The Bottom Line Is A Big Change Influencer

Here's a typical scenario. A customer, client, patient, or buyer recognizes an error, discrepancy, miscalculation, or exclusion. The party converses professionally to management, agent, doctor, ownership, or seller. The talking points are clear. Tones are calm. Spoken words are mature. Everyone is patient. Unfortunately, sometimes talking points are confusing. Tones are conflicted. Spoken words are shouted. No more patience. Regardless, there is no change. The management party and the like changes nothing even if the customer party and the like are correct.

Follow the pattern. There are more errors, discrepancies, miscalculations, or exclusions. The management party and the like continue changing nothing. It doesn't matter who's correct and who's incorrect. The system is unchanged. Give it time. The best change instigator is money. The catalyst for change is profit. The bottom line is the wake up call. We see changes everyday in the business news. A company misses their forecasts. A company announces changes. We see changes everyday in the sporting news. A professional sports team with multiple losing seasons. Ownership announces coaching changes.

Money talks. Profit talks. Problems are no longer ignored.

Post-It Notes Notes

Blogger's note: The following knowledge or trivia are written in Post-It Notes a decade ago. All are shared mostly written as-is. I minimally edited the blog grammatically.

Nudging The Customer. Behavioral economics. Here are three simple marketing or selling procedures.

1. Invoke social norming or social peer pressure. Many people like you . . . . I wouldn't want you to miss out . . . .
2. Lost aversion. We are so confident you stay with you. You can cancel anytime; we won't pin you down.
3. Positively. Most people choose B, but you can choose A or C.

There are simple manipulation statements. "Four seats at this price" doesn't necessarily mean the cheapest. There could be another four seats cheaper. Another statement is "limited time at *insert price*" implies scarcity.

If you don't know, then you don't know. Demos? What are the demos?

Follow me lead. The conversation below:

Person 1: Hold on a minute. Just play along. Follow me lead. (Person 1 implies following the train of thought.) Person 2: Okay, I'm sorry. Person 1: I'm playing 20 questions. (Person 1 taking the conversation to a deeper thought.)

A phantom dating philosophy. I believe this until I'm proven otherwise. This is my knowledge . . .

Brian Howie on dating. Men on women: Make it easier. Men look for green lights. Women on men: Try [or do] harder. Women look for red flags.

A basic oral sex man going down on a woman.

1. Place a pillow below the female's butt.
2. Pull her pelvis in toward her.
3a. Tease the clitoris. Kiss the vagina lips. Kiss around the vagina area. Sneak breast massage. The clitoris is last.
3b. Curl your tongue. Flick like a butterfly--flutter, suck. The mouth on her clitoris forms a circle.

Texting words with emotion. It depends between the couples. Choose the emotional degree. Context is a factor. Either "Hey, what are you doing this weekend, we should hang out" or "Hey, what's shakin, what trouble are you getting this weekend?"

Kegel exercise for me. Hold your urine for five seconds before peeing.

Gary Chapman on the five love languages to give love and to receive love. Quality time, gifts, physical touch, words of affirmation, and kind services.

What motivates you when you wake up in the morning? My answer is I'm one step closer to become a self-trained genius.

Time. Do your time or don't let time do you. Agree or disagree.

averse: having a strong dislike of or opposition to something; strong opposite. Rise averse is reluctant to take risks.

Wash a mouse pad. Use Dawn dish soap to clean a mouse pad. Apply the dish soap. Run cold water over the mouse pad under the kitchen faucet or shower head. Hang dry.

Screwed Or Not Screwed

I ask questions about myself. I answer "screwed" or "not screwed" followed by an explanation. I choose no NSFW answer "fucked" or "not fucked." There is no 50/50 middle ground. If it's 51% screwed, then I'm screwed. If it's 51% not screwed, then I'm not screwed. Here are the self-analysis questions:

*Find a job: screwed. The unemployed readers know the truth. There are fewer job openings. There are too many unemployed seeking employment from the fewer job openings.

*Health: not screwed. I include physical fitness. I workout four days a week. I minimize eating processed foods. I sleep eight hours a night. I drink water when I'm thirsty.

*Money: screwed. All prices are going up. All costs are going up. All payments are going up.

*Job training: screwed. On the one hand, I finished my self job training on Apr 19, 2024 Self Job Training Graduation Analytics Research Technology. On the other hand, the continued job training remains too slow. There is too much to learn. There are good free learning resources. I'm skeptical on paid online training.

*Learning outside the job training: not screwed. Finding new life skills is slow and sure. An advantage being unemployed is plenty of time to learn. These skills can be useful tomorrow.

*Socialize with friends and family: not screwed. I started meeting my friends post pandemic. I started meeting new people post pandemic. I'm patient.

*COVID-19: not screwed. I wear masks. I'm updated on the latest vaccines. I never tested positive.

*Timing, luck, destiny, karma: screwed. The world has not been flowing in my favor for years.

*Time remaining to live life: screwed. My life is either paused or moving forward too slowly. I follow through everything I learned. Too many delays. Too many stalls.

*Happiness in the short term: not screwed. I wrote being a happy loser My Problems Are Nothing on Dec 27, 2024 compared to many people with bigger unhappy problems.

*Happiness in the long term: screwed. Money is not a factor to become happy. However, money helps a person become happy. I don't know the future regarding money.

*Mental: not screwed. I separate physical health and mental health. I read books. I job training. I learn life skills. Never stop learning.

Take The Chances Being Alone

There are many articles published during the COVID-19 global pandemic more people are living alone. More people live with fewer friends. People come and go in our lives. However, it's harder to meet new people. It's harder to find friends. More people are choosing to live alone. More people are choosing to live with minimal friends. More people are choosing to minimize their time with family.

My unprofessional and unscientific reason more people take their chances of being alone is average intelligence declining. More people are getting dumb. There are fewer strong people. There are fewer smart people. The strong people don't want to be with weak people. The smart people don't want to be with dumb people. They don't want to waste their time with other people who drag themselves down. If a person is making them feel dumb, then the person is out. No idiots in our lives. No morons in our lives. These alone people take their chances by themselves. Rational people avoid crazy, uncomfortable, and rude people. Minor Moby Dick by Herman Melville spoiler alert: "Better sleep with a sober cannibal than a drunken Christian."

The common answers work, too much technology making more people anti-social, family responsibilities, and depression are valid. I add lack of strength to the list of common answers people are alone. I add weak goodness to the list of common answers people are alone. Be a good person--don't be a nice person.

Don't Settle

I'm changing. There is something to learn daily. There is something to change daily. There is a different life flow daily. Sometimes today's life flow is good. Sometimes today's life flow is bad. A discovery can occur when life flow is good or bad.

There are infinite types of good change and bad change. I hope for more good changes than bad changes. I increase my chances for good changes as long as I don't settle. Never settle. Keep learning. Seek new adventures. Experience new experiences. The negative changes settling down are noticeable especially being a second party or third party observer. Intelligence decreases. Lower strength. Motivation weakens. Slower physical abilities. Muddle thinking. Increase desperate actions. Too much hustle. Too many bad choices. A settled person is lucky if he or she notices the negative changes, and he or she acts to unsettle.

Don't settle. Discover daily. Innovate infinitely.

Update On A Past Blog

Today's blog is another example of change says yes to Raymond Mar. I wrote Change Says No To Raymond Mar on Oct 18, 2017. I'm not settling. I continue working to become a self-trained genius. Geniuses don't settle.

Settle Down And Intelligence Quotient Goes Down

How does a person know he or she is losing intelligence? Self-evaluating I.Q. can be difficult. It can be hard to be honest with oneself. Maybe a trusted family member calling out the person getting dumber? Maybe a trusted friend calling out the person getting dumber? Maybe a third-party person calling out the person getting dumber? Maybe an event acts as a wake-up call the person is getting dumber? "What the heck is going on with me?" is an example of a question the person asks himself or herself something wrong.

