• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact

Daily Business Magazine

A magazine complement to the Daily Business website

  • Life, Arts & Leisure
    • Creative
    • Festival
      • Festival Reviews
    • Film
    • Food & Drink
    • Stage Shows
    • Life
    • Leisure
      • Rio Recommends – dog walks and cafes
    • Homes
    • Style
    • Travel
  • Opinion
    • Bill Magee
    • Craig Alexander Rattray
    • Karen Harvie
    • Keith Anderson
    • Russell Dalgleish
    • Terry Murden
  • Interviews
  • Notebook
  • Working Life
    • Careers & Management
    • Finance and legal
    • Technology
      • Tech Talk
    • Well Being
  • Daily Business News
    • All Content

Choose the right vehicle for the road ahead

September 15, 2020 by Alan Steel Leave a Comment


“People tend to choose what has been successful rather than looking forward long term”  Alan Steel, Daily Telegraph, June 2006

“If you don’t start wi’ a plan at the start, how do you know how you’re getting on?” Grannie McKay, 1961

On The Money: Alan Steel

Until the last few days when it took a bath, the US car company Tesla had seen its share price rocket by 780% since the start of 2020.  Electric performance, eh?  And yet, apparently, the average Tesla share is held for only 10 days. Sounds racy to you?.

So maybe it’s time for us all to remember what makes a successful long haul investment strategy.

It looks easy to just buy stuff that’s hugely popular and hold it until you get burnt…. a bit like the kids’ party games we oldies used to play before smartphones spoiled the fun, such as pass the parcel, or the one where you had to judge when you could sit down just before yet another chair was whipped away. Very few winners there, eh?

US investor Vitaliy Katsenelson explained only last week how to compare investment strategies to cars, mentioning Tesla too, just before the share price took a caning.

How prescient was that ? He posed the question as to whether it made more sense heading along a road not travelled, into an uncertain murky future, in a cool sporty EV that goes ‘faster than a speeding bullet’, or instead in a well-constructed multi-purpose 4X4 that will cope in all terrains. After all, as Warren Buffett says “in order to finish first, you actually have to finish”

So how about listening to a few nuggets of advice from his wise right-hand man Charlie Munger? Here’s a few…..

Think carefully about risk. Be independent of thought (only in fairy stories are emperors told that they’re naked). Prepare well. Work, work, work and hope to find a few insights. Have intellectual humility. (You’ll be wrong sometimes). Acknowledging what you don’t know is the dawning of wisdom. Allocate assets wisely. Have patience. Resist the natural human bias to act emotionally. And keep it simple. Remember what you set out to achieve.

And as my old Grannie McKay used to say “If something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. She also used to say that “it’s better to light a candle than curse the darkness”.  

What I’ve discovered over the years since I started off in 1969 is that it’s really difficult keeping a steady hand lighting that candle when it’s at its darkest out there (like it was in March when lockdown happened, and an Investment Fear/Greed indicator, from 0 to 10, fell for the first time ever to 0)

And right now such indicators are telling us that still three-quarters of investors are nervous and tempted to caution.

That, believe it or not is a good sign. Maybe this time it’s different,  but history suggests that while there will likely be twists and turns, there’s plenty scope for optimists to get to the end of their journey in good shape.

There are always Winners and Losers after crises like this one. So just be careful what vehicle you pick for your own road ahead.

Alan Steel is chairman of Alan Steel Asset Management

Alan Steel Asset Management is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. This article contains the personal views of Alan Steel and should not be construed as advice. Do check your individual circumstances with your advisers.

www.alansteel.com

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Alan Steel, Contributors, Working Life

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar



Editor’s Pick

Bill Magee

Securing safe passage to the metaverse economy

Terry Murden

… [More...] about Securing safe passage to the metaverse economy

Tim Key

Review: Tim Key – Mulberry

Andy Moseley

… [More...] about Review: Tim Key – Mulberry

Sook Edinburgh

Pop-ups give stores a new lease of life

Julena Drumi

… [More...] about Pop-ups give stores a new lease of life

Jason Byrne

Byrne and Bishop to play brain tumour gig

Julena Drumi

… [More...] about Byrne and Bishop to play brain tumour gig

Advertising



Footer

  • All Content
  • Site Map
  • Privacy Policy
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • WordPress

Copyright © 2022 · Design by jPAD Consulting · Magazine Pro · Genesis Framework

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
 

Loading Comments...