2018. It went by pretty fast. I am thankful for that, and I will not miss it. Once in a while you have those years you wish you could forget or at least go back and change. 2018 was one of those years. It was not a “bad year” by any stretch. However some things just stand out as difficult.
On the positive side there were very large changes in my career that were welcomed. After 27 years in the investment world I was presented with the opportunity to run a significant business interest in partnership with my brother and best friend. I took it and I am a better person for it. In addition, I have been able to work with one of the world’s luminaries on nuclear power as part of the executive team and as a shareholder in what will likely be one of the most influential firms in the next 5 years. And now, I have the additional opportunity of being able to bring this advanced technology opportunity to Canadian investors in 2019.
The challenges were twofold. First, and I do not usually admit to this, but this year it was somehow different in that I let the negativity of the world affect me. I felt a cynicism that had not been there since 1989 and the fall of the Berlin wall. Last, but not least by any means, the dark cloud of the opioid crisis touched our family this year. And it has not yet lifted. If this has happened to you I feel your pain. If it has not, be thankful but be vigilant.
So I look to 2019 with optimism. I have decided to get rid of my Twitter account, watch less “news”, and spend more time doing my own thing. We can all be nicer to each other, we can all listen more, we can all get less offended at every little thing, and we can all see each other as human beings just trying to make their way in what is a very complex and confusing world sometimes where there is no black and white, but just many shades of gray.
Trevor Giles