I witness people who settled down for years they're losing intelligence. I notice their I.Q.s are dropping. Never settle. Minimize the television shows, video games, and social medias. Slow down to minimize stress. Take a breath. Continue learning. Use the brain or lose the brain. Read books. Continue physical fitness. Use the knees and elbows or lose the knees and elbows. Always seek new adventures. Experience new experiences indefinitely. Maintain sharp senses eyes to see, ears to hear, hands to touch, nose to smell, and tongue to taste; for example, try new foods. Never stop innovating--innovate infinitely.

The late Steve Jobs on don't settle: Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.

Learn Something Everyday

Blogger's Note: May is pic month. I'm catching up posting pics from my smart phone. Enjoy!

Today we learn some homeless people are happy, seal by the side front, some libraries sell used books outside their libraries, some mosquitos are geniuses, sober people are safer than drunken people, give king size candy bars for thoughtful gifts, pet friendly insect traps, all retail stores profit from Halloween, fix a toilet bowl leak, and don't pay full price for a small bag of potato chips.

Update On A Past Blog

The blog Homeless Encampment Eviction Day Real Story on Mar 23, 2024 for which the YouTube comments told the real story instead of the television news story reminded me of the blog The Person Wants No Help written on Mar 24, 2015. Some of the homeless people want no help. The first pic in today's blog is another viewpoint on homeless people. There are happy homeless people.

Throwback Blog: A Second Look At 2015

Blogger's Note: Throwback blogs are blogs from my past. I start posting past blogs reflecting what I wrote. It's like my "A Second Look" blogs for which I give myself feedback.

Today's throwback blog is titled A Second Look At 2015 written on Dec 17, 2016. These are the top 18 blogs in 2015. All of the feedbacks are true today. The general feedback for the feedbacks is I practice them today. An additional feedback for the feedback 4. A Sample Of Changes Everyday is I see more people losing natural beauty as they naturally age. I reiterate 6. I Define Self-Respect for which people with problems don't respect themselves. I remind responsible adults 14. Accept The Daily Adult Living. I could have slowed down multiple times during my Self Job Training Graduation Analytics Research Technology; on the other hand, it took me nine years and two months to complete. Regardless, 17. Yes Slow Down eat breakfast, eat lunch, eat dinner, sleep well, and pace accordingly are great to slow down.

It's the time I look back at my 2015 blogs to give myself feedback. The goal is the same as past second looks: relearning from my mistakes, reinforcing my lessons, reminding myself my moments, refreshing acquired knowledge, rediscovering new wisdom, and correcting errant blogs. These blogs are also the 2015 best blogs.

There are 18 blogs for A Second Look 2015. There were 17 blogs for A Second Look 2014 and 11 blogs for A Second Look 2013. These 18 blogs are spread throughout the year. The breakdown: Jan has 3, Feb has 1, Mar has 3, Apr 1, Jun 2, Jul 3, Aug 1, Oct 3, and Nov has 1. I continue my second looks in Dec because I want a full year to think about my past year.

I provide the title and link to the original blog, date, summary, and my feedback. Enjoy!

Blog Title: 1. Exercise Your Body From Head To Toe Inside And Outside
Date: Tuesday January 6, 2015
Summary: Use it or lose it. Use your abilities physically, mentally, and emotionally. Otherwise, you lose them.
Feedback: The blog is another way to say maintain your body inside and outside.

Blog Title: 2. My Spirituality Discovery
Date: Sunday January 11, 2015
Summary: Reading my personal bible once a week and sleeping seven nights a week are my spiritual discoveries.
Feedback: The next job my spiritual practice sleeping is a weekday priority. I admit I haven't read my personal bible weekly for months. Ironically, I have been productive completing my responsibilities one at a time. No rushing. Minimize stress. I pace myself. Fortunately, I remember most of my personal bible I recite at times I need encouragement.

Blog Title: 3. Go Get My Life
Date: Saturday January 31, 2015
Summary: Getting a life requires working. A good life is not given on a silver platter. Be responsible. Don't take life for granted.
Feedback: I wonder if I wrote the blog in 2007, then I tell myself I'm full of shit. 2007 was the year I took all my successes and fortunes for granted. The blog above is I'm a man of my word today sincerely and truthfully. I continue learning new job skills. I workout at the gym. Moreover, I'm retired from anime. I say goodbye to anything and to anyone holding me back. I have more free time to earn a good life.

Although my past contract job ended up nowhere, I continue doing what I wrote. No wasting time. No jerking around. No taking my life for granted. Work and earn.

Blog Title: 4. A Sample Of Changes Everyday
Date: Friday February 27, 2015
Summary: I wrote four life changing samples humans experience. They were beauty, jobs, climate, and computer.
Feedback: Quoted for emphasis. Our looks change as we age. Many of us find another job. The weather patterns are changing. Technology innovates every day. Most changes are beyond our control.

Blog Title: 5. Work Sat Mar 7, 2015
Date: Saturday March 7, 2015
Summary: I drove on the carpool lane solo to work on Wed Feb 25 and Thur Feb 26 because there were two car accidents in those two day.
Feedback: I never drive on the carpool lane solo for the rest of my life regardless of time. I never drive on the carpool lane solo between the minutes before the carpool time starts and the minutes after the carpool time ends. Why? A police officer pulled over three solo drivers minutes before the carpool lane time ended on Thur Feb 26. I was lucky I merged out of the carpool lane.

Blog Title: 6. I Define Self-Respect
Date: Thursday March 12, 2015
Summary: My self-respect definition is live a good life. Take care of yourself. Be active. Avoid situations where you're uncomfortable.
Feedback: Here is another blog I wonder if I wrote the blog in 2007, then I tell myself I'm full of shit. To repeat, 2007 was the year I took all my successes and fortunes for granted. Self-respect is controlling more of your life. I want to control more of my life. I want to be in my driver's seat. Be professional. Avoid anything and anyone holding me back. Self-respect requires strength, courage, intelligence, and desire. Sometimes self-respect includes saying good-bye.

Blog Title: 7. My Girlfriend's Ultimatum Or Her French Black Dress
Date: Sunday March 15, 2015
Summary: The blog is from a dream. It tells me how to make my lover happy. Also, for the record, my lover must make me happy.
Feedback: Be the best. Never take my woman's love for granted. I want to be the person not to get the French Black Dress. Be strong. Be smart. Improve. Show the world the woman is happy being with me.

Blog Title: 8. Never Give Up Finding The Ultimate Happiness
Date: Saturday April 11, 2015
Summary: There is a human being meant to fall in love with another human being.
Feedback: The bullshit blog theme continues. I wonder if I wrote the blog in 2007, then I tell myself I'm full of shit. To repeat, 2007 was the year I took all my successes and fortunes for granted.

I believe it today. I'm always working on finding my ultimate happiness even when I'm unemployed and living with my parents. A lover makes happy life happier and sad life bearable. There is someone out there who's a match. There are an infinite amount of different people including geeks, boring people, introverts, book lovers, adventurers, wine lovers, and preppers.

Blog Title: 9. The Past Caught Up With Me
Date: Wednesday June 10, 2015
Summary: The problems I ignored in the past are affecting me in the present. Some of the problems included living a boring life and poor job skills.
Feedback: Checkpoint. How am I doing solving my past problems? They're a work in progress. I need more time. I'm optimistic my hard work catches me up what I missed pays off soon.

We live with problems. Nobody lives a life problem free. Carefree, worry free, and lazy people ignores problems. Eventually the problems come back in a negative way.

Blog Title: 10. My Manifesto Jun 11, 2015
Date: Thursday June 11, 2015
Summary: I wrote eight promises to live a good life. Some of the promises included get a job, live independently, and no hoarding.
Feedback: I need more time to accomplish the one shot goals. The indefinite promises are continuing accomplished.

Blog Title: 11. Top Ten Life Lessons From The Beatles
Date: Wednesday July 1, 2015
Summary: The ten life songs from The Beatles are Getting Better, You're Going To Lose That Girl, Here Comes The Sun, Something, Carry That Weight, We Can Work It Out, The Long And Winding Road, I've Got A Feeling, Get Back, and Let It Be.
Feedback: I repost to remind myself and my readers.

Blog Title: 12. Independence
Date: Friday July 3, 2015
Summary: The day I declare myself living independent is coming soon.
Feedback: Here is a 2015 bullshit blog. On the other hand, I wrote it on Independence Day weekend. Also, I have been repeating myself throughout 2015 my current life situation. In other words, duplicate blogs on how I'm getting better. Is it okay? I remind myself by repetition.

