Friday is advice day in this column. Here's some about parenting: children who are granted more autonomy turn out happier and healthier.

A big new study conducted by academics in the US, Australia, Canada, and South Korea, and published in the American Psychologist journal this year, compared the way young adults turned out, based on two key styles: autonomy-supportive parenting and psychologically controlling parenting.

In every culture, excessive control leaves children worse off, but autonomy helps them to engage, learn, and grow.

As one commenter on the journal article said: "Sure, you're probably gonna lose a few kids to conveyor belt accidents, but those who don't succumb to overly risky behaviour will be happier adults, better problem solvers, not hypochondriacs. They'll be fun to have around."

So, here's the takeaway: granting more autonomy, within expanding limits over time, produces natural critical thinking skills, and develops resilience and self-confidence.

People have different ways of thinking and learning. When I was at university I came up with my own unique way of summarising study material and then memorising it. It took me a while to work out what suited me best.

Google AI has launched a really cool product called NotebookLM that would have been very helpful during my student days. The program allows you to upload complex material which it then turns into an engaging audio conversation, like a podcast.

Now you can listen to your study material on the road, while you're driving around. What a pleasure. The usefulness of AI is showing up everywhere.

MrBeast is the King of YouTube, with over 317 million subscribers. He has been creating viral content for years and is really good at what he does. He recently came under fire after a memo to new staff, about what was expected of them, leaked. Some people feel the culture he is creating is toxic. I disagree. The memo is well worth a read if you want to know what it takes to be successful in any career - MrBeast memo.

Here were some of my key takeaways. People need to take responsibility for their actions and the projects they are working on. He says, "I can't stand when people dump and forget their project on a contractor and then the day before the shoot blame them when it's not ready. That's on YOU, not the contractor."

MrBeast: "You're either an A-Player, B-Player, or C-Player. There is only room in this company for A-Players. A-Players are obsessive, learn from mistakes, coachable, intelligent, don't make excuses, believe in Youtube, see the value of this company, and are the best in the world at their job."

Is he allowed to say that some people aren't good enough? Steve Jobs had a similar view about running Apple. If you hire too many B-team and C-team players, then all your A-team players will leave because your company won't be competitive anymore.

If you see yourself as a content creator on social media, give the memo a read. He goes into detail about his creative process.

I just finished watching John Collison's episode on The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations, and I highly recommend giving it a listen.

It was fascinating to hear how John and his brother Patrick took a simple idea - making online payments frictionless - and built Stripe into a fintech powerhouse.

John shared insights on their continued growth and why they're still not rushing into an IPO. It's a great watch for anyone interested in tech, payments, or the future of finance.

Check it out here John Collison. Excuse his unironed shirt, it looks like he may have just taken it straight out of a box and worn it.

Lego has some amazing designs. The toy maker just completed its most ambitious project yet - F1 Racer Lando Norris drove a McLaren P1 made of Legos around Silverstone.

Online dating has seen a slowdown in active users. Running clubs are an easier way to meet people - People are over dating apps, and willing to sweat for an alternative.

Asian stocks continued to rally this morning. However, Taiwan's property and construction stocks dropped after the central bank raised reserve requirements to cool down the overheated property market.

In local company news, Remgro reported a 20% drop in headline earnings for its June year-end, to R5.65 billion, even though revenue grew by 9%. The decline was largely due to a R1.4 billion write-down of its Heineken beverages stake.

US equity futures are flat in pre-market trade. The Rand is at around R17.48 to the US Dollar, which is a 19-month high.

Stay warm this weekend! It's chilly out in Joburg, but hopefully this will be the last cold front of the year.