Blog
dev
How the 3Ps – Predict, Plan, and Persevere – Can Create Enduring Wealth
By: Michael Lee-Chin
Applying the same framework that foresaw Canada’s wealth management boom to the next major transformation in cancer treatment and clean energy.
Wealth is created by forward-thinking people. Throughout my career, I have followed a simple yet powerful framework that I call the 3Ps: Predict, Plan, and Persevere. This approach has fostered increased wealth not only for me but also for people who believed in our vision.
Predict – Seeing What Others Don’t
Demographics have long been one of the most reliable predictors of economic trends. In the 1980s, I observed that the baby boomer cohort, representing 28% of the North American population, was driving a consumption boom. While many focused on immediate market conditions, I anticipated that this same group would soon shift from consuming at high levels to saving and investing for retirement. At the time, Canada’s wealth management industry oversaw roughly $5 billion in assets under administration. Based on demographic insights, I predicted a sharp rise in investment activity—an outcome driven by observation, not guesswork.
Plan – Turning Insight into Action
Conviction without action is simply an idea. Confident in my thesis, I borrowed $500,000 and invested it entirely into a single stock: MacKenzie Financial Corporation. At the time, it traded at $1 per share. Within three years, it rose to $7, turning my investment into $3.5 million. That experience solidified my belief in the power of demographics and disciplined conviction. Building on that success, we expanded our thesis by creating an aggregation vehicle composed of concentrated positions in mutual fund companies designed to capture the wealth-creation opportunities emerging from the demographic shift.
Persevere – Staying the Course
Our conviction required discipline, and plenty of it. We held our positions through market fluctuations and resisted the temptation to pursue short-term gains. Today, Canada’s wealth management industry manages over $2 trillion in assets—a more than 400-fold increase since 1987.
The 3Ps Today
Just as demographic trends once signaled the rise of wealth management, they now highlight two of humanity’s most pressing challenges and greatest opportunities. As a soon-to-be 75-year-old baby boomer, living a long and healthy life is top of mind. With an aging baby boom cohort comes a rising risk of cancer—a Boom within a Boom. The statistics are sobering: 96% of cancer mortalities occur among those 50 and older. According to the World Health Organization, there were approximately 20 million new cancer cases in 2022, projected to rise by 77% to about 35 million by 2050.
Precision Oncology – The Future of Cancer Treatment
Traditional treatments such as chemotherapy, surgery, and external beam radiation have saved lives but often cause harsh side effects and reduced quality of life. The industry is ready for disruption. The future lies in precision oncology. One especially promising modality is Targeted Radionuclide Therapy (TRT), which targets cancer at the cellular level while sparing healthy cells and avoiding many of the harsh effects of existing treatments.
My interest in precision oncology became personal in 2018 when a close friend was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer. His PSA levels were extremely high, and the cancer had spread to his bones. With limited conventional options, he met Dr. Richard Baum, MD, PhD, a globally renowned expert in radiomolecular precision oncology working with ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE (ITM). After a few TRT treatments, his PSA levels dropped significantly, and his cancer went into remission. Witnessing this firsthand convinced me of TRT’s transformative potential. Portland soon became an investor in ITM, and I now sit on its supervisory board. Most importantly, my friend is doing very well.
Canada has demonstrated global leadership in nuclear medicine, particularly in medical isotope development and TRT. The connection between nuclear energy and medicine is more than symbolic: both harness the atom to improve life, health, and economic opportunity. Canada has the talent, resources, and intellectual capital to shape global standards in nuclear medicine while generating strong domestic prosperity.
The Second Application of the 3P Framework
Whenever there is a shift in the dominant energy source, there is a shift in economic power. Today, the world is moving toward greater use of nuclear energy. Energy plays a fundamental role in global economic development. In the 20th century, world population grew fourfold, economic output increased 22 times, and fossil fuel consumption rose 14 times. The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects nearly 50% growth in global energy consumption between 2018 and 2050.
Under the Paris Agreement and COP21, many countries committed to becoming carbon-neutral by 2050. To achieve this, fossil fuels must be replaced. Most countries currently rely on a hub-and-spoke energy model, with fossil fuels as the hub and renewables as the spokes. Fossil fuels are always on, scalable, and energy-dense, but they pollute and harm both human and environmental health. We need an energy source that is always on, highly scalable, energy-dense, and clean. Today, the only option is nuclear fission.
Nuclear Energy and the Rise of SMRs
Nuclear energy is expected to power both large reactors and small modular reactors (SMRs). SMRs represent a new paradigm: compact, flexible, safe, and deployable locally to replace aging fossil fuel plants, power remote communities, and support industrial development—all without carbon emissions. They can be built faster, financed more easily, and designed for minimal risk, making them a highly practical solution.
Major tech companies have recognized that nuclear is one of the few viable options to meet their massive, continuous energy demands. Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Meta are investing billions of dollars in nuclear energy through power purchase agreements and advanced reactor development to power AI-driven data centers. Nuclear energy may also offer energy independence to nations without fossil fuel resources—an important factor in today’s geopolitical environment.
Diamonds in Our Own Backyard
Canada, especially Ontario, is uniquely positioned to lead the nuclear revolution. Nuclear energy supplies roughly 60% of Ontario’s electricity. Ontario is home to 16 of Canada’s 17 commercially operating nuclear reactors. Canada is vertically integrated across the nuclear value chain—from uranium mining and advanced research to technical expertise and operational deployment. Facilities like Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) provide world-class innovation and the expertise needed to drive advancements in both energy and medicine.
This combination of resources, knowledge, and strategic advantage gives Canada a leading edge. By moving early in the nuclear sector, Canada can capture significant economic and investment gains and create prosperity for generations to come.
Predict, Plan, Persevere: A Call to Action
The 3Ps—Predict, Plan, and Persevere—remain the foundations of wealth creation. Throughout history, wealth has been created not by those who follow trends but by those who invest early, before the crowd arrives. Today, the opportunity lies in All Things Nuclear—from clean energy to precision oncology. Canada has a rare chance to lead the global nuclear revolution. We have the resources, the talent, and the momentum.
By investing early in these transformative sectors, we can generate wealth while helping address two of humanity’s greatest challenges: cancer and climate change. Canada is uniquely positioned to lead both. We have the base elements and the tailwind at our back. What we need now is advocacy, investment, and perseverance to Do Well, by Doing Good.
To learn more about All Things Nuclear, visit All Things Nuclear. To gain access to All Things Nuclear, contact a Mandeville Advisor at doddi@mandevilleom.com. Learn more at www.portlandic.com and www.mandevillepc.com. Follow Michael Lee-Chin’s official Instagram account at @michaelleechin.