Blog Title: 13. Did I Make A Difference?
Date: Tuesday July 7, 2015
Summary: I recognize the people who helped me, taught me, and corrected me. I don't know how to pay back my debts for their assistance.
Feedback: I want to make a difference to other people. I have big debts to pay back. It's a question of when. I live my live in the driver seat. There are people who take a ride with me for which I make a different to all my passengers.

Blog Title: 14. Accept The Daily Adult Living
Date: Tuesday August 4, 2015
Summary: Strength, courage, flexibility, maturity, professionalism, and a grown-up behavior are required to live the adult life. No day is the same. Expect to be always behind in something. Be prepared for emergencies. Accept new challenges. Always meet new people. Stay active.
Feedback: Here is a good summary to live a good adult life; although, sometimes there are bad times. Nobody lives a 100% perfect easy life. Sometimes we must say no.

I see myself the life I described above as an adult. I hear stories and witnessed myself other people living the adult life above. Unfortunately, some of the adults do a poor job living the adult life. I live my adult life responsibility and intelligently.

Blog Title: 15. What I Learned Finishing CERT Academy Training?
Date: Wednesday October 7, 2015
Summary: One of the two concepts I learned was schools plant the seed. The responsibility to learn more and to become an expert is you. Don't take knowledge for granted. Never stop learning. Continue training. Continue refreshing. Innovate infinitely.
Feedback: Good parents encourage their children to infinitely learn. There's school vacation. There's no learning vacation. Continue learning something, anything. Likewise for adults. It's normal for a working adult to relax after a long day's work. Rest is required. No problem. Find some time in a calendar work week to learn something new. The learning can be job related or life related. The repetition is learning something new and reviewing something existing. Repeat infinitely.

In particular, the CERT 21 hour training planted the seed, started the motion what to learn and what to review, and continued learning. Similarly, I'm following the CERT self-learning attitude to learn Python, VBA, CSS, and JavaScript. There is so much to learn books and videos scratches the surfaces to become an expert. It takes time.

Blog Title: 16. Today I Want To Talk About Adventure
Date: Thursday October 8, 2015
Summary: Adventures are required to live a good life.
Feedback: Good adventures means a good life. Good stories attract good people or meet new people. Good stories mean a life without boredom. I have something to say. I don't have to stay something. Nobody wants to hear boring conversations.

Blog Title: 17. Yes Slow Down
Date: Friday October 9, 2015
Summary: Listen to your body. Get rest when you're tired.
Feedback: Eat your breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals daily. Never skip meals. I want to repeat. Sleep, take a breath, and pace yourself are all important.

Blog Title: 18. All The People In My Life
Date: Tuesday November 10, 2015
Summary: I ask myself the people I met in the past are doing better today. I want to be part of a group of people living a good life.
Feedback: I must make the blog true. My bullshit blogs end here. I don't take past people who helped me, shared their knowledge, and spent their time with me for granted. The next time these past people see me I'm a better Raymond Mar. I prove it to them. I prove it to the world. I nominated the blog for the blog of the year if there was an award.

I Read When I Was Five Years Old

Many of today's four year old children and five year old children can't read. I read sentences when I was five years old. I read words when I was in preschool. I remember reading my teacher's name on her desk. I remember reading my name on my snack bag my mom prepared me. I read books when I was in kindergarten. I remember reading the word "playhouse" in the indoor blue colored classroom playhouse with stairs, doors, beds, and a kitchen. I also read the instructions in the math book. My spelling was average. Perhaps, I was in the minority good reading skills didn't correlate with good spelling skills. Sesame Street taught me well.

What happened to schools today compared to decades ago? I don't know why today's young children can't read. On the other hand, I know junior high school students learning Algebra. My nephew learned Algebra when he was in junior high school. Perhaps, at the end of the day, today's public education system has neither progressed nor digressed.

2023 Year In Review

The six nominations and its explanations for the moment of the year.

1. Job training. Excel, Python, R and R-Studio, Linux, Power BI, SQL, and more. The basics were learned. I began the endgame which was the final review, final practice, and combined documentation from my favorite books and favorite videos. Five days of training per week plus one day for life skills training.

2. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville. I spent less time job training and more time finishing Moby-Dick for seven job training days. The last three chapters were the best final chapters I have ever read. I understand the jokes and references from other medias.

3. My 2005 Toyota Camry. The roof, trunk, left quarter panel, and right quarter panel were repainted. The headliner or the fabric inside the car's ceiling was replaced. I hand wash and hand wax four times a year to protect my classic car.

4. Physical fitness. My longest daily jog was 6.1 miles. I created a fifth workout plan for my mini home gym. I jogged with a knee brace on the right knee temporarily.

5. Wallstreet Bets. I learned more about Wall Street and financial investments in 2023 than in the past decades and the classes when I was a student at San Jose State University and De Anza College.

6. Video Games. I completed Left 4 Dead 2.

Explanation: The consistent and productive job training approached the final year like a senior year in college; moreover, I continued the Moby-Dick days spending less time job training like a graduating senior in high school suffering from senioritis. An all-time classic Moby-Dick deserved a nomination. Steve Jobs' biography by Walter Isaacson won in 2016. A Brief History Of Time by Stephen Hawking was nominated in 2022. Forget my car and video games. Too trivial.

I incorrectly mentioned my left rear knee injury in Nov-Dec 2022 from the 2022 Year In Review. It was my right rear knee. I learned a correct way to jog for which I don't need a knee brace. Wallstreet Bets continues my attention since Jan 2021. Financial education is part of my life skills training.

What Won: Physical fitness.

What Should Have Won: Physical fitness.

My Thoughts On The Winning Moment: I'm 0.1 miles away from running a 10k marathon. I continue learning better jogging techniques. I jogged from 3.0 miles in 2022 to 6.1 miles in 2023. I purchased a pair of ASICS jogging shoes not Nike for the first time. No major injuries.

Job training shouldn't win because I'm not completed with the training. It can win in 2023 when I complete the endgame.

2023 Letter Grade: B+. 2023 year ended fantastic. There were plenty of little wisdoms. There were plenty of wisdom reminders. Add those wisdoms for something big. Be grateful. Appreciate the present life. Don't take for granted the minimums food, shelter, and clothes; in addition, don't take for granted the Information Age minimums cell phones and computers with internet access. The minimums shouldn't be boring. There are some teenagers with wisdom beyond their years. There is a good way and there is a bad way to be patient. Life moves forward regardless of good moments and bad moments. The COVID-19 global pandemic survival mentality continues.

Past Moments Of The Years And Its Letter Grades

2022: Wallstreet Bets. Grade B.
2021: Wallstreet Bets. Grade B.
2020: First responders, doctors, nurses, and hospital staff. Grade B.
2019: Consistent gym workouts. Grade C+.
2018: Consistent gym workouts. Grade C-.
2017: O'Connor Hospital. Grade D.
2016: Steve Jobs' biography by Walter Isaacson. Grade F.
2015: Zion National Park. Grade A.

Correlation Does Not Imply Causation Short Education

Correlation means there is a relationship or pattern between two different variables. Causation means one variable or event causes another variable or event. The phase "correlation does not imply causation" is a false cause-and-effect relationship between two variables or events. "Correlation implies causation" is questionable when two variables or events occur together with a result. There is no logical conclusion or logical causation even though there is correlation between two variables or events.

We perform analysis to find what happened. A direct causation is A causes B. A reverse causation is B causes A. A common causation is A and B are both caused by C. A bidirectional or cyclic causation is A causes B and B causes A. A coincidence is no connection between A and B. Another explanation is A and B are correlated when A and B change and move together positively or negatively.

There are six reasons correlation does not equal causation. The first is an omitted variable. An omitted variable is a missing variable or missing factor. The second is an incorrect sample selection, incorrect data, missing sample selection, or missing data. The third is a mathematical error. The fourth is difficult to analyze. The fifth is coincidence. A reverse causation is the sixth.

