Archive: Commentary

The Age of Dis-Enlightenment

The Enlightenment asked whether a claim could be supported. The Dis-Enlightenment increasingly asks how the claim makes us feel.

Brett S. ChappellJuly 31, 20268 minutes

Putting the Band Together, Not the Algo

In an age when AI can polish every CV, leadership is still about knowing who can actually play in the band.

Brett S. ChappellJune 22, 20265 minutes

Finance has its own version of the hipster effect: everybody wants differentiated insight, yet many end up sounding remarkably alike. A strange story about mistaken identity becomes an unexpectedly useful metaphor for modern investment culture.

Brett S. ChappellMay 13, 20264 minutes

The Opportunity Cost of Not Answering the Question

“When a potential client asks a direct question, answer it directly. Even if the response is not known, answering I do not know is acceptable…. It is also acceptable to say no.”

Brett S. ChappellFebruary 11, 20264 minutes

When Banks Try to Be ETF Hosts, the Margins Usually Win

The most important development is not that banks are stepping back. It is who is stepping forward.

Brett S. ChappellJanuary 29, 20267 minutes

Greenland: A Controlled Experiment in Collapse

Twenty years ago I read Jared Diamond’s Collapse. The story of Norse Greenland still matters because it shows how societies rarely fail suddenly. They fail slowly, through reasonable decisions that no longer fit a changing world.

Brett S. ChappellJanuary 21, 20264 minutes