My first day of Autumn reads (Fall Equinox is 8:04 P.M!):
• How Much Is Being Close to Your Favorite Artist Worth? Superfans Are Reshaping the Concert Industry: Rosalind Adams on fans spending thousands for barricade spots and VIP perks — and how that’s becoming normal. Some admit to spending thousands of dollars for barricade spots and other VIP perks at concerts, which is slowly becoming common (The Guardian)
• Mohamed El-Erian Walked Away From a Nine-Figure Job After His 10-Year-Old Handed Him a List of Life Events He’d Missed: The PIMCO exit story, retold as nearly half of full-time working parents say they miss their kids’ activities for work. (Moneywise)
• Beyond RMDs: A better way to turn retirement savings into income: As more than 11,000 Americans turn age 65 every day,1 we’re seeing an important financial issue emerge: Most retirees don’t use—or may not know how to use—their retirement savings to generate steady income. (Vanguard)
• America’s Capital of Homebuying Regret: Business Insider on Austin — where Ryan McPherson bid $20,000 over asking in 2022, wrote the sellers a heartfelt letter, and now watches prices fall. Meet the Texas homeowners who are deep in the red thanks to Austin’s long, painful real estate hangover (Business Insider)
• He spent 11 months inside DOGE. Now he wants to set the record straight. Elizabeth Dwoskin on Tyler Hassen, whose initiation into Musk’s efficiency department started as a series of tests. (Washington Post)
• ‘Toxic Multitasking’ Is Breaking Your Brain. Here’s How to Take Control: Doing more than one thing at once, especially on screens, can become addictive, which harms the functioning of our brain and nervous system. Jolie Kerr on the always-on default — email during Zoom, Instagram during television — and what it does to the nervous system. (Washington Post)
• Fear Strikes Out, But the Hatred Remains: Europe and Canada reduced dependence on the United States. And Mark Carney, Canada’s Prime Minster, strongly endorsed the idea. Donald Trump predictably, reacted with rage, calling it a “hostile act,” threatening to cut off all trade with Europe. And nobody cared. (Paul Krugman)
• Canada’s Carney embraces tighter ties with E.U. despite Trump warning: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney addressed European lawmakers after E.U. officials said Canada could become the bloc’s first “associate member.” (Washington Post)
• The Healthiest Way to Drink Your Coffee, According to a Nutritionist: Coffee and the wellness world have a complicated reputation. You may have heard that it can spike cortisol, disrupt sleep, irritate your stomach, or totally dehydrate you—but that it’s also packed with antioxidants and may offer some real health benefits. So, which is it? Marie Bladt gets the answer. (Vogue)
• What’s Happening to the WNBA Isn’t Normal: Jemele Hill on a league whose unprecedented success has come with unprecedented controversy. Something has to change. (The Atlantic)
Video of the day: Max Verstappen passes 100 karts in just 14 laps in Red Bull’s ‘Max vs 100’.
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business with Glen Kacher, founder and CIO of Light Street Capital. He launched the firm in Palo Alto after stints working with Julian Roberts at Tiger and Roger McNamee at Integral. His Mercury funds returned 45.7% in 2023, 59.4% in 2024, and 37.3% in 2025 — the best three-year stretch of any of the “Tiger Cubs.” He describes the firm as “the Silicon Valley Home Team, 100% focused on tech opportunities.”
Earnings growth has been the main driver of equity returns over the past 18 months in all regions
Source: Goldman Sachs
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