Welcome to the Dreamcatcher, where I share the posts and podcasts I found this week that made me think differently about something or inspired me.

The problem with having a funny-sounding name – The Luxe Strategist

 Luxe’s real name is an Asian one. She recalls many times over her life where that’s been a problem for other people. “For now, I worry about ‘small things.’ That maybe my apartment inquiry email was deleted because the person thought, ‘Name too hard to pronounce, don’t want to deal with that.’

I worry that my resume goes straight to the trash. That people assume my English is shaky or I’m less competent. I worry that some people don’t realize that while they’re trying to finagle a promotion, I could be a couple steps behind, just trying to get through the front door for an interview.

Even now, with the blog, I considered using my first name so there’s more of a “face” to the voice. But I worried that a foreign-sounding name would be unreliable.” I haven’t had to worry about these things simply because of my name. Reading smart, thoughtful people like Luxe talk about how they have reminds me to always be vigilant that I don’t become someone she has to worry about. It’s often a fight against short-cut, subconscious human nature, but it’s one worth fighting.

Ways of Hearing #1: Time – Radiotopia Showcase

 This is the first of a six-part podcast looking at how the digital world is changing our daily lives in less obvious ways. Radiotopia writes: “Contemplate the way digital audio – in music recording, and in radio and television broadcast – employs a different sense of time than we use in our offline life, a time that is more regular and yet less communal.” There are many interesting examples in this episode, but I find it even more interesting to consider the concept in other contexts. Digital mediums are in theory more efficient, more exacting, than their analog counterparts. But there’s also something tangible lost in the conversion of life from analog to digital, and it cuts so many different ways. I think from a personal finance sense you have the notion of robo-advisers replacing traditional human advisers. While there are clear metric efficiencies gained, there’s also the potential for loss of other aspects of what was once a personal relationship. When Betterment asks you to fund a goal, it isn’t actually talking to you about your capital-G Goals. For all the flak poor or middling financial advisers get from the FI community for their fees and market-beating sales pitches, for some people there are other benefits that don’t show up as neatly on the year-end summary. Anyway, you should check out this episode for well-rounded ideas, not financial advice.

How to have more “good tired” days – Centsibly Rich

 I know exactly what Amanda means when she talks about having those “good tired” days. You get through the day and you’re exhausted, but look back and feel like it was meaningful time well spent. I like the idea of tracking those days. I had one a few weeks ago that I thought, “I should write this down so I can compare to future days where I feel like this.” I didn’t, but I recall it started like Amanda’s, with some early time out on the water (for me it was in a kayak, though). I need to pay more attention to these things.