They Can't Eat You

There is a lot of fear around, maybe rightly so. There is also a lot of exaggeration out there, maybe wrongly so. It is true we are in a bear market. It is true the Superannuation funds and portfolios have lost substantial value. But is this the end of the world? No way!

I was listening to an entrepreneur a few years back, Keith Cunnigham. He started by telling his story which included multiple bankruptcies, one due to real estate prices crashing. He had recovered from each one and was a multimillionaire. In describing his challenging times he said: “Folks they can take your money. They can take your house, your furniture, your car, even most of your clothes. But they can’t eat you!”

There are quite a few messages in that simple sentence. Firstly it highlights the origins of our fears. Tens of thousands years ago, our ancestors lived in caves. They had very little protection and faced big beasts, wild animals that indeed could eat them and would at first chance. Survival was an everyday issue with the cave man, cave woman and if they made it safely to the end of the day, it was a good day.

In modern times, we do not have beasts or wild animals chasing us, but we sometimes act as though we do. We dramatise or go along with others who dramatise the news. We get more and more tense, get worked up and suffer physically, mentally and emotionally, as if we are about to be eaten.

I am not advocating partying and ignoring the impact of the economy. That would be minimising the magnitude of the challenging conditions we are in. What I am saying is that we can be careful and not exaggerate what is happening or its impact.

Another message in that simple expression is that, since they (markets, banks, insurance companies, governments, traders) can not eat you, you have the basic necessities of survival almost guaranteed for you and there is potential to bounce back. You may have reduced assets or no assets. But you do have intangible assets: your life, your security, your friends, your knowledge, your experience, your intelligence, your wisdom and your will. Since you are still alive, since the beast did not eat you, you have the potential to survive and prosper. When cornered, you get very creative.

We are experiencing maybe a once in a lifetime set of circumstances, the markets have not done this in my lifetime! Governments around the world are propping up the banks and the economy. Great amounts of money are changing hands very quickly. Yet they can not eat you. Stop acting petrified, as if there are beasts and wild animals about to eat you. Take stock of where you are and decide where you want to go next. Beasts and wild animals, if they exist, are in your mind. Change your beliefs, your thoughts, your life and your bottom line.

Believe, achieve

Sinan Koray