Jay Hou

My Supplement Stack

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

I'm a huge believer of supplements. Even if they don't work, believing in them benefits you (placebos work).\ \ Here are my heavy hitters: * Omega-3 — heart / brain * Lutein — eye health * Creatine — muscle performance * Magnesium — sleep / recovery * Zinc — immunity / hormones * Vitamin B6 — energy metabolism * Psyllium Husk — digestion / fiber

Excerpt from the F&F Newsletter

Tue, 23 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Here we are - the last day of *twenty-twenty-five.* I am once again writing on a flight. With some good karma (I like to think), Air Canada assigned me an exit-row window seat for my flight back to Vancouver. *For free*. No longer sharing the back with the lavatory - can you believe it! To be fully honest, I half-wrote an issue a few weeks ago but I was in such a mood that it wouldn’t have been a fun read for you all. Not that this newsletter is usually cracking anyone up, but I’d hate to be a downer during the holidays. TL;DR for the mood: You know when a problem is ambiguous, challenging, and the timelines are self-directed? I’ll tell you, that is the exact recipe for *procrastination.* As for 2025 in review… well, I haven’t done much tactical reflection yet. Vaguely: * I spent far too many days completely indoors. * I let go of some bad habits. * I taught myself 4-5 quantifiable new skills and realized that *maybe* 5% of my 5 years in college was spent actually learning. In the future, your AI digital twin will do automatic goal setting. It will collate your web history, journal entries, and calendar to provide an overall view of your year. I suspect by this time next year it will be reality. Lastly, I’m sure some of y’all are curious what SF is like compared to NYC. It’s been a complete 180 shift in lifestyle. SF feels like Vancouver. NYC, on the other hand, pushed my FOMO to the limits. However, I think it was the right choice and I see myself establishing a second “home base” here. ## Latest Happenings * Short Film Festival: As someone who rarely watches TV / movies, I was so pleasantly surprised by this random amateur film festival. It was centered around the Asian immigrant experience and evoked a deep sense of connection with my generation. S/o to Janette for taking me along and making me build tables out of cheap plastic stools. * Tinkering: My roommate is the biggest tinkerer I know. He built a stove alert system because I kept forgetting to turn it off. He integrated a 40-year-old buzzer system into Telegram so we wouldn’t have to carry keys. He showed me the power of cheap RFID tags. He’s very precious. * SF Views: Got a chance to visit [Baker’s Beach ](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Baker+Beach/@37.7938601,-122.4904637,16z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x808586fc8b40f8a7:0x8b3d6b4d7dc0d519!8m2!3d37.7935724!4d-122.483638!16zL20vMDVueG50?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MTIwOS4wIKXMDSoKLDEwMDc5MjA2N0gBUAM%3D&utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025)around sunset. It was jaw-dropping. I don’t think there was a single view in all of NYC that can hold a candle to raw, majestic nature. But hey - that might just be me. * Tony’s Birthday: Not that guys can’t host great parties, but Tony’s birthday-planning skills blew my expectations away. I’m talking snacks imported from Japan, dinner from [Tony’s Pizza](https://tonyspizzanapoletana.com/?utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025) (~$7 a slice, massive lines), and a fridge stocked with the good stuff. If you don’t know him… you’re missing out :) ## Content for Consumption * [Segregation in Bay Area High Schools](https://slate.com/human-interest/2015/07/silicon-valley-white-asian-divide-why-families-self-segregate-and-what-can-be-done.html?utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025): Met someone from Lynbrook and then stumbled across this article right after. Super interesting read on sociology. * [Alana Goyal’s Personal Site](https://www.alanagoyal.com/notes/fav-products?utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025): Stumbled across this person’s personal site and it was fun. She has great reading / shopping recs. * [Notes on Managing ADHD](https://borretti.me/article/notes-on-managing-adhd?s=09&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email): Hands down the best resource I’ve ever read on ADHD. I was so compelled that I actually reached out and chatted with Fernando. For anyone who suspects they have some symptoms - it’s worth the time to digest this. ## Hou’s Hacks * [Pebble:](https://repebble.com/index?utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025) I just pre-ordered this wearable AI and would urge folks to check it out. It allows you to remind yourself of little things without having to pull out your phone, keeping you in the present moment. * [Aura.Build](http://aura.build/?utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025): If anyone has ever thought about building a personal website, Gemini 3 now makes it easier than ever. This is a great inspo site to show you what is now possible using AI - no coding required. * [Github Repo](https://github.com/startupdeals/startupdeals?utm_source=jaycbh.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=closing-out-2025): Tons of software discounts!

