“Not everything that can be counted, counts and not everything that counts can be counted.” - Albert Einstein With billions of terabytes of data available to analyze, its easy to forget that not all data is created equal. Separating the important from the unimportant can help you solve problems that really matter. Said another way “fish where the fish are” and you will find your productivity and ability to make a meaningful difference will greatly improve. In...

DRW, I didn't understand if your post was for or against the OXY-Anadarko merger. I interpreted it as it will all shake out in the end and you are glad a deal (one way or the other) got made but curious if you would have voted for or against it? - #hotquestionoftheweek Thanks for the question. It’s complicated. I think Ms. Hollub believes it’s best for Oxy and went after it - so good for...

Anadarko is no more. If I’m honest, Mr. Walker and his team currently look like the smartest team around: they are the only energy company that is up in the last 365 days (well, them and Chevron who made a $1b in the process). For the privilege, they paid themselves a $300 mm package - a package that was rejected by 71% of shareholders in a non-binding vote after the merger…any guesses on what will happen? The irony-...

Dear Mr Skilling (Parody) You complete me. Also….The whole “you know, we don’t pay attention to our stock price- we invest for the long term and we are just delivering our plan” way companies are ignoring feedback is getting really old. When I drive somewhere - I check the traffic report - if there is a 30 car accident on the highway - I take a different route. Guess what? Oil is $52. Some stocks are down 32% in a...

When a samurai warrior brought shame to their house, redemption was in the form of seppuku. A bit extreme for our times, but something to keep in mind. For 9 months, I have advocated for consolidation at fair relative valuations to increase profitability. But, like my arguments to aggressively drop rig activity in Dec 2018, recommendations have fallen on deaf ears and now, it is too late. To prove it - I present exhibit A - the...

What a day yesterday!! I got in a workout, had a great meal, had a wonderfully successful work day and oh yeah - the market got totally crushed as we accelerated our march to recession with a ginormous trade war. The financial beating aside (and through the tears)- I was able to glean two interesting tidbits from Quarterly announcements. First. $CLR is dropping 7 rigs from its 9 rig program in “South” Oklahoma “due to efficiencies”. Interesting word...

Dear Twitter. Please delete the President's Twitter account. Thank you.

My heart goes out to everyone impacted by the events in El Paso yesterday. And the shootings before that. And the shootings that will happen next. I am so sorry for your loss. #hottakeoftheday Post script. “That next” shooting turned out to be in Dayton, Ohio last night after I wrote this and went to bed.

This week’s question is less of a question than a statement: “DRW. You seem crankier than usual”. -#hotquestionoftheweek. This is true. Beyond my exasperation at the equity performance of energy companies and the obvious things they can do to fix it… there is something much deeper at play. Carbs. Or rather, the lack there of. It turns out “hangry” is a thing. When I woke up 5 weeks ago unable to button...

I love professional sports. It is as close to merit based as you can get. There are 10,000 kids who all start out dreaming of playing pro and for those 10,000- there is 1 spot. One. So you differentiate yourself; you train while your friends are partying; and (especially) when the scouts are watching- you light the world on fire and you earn your spot. But- when you are off your game for any duration of time - you...