The year 2020 marked a pivotal turning point for many of us. For me, it was a time of introspection, a recalibration of priorities, and a shift toward disciplined investing. Each year since then, I’ve said “no” to something that didn’t align with my evolving investment philosophy. Here’s what I stopped—and the lessons I learned along the way.
Lessons in Long-Term Investing
The Beginning :
As we began 2022, I have 2 stories to share with you. One from the US & one from INDIA. Both of these stories have impacted my thought process & continue to motivate me. Both of them are ordinary people but with some extraordinary achievements. I am hoping reading their stories will inspire you too.
Peter Lynch once said, " Warren Buffett states that twelve investments decisions in his forty-year career have made all the difference". I have been an investor for the last 4 years, and I believe I found my 1st Investment decision that's making an impact on my Portfolio.
December is usually the craziest of times for Wedding Photographers & Cinematographers. It was no different for us at Monks In Happiness too. But there was a special enthusiasm this time around, in our 5th year of existence, we were all set to travel to KERALA for our first ever wedding shoot. And the icing on the cake was the venue - TAJ BEKAL ( Bekal is a small town on the borders of Karnataka & Kerala). I opted for the train journey along with some of my team members. It was an eventful one :) We were slated to travel from Panvel to Mangalore and a small road trip for the final destination. That afternoon, the train was on time and once the journey started, the craziness unraveled. It took an unplanned long break at Roha ( which was the first station after Panvel), no it wasn't a 10-15 mins break, it was a 4 hrs hiatus. The same thing happened as we headed to the next stop -Khed. Long story short, we reached Mangalore the next day at 1 PM, as opposed to its ETA of 5 AM. Yes, 8 hrs late !!
In October 2020 India saw the release of SCAM 1992: The Harshad Mehta story. Literally, overnight in India, a new one-liner became the tagline: Risk hai toh Ishq hai. Completely ignoring the fact of how Harshad Mehta's life ended. In my limited understanding of the world of stocks, I have realized this: Managing Risk is probably one of the bedrock for one being successful in investment. Risk is incredibly important to long-term investors, it's also ephemeral & unmeasurable. Let's explore the R-Word.
If someone bought TESLA Model S in 2012, their $77,000 car would be worth approximately $40,000 today. Instead, if he had invested the same $77,000 in TESLA stocks in 2012, he would be a Millionaire today, in fact, $7 Million !! When I saw this post on Instagram a month back, it made me envious of the opportunities that US Stock Investors had. But then on researching, I realized INDIA also had given these opportunities, don't believe me ...read on!
Yesterday Godrej Consumer stock jumped 22%! Yes, it's not a typo, it did jump 22%. But why? No doubt they reported a good set of Q4 FY21 numbers but the main reason the market was giving a thumbs-up was - Sudhir Sitapati. Yes the ex- HUL maestro is now taking over the reins of Godrej Consumer as the CEO. While I agree the market did exaggerate with that huge move, but if you looked at history, especially when it comes to FMCG companies, a management change has mostly triggered the cash coffers! Over time we will see whether Sudhir replicates the same with Godrej Consumer also.
My maid came late this morning, on enquiring what was the reason, she responded - 'Daughter is unwell'. Concerned, I probed further. That's when she revealed that they bought a new fridge recently and her daughter has been on a cold drinking water spree since then. Talk about joy in little things :)
We have seen seismic shifts in India caused by the pandemic’s fog of uncertainty. One of the most surprising ones being - surge in Demat accounts in India. 2020 was the year when everyone suddenly seemed to be interested in INVESTING, specifically stock investing. However, rather than following the bandwagon, one needs to check if this world really suits them. Legendary investor PETER LYNCH has given us a tool of 3 simple questions, it's called the - "MIRROR Test" and if you pass it, then welcome to this world of Stocks. So without further delay, let's delve into understanding what is this Test all about?
COVID has brought this huge country to a standstill. Fear, Sadness, and Uncertainty are widespread. Lives are being lost and in my entire life, I have never seen this country engulfed by emotions like this before!
Yesterday came in the news that Mr.Trump is banning TikTok in the US within 45 days if ByteDance ( the parent company), doesn't sell it to an American company. For the last one week, there is another related news that's created quite some excitement - Microsoft is planning to BUY TikTok. For the uninitiated, Microsoft is leaving no stone unturned in its effort to acquire TikTok. Last week in fact Satya Nadela, the Indian origin Microsoft CEO, called up Trump to allay the later's fear of privacy & national security of US citizen's data. From what we hear as per media reports, that swayed Trump's decision. And as we got the news yesterday that TokTok is indeed being banned in the US if not sold in 45 days, we will need to see how this shapes up or expedites the acquisition talk. Personally I was expecting, in his true trump style, Mr.President banning TikTok over a tweet. Wow! that would have been social media used to ban other social media.However, what got me inquisitive is why Microsoft is looking at this opportunity? And that's where I found some interesting facts.