How to negotiate with mechanics if you don't know sh*t about cars

Sat, 04 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

My Mom's 2010 Santa Fe SUV has served me incredibly well since I got my license five years ago. It has taken me to countless trailheads, ski mountains, and grocery stores. And yet, when it started to break down this year, I was completely helpless in taking care of it. The most advanced thing I can do with a car is spray some windshield cleaner. However, since then, I've negotiated with mechanics, tow trucks, and tire shops alike. I read negotiation books and happened to work a job cold-calling construction workers. These are the tips that have saved me thousands of dollars. 1. Learn the Language * Before you go into any negotiation, ask ChatGPT to brief you on the common slang of the field. For tow trucks, I'd say: "I don't need a flatbed, just a wheel lift." You want to seem like an insider. 2. Start Ringing Some Mechanics * If your car starts making noises, pay a mechanic $50 to diagnose it and then call five different shops to ask for a preliminary quote range. * You can find the mechanics on Google Maps * They may not give you a hard number unless it's a very clear job, but you will find that some mechanics have huge differences in the price * Be short, casual, and succinct in your calls. * When asking for a quote, always ask for the person's name at the start - that way, you have a definite reference later on, such as "John told me it would be $400." * All mechanics know their competitors by name. Don't be afraid to drop it when negotiating between shops. "Dave from XYZ Autoshop down Smith St. quoted me $350, any chance you can beat that?" 3. Negotiating On-Site * The real negotiation starts when you bring the car to the shop. Mechanics often try to raise the price once you show up with a BS excuse, such as "Oh, it looks worse than I thought." You need to be willing to walk away and call their bluff. * Show up with exact cash, with a couple of extra hundred stashed in a separate wallet. * Be mindful of appearances; don't dress like you're expensive. * Always make small talk. * Don't look like you're in a rush. 4. Build a Relationship * Once you've found a mechanic with workmanship integrity and reasonable prices, tip them like you mean it. * This small investment is the beginning of a relationship that may span decades (depending on how old your car is) That's it! Email me any success stories!

