Are You Putting Yourself First?

Woke up early this morning. Absolutely beautiful, crisp, sunny day here in Montreal. The excessive heat dissipated and I took advantage to head over to my favorite cafe on Bernard for breakfast, read the paper and just relax and enjoy this awesome weather. I also read my horoscope on my Blackberry:

When you wake up this morning, or as you go about your day, you hold in your grasp the chance to make it whatever you want it to be. Will it be positive and uplifting, with many happy thoughts, pleasant exchanges with the people you meet, and the positive pursuit of your goals? Or, will you anticipate an unhappy ambience, conflicts at home or at work, and a failure or two? It's up to you. But here's a hint: If you wish to have a really great day, the kind of day the stars are encouraging you to have, then you will choose the first option. It really is a choice.

I already chose the first option and so far the day started off on the right note. I enjoy my alone time. Most men and women would never go eat alone. Not me, I love it. Some poor guy next to me had his wife nagging him about fixing stuff around the house. At one point, it was too much, so I gave her an evil stare and felt like saying "can you please shut up and leave the poor man alone to enjoy his breakfast and this beautiful weather!"

The theme of my blog this Sunday is simple: putting yourself first! What do I mean by that? Well, I've been doing some soul searching and with the help of my psychologist who I recently started seeing once a week, realize that I spend an inordinate amount of time in my life worrying about people who don't deserve one minute of my thoughts.

I also realize that the best investments I made this past year are not Chinese solars (lol, now is a good time to scoop up some LDK Solar), but on on myself: Lasik eye surgery to correct my myopia and free myself from contact lenses, CCSVI procedure to help with my MS, joining a gym when I turned 40 and working out religiously, and going to see a psychologist to chat about my inner rage and how its impacting my personal and professional relationships.

I did that because I realize that I'm intense, often confrontational, will push people to the max, back down from nobody, and it has turned people away. I'm like that because I expect a lot from myself and expect the same from others, especially if they're close to me. However, I'm learning to take a step back and realize that others are dealing with their own issues in life. My humble father, a psychiatrist with over 40 years of clinical experience tells me all the time, everyone has issues they're dealing with, from the hard laborer to the CEO of a major corporation. He should know, he treats patients from all walks of life for all sorts of mental illnesses.

I recently went to see a French Canadian physiotherapist. This lady is simply incredible, spending over an hour with me going over everything related to the mechanics of my gait, my bad posture, and giving me specific exercises to do to improve my posture and target the weaker muscles in my right leg. She also showed me how to use a roll to relieve upper back spams and how I should sit properly and get up often from the computer to stretch and open up. I told her most physios I've seen in the past were absolutely useless but she really helped me and I will continue seeing her. You can tell someone is good when they're booked solid months in advance; I got in on a cancellation list.

The other thing I've been investing my time in lately is trading stocks (absolutely love it), meeting people who contact me from my blog, and helping Montreal hedge fund managers raise assets. I'm also swimming, tanning and just enjoying the beautiful summer, which is what everyone should be doing this time of year instead of being cooped up in an office in front of a computer. Remember this: work is a four letter word so enjoy leisure every chance you get.

Enough about me, let's talk about you. How healthy are you physically, mentally, emotionally and financially? If either one of these areas is not going well, don't sit and sulk about it, do something about it. Take action, make a game plan and stick to it. Baby steps at first and then start walking, jogging and running towards your goals.

Take it from a guy who has had MS for the last 14 years, Nietzsche was right: what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. I've been fired a few times (all on flimsy grounds where I could have sued their pants off), been through a divorce, ups and downs on the health front and with personal and professional relationships, but I now realize there is absolutely nothing you can't do if you put your mind to it. Suck it up, don't let your ego get in the way, and simply focus on short-term, medium-term and long-term goals. Surround yourself with people you trust and can confide in, knowing they'll give you wise advice and get rid of anyone who is a negative drag on your energy. I mean it, "bye-bye, don't need or want you" to negative people or slimy weasels, that should be your motto as you forge ahead.

