As promised in yesterday’s post, Solutions To Weather The Storms, here are a few ways to determine whether your captain (if you have one already) is a veteran or not.
Is your captain a veteran?
How many years has he been a financial adviser? Was he a passenger or a captain through previous market crashes and storms? Was he there, or is his knowledge second-hand? Was he there through the 1997 Asian Currency Crisis (which has broad similarities to what is happening here in 2009)? Does your adviser know how to position your ship in the market-place? Does your adviser know how to acquire that positioning without increasing your risk? Can he support his reasoning on those positions in relation to managing risk? More importantly; is your adviser asking for your trust… or earning it?
Inside a storm, there is no substitute for past first-hand experience.
A veteran captain
My first storm was October 1987. I survived, as did most clients (but sadly not all). I learned what to do, and what not to do; how to capitalise on the situation; and then put that experience to work at the next storm, and the next, and the next… Now, 20+ years later, we do not fear the storm, we welcome it because it is at times like these that we help our clients profitably and safely sail through the storm, just like the 1997 Asian Currency Crisis.
You might now understand the significance behind our company name. A lighthouse is always built in the most difficult conditions and takes much time, effort and resilience to be completed. No matter the weather, it lasts and continues to do its task day in and day out; to guide, and to be there when it matters most.