Century-old perspectives on a life well lived

Wed, 13 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I recently sold an entire 32-volume set of the Encyclopedia Britannica from 1992. It was obsolete, unthinkably heavy, and entirely beautiful. The retail price upon its release ranged from $1,200 to $2000. Adjusted for inflation today, it would be worth a staggering $6,500 dollars. I sold it for $50 and considered myself lucky. However, not all of my parent’s artifacts were as defunct as the Encyclopedia. During that same excavation of my garage, I also stumbled across two other sets of books: The Young Folks Treasury from 1909 and a 54-volume set of The Great Books of the Western World from 1990. I was ecstatic. Part of my excitement stemmed from the fact that this stuff was old. As a computer geek growing up in the 2000s, I’ve always wondered what life was like before the release of Facebook in 2004, League of Legends in 2009, or most recently, TikTok in 2017. How did people spend their time before algorithms came into existence? I desperately wanted to get a taste of that lifestyle. I’m sharing this experiment to illustrate just how distorted modern self-help content has become, and how some old books have expanded my views on financial independence and the definition of a good life. #### **Self-Help: Past & Present** The ninth volume of the 1909 Young Folks Treasury (YFT) is labeled “Men and Women of Achievement; Self-Help.” As an avid addict of mental masturbation (excuse my language) and modern self-help content, I was curious to compare the genre between two snapshots in time. What I noticed was a complete shift in values I would argue has turned for the worse. In my experience, modern self-help is comprised of YouTube videos and Twitter threads. An oversaturated thumbnail of a man fanning out some cash, or perhaps a hook beginning with, “I spent 20 years in sales, here are ten ideas that changed my life.” It’s not magic that modern copywriting captures attention well, it simply plays on our psychological reward systems. The core message is: > Here’s the secret shortcut to make money fast, become an expert in hours, and live your dream life… just take ten minutes to consume my content (and ads)! Compare this with the YFT’s self-help guides where the words “character” and “labor” show up on every page. > “I wish now to emphasize the fact that no habit is so valuable, no love of anything in the world so precious, as the love of labor, of constantly and regularly producing something useful… it is the purifier of character.” Hard work is acknowledged, even glorified. It is not glossed over or underrepresented. While modern self-help perpetually dangles the carrot of financial independence in every video, the YFT emphasizes the process far more than the result. They even go so far as to say: > “Poverty is the finest inheritance a young man can have. No combination can be better than poverty and good health to a young man who wants to carve his way in the world.” One cannot imagine commending poverty as a strength in today’s society. > “No man who values his character… should engage or cause his children to engage in a business whose main object is to make money, not to earn it; to grow rich without labor; to rise on the ruin of others… it must be dug out of the earth, blasted out of the mine” Poverty is seen as neutral while making money for its own sake is actually condemned. The path to success is touted to be achieved organically through a love of industry and the creation of concrete value. How would the author react to the college dropouts looking to strike it big day trading right now? Of course, shortcuts, exploits, windfalls, and lucky opportunities exist. Yet the era of clickbait has sold the narrative so strongly that many (young men especially) simply drift from trend to trend, running in circles to find the next life-changing shortcut. You might not be one of them, but ask yourself - do you want to live in a society where character is mentioned less and less? Where making money is uncorrelated, or even antonymous with producing real value? > “Whenever a man who has risen from obscure poverty to great wealth dies, it is a common thing for young men to say: ‘Oh, yes, he started when there were lots of chances. But a man can’t do that sort of thing now.’” What has not changed are the excuses. Whichever one you may choose, I can assure you that it has been used for hundreds of years; the excuses carry no weight and never will. Lastly, one may critique that the YFT’s self-help articles were far more inspirational than they were practical. That is undoubtedly true, and they should not be read literally. Yet there’s something very noble about them that scratches my moral itch inside, representing a step backward in the right direction. It has created in me a repulsion to the money-frantic, shortcut-oriented self-help content that is ubiquitous on the internet today. My wish is for us to stop over-indexing on novelty and read content that was incentivized for learning rather than for advertisement clicks. The ingredients for success haven’t changed. #### **Role Models: Past & Present** Apart from the path to success, these old books have reshaped my destination as well. Success as glorified by flashy influencers is a lot less attractive when you’ve seen it in a different light, such as through Benjamin Franklin’s autobiography. Franklin started from humble beginnings as a successful operator of a printing press before shifting his focus from enterprise to politics, where his patriotism and conscientiousness left a legacy that has earned his visage on the $100 bill even today. Many entrepreneurs would have been satisfied with the profits from the press, but Franklin’s ultimate goal was impact, not comfort. It shows that the pursuit of financial independence represents only one challenge of the hydra-headed mess that is life. It is true that it often needs to be the first dragon slain, but perhaps the dragon doesn’t need to be as large as we imagine it to be. Franklin didn’t wait to become a billionaire before getting involved with his community. Moving on from anecdotes, consider this table from a 2022 study on happiness published in the Psychological Review: ![](public/good-life-chart.png)

Oishi, Westgate; A psychologically rich life: Beyond happiness and meaning. Psychological Review, 2021

A good life is scientifically proven to be far more multi-faceted than becoming rich, despite what the YouTube gurus say. The Measurements and the Facilitators differ across all three dimensions. You can go deep in one dimension (the “I” shape), or split your time between two (the “T” shape), but color me impressed if you’re able to track highly on all three. I realized that the goal is balance, to make *enough* to live a satisfactory lifestyle before shifting one's focus to another dimension. The trap I was deluded into through modern content was believing that financial independence was the ultimate goal. The closest example I could find from the YFT of a man achieving high levels of all three dimensions was in a biography of Samuel Morse. Morse began as a painter before inventing the telegraph through a stroke of electromagnetic genius. Before long, he achieved international fame and riches, all while appeasing his scientific curiosity. Note that the telegraph didn’t make him wealthy to the point where money starts accruing negative marginal utility; he passed with a net worth of around $10 MM in today’s terms, though certainly enough to live comfortably. Throughout his life, he also made sizeable philanthropic gifts to churches, universities, and bursaries for struggling artists, affecting his community in the ways he saw fit. #### **Finding New Perspectives** Through my excavation in the garage, I was reminded of a more moral and realistic path to riches and a set of historical role models that speak more to me than the idols on social media. If that seems somewhat anachronistic, then yes, I might be old-fashioned compared to some peers. I am convinced that it was the overconsumption of clickbait modern content that subconsciously led me to explore a different time period, and these books were just the catalyst. Try ordering some hundred-year-old books off eBay. Use our infinite technology to deliver something real and grounded right to your doorstep. Maybe get some thousand-year-old ones too (modern copies). Then, armed with perspectives that span the ages, both old and new… you can craft your Good Life too.

