What does that say to you?
Opportunity is No Where? Or, Opportunity is Now Here?
In times of stress and uncertainty, it is easy to fall into the category of "Opportunity is No Where" crowd. As we shut out the "noise" and filter out some of the panic, we can start to understand how much opportunity is out there and right in front of us. We just have to keep our eyes open.
It's no secret that this past year has been an absolutely crazy time for everyone. The market took a nosedive February and March of 2020 and dropped almost 40% in a matter of weeks. Was that an opportunity to buy or an opportunity to sell?
For some it may not seem like it, however you will come out of this a better person in some aspect. We will come out of this a better society and a better world as well. Just like after the 2008 crisis when banks were going under left and right, we were able to learn about the downsides of too much leverage. It was a learning opportunity for us as individuals and it was an opportunity for businesses to make changes in order to avoid some of those same mistakes. Will everyone learn that lesson? Of course not, but many will and those people will put themselves in a position to prosper the next time something like that happens.
There will be tough times, no doubt, however there will be good times too. Focus on the good times, focus on the positives in life, and focus on the wins, no matter how small they may seem today. Those are the things that will carry you forward. Learn from the past, but don't be consumed by it. Nothing you do today will change the past, it will only impact your future.
When I graduated high school in May of 2009, right in the middle of possibly the worst financial crisis in many of our lifetimes, I had no idea what was really going on. I knew it was a tough time financially for many people, my family included. My family has been heavily involved in real estate for decades. Not a fun time. Now after getting my PhD in "Hindsight", we definitely should have put all my student loans in Amazon at the time. :)
But in all seriousness, there is a lot that we can learn from those events to shape how we approach and view future events. And the economic events from last year. One of those things is: bad times don't last forever. One of the men I look up to is Eric Thomas, who has an incredible story and is a world class speaker. He has a great quote:
"Pain is temporary. It may last for a minute, or an hour, or a day, or even a year. But eventually it will subside. And something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it will last forever."
Think about that for a minute.
So what can we learn from the past to help is progress in the future? How do we train our mind to see opportunities when they may seem no where to everyone else? We have to keep looking. We have to keep our eyes open, and refresh our perspectives. Opportunities are everywhere if we just keep looking.
So here are a few takeaways to position your finances for the next big opportunity that you will come across:
1) Liquidity
Warren Buffet has a quote about cash - "Cash is like oxygen. When you have it, you don't think about it. But when you don't have it, it's the only thing I can think about." Right now, no one likes cash because it's not doing anything. I agree. However, that's not the purpose of cash. I don't keep cash on my balance sheet for it to "do something". I keep it there so I can do something with it when an opportunity presents itself. It may have to sit in cash for a few months, or maybe at worst a year or two. But what kind of return will that opportunity bring?
2) Protect Your Downside
What could lead to financial failure? If you can plan to mitigate the impacts of those threats, would that open up your mind to be able to focus on the upside? Often I meet with potential clients who have rarely thought of that possibility because, let's be honest, it's not fun to think about. What if you had the added confidence that if you had a job loss, had to take care of an aging parent, had a large unexpected medical expense, were diagnosed with an illness that took you out of work, or something else, you knew that your finances would only have a minimal impact? Those are all things we can address to protect our downside in order to maximize our upside.
3) How do YOU want to build wealth?
Notice the YOU? This isn't what Dave Ramsey says you should do. This isn't what the White Coat Investor says. This isn't what your parents say. This isn't what anyone in the financial industry says you should do. How do YOU want to build wealth? Do you want to own a bunch of stocks, bonds, ETFs, and mutual funds in a portfolio and use that to generate income over time? Would you rather own a business or multiple businesses and reinvest that money to continue to grow those assets? Do you want to be a landlord and own rental properties to generate passive income? Maybe you want to do a combo of all of those. There's no wrong way to do it, however no matter which way you decide, you must start with having a plan and to take the first step.
So, what opportunities are on your horizon? Keep your eyes out for opportunities based on what's important to YOU. This is an exciting time and I think we are going to have some incredible opportunities present themselves in the next 24-36 months. Position yourself now to be ready!
Opportunities are out there, and someone will seize the moment. Make it be you!
Send me an email at blakemiller@ashfordadvisors.net or book a meeting with me on my website to talk more. I'd love to help in any way.