Intuitive Investing

Mort Litwack

What to do when the stock market goes into a tailspin...

It's not how hard the wind blows but how the captain adjusts the sails that determines the course of the ship. Just like the wind changes, so does our lenvironment and by living in present time we can make the best decisions for ourselves. So now that the stock market is searching for an elusive bottom, what do you do?

The following suggestions are offered:

KEEP YOUR COOL

Don't overreact to the overreactions. There have been sharp, unpredictable drops which have made the market unstable.  When the market drops people get scared and all their insecurity pictures light up. My niece, who is a millionaire, said, "when the market took a big drop-I saw myself as a bag lady." Now if you were in that emotional space what kind of investment decisions would you make, good ones or poor ones?

Investors who  invest unemotionally, observe the wide market swings and invest upon underlying values not going into panic at the gigantic swings the market makes. Also, bargains are created when people are in a fear mode. Taking advantages of these requires living in present time, not the past or future time. This has to do with being calm and operating in a neutral way. Seeing what is happening and acting upon it.

"All times are good times if you know what to do with them." Does that mean if the bottom drops out of the market that it ís a good time? Of course it is. Just as bad as it is for the investor who held a portfolio of airline companies, that's how good it is for the investor who has set aside founds for buying  bargains. By the investor seeing the underlying value, they are able to buy while those who have a lot of fear pictures lit up, are responding to those pictures and not to reality.

DEVELOP A STRATEGY

After you have read and listened to others as to what is going on in the world, then get quiet. Reserve a little time for yourself. Just look inside for the kinds of pictures that will indicate what  is going to happen over the next 6 months to a year. Then, ask yourself, How would I plan for this? What kind of investments will benefit from that scenario. For example, if you see security being beefed up, what companies who sell products or services in this area will capitalize from this. Or, if you see energy being a big  issue, what alternative forms of energy are being generated, or what companies are dealing with this successfully? Of If people are fearful about their money, what other investments than stocks will they consider. Gold? Bonds? Real Estate? The point is, be visualizing what will be and then what companies are moving in that direction.

DIVERSIFY YOUR INVESTMENTS

Go back to basics. Not too many eggs in one basket, in case the bottom of the basket falls out. Investment portfolios are like flower gardens. The need continual weeding out of old investments and fertilizing with new perspectives on how the market will be. Now is the time to reexamine your portfolio and  determine why you went into the investment. It may not make sense any more and you will want to get out of it. Or it may be just what you want and you can invest more in it. By getting into a more neutral space you can look at things on the basis of what they are, rather than how you would like to see them.

RUN MORE CERTAINTY

Ask for guidance from within and believe the answers you receive. It is so easy for us not to listen to ourselves, even though we have better answers to our questions than anyone we might consult. Haven't you gone to a Doctor and were told exactly what you already knew about what it was that was bothering you? We know ourselves better than anyone else, yet we frequently leave important decision to others who know us very briefly or superficially. You have so much life space to live. If you prevent yourself for hearing what you have to say, you limit what you can achieve or accomplish on this earth.

So what is the real answer to dealing with an unstable market? The answer lies in your trusting yourself to picture and plan what to do in order to successfully deal with the world. And then doing it.