value(8/1)
Trade is not swapping fixed value objects
TODO: find a good definition for what trade IS, then rename this post. 💬 the classic cognitive error of imagining that trade is about swapping fixed-value objects, rather than creating new value from a confluence of one’s needs and the other’s affordances. It’s only in the imaginary zero-sum world that you can generally replace trade with stealing the other party’s stuff, if the other party is weak enough. Katja Grace…
Dont measure your value by how youre treated
Overwork is a response to lower value production
Tim’s thoughts on the breakdown of value production as a source of American overwork are novel. He uses many well-trodden arguments, but I think there’s something to be said for the “arms race” that exists in white collar professions. My work at Relativity met this description; even though we were firmly ensconced as the number one e-discovery software company, serving a community notorious for its reticence to change, we worked like Cold War arms dealers to stay ahead.…
Value proposition alternative
Value Proposition Alternatives The Construction Site makes technical business interactions between U.S. and Omani companies successful by framing the business representative’s visit with on-site cultural mentorship and preventative health measures. The local community is reinforced with short-term trauma assistance and employment opportunities for part-time local business owners. Ad-Lib #1: Our preventative health packages helps U.S.-based business representatives who’ve traveled to Oman for stays longer than two weeks who want to remain mentally, spiritually, and emotionally healthy by smoothing the effects of culture shock and clarifying communication between them and their sending company.…
Value proposition canvas
Deliver post-MBA graduates consulting experience in their dream field. Business Description: MBA graduates who desire to integrate their studies with the daily practice of a startup find it a challenge to connect with entrepreneurs who will pay for their consulting services. These graduates may face ‘imposter syndrome’ - the sense their education belies their ability - and desire a testing ground for the concepts they have learned. A consultant who acts as a middleman between the fresh MBA student and a selection of businesses, who will connect the student with a personalized business tailored to their MBA experience and will benefit the business by identifying talented managers, partners, and consultants available for hire.…
Accounting describes measurable value
If an asset may be measured reliably, it belongs to Accounting. The dollar amount in the bank is accountable, for it has an exact value at any point in time. Property value is accountable, for the market estimate of its value may be reliably calculated. The right to be reimbursed for services is accountable, for the value of those services may be measured. There are some assets which cannot be reliably measured and therefore do not belong to Accounting.…
Only assets generate value
The structure of accounting around the world rests upon five fundamental categories: assets, liabilities, equity, income, and expense. Every possible financial iteration may be represented by a transfer from one of these categories to another. Take out a $10,000 loan? Your assets increase by $10,000, and your liability to the bank increases by the same amount. Pay $1,000 off the loan? Your liabilities decrease to $9,000 and your equity grows by the same amount.…
Adopt financial models with caution
Adopt the financial models of your industry peers, but don’t blindly accept that their accounts breakdown measures your business' true value. Few businesses have revolutionary financial models. Most are a slight variation on an existing financial model, or even an exact replica for a different market. A manufacturing business need not reinvent how it will record materials costs because it’s already standard practice to record these under COGS (cost of goods sold).…
Transactions create value
When a tailor makes a hand-made dress, she spends time and effort to make it special. The cost of the materials added to the cost of her time and expertise determine what the value of the dress is. Prior to the tailor’s labor, there were only raw materials, able to be sold at the same value as they were purchased. Yet the price she sells the dress for reflects not only the sum of the materials and labor that went into it, but also a margin for profit.…