Speedrunning Europe; another list

Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I took on student debt to go on Study Abroad in my final semester of college. From an *Adventure per Dollar* point of view, it was money well spent. The irony is that (and many globetrotters may relate), I was begging to return home by the end of it. Seesawing between attending finance classes to packing at 4 am, every single day for 119 days straight was different, with a complete lack of routine or consistency. This is a list of my most memorable experiences in each place I visited, which I hope can serve as inspiration for things to do or as an example of the kinds of serendipitous encounters that travel affords. It may also help you weigh the cost-benefit analysis on the labor of traveling. - Tasted port wine to my absolute delight in Porto – this is a wine we need to tell more college students about… - Formally asked my girlfriend out at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, while it was sparkling, of course - Met an official TED speaker and her kids at a rooftop thermal bath in Budapest - Hï, Ibiza :) - Hiked the Vatnajökull glacier in Iceland - Swam in the Adriatic Sea on a hidden beach off the coast of Dubrovnik - Sneered at a Kazakh billionaire’s yacht, the *Dynasty*, in Malaga - Slobbered over some dry-aged Florentine steak in Florence - Sat, painfully, on an 8-hour drive out to the Sahara Desert in Morocco with a high-grade fever - Saw the Northern Lights dance in the polar night of Tromsø - Caught *Frozen* in London’s West End, which singlehandedly kickstarted my appreciation for theatre - Let go of all my inhibitions at the Amsterdam Music Festival - Winced at the 500-person lineup for St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and f**ked off - Stumbled into a man cracking open a stolen suitcase in an alley in Venice - Stared at Goya’s *Saturn Devouring His Son* and Bosch’s *Garden of Earthly Delights* in Madrid - Candidly, snoozed through Joshua Bell & the Wiener Symphoniker in Vienna, as well as the endless number of Christmas markets - Witnessed a heavily tattooed man randomly assault our tour guide on a Free Walking Tour in Lisbon and run away, after which the poor girl immediately started bawling :( - Graciously received a few racist gestures during a bar escalation in Milan - Walked around some dilapidated, communist-era buildings in Gdansk - Toured Lidl, amongst a million other activities, in Barcelona - Bonded with some American business students at the Vzorkovna Dog Bar in Prague If you need any travel recommendations for Europe or a comprehensive packing list, reach out.

Thriving in a new city alone; a list

Wed, 23 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Throughout the past 4 years of my university career, I've worked 3 internships in 3 drastically different cities - remote from Vancouver, hybrid from Toronto, and hybrid from San Francisco. San Francisco has been my favorite experience by far, simply because I was forced outside of my comfort zone. I had nobody in my rolodex in SF, yet I felt completely at home after 10 short weeks. Below is a non-exhaustive list of some activities, experiences, and methods to meet people that I hope can inspire you. - DMed a guy on Reddit who was responding to a "How to meet recent college grads" in a r/askSF thread, who eventually introduced me to my two best SF friends. - Rented bikes and explored Golden Gate Park, Land's End, and the Presidio. Loved the West Coast nature. - Tried to ride the subway to a 12km run (Bay to Breakers) at 5 am. Incorrectly assumed it was open — but I did meet a Stanford professor who let me ride in his Uber! - Drove 4 hours in complete darkness through the California desert to make it to our Yosemite Airbnb. - Experienced the beautiful, purely-American Alamo Theatre, which was leagues better than any Canadian theatre. - Met a drunk start-up founder outside the club at 2 am, who subsequently bought a tab of acid off a random dude and popped it with zero hesitation. - Enjoyed a sleepless night at my flat in the Mission because the Verizon across the street was robbed and the alarm was going off all night. - Had an amazing clubbing night at Monroe (stay till the end for the fog) until I realized my shirt was inside out the whole night... by the way, you can pay $20 to skip the line. - Worked until midnight... my manager was also online despite being in EST, which really put things into perspective. - Had a "beach day" where it was completely overcast, windy, and the sand was cold — but hey, there was a lot of beer! - Got to ride a motorcycle for the first time; looking back, the SF hills might've not been the best spot to start. - Didn't cook a single meal. I am leaving for Barcelona to study abroad in two weeks. Another dimension shift!