Here are correlation doesn't imply causation examples:

*Ice cream sales and shark attacks increased during the summer months. More people ate ice cream caused more shark attacks. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. There were more people in the beaches during the summer months.
*People who exercised were more likely to get skin cancer. Exercise caused skin cancer. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. Sunlight exposure increased the chances of skin cancer. People reduced skin cancer by exercising more indoors and less outdoors.
*US universities awarded more Master's degrees each year since 1910. Movie theaters earned higher revenues each year since 1910. More people earned Master's degrees led to more people watching movies. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. Global population increased since 1910. More people attended college. More people watched movies.
*The state of Maine divorce rate increased because margarine consumption per capital increased. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. The divorce rate and margarine consumption were a coincidence.
*Pool drownings increased since 1910. Nuclear plants produced nuclear energy increased since 1910. Higher pool drownings caused more nuclear energy production. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. More homes were built with more pools. Nuclear energy became more viable.
*A windmill spinning causes wind. Correlation? No. Causation? No. The wind causes a windmill to spin.
*Drinking too much alcohol caused lung cancer. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. Smoking was a third variable. People who drank too much alcohol also smoked more causing lung cancer.
*The rooster crows when the sun rises in the morning. The rooster causes the sun to rise. Correlation? Yes. Causation? No. Coincidence. Obviously, the sun rises every morning.

The human mind likes to find patterns even when they don't exist. We formulate correlation and causation logic. It's important to distinguish between what variables or events to conclude causality. Determining causality is never perfect. In my opinion, concluding logical correlation imply causation is an art.

Update On A Past Blog

I wrote Did The Greatest Human Generation Doom Their Grandchildren And Their Future? on Mar 14, 2019. Millennials or Generation Y born between 1981 and 1996 and Zoomers or Generation Z born between 1997 and 2012 ask themselves why have children? Some of the present problems influence these two generations no raising families. The present problems include no retirement security, numerous wildfires, hotter summers, unaffordable childcare, expensive housing, mass shootings, and too much consumption. Generation Y and Generation Z may blame Generation X for artificial intelligence and robots replacing opportunities. Further, Generation Y and Generation Z may blame their grandparents during the Baby Boomers generation. Perhaps, the Baby Boomers forgot the tough lessons and rough lessons taught from their parents.

There is a pattern. Every generation blames the previous generation or previous two generations.

Here is the generation breakdown by the years people born in descending order:

*Generation Alpha: 2013-present
*Generation Z Zoomers: 1997-2012
*Generation Y Millennials: 1981-1996
*Generation X: 1965-1980
*Baby Boomers: 1946-1964
*Silent Generation: 1928-1945
*Greatest Generation: 1901-1927

Throwback Blog: The Lesson To Be Successful Rarely Taught

Blogger's Note: Throwback blogs are blogs from my past. I start posting past blogs reflecting what I wrote. It's like my "A Second Look" blogs for which I give myself feedback.

Today's throwback blog is titled The Lesson To Be Successful Rarely Taught written on Sep 12, 2018. Part of the title word Lesson should be Lessons in plural. The lessons are timing, luck, opportunity, and chance. I add how to learn from mistakes to the list of lessons. Teaching learn from mistakes is easier than timing, luck, opportunity, and chance. I also add motivation or desire is more important than knowledge or intelligence.

What is the lesson to be successful? The lesson is timing, luck, opportunity, and chance. How are timing, luck, opportunity, and chance taught? Impossible. If there is a way, then someone teach me. Also, if there is a way, then it's likely the teaching is difficult. Forget the quotes from the most successful people in business, sports, politics, and arts. Timing, luck, opportunity, and chance are four simple words to success. Many people can be engineers. Many people can be plumbers. Many people can be doctors and nurses. Many people can be accountants. Many people can be athletes making an income. Many people can be actors or actresses. Few people achieve those professions.

Are you at the right place at the right time? If yes, then timing favors you. Are you in good health? If yes, then you're lucky. Similarly, do you have a good brain and do you live in a good community? You have good luck. Do you have a complete college education or do you have good training? If yes, then you have opportunity. Do you have interviews? Do you have callbacks? Do you have invites? Do you have offers? Are you in the second round of an audition? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you have a chance.

Some people have the timing, luck, opportunity, and chance. Some people don't have the timing, luck, opportunity, and chance. There are winners and losers in championship games such as the Super Bowl and World Series. There are winners and losers in life. Some bad people win. Some good people lose. Life is unfair. Pray timing, luck, opportunity, and chance come to you.

Update On A Past Blog

Do you need a conversation starter? Do you need an ice breaker? Click Tell Me You Games for tips to get people talking. My tips I wrote on Dec 2014 may be silly. My tips are successful when people talk. The games bring back old school socialization. There are no texting, emailing, and video chatting. Everyone is present. Conversations are intelligent. Technology is okay to lookup information.

Top Ten Plus Eight Equals Top Eighteen Improved My Quality Of Life I Wished I Did Them Sooner

Anything goes big or small. Never stop improving. Never stop innovating. Innovate infinitely. These improvements changed my life. We experience the "I wish it happened before." Better late than never. Here are the top ten plus eight equals top eighteen improved my quality of life I wished I did them sooner.

18. No More Family Guy. I donated all my Family Guy DVDs. My intelligence improved afterwards. I can't explain it.

I also donate DVDs and books I'm no longer interested. Free shelf space. Less clutter.

17. Cursive Writing. I started to write cursive again on Jul 1, 2017. Writing became faster.

16. Ambient Light. I installed an LED soft white light strip behind my desktop PC and along the wall on Dec 2019. My eyes strained less at night.

15. Harry Potter. I read Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling for the first time in Sep 2019. I read the series three times.

14. Trekking Poles. I backpacked with a rented walking stick for the first time at The Narrows Top To Bottom at Zion National Park on Oct 3-4, 2015. The pole saved my ass. I upgraded all hiking equipment and purchased new camping equipment afterwards. I always hike with trekking poles.

13. No More Sunday Worries. I worried about Mondays on Sundays throughout my childhood and my young adulthood. The worrying stopped when I learned worry about tomorrow--tomorrow. Live the present.

12. The Power Of Goodbye. Be brave to retire. Be courageous to move forward. It's time to move on. People grow apart. It's time to say goodbye. It's life.

11. It's Okay To Quit. Most things don't work. It's okay to quit. Stop when something is not working out. No need to be arrogant.

10 Steve Jobs. I read the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson on Mar 2016. I promise people change after reading the book. A few examples are the following: Picasso had a saying--"good artists copy, great artists steal"--we have always been shameless . . . stealing great ideas; innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have; quality is much better than quantity; and the journey is the reward. I read the book twice.

9. Run Raymond Run. One example the COVID-19 global pandemic changed my life is I jog more miles. I jogged 1.5 miles and rode the stationary bike for my cardio workouts at the gym before the pandemic. My longest distance is 6.1 miles.

8. Release The Cherish. Number eight is a number twelve extension. I was too sentimental. I was afraid to leave my comfort zone. I failed to say goodbye to people, to places, and to objects. We encountered new people, new places, and new objects. We made a choice to keep an existing cherish or choose a new cherish. Sometimes we said goodbye to a cherish to continue living.

7. Diet And Cooking. One benefit learning how to cook is I minimize eating junk food, eating processed food, and eating at restaurants. No moderation. Yes minimizing. I don't drink milk. I reduce my water intake drinking less than eight glasses of water a day. I drink when I'm thirsty.

6. The Shawshank Redemption. It took me decades to watch the movie. I mention no spoilers. There is a reason the movie is number one in IMDB's Top 250 Movies.

5. Job Training. Never stop learning new job skills. Never stop reviewing existing job skills. Learn, drill, practice, and repeat; likewise, to any and all skills and knowledge.

4. Grow Up. I grew up for the first time on Sat Oct 4, 2008. My life changed forever. It was time to grow up. No more immaturity. No more taking life for granted. I'm responsible for my life. Life is much better from a mature point of view. The changes were immediate. New clothes, new PC, new gym workouts, fiction books, new board games, and new hobbies such as ballroom dancing and hiking.

3. Timing And Luck. Timing and luck are factors to be successful. Opportunities and chances are required to be successful, too. If a person is not at the right place and the right time, then there are no opportunities and no chances.

