Our weekly thoughts and general ramblings about everything related to business – from industries and investments to management and operations.

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Skills Training

As mentioned in previous posts, we aim to help small businesses create sustainable processes by focusing on being “clock-builders” not “time-tellers.” For us, a crucial aspect of creating a lasting institution is the continuous education of our workforce regarding our particular approach to business.

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May 10, 2021

Riding the Bench

We are keen students of long-term compounders and are fans of the greats—Berkshire, Constellation, Markel, and Danaher, among others. We take inspiration from these incredible companies, many of whom have routinely compounded capital above 20% for decades.

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May 3, 2021

The Sound of Silence

We recently learned that Ruth Bader Ginsberg was known for her awkward pauses (to be fair, probably not awkward for her, just awkward for her counter-parties.) From a 2013 The New Yorker article: "During conversations, she is given to taking lengthy pauses. This can be unnerving, especially at the Supreme Court, where silence only amplifies the sound of ticking clocks.

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April 26, 2021

Snakes!!

Until last week, we never spent much time thinking about snakes other than how they got on a plane with Samuel L. Jackson. Last week, however, we listened to a 99 percent invisible podcast about snakes that blew our minds. Take, for instance, the way the majority of antivenom is made.

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April 19, 2021

Quick and Dirty

Last year, we were saddened to hear of the passing of Robert Gore, the chemical engineer who invented Gore-Tex (by accident) back in 1969. The story goes as follows: "In October 1969, chemical engineer Robert Gore was performing low-tech experiments for a Delaware company founded by his parents. W.L. Gore & Associates made insulated wires and cables for electronic equipment.

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April 12, 2021

The Day Before Season

Last Monday was the "season start" for our lawn care business. The company's CEO, who writes a weekly in-season email to his team, spiced things up with a poem written to the syntax of 'Twas The Night Before Christmas. We thought we'd share this as an example of how we take our work seriously but don't take ourselves seriously (and know how to have a bit of fun).

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April 5, 2021
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