Variety

I went to the gym today and realized that I did not feel like doing a leg work out. Something about squats and leg extensions just sounded painful and boring. So, I just went straight to upper body. I usually start with legs to get them out of the way. I've heard that working the legs and doing other exercises that work out the largest muscle groups releases hormones which makes all the other muscles grow more. In any event, I skipped legs...until the end. Towards the end of my workout, I felt like my body wanted to do some squatting. So, instead of doing the normal squat machine, I loaded up some plates on a barbell and did about 4 sets of real squats. I then moved over to the squat machine and did two more sets. I threw in some leg extensions and leg curls until failure for good measure. In the end, I worked out my legs much more than usual and I started the workout without an inclination to do legs.

I think it was the fact that I saved the legs till the end that led me to do more...by why more? Why didn't I just do the normal leg workout. Sometimes after about 20 or 30 minutes of working out some chemicals seem to get flowing in the brain which make you feel like you just "love" to workout. You feel happy and proud that you are working out and it feels fun to be there. So, by the end, maybe the fun hormones were firing away and doing 3x as much leg work just sounded fun.

Or, perhaps some of it was due to the fact that I did legs in a different order. And, this is the point of the blog post. As I pondered the fact that changing up the order actually led to more working out instead of less, I realized that my personality just likes variety. I took the Meyers Briggs test and found out I am an ENTJ. One of the traits on an ENTJ is that they are easily bored with repetition. It was actually freeing to learn this as a personality trait because it helped me understand that not everyone gets bored so easily as I do. I also am learning that I have to structure my life and work around this propensity to get bored easily by repeated tasks.

On the one hand it is a challenge. In web design for example, I benefit financially from doing a task many times because I get quicker at the task. If I am billing by the project, I make much more the 10th time I do a task than I do the first time. But, believe it or not, sometimes I Just don't feel like doing certain tasks because I've done them so many times before. I procrastinate a job that pays quite easily just because it seems tedious or boring. On the other hand, I'll spend an entire Saturday trying to learn a new web design skill for a project that is only a hopeful project.  But, I love learning the new trick. I don't even mind that much if I don't get the job to which it pertains. Just the excitement of growing and learning is a motivating.

So, I'm pondering how the desire to do something new can be financially rewarding. Learning tasks once in a rudimentary way seems to not lead directly to revenue. But, perhaps if I were too teach what I learned then it could produce revenue. I really love to teach. Every time I learn anything new, I like to teach it. The subject doesn't really matter. Another option is to learn new web design tricks and teach employees how to repeat the tasks...this is probably the most direct method. However, being a teacher of well...anything new I learn sounds fun. Here are some things I could teach on:

• Discounts on Disney World hotels (seriously, I have some amazing tricks and an amazing track record)
• Web Design
• Incorporating a business
• Taxes
• College Ministry
• Relationship between Taxes and Economic Growth
• Saving for retirment
• Buying a car
• Insurance

Well, I'll be sure to share with you my next greatest lesson.

It was just ruled that Transocean (RIG) is not liable for some aspects of the oil rig explosion in 2012. Whatever the ruling, RIG is up 9% in after hour trading. Unfortunately I can't sell after hours with my broker. We'll have to see where things settle tomorrow morning. Very exciting! I guess my hopes from the previous post are coming true sooner than expected.

Transcocean coming back (RIG)

Well, in November I posted my recommendation for buying Transocean (RIG), citing that it was #1 in its industry and had severely beaten stock price only due to oil spill woes and not to actual financial results. The last few days RIG has shown an amazing comback. I will admit that I bought a lot of RIG and then watched even my low priced purchases turn into a 15% loss. I bought 4 times, each time lower than the previous and I still saw my balance at down 15%. I did not freak out and now I am down only 0.5%. I plan to sell when I am up 8-10%  I made my last purchase when I recommended you do so, a day before ex-dividend. The dividend payment on that last purchase was 1.77%...not an annual return of 1.77% but the dividend itself was that much.  I imagine in the next few weeks I will sell at an 8-9% appreciation and factor in the 1.5% or so dividend for about a 10% return in 4 months.

I just think its great that such value options exist. Probably I should hold onto RIG until it rises up to $70 a share...but my goal is usually 10% in 3-6 months time. Some stocks seem to get up to a 10% gain and then go back down or hover in the same spot for a year. I like to sell when I'm up and quit watching the darn think. Like in this case with RIG, it has taken me through an emotional roller coaster enough already. I'd like that to end and 10% in 4 months if fine by me. A recent post chronicles a similar story with CSCO, although that one required about 7 months of waiting and purchases over about a 4 month period. CSCO has risen past when I sold it..but not by much..and without selling CSCO I would not have been able to buy as much RIG.  So, I prefer to make 10% on two occasions in a year instead of making 11% in one year..maybe.  Such has been my luck so far atleast.

Nevertheless, I remain a friend of value investing and encourage you to do the same.