Chances happen every second. The future is unknown. We take a chance something good or something bad comes tomorrow. We hope we are at the right place at the right time. Timing and luck are in favor. We hope we're not at the wrong place at the wrong time. Timing and luck aren't in favor. Life is unfair.

We control as much as we can to increase the odds. We can't control everything. Sometimes life decreases the odds. Stop counting the bad luck moments. Forget the bad timing instances. Add up the bad luck and bad timing creates frustrations, loses focus, depletes strength, increases stress, and forgets priorities.

2. Personal Boundaries. Set boundaries. If people don't set boundaries, then other people set the boundaries. People's lives are terrible when they worry about making their own choices and don't make their own choices. It's okay to say no without excuses.

1. Motivation. Desire is more important than knowledge. I will is prioritized over I know. Motivation is greater than knowledge.

Do You Really Care About Other People?

The answer to the question is counterintuitive. You must care about yourself to prove you care about other people. Don't sacrifice yourself to care for other people. If you're not well in all capacities, then you can't care for other people. The capacities are physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial. Both parties are negatively affected. Never expect greater than or equal to appreciation in return every time. There are jerks who take advantage of someone's kindness. There is less supply of kindness available for a greater demand requesting help.

Be simple, be effective, and be mindful for good timed caring actions. Motivation or desire is more important than knowledge. Further, a little knowledge is better than a lot of ignorance. Exercise well. Sleep plenty. Eat healthy.

Update On A Past Blog

I remind myself I never fully understand anything in life. I never fully understand *insert noun* or *insert adjective* or *insert verb* or *insert adverb*. I wrote I Never Fully And Truly Understand Someone Else's Feelings on Oct 7, 2006. Anytime I say, "I understand . . .", or another person tells me, "I understand . . .", I or the other person don't fully understand.

I reiterate an action on the day I realized I must grow up on Sat Oct 4, 2008. The action was "I forgave everything and everyone. . . ." I wrote blogs on the day I grew up. I choose Five Years Ago Today I Grew Up on Oct 4, 2013 as the update blog. Forgiving or forgiveness is like the weight I carried on my back lighten. Forgiving or forgiveness crumbles personal walls. Forgiving or forgiveness makes breathing easier. I also reiterate "the most important lesson I learned is never taking life for granted."

Highlight and Favorite 2022 Tweets

Here are my 11 highlight Tweets and 2 favorite Favorites Tweets in 2022. The goals delaying one year are relearning from my mistakes, reinforcing my lessons, reminding myself my moments, refreshing acquired knowledge, rediscovering new wisdom, and sharing changes. Follow me @inin61. Enjoy!

Highlights

Jan 3: @HistoryInPics, The last photograph of the Beatles together. August 22, 1969 at John Lennon's countryside estate Pic Link

Mar 3: I paid over $5 a gallon for gas at $5.27 earlier today. It was a first in #raymondshistorybook.

Apr 18: condone: to disregard or overlook (something illegal, objectionable, or the like); accept and allow (behavior that is considered morally wrong or offensive) to continue. #mynewwordoftheday

May 5: Job candidates can get hired by ignorance. Pic Link

May 13: It's brought to my attention the word "analysis" can't be spelled without the letters a-n-a-l.

Jun 27: There were 48 stars in the American flag during World War II. Alaska was admitted to the Union on Jan 5, 1959. Hawaii was admitted to the Union on Aug 21, 1959. #mytriviaoftheday

Sep 7: 109 degrees was a record high temperature in San Jose yesterday. My personal record high was 120 in Las Vegas during my Summer 1997 vacation. #raymondshistorybook

Sep 15: YouTube safety video a car crashes into an electrical pole. Stay in the car. Exit the car only if in danger. Exit jumping down feet together because of electrical touch potential. Walk short shuffling because of electrical step potential Video Link

Sep 29: superficial: existing or occurring at or on the surface. Appearing to be the true or real only until examined more closely. #mynewwordoftheday

Sep 30: Customer: We take the deal with no money down. Salesperson: No, money down.

Oct 13: The three major market indices reached new 52 week lows. The Consumer Price Index is +8.2% year over year. Dow Jones new 52 week low 28,660.94 and closed 30,038.72, NASDAQ new 52 week low 10,088.83 and closed 10,649.15, and S&P 500 new 52 week low 3,491.58 and closed 3,669.91.

Favorite Favorites

Jun 16: @BleacherReport, Warriors 21-0 run Pic Link

Jun 30: @LarryBeilABC7, As you watch the madness unfold with KD, Kyrie, Harden, Simmons, Ayton etc, understand the value of @StephenCurry30. The rare superstar who thinks TEAM before himself. Impossible to quantity how much his attitude & leadership are worth to the Warriors

Emotionally Draining

The 2023 Major League Baseball playoffs saw all three teams with 100 or more regular season wins eliminated in the best of five divisional rounds. The 90-win Philadelphia Phillies defeated the 104-win Atlanta Braves 3-1. The 90-win Texas Rangers defeated the 101-win Baltimore Orioles 3-0. The 84-win Arizona Diamondbacks defeated the 100-win Los Angeles Dodgers 3-0. The Dodgers and Orioles were the first time multiple 100-win teams who didn't win a postseason game. The Orioles were never swept during the regular season.

In addition, the Rangers defeated the 99-win Tampa Bay Rays 2-0 in a best of three wild card round. The Diamondbacks defeated the 92-win Milwaukee Brewers 2-0 in a best of three wild card round.

Full disclosure. I watched zero innings of the wild card and divisional playoffs. I'm not a professional sports journalist. I share my intuitive opinion. I believe winning 100 or more games was too hard. The 2023 season was emotionally draining. There are past 100+ win teams winning the World Series; for instance, the 2022 Houston Astros won 106 games, the 2018 Boston Red Sox won 108 games, the 2016 Chicago Cubs won 103 games, and the 1998 New York Yankees won 114 games. According to Wikipedia List of Major League Baseball 100 win seasons, 116 teams won 100 or more regular season games in a season as of the end of the 2023 season. 68 of the 116 teams played in the World Series (.586). 38 of the 68 teams won the World Series (.559). 38 of the 116 total teams won the World Series (.328).

The three 100+ win teams experienced winning emotional fatigue. The winning high was over when the postseason began. The winning feeling was over when the postseason began. Supplemental emotions or auxiliary emotions were required to reach 100+ wins. The three teams clinched a postseason spot. The 100+ wins meant nothing if the teams couldn't win postseason games. I'm sure physical fatigue and mental fatigue were nonfactors. Winning inspirations were jaded. No winning emotions feelings. No championship.

Emotional energy is unsustainable. Emotional energy depletes faster than physical energy and mental energy. Emotional energy is the easiest to achieve maximum. Emotional energy is the easiest to achieve empty. Physical and mental are more important than emotional. Skills, abilities, and knowledge are more important than feeling good. Is motivation or desire an emotional feeling? Is motivation or desire a spiritual feeling? Or is motivation or desire mental for which motivation is a state of mind? I have said motivation is more important than intelligence. I may have contradicted myself.

Success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration.

Human Influence

Another possibility is rigged games. Las Vegas casinos and sports bookies influences the games for which the underdogs won the series.

The National League Championship Series best of seven Phillies lead the Diamondbacks 2-1. The American League Championship Series best of seven Astros and Rangers are tied 2-2. Both series standings are as of today's blog.

I Have A Brain

I'm lucky I have a brain. Physical, mental, emotional, financial, and spiritual are strong. Physical, mental, emotional, financial, and spiritual are connected to my brain. Strong minds and strong bodies complement each other. Motivation or desire is focused. There is no point doing nothing. I might as well do something, anything to increase my chances of earning freedom. I do something, anything to seek new adventures and to experience new experiences. Use my brain or lose my brain. Take nothing for granted.

I can't imagine my life without a brain. I don't want to imagine my life without a brain. I see, hear, read, taste, and feel stupidity. I see, hear, read, taste, and feel unmotivated people. I'm lucky I'm not stupid. I'm lucky I'm motivated. I made more of my share of life mistakes. I assure the world lessons are learned. I assure the world more intelligent mistakes are made. I continue living a life with a brain.

