble cause corruption, moral self-licensing, moral licensing, licensing effect, moral credential effect) is a term used in social psychology and marketing to describe the subconscious phenomenon whereby increased confidence and security in one's self-image or self-concept tends to make that individual worry less about the consequences of subsequent immoral behavior and, therefore, more likely to make immoral choices and act immorally.[1][2][3][4][5][6] In simple terms, self-licensing occurs when people allow themselves to indulge after doing something positive first; for example, drinking a diet soda with a greasy hamburger and fries can lead one to subconsciously discount the negative attributes of the meal's high caloric and cholesterol content.[7]

A large subset of this effect, the moral credential effect, is a bias that occurs when a person's track record as a good egalitarian establishes in them an unconscious ethical certification, endorsement, or license that increases the likelihood of less egalitarian decisions later. This effect occurs even when the audience or moral peer group is unaware of the affected person's previously established moral credential. For example, individuals who had the opportunity to recruit a woman or African American person in one setting were more likely to say later, in a different setting, that a job would be better suited for a man or a Caucasian person.[8] Similar effects also appear to occur when a person observes another person from a group they identify with making an egalitarian decision.[9]

Self-licensing can have negative societal consequences since it has a permissive effect on behaviors such as racial prejudice and discrimination, selfishness, poor dietary and health habits, and excessive energy consumption.

Like always, please chime in to the comments and let me know what you think..