Financial Planning Fridays #191: Why Now Is the Best Time to Be Alive
Jerry Davidse steps back from short-term headlines to examine long-term data on life expectancy, literacy, internet access, and global poverty, all of which show significant improvement over time. He connects this progress to investing, cautioning that staying too conservative because of short-term news can mean missing long-term opportunity.
Jerry Davidse steps back from short-term headlines to examine long-term data on life expectancy, literacy, internet access, and global poverty, all of which show significant improvement over time. He connects this progress to investing, cautioning that staying too conservative because of short-term news can mean missing long-term opportunity.
Key takeaways
- Global life expectancy has more than doubled over the past 120 years due to advances in medicine and treatment.
- The global literacy rate has risen from about 65 percent 50 years ago to nearly 90 percent today, alongside a sharp increase in internet access.
- The global poverty rate has fallen from 46 percent in 1981 to less than 10 percent today, while the average workweek has also declined.
- Underestimating long-term progress and staying too conservative because of short-term news can cause investors to miss long-term opportunity.
Hi friends. Today I want to talk with you about why this year is the best time to be alive in all of history. If you turn on the news, it's easy to feel like the world just keeps getting worse. We can't help it. We're wired to focus on what's wrong and the negative. But great investors and great planners zoom out and look at the data. And when you do, the progress that humanity has recently made is nothing short of extraordinary.
Let's start with our health. Global life expectancy has more than doubled over the past 120 years. Advances in medicine, early detection, and treatment are now accelerating at an exponential pace. We are not just living longer, we are gaining more high-quality years to spend with family, pursue passions, and create impact in the world.
What about education? Access to knowledge has exploded around the globe. The global literacy rate has gone from 65% 50 years ago to almost 90% today. Almost the entire world now has access to the internet and AI on their smartphones, which means they can get access to a world-class education for free. Only 10% of the world had access to the internet as recently as 20 years ago.
Next, the global poverty rate has decreased from 46% in 1981 to less than 10% today. At the same time, we are spending much less time at work than ever before, working an average of 20 hours less per week compared to 100 years ago. Every generation believes their time is the most uncertain and has the most risk. But history tells us a different story. We are healthier, smarter, more connected, and more capable than any generation before us.
And this is where it all ties back to planning. Because while the world keeps improving, most people still make one critical mistake. They underestimate the future. They stay too conservative. They get distracted by short-term news and may miss out on the enormous long-term opportunity. Just look at all of the stock sales every time there is a temporary decline.
At Presilium, we believe in preparing for the future, but also believing in it. Because if history is any guide, the next 10, 20, 30 years are not something to fear. They're something to be excited about. Thank you, and I look forward to talking with you next Friday morning.
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