Instead of advice this Friday, I'm sharing information about something I love: the written word.

I learn things by reading and writing. I like making neat notes, and I use high-quality paper, fine pens, highlighters and a black Sharpie to keep track of my daily tasks.

I hate podcasts because they are a painfully slow way of taking in information. I can't bear the thought of wasting two hours listening to people exchanging pleasantries and waffling on about some subject. I'll consider reading a transcript - much, much quicker.

I'm picky about the fonts I use when writing electronic documents and emails on my Apple MacBook. My favourite typeface is Calibri.

On the topic of typefaces, here's a lovely article about the hardest working font in Manhattan. It's about a peculiar set of letters and numbers called Gorton which was developed in the 1950s by a company in Wisconsin for engraving, and ended up getting used for signs, on typewriters and other machines all around the world.

I haven't written a Beats column over the past few days because I've been at the BizNews conference in Hermanus. It was an enlightening experience, plus I got to meet up with some clients who also attended the event.

The conference featured an excellent lineup of speakers, including Helen Zille, Adrian Gore, Chris Pappas, Piet Viljoen, Gayton Mckenzie and Rob Hersov.

In today's world, business and politics are so interlinked that most of the discussions revolved around political issues, both local and international.

I have two main takeaways. The first is that we still have a very engaged community in South Africa. People love this country and want to make a difference and influence change. Whatever your agenda, please get involved in your community. Join clubs, participate in your children's schools, volunteer for charities and political parties, or serve on the boards of various organisations. Whatever it is, being involved will contribute to making our country a better place.

The other takeaway was more of an epiphany I had while listening to Dr Yvonne Malan, a descendant of the incredible Sailor Malan. For reference, he was a World War II fighter pilot hero. I absolutely love history and reading about the past. During the talk, I realised that we are living through a very pivotal time in history, influenced by figures like Trump, Musk, Putin and then the GNU locally. With the rise of podcasts, independent media and fake news, everyone is well-informed and fully engaged.

The irony is that while all this information is available on the internet, it has led to the formation of closed-off communities. This is sad. The BizNews conference was a reminder of our shared responsibility to engage in our communities and contribute to meaningful dialogues. We have the power to influence change, and it starts with each one of us stepping up and being part of the conversation.

The ANC has run out of other people's money to spend. Our population is already taxed to the maximum, and additional taxes would hurt the economy and most likely lead to hardly any more money being collected. We are getting close to the point where higher taxes might even mean lower collections. The solution to the budget gap isn't higher taxes but lower spending. Wednesday's budget doesn't have the support of the majority in parliament, so very well may change.

The problem is that there is too much wasteful, fruitless and corrupt spending by the government. Taking on the debts of failing state-owned enterprises has also been a disaster. In the past, that didn't matter as much because our economy was growing at 5%, and we had a low debt-to-GDP ratio. Now, even getting 2% economic growth is a challenge, and annual debt repayments are eating up more of our budget each year.

I feel for the team at Treasury because they can see all the money being wasted, but there is little that they can do. Change won't happen until there is a broader political will to do so, and that doesn't seem likely. We will probably see the creation of another expensive commission to look into the problem, and then have zero action.

Spotify paid a record $10 billion in royalties to the music industry in 2024. Over the past decade, its total payouts have grown tenfold, with the number of artists earning royalties tripling since 2017.

Spotify's latest Loud & Clear report highlights that around 1 500 artists made over $1 million, while 12 500 crossed the $100 000 mark last year. But with ongoing debates around artist compensation, fuelled by a recent Grammy party boycott by songwriters, Spotify is shifting the spotlight to labels and publishers.

A company spokesperson said the following: "Spotify does not pay artists or songwriters directly. We pay rights-holders. These rights-holders pay artists and songwriters based on their individual agreements."

To its credit, Spotify is the only streaming service providing this level of financial disclosure - something even record labels avoid doing.

Booking.com is well-placed to gather information about the travel industry. From red-eye flights to men-only wellness retreats - The top travel trends of 2025.

The Jeppe name is found throughout Joburg. Five Jeppe men were prominent in the early history of the Transvaal - The history of the Jeppe family.

Asian markets kicked off the day with a strong rally as the US dodged a government shutdown. Benchmarks in Australia, Hong Kong, mainland China (at their highest level this year), Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan all moved higher, riding the wave of relief. India, however, sat this one out, bucking the regional trend.

In local company news, AdvTech expects headline earnings for the year ended December to rise by as much as 18%, driven by strong solid demand across both its schools and tertiary divisions for 2025. Standard Bank also reported a 4% rise in full-year headline earnings to R44.5 billion. Digitally active retail clients in SA increased by 6%.

US equity futures are looking much better in pre-market trade, so let's see where we end up tonight.

The Rand is trading at around R18.30 to the US Dollar.

It's been a rough week. Have a restful weekend.