Excel Tips I Tweeted

Here are my Excel tips from my Twitter @ININ61.

*Aug 11, 2023: Use EDATE() to return a date a number of months away. =EDATE("6/11/2023",1) returns 7/11/2023 +30 days. =EDATE("8/11/2023",-1) returns 7/11/2023 -31 days. =EDATE("2/29/2024",12) returns 2/28/2025 +365 days. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1690037846034563072)

*Jul 25, 2023: Left click the plus sign New Sheet on the worksheet tabs along the bottom inserts a new worksheet. Double left click New Sheet inserts a new worksheet and user renames the worksheet. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1683930698934280192)

*Jun 8, 2023: Press Alt, O, D to open the Conditional Formatting Rules Manager window. Press Alt, D, S to open the Sort window. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1666924039124963329)

*May 29, 2023: Press Ctrl+Shift+F to open Format Cells window Font tab active. It can be faster than Ctrl+1, F which also opens Format Cells window select Font tab. One less key stroke. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1663339001967939585)

*Apr 25, 2023: Excel table opened. Column filters on. Press Alt+Shift+Down on a column cell or press Alt+Down on a column header to open the filter drop down menu. Immediately press E to begin typing the search filter. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1650989145823793152)

*Mar 14, 2023: Display a decimal number as a whole number and fraction. Cell A1 is 333.33. Cell B1 is =TEXT(A1,"# ?/?") returns 333 1/3; =TEXT(A1,"# ??/??") returns 333 32/97. Cell A1 351.67. Cell B1 =TEXT(A1,"# ?/?") returns 351 2/3. 314.25 returns 314 1/4. 4.34 returns 4 1/3. #exceltip RM: Initial draft is Display a decimal number as a whole number and a fraction using the TEXT function. Cell A1 is 333.33. Cell B1 is =TEXT(A1,"# ?/?") returns 333 1/3; =TEXT(A1,"# ??/??") returns 333 32/97. Cell A1 is 351.67. Cell B1 is =TEXT(A1,"# ?/?") returns 351 2/3. Cell A1 314.25. Cell B1 i=TEXT(A1,"# ?/?") returns 314 1/4. 4.34 returns 4 1/3. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1635779231727886336)

*Dec 19, 2022: Press Ctrl+F to open Find and Replace window. Press Find Next search downwards. Hold Shift when pressing Find Next search upwards. (Tweet ID-1604903555747311617)

*Nov 23, 2022: Double click an option in a dialog box or pop-up window instead of pressing OK to execute. For example, press Ctrl+Shift+= *equal sign* to insert a row. Double click Entire row instead of selecting Entire row and pressing OK. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1595497363715420161)

*Sep 28, 2022: Extract unique values or extract duplicate values. Cells A1:A7 is a fruit table. Cell A1 is the column header. Cell C1 is =UNIQUE(A2:A7,0,0) returns unique values. Cell E1 is =UNIQUE(A2:A7,0,1) returns duplicate values only [--Apple and Orange are duplicates, formula returns Apple and Orange.] #exceltip (Tweet ID-1575184416179003392)

*Sep 16, 2022: Excel worksheet with multiple blank rows unconnected to be deleted. Select the entire cells. Press Ctrl+G. Press Special. Select Blanks. Press OK. Right mouse click a selected cell. Select Entire row. Press OK. Multiple blank rows deleted. #exceltip RM: Okay to select the leftmost column of data instead of the entire cells. (Tweet ID-1570830416139157505)

*Aug 29, 2022: Select all cells in an Excel table except the column headers. Press Ctrl+Spacebar, Shift+Spacebar. Or point cursor to the upper left of the Excel table. Cursor turns into an arrow pointing down and right or southeast. Single mouse click. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1564344389182185472)

*Jun 14, 2022: Left mouse click a calculation on the status bar to copy to clipboard. Paste anywhere. Highlight cells A1:A10. Left mouse click Sum: 55. Paste the sum 55 on cell B1. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1536811675348652032)

*Jun 7, 2022: Copy a cell or a text in Excel or another program. Press Alt+Ctrl+V to open the Paste Special window. There must be something to be pasted for Alt+Ctrl+V to work. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1534256145094782978)

*Apr 15, 2022: Press Alt+*number* to use the tools in the Quick Access Toolbar. My three tools are Format Painter, Speak Cells, and Select Objects from left to right in Excel. Alt+1 activates Format Painter. Alt+2 activates Speak Cells. Alt+3 activates Select Objects. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1515084816261152769)

*Jan 7, 2022: Scroll left and right on a worksheet without using the horizontal scroll bar. Hold Ctrl+Shift, scroll up and scroll down on your mouse wheel scroll the worksheet left and right. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1479586187027222529)

*Dec 29, 2021: Use TEXTJOIN to combine text from multiple cells. Cells A1 is Apple, A2 is Orange, A3 is Banana. Cell A5 is =TEXTJOIN(", ",TRUE,A1:A3) returns Apple, Orange, Banana for which TRUE ignores blank cells. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1476318390008442887)

*Dec 17, 2021: Press Shift+F2 to insert a New Note in a cell. Press Esc, Esc to save note and exit. Edit an existing note press Shift+F2. Save edit and exit press Esc, Esc. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1471999977983340547)

*Nov 1, 2021: Excel press Alt+Ctrl++ (plus sign) to zoom in. Excel press Alt+Ctrl+- (minus sign) to zoom out. Excel press Alt, W, G to zoom in at selected cell. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1455324557909192709)

*Sep 3, 2021: Use Excel to print the file names in a folder. Click Data-->Get Data--From File-->From Folder. Click the folder in Browse window. Click Open. Click Load. A pivot table is created with the file name, dates, extensions, and path. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1433949522053328896)

*Aug 20, 2021: Cell A1 is 1. Cell A2 is 2. Cell A3 is 3. Cell A4 is 4. Cell A5 is 5. Cell A10 is =SUM(A1:A5). Press Ctrl+' on cell A10 highlights cells A1:A5 used in formula. Press ESC to exit. Also, press Ctrl+[ selects cells A1:A5 used in formula. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1428835342447112193)

*Jun 24, 2021: A faster way to switch Excel windows is View-->Switch Windows-->select Excel window or Alt, W, W, number for which the number references an open Excel file. It may be faster than Ctrl+F6. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1408182043725352962)

*Jun 10, 2021: Use LEN and SUBSTITUTE to count specific characters in an Excel cell. Cell A1 is mississippi. Count the i's =LEN(A1)-LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,"i","")) returns 4. LEN of mississippi is 11. LEN and SUBSTITUTE replaces the letter i with nothing returns 7. 11-7=4. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1403165898676998144)

*May 25, 2021: A quicker way to copy and paste one time use. Copy the cell or cells to copy Ctrl+C. Go to the cell to paste and press Enter which is a little quicker than Ctrl+V. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1397294669780766723)

*May 25, 2021: Use F4 to paste multiple times. Cell A1 is Today is Tuesday. Press Ctrl+C to copy. Go to cell C5. Press Alt, E, S, Enter to paste using Paste Special. Go to cell G5. Press F4 to paste. Go to cell G8. Paste F4 to paste. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1397293933739143168)

*May 12, 2021: Use Excel TRUNC function to return a number without its decimal number. =TRUNC(7999.51,0) returns 7999. =TRUNC(7999.49,0) returns 7999. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1392612685137678343)

*May 12, 2021: Use Excel INT function to round down nearest integer. =INT(7.9) returns 7. =INT(7.1) returns 7. =INT(-7.9) returns -8. =INT(-7.1) returns -8. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1392611926908096512)

*Mar 25, 2021: Press Alt+Enter in an Excel cell to insert a new line or insert a line break. Alt+Enter also enables Wrap Text. To wrap text without line break, Alt+Enter, Ctrl+Enter, F2, Backspace, Enter. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1375245314588696577)

*Jan 16, 2021: Excel table shortcut keys. Ctrl+Spacebar selects a column, Shift+Spacebar selects a row. Access the filter drop down menu press Alt+Down Arrow if cursor on the column header; otherwise Alt+Shift+Down Arrow. Access drop down menu Alt+Down Arrow. #exceltips (Tweet ID-1350646794649104385)