And there is something else, you can always improve on every facet of your life. I thought I knew it all on diet and MS, but I don't. One person wrote me on allergies and MS and how Caroline Myss's energy medicine helped him. Someone else emailed me urging me to try a gluten free diet, eliminating wheat products. A gluten free diet increases your energy and all patients suffering from autoimmune disorders should try it (casein in dairy can also be problematic if your intestines haven't fully healed from damage caused by gluten. Also, avoid sugar as much as possible and no smoking whatsoever!). A doctor emailed me to get tested for Lyme disease, which can be chronic and mimic MS and other diseases. Another person wrote me about the benefits of Iyengar yoga for MS (link for Toronto and one for Montreal). A lady wrote me about the benefits of medicinal biomagnetism (don't know anything about it and am somewhat skeptical).

And then there was a wonderful lady suffering from COPD, irreversible lung damage, who sent me an Earth Clinic link to holistic treatments for MS. She also sent me James Altucher's article on how to deal with crappy people and shared these thoughts with me after I posted on the real unemployment scandal focusing on the scourge of discrimination against disabled people in the workforce:

Hi Leo, I appreciated your thoughts about discrimination, I am glad someone is willing to be an advocate for those who want to work. I've never told an employer about my COPD because at my US company, everyone I knew who publicly stated they had any kind of issue (bipolar, depression, eye cancer, brain cancer, degenerative eye disease) was laid off. Sure they called it a performance issue to avoid lawsuits. I actually heard a VP say they had to get rid of the guy with progressive eyesight degeneration, based purely on his health. That guy is Canadian, at least he had health care after that: the others were US based who knows whether they had access to care. I'm lucky, in my position heavy labor is not necessary, so I can hide my disability. Many others are not so lucky. Those who show no compassion may be healthy now, but will they be 10-20 years from now? Who will speak up for them when no one will employ them because of their health?

Nobody is speaking up for them, which is why I hammer away at this public policy issue. I think we should introduce laws forcing governments agencies, including Crown corporations, to publicly disclose what percentage of their employees have a disability at all levels of the organization.

The amount of bullshit I've personally been subjected to after disclosing I have MS is incredible (couldn't hide it at times when my limp was noticeable). It opened my eyes to how slimy, sneaky, and unscrupulous people can be. Right before I got fired from a major Crown corporation, I was promoted, warned them about the looming credit crisis, and they still fired me for "being too negative". The chief weasel met up with me after to tell me he gave me "plenty of opportunities," but this was all a lie, he was just covering his legal ass. Remember this, if they want you out, you're out. There are far too many unscrupulous, evil, insecure jerks with thin egos in finance and elsewhere. It's all about ego and they'll run you over as they manage their precious career.

But I have leverage over these insecure, slimy weasels. It's called Pension Pulse, and it's a blog that I'm damn proud of. Also enjoy contributing on Zero Hedge and get into it with some members who love to blast me. But while I can deal with my enemies, I'm most grateful for my family, friends and the many people who have helped me by sharing their thoughts on important pension issues. These people include senior pension fund managers who care about what's going on in the industry but cannot openly blog on certain topics because it's too sensitive or too political.

I leave you with some concluding thoughts on putting yourself first. I want people to take control of their emotional, physical, mental, and financial well being. Take baby steps, but do something every single day. Don't wait to win the lottery or for radical change to hit you. It'll never happen. Reevaluate all your relationships and make sure those closest to you are always by your side through thick and thin. Importantly, make sure you are listening to those who earned your trust and are looking after your best interests.

Finally, I was looking at a 5-year chart of ACME Packet (APKT) and then some of my stock recommendations from my January 2009 comment on post-deleveraging blues. I screwed up on the banks and REITS, but nailed some of them like Priceline (PCLN) and EMC (EMC). Go back to read my comments on spying on elite funds (Part 1 and Part 2) as well as a recent comment on whether phosphate will be Canada's new potash.

I'm mostly swing trading stocks but see tons of opportunities in all sectors. Right now, I am focusing on swing trading networking stocks like JDS Uniphase (JDSU) and Chinese solar stocks like LDK Solar (LDK), but hold core longs in Level Three (LVLT), Satcon Technologies (SATC), Emcore (EMKR), and Arianne Resources (DAN.V). There are many, many other stocks like BMC Software that could continue climbing higher. If you have any other ideas, please share them on Zero Hedge. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and always remember to put yourself first!