“Survival Guy, How are ‘We’ Doing?”

By WEBSTERIX @ Adobe Stock

Your Survival Guy studies the habits of wealthy men. I know the difference between the Rich Man vs. the Poor Man, the Intelligent Investor vs. the Speculator, and the Prudent Man vs. the Careless One.

In my conversations with you, especially your first one, it takes me about 17 seconds to know where you fall. Because everyone wishes for preservation of principal and growth, and most understand that wanting both is hoping for a lot. But some don’t. And those who don’t understand that sometimes expect me to make their wishes come true after a lifetime of bad decisions.

I’m not being unfair. There’s a home for them. There are plenty of advisers and brokers out there who would simply say, “Yes, we can do that for you.” But that’s not how I operate. My job is to tell you what I think is possible, what I have seen work in the past, and explain it to you. It’s your job to understand it and say, “I can live with that.” Or not. Because Your Survival Guy is not Your Can’t We All Just Get Along Guy.

And yes, sometimes the speculators get lucky, but let’s not call it anything other than what it is. They live in a “what have you done for me lately” world. They fly close to the sun. That’s not me.

I like working with The Rich Man because he’s not calling me up asking, “Survival Guy, how are ‘We’ doing?” Since when did this become “we?” This is a “you” endeavor. I’m just trying to help you know who “you” is.

The Rich Man knows how he’s doing because he’s not hoping and wishing for something to happen for him. He’s made the hard decisions already. That’s why he’s not going to rely on “the market” to do something for him. He’s worked to make money. He invests to keep it.

The Intelligent Investor understands this. He understands business. He understands it because he owned one or worked his entire career for one. He understands that profits don’t come out of thin air. They come from satisfying customers’ needs and how doing so will make the company, and him, money. It’s not a charity event.

And the Prudent Man knows how long he worked for his money, that investing it is an act of diversification of labor, and not one of carelessly throwing it away on a “sure” thing. He knows time is the commodity here and that when it’s gone, it’s gone. He can’t work those hours again. Lost money is lost time.

Action Line: And finally, he knows there will be Bull Markets, and there will be Bear Markets. Bears tear apart the Bulls every time. When you’re ready to talk, let’s talk. But only when you’re serious. Email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com.

Originally posted on Your Survival Guy.