*Sep 21, 2020: The CONVERT function takes a measurement and converts to another measurement. Cell A1 is 50. Cell B1 is =CONVERT(A1,"sec","hr") converts 50 seconds to 0.013889 hours. Cell C1 is =CONVERT(A1,"in","ft") converts 50 inches to 4.166667 feet. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1308290224846327808)

*Sep 18, 2020: Display the number zero as n/a or as a blank cell in Excel using Format Cells. Numbers are between 0 and 99,999. \n Cell A1 is 0. Cell B1 displays n/a custom format cell #,###;;"n/a". Cell C1 displays blank cell custom format cell #,###;; #exceltip (Tweet ID-1307048633209171973)

*Aug 14, 2020: Excel Microsoft 365 view the same worksheet in multiple windows View-->New Window or Alt,W,N. Likewise for Excel 2016 View-->New Window. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1294340056790966272)

*Jun 18, 2020: Excel format cells tip. Cell A1 is My number is *number*. Press Ctrl+A1-->Number-->Category-->Custom-->Type. Under Type, type "My number is "#. Press OK. User types a number in Cell A1 instead of typing My number is *number*. Cell A1 displays My number is *number*. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1273699206100746240)

*Jun 2, 2020: Shortcut keys to insert an Excel new worksheet and name the new worksheet. Shift+F11, Alt, H, O, R, type worksheet name. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1267943510088380417)

*May 19, 2020: Excel users press F1 opening the Help pane instead of ESC. \n The shortcut keys to close are Ctrl, Space, C when the Help pane is focused. It can work with other task panes. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1262812478276161536)

*Apr 23, 2020: AutoFit column size hover the mouse between column identification letters and double-click. The double-click resizes to greatest length. If you want to AutoFit column size at shorter length, select the cell with shorter length text on column, press Alt, H, O, I. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1253405685947088896)

*Jan 3, 2020: Press Ctrl+G to open the Go To window. Cursor is at cell G100. User wants to go to cell J5. Press Ctrl+G, type J5 at Reference, press OK. Cursor is at cell J5. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1213233121530826752)

*Jan 3, 2020: Press Ctrl+' to copy the exact Excel formula above a cell. Press Ctrl+Shift+' to copy the value from the Excel formula above a cell. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1213232369559228416)

*Nov 9, 2019: Audit Excel formulas for consistency. Highlight a column of formulas. Press Ctrl+Shift+\\ (Backspace). Highlighted cells afterwards are the inconsistent formulas. Press Ctrl+\\ (Backspace) for a row of formulas. #exceltip https://t.co/PvZNH0vxvv (Tweet ID-1193279270426050560)

*Oct 26, 2019: Hold the Ctrl key when clicking cells in a formula. The comma separators are automatically inserted. e.g. SUM function hold Ctrl clicking cells A1, B5, C9, D10. Result is =SUM(A1,B5,C9,D10) with commas automatically inserted. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1188157535238230016)

*Sep 13, 2019: #exceltip Cells A1:A20 contain integers. Need to add 100 to each integer. Type 100 at cell C1. Copy cell C1. Highlight cells A1:A20. Home-->Paste-->Paste Special or Alt, H, V, S. (Tweet ID-1172579024549240832)

*Aug 10, 2019: View two worksheets in two windows in the same Excel file. View-->New Window or Alt+W+N, click on another worksheet on new Excel window. See the two worksheets. Can arrange the Excel windows View-->Arrange All such as Tiled or Horizontal. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1160280578081427456)

*Jul 13, 2019: An efficient way to format cells consistently is save the cell formatting. Home-->Styles-->Cell Styles-->New Cell Style. Complete the attributes including the style name and formatting. Keyboard shortcut Alt+H+J opens Cell Styles. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1150135338360119296)

*Jul 13, 2019: Ctrl + F1 to collapse the ribbon or pin the ribbon. Another method to collapse the ribbon or pin the ribbon is double click a menu object such as Home, Insert, or Data. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1150134239985192960)

*Jul 3, 2019: Highlight an Excel table without the headers. Hover cursor to the top left of the table to see a diagonal arrow pointing down and right or southeast. Single click. Table is highlighted except the headers. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1146612561208467456)

*May 21, 2019: Slicers and a total row are available for a table itself. Right mouse click anywhere on the table-->Table-->Totals Row to insert a total row. Table Tools-->Design-->Tools-->Insert Slicer to insert a slicer. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1131022721372917760)

*Apr 25, 2019: The Excel AVERAGE() functions include cells containing zeros calculating the average and excludes blank cells. If you must include zeros for display and not in average calculation, then type ">0" in the criteria; e.g. =AVERAGEIF(A1:A30,">0"). #exceltip (Tweet ID-1121525498733944832)

*Apr 1, 2019: Excel short cut key to insert today's date in a cell is Ctrl+;. Excel short cut key to insert current time in a cell is Ctrl+Shift+;. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1112790426795171840)

*Mar 19, 2019: Type CHAR(13) in an Excel formula for a carriage return. A good use for CHAR(13) is a formula label for a chart. e.g. ="B4label = "&B4&CHAR(13)&"B5label = "&B5&CHAR(10)&"b6label = "&B6 #exceltip (Tweet ID-1108126732781932544)

*Feb 19, 2019: One way to print selected cells in an Excel worksheet is File-->Print--> under Settings first drop down box select Print Selection. A quicker way is Ctrl+P, under Settings first drop down box select Print Selection. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1098063153655513089)

*Feb 18, 2019: Use DOLLAR(number,decimal places) to add the dollar sign in an Excel cell. =DOLLAR(5,0) is $5. ="I won "&DOLLAR(5,0) is I won $5. ="I won "&DOLLAR(5,2) is I won $5.00. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1097715959853240320)

*Jan 18, 2019: Select an entire column. Select column B type B:B. =COUNTIF(B:B,A1). Select multiple contiguous columns. Select columns E to G type E:G. =VLOOKUP(A1,E:G,3,0). #exceltip (Tweet ID-1086449171849142272)

*Jan 18, 2019: Split a column or separate a column with a common character Data-->Text To Columns. Can save time instead of writing formulas. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1086448132123049985)

*Jan 18, 2019: A quick way to open the Excel Page Setup window is Page Layout-->under Page Setup group click bottom right arrow. Short cut keys Atl+P+S+P is another way. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1086447268968853505)

*Jan 18, 2019: A quick way to add text to a header or footer is Insert-->Text-->Header/Footer. View-->Page Layout double click Add header works, too. #exceltip (Tweet ID-1086445724911337472)

*Jan 18, 2019: A quick way to rotate an Excel file orientation from portrait to landscape and vice versa is Page Layout-->Orientation-->Portrait or Landscape #exceltip (Tweet ID-1086444720065105923)

*Jul 30, 2018: #exceltip A table with named columns. Create a helper column to filter the table. OR criteria =OR([column1]="Hat",[column2]="Fred",[column3]>25). AND criteria =AND([column1]="Cat",[column2]="Ratbag",[column3]>=63). (Tweet ID-1024066197233397760)

*May 21, 2018: Excel tip. Logical formula equal sign = is case insensitive. Cell A1 is rad. Cell A2 is Rad. =A1=A2 returns TRUE. ="rad"="Rad" returns TRUE. #exceltip (Tweet ID-998668958629687296)

*May 9, 2018: Excel tip. Cells A1:E10 have numbers. Highlight cells A1:F11. Press Alt + =. Excel adds =SUM() to F1:F11 and A11:F11 adding the rows and columns. #exceltip (Tweet ID-994300830109990912)

*Apr 11, 2018: In Excel, Alt, I, R inserts new row above. e.g. Cursor on cell A5. Press Alt, I, R. New row inserted at row 5. #exceltip (Tweet ID-984157390948843520)

*Feb 2, 2018: Excel tip. Highlight or select multiple cells. Pressing tab moves active cell only to highlighted or selected cells. e.g. highlight A1:E5. Press tab active cell cycles highlighted A1:E5 cells only. (Tweet ID-959575640021151744)

