How are your survival instincts?
No, I’m not talking about finances…
I’m talking actual survival – as in – you and your family go on a friendly hike into the woods while on vacation and you get lost, or worse, you get confronted by a gigantic bear looking for food.
Would you know what to do?
Well, if your survival instincts are not sufficient, you’re about to get some pointers on what you can do to increase your chances of survival…
And you’ll be surprised to learn – some of the same lessons will apply to help you while surviving (and even THRIVIING) in a bear market as well.
You’d be surprised how many people go traipsing around in the woods without knowing the most basic of survival skills – and the fact is – knowing what to do if you find yourself across from a bear is one of the most important skills you can learn…
Because your instincts, in this case, would probably get you killed – just like your instincts could cost you a LOT of money during a bear market.
Lesson #1 – Do NOT Run
In the wild, if you encounter a bear and decided to turn and run – odds are – you’re going to trigger the predatory instinct in that bear and he’s going to chase you down and have you for lunch, and not in a neighborly way…
More of an actually eat you kind of way.
So, you don’t run…
Much like in a bear market – the worst thing you can do is try to run. If you start selling all of your stocks and getting out to avoid losing money – you are absolutely going to lose money – as the losses you take on stocks by selling off are gone forever.
Preserving the money you have may sound like a great idea…
But that is just the panic talking. The fact is – the market WILL come back! And running away from it is death sentence for any of the temporary losses you may have incurred.
Lesson #2 – Don’t scream or yell. Speak in a soft monotone voice.
In the wild, yelling and screaming at a bear may agitate it and make it believe that you’re a threat – and a threatened animal is a DANGEROUS animal…
Especially if that animal is a bear and has the ability to devour you.
So, you speak in soft and monotone voice as to not agitate the bear and keep it calm.
When it comes to investing in a bear market – the act is JUST as important – as screaming and yelling can agitate YOU and work you up into a sense of panic…
Panic will ensure you start making very DUMB decisions – so staying calm, not losing your composure and using soft words are more for your OWN protection – and will hopefully keep you from slipping into that panicked mode.
It may sound ridiculous – but it will actually help.
Lesson #3 – Walk away slowly, if the bear is not approaching.
Walk away slowly…
If you encounter a bear in the wild – you SLOWLY make your way out of the area – always keeping an eye on the bear to let you know it’s intentions. Some bears will investigate – others will flee – while other will walk away nonchalantly as if they don’t have a care in the world.
So, if a bear isn’t approaching – walk away slowly to ensure you’re don’t trigger its predatory instincts.
As far as investing goes – the best thing you can do is walk away slowly if you feel you need to get away…
Meaning you don’t sell everything you own – you just sell what you feel could be a risk in volatile times like these. You can still invest – but you’d be better off looking at ETFs or the indices themselves (QQQ, SPY or DIA)– than getting out of the market completely.
And again…
Do NOT sell off the stocks that were menat as long-term investments but have tanked hard. Let those ride. The money is gone already – might as well wait for it to come back (and it WILL) – than kiss that money goodbye.
Lesson #4 – If a bear charges, stand your ground!
Why should you stand your ground? Because the fact is – you can’t outrun the bear. If it charges and you stand your ground – you may have just intimidated it to the point that it sees you as a bigger threat to its safety than it is to yours.
And you may win the encounter – which is better than running away and having your legs chopped out from under you from behind.
Stand your ground if it charges – and you have a better shot at surviving than running away.
Do I even need to explain how this correlates to the investing world?
It’s pretty much the culmination of the entire list – in one little sentence. “Stand your ground” – running away rarely helps any situation – it just prolongs the inevitable.
You can survive any bear encounter in the woods a LOT easier than your finances can survive in a bear market if you panic…
Which is why staying calm and in control are the most important aspects to both a wildlife encounter and to investing.
Hopefully you can take these lessons and apply them to your investing…
Or your outdoor adventures! Either way, you now have tools to help you survive!
Good luck!
“There were all kinds of things I was afraid of at first, ranging from grizzly bears to ‘mean’ horses and gun-fighters; but by acting as if I was not afraid I gradually ceased to be afraid.” ― Theodore Roosevelt