While looking over my businesses and investment holdings this morning, I experienced an epiphany. I carefully gazed up at the television screen and noticed a huge run on Wall Street to the tune of 500 points. (The DJIA actually fell over 800 points before recovering.) There was panic in the news reporters giving the scoop. Panic was found on DrudgeReport.com. There was Panic everywhere.
But I noticed that all of my real estate properties actually increased in value by an average of 3% since the beginning of August. Strange; I thought, “I should panic now?”. In my revelations, I leaned back in my chair and gazed up at the large screen television again. This time I noticed how the price of GOLD had jumped up. “Hmm, people who have large investment holdings of gold should be in pretty good shape today.”, I said to my self as my thoughts wandered. In addition to the newly reported price of gold, I saw that the crude oil futures price had dropped lower. “Cool. Gas prices should adjust lower because of this.”, I mused. And sure enough, the national price of fuel is a few pennies lower than it was a week or two ago. As a matter of fact, sub-$3.00 prices can be found around the country again.
“Where is the cause for panic?”, I contemplated again.
Here is my epiphany.
The facts are simply this:
Markets are cyclical. They rise and fall. If you allow the American free market system to work, you will find resiliency in the most curious of places. Governments should only regulate where a few can manipulate the system to their benefit and to the detriment of the many. Not pump cheap dollars or taxpayer funds into a system that can “bounce back” on its own. Individuals in this country and around the world are very impatient. There are too many occasions where we do not plan ahead and merely react to current stimuli. Sure, there are things we can do now (pay off credit debt, get your home out of foreclosure, find a new tenant) but if our focus remains 5, 10, 15 and 20 years out, these “down” days are reflected merely as little bumps in the road on our way to enormous wealth. Lastly, you cannot save everyone. At some point in time, personal responsibility has to come into play in order to make things work. We should all be willing to help others in time of need. However, we should all be willing to work our way to success without the alms giving of others. To put it more succintly, don’t help me until I ask for it.
Tomorrow is a new day. The Dow will probably increase as the bargain hunters purchase more shares of their favorite stocks and securities. And maybe it will fall another 2 or 3 hundred points. The news media will begin trying to analyze what happened. And this time next week, we will get a different story.
But, your own perseverance and commitment to your own success will never change. Excuse me – SHOULD never change.
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