*Dec 20, 2017: Excel tip. Alt, E, A, F clears cell formatting. Alt, E, A, A deletes entire cell. (Tweet ID-943688412753666049)

*Nov 27, 2017: Excel tip. Ctrl+Left click the left arrow at the worksheet bar scrolls to the first sheet. Ctrl+Right click the right arrow at the worksheet bar scrolls to the last sheet. (Tweet ID-935247792712249344)

*Nov 7, 2017: Excel tip. Ctrl + Shift + L inserts the Filter on a row of column headers. (Tweet ID-928092804617707520)

*Nov 7, 2017: Excel tip. Ctrl+X to cut a formula in a cell. Paste the formula in another worksheet same file. The pasted formula in the new worksheet contains the cell references referencing the originating formula. (Tweet ID-928092562694402048)

*Oct 3, 2017: Excel tip. Right mouse click sheet scroll arrows a list of all the sheets in the Excel file appears. Select the sheet to view. (Tweet ID-915325707617673216)

*Sep 18, 2017: Excel tip. Deactivate GETPIVOTDATA cell referencing in pivot table. File->Options->Formulas->uncheck Use GetPivotData functions for Pivot... (Tweet ID-909952106169171968)

*Sep 7, 2017: Excel tip. Use integer INT() function to remove decimals. =INT(16.98748754) returns 16. Likewise for INT(16.11245478) and INT(16.45487897). (Tweet ID-905873049810984960)

*Aug 15, 2017: Excel tip. Ctrl + Shift + ~ converts a cell to General format. General format useful to see what's really in the cell. No format deception. (Tweet ID-897542826581426176)

*May 3, 2016: EOMONTH(A1,1) returns 6/30/14. EOMONTH(A1,-1) returns 4/30/14. EOMONTH(A1,-1)+1 returns 5/1/14. #exceltip (Tweet ID-727711932099264512)

*May 3, 2016: Use EOMONTH() to find the last day of a month. Cell A1 is 5/3/14. EOMONTH(A1,0) returns 5/31/14. EOMONTH(A1,0)+1 returns 6/1/14 #exceltip (Tweet ID-727711362898612226)

*Mar 2, 2016: Under Data tab, there's a Get External Data Excel wizard importing data from various database. No need open database. #exceltip (Tweet ID-705175893849714689)

*Jan 7, 2016: TRIM function removes excess spaces before and after a text string including excess spaces between words #exceltip (Tweet ID-685233340509626368)

*Nov 18, 2015: The AVERAGE function ignores cells with text when calculating the average. #exceltip (Tweet ID-667071715919327232)

*Nov 17, 2015: 3-D cell reference steps: 1 Click on first sheet. 2 Highlight range. 3 Hold Shift key. 4 Click on last sheet. Source ExcelIsFun #exceltips (Tweet ID-666759708796059648)

*Nov 15, 2015: Use Alt, E, A, A shortcut key combination to clear cells content in Excel #exceltip (Tweet ID-665840573140496384)

*Jun 10, 2015: Excel tip: Press Ctrl+Enter after typing a formula in a cell to keep the cell with formula active. (Tweet ID-608731198718758913)

*May 13, 2015: #exceltip =RANDBETWEEN(x,y) generates a random number between x and y. x and y are numbers. (Tweet ID-598642900793044000)

*May 11, 2015: #exceltip Sometimes an Excel formula converts number into text. To convert text back to number, add zero, multiply by one, double negative, (Tweet ID-597696951363112000)

*May 11, 2015: #exceltip Press Ctrl + Shift + ` or ~ button to convert a cell to General format. (Tweet ID-597688670691328000)

*May 6, 2015: #exceltip Column A has numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Sum is 15. On Cell A6, press Alt + = (Alt and Equal). Excel adds formula =SUM(A1:A5) (Tweet ID-596149904935784000)

*Jul 26, 2012: Excel tip. The Format Painter copies a cell's format settings including font, color, and format. (Tweet ID-228568175074213000)

Throwback Blog: I Celebrate My Independence Soon

Blogger's Note: Throwback blogs are blogs from my past. I start posting past blogs reflecting what I wrote. It's like my "A Second Look" blogs for which I give myself feedback.

Today's throwback blog is titled I Celebrate My Independence Soon written on Jul 4, 2016. My number one goal freedom is clear and present. I substitute the word freedom for the word independence anytime I talk about living on my own because of preference. Freedom is coming. There is no alternative.

The working intelligently for freedom partially changed. I job search once a day from Mon to Sat. I continue learning job skills and life skills when I'm not job searching. The job skills training is the endgame or one final practice including Excel, Python, R, and Power BI. My workouts are two days strength training and two days jogging outdoors.

The working intelligently for freedom partially not changed. I fulfill household chores such as cooking, cleaning, and laundry. I sleep well. I read books. I'm happy I read Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling for the first time on Sep 2019. The timing was perfect I read Harry Potter three times during the COVID-19 global pandemic. I minimize watching television, eating junk food, and visiting my social media.

Today is Independence Day in the United States Of America. The Americans celebrate our independence when the thirteen American colonies became a new nation leaving the British Empire on July 4, 1776. One of these days I'm going to be independent making my own choices, living a consistent life, controlling more of my life, and being more proactive. The bottom line is freedom.

I'm working intelligently to be independent. I'm strong. I'm brave. I job search two times a day every weekday. I learn new skills when I'm not job searching. My current personal projects are learning Python and HTML5. I also stay active. Boredom is a motivation killer. Boredom defeats the reason to live. I workout at the gym four days a week. I fulfill household chores such as cooking, cleaning, and laundry. I sleep well. I read books. My last book was 1984 by George Orwell. I minimize watching television, eating junk food, and visiting my social media.

My independence is not if. My independence is when. I promise to myself and I promise to everyone my earned independence is exciting. I can say my next manifesto includes an exciting independence.

Two What Ifs in 2016

Blogger's note: Today's blog is posted in Innovating Common Knowledge blog and Finding Raymond Mar blog.

I interviewed for two jobs in 2016. The first job interview was an analyst position for a Canadian space company in Jul 2016. The department was offsite from the main campus. The official job title was Database Coordinator with minimal data entry. The job was a non-traditional business analyst or data analyst. The requirements included database administration, reporting, and updating webpages. Outdated proprietary software. The employees were senior citizens for which the youngest was the late 50s. They wanted a younger jack-of-all-trades employee to bring fresh air.

The second job interview was another analyst position for a medical devices company in Dec 2016. Four month contract position. The hiring manager initially interviewed me for the wrong position. He didn't know what's going on; although, many of my past jobs I didn't know what's going on. My confidence was low on my job skills. Regardless, I completed all of my job responsibilities satisfactory. Too much unnecessary worry. Past history was in my favor.

A Paycheck Or A Career

I digress. I worked in neither of the two companies. An important question yesterday and today is, "Do I want a paycheck or do I want a career?" I choose all or nothing. No middle ground. I choose all-in for happiness, being lucky, and wake up in the morning to a good job. Or I choose nothing for melancholy, being unlucky, and praying in the morning for a good day; in other words, I work for the company to cut me the paycheck.

The bad luck, bad timing, and bad choices cost me eight years as of today. Most people say I'm a loser. I can't get a job. I earn no paycheck. I live at home. I don't have a family of my own. I live a stalled life long-term.

I recognize the criticisms. I recognize the observations. I listen to opinions. I took chances. None worked out in favor. I take full responsibility not getting a job. I thought I could do better. Nothing happened.

What Are The What Ifs

I'm the best person ever today. I'm the strongest, smartest, and wisest ever today. I graduated my self job training. The present job training is the endgame. My physical fitness is tops. Health is strongest. I'm one step closer to become a self-trained genius at the end of day.

I believe the above paragraph didn't happen if I worked at either the Jul permanent job or the Dec contract job. I didn't vacation at Zion National Park in Sep 2016. I didn't need two surgeries for Acute Gallstone Pancreatitis at O'Connor Hospital in Apr 2017. My Mahjong skills stalled since I didn't play more games. 2016 was the most recent bad year. All 2016 failures became successes years later. I'm unemployed. I live with my parents. I'm not George Costanza. I'm not embarrassed. Independence is maintained to the best of my ability.