"Out of the night that covers me, black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance, my head is bloody but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and tears looms but the horror of the shade, and yet the menace of the years finds, and shall find, me unafraid. It matters not how strait the gate, how charged with punishments the scroll. I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul." William Ernest Henley
I am gazing at the bottom of this dark rich brown leather Cigar chair that sat facing me. The Cigar chair was well worn with a rich leathery smell that draws one inward. It is rough yet refined, rugged, but yet soft. It exudes class and sophistication, with a well-worn texture that ages the chair a bit. A pair of legs that are long and never ending extending from the seat; as my eyes move upward, I notice that I am sitting across from a middle age man. His look is professional, but extremely tall. His forehead is lined with wrinkles as if he is in deep thought. His face is round, and his eyes are dark and piercing. His demeanor is regal with a hint of arrogance. I would say he is confident. As he crosses his long legs and continues to stare right at me, I noticed a sign of being unsure. Why is he unsure? I stared back, hoping that would get him to turn his head away. Nevertheless, the more intense my gaze became, the more he glared back at me. Our eyes were locked in on one another. The intensity of my gaze provided additional insight. As I focused in on his features the more, I understood. He is full of contradictions; he is big and powerful, yet fragile, confident, but yet unsure, thoughtful, but decisive. His grooming showed that he paid attention to details. His aura captured his spirituality and the intensity of his thoughts. The way he is glaring in my direction put his laser focus on full display. Immediately, I realize that I must casually look to my left. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice him casually looking to his right. When I look to my right, he slowly looked to his left. It appeared he was imitating me. I smile, he smiled back; I frowned he returned my glare, I put my right hand under my chin, and immediately he put his left hand under his chin. Yes, he was mimicking my every move, because that is what mirrors do.
“Your observations and conclusions are mirrored illusions of your inner state of being, teaching you the truth through falsehoods, strength through weakness and clarity through confusion. You are seeing yourself now, disguised as the world through a lens of denial, but you will soon come to realize that what you choose to deny yourself manifests into your world. The flaws you see in your world are your most powerful teachers.”
― Ka Chinery
Isaac Newton taught us the three laws of motion. The first two rules are fascinating and relevant in their right. However, I would like to focus on the third. Newton’s third law of motion states "when one body exerts a force on a second body, the second body simultaneously exerts a force equal in magnitude and opposite in direction on the first body." For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Simply put, it means that every force can be undone. Mathematically, for every vector, there is another vector with opposite direction and equal magnitude. In nature, we see this principle daily.
Consider the flying motion of birds. The birds use their wings to push air downwards. Since forces result from corresponding action and reaction, the bird is pushed upwards by the air. "The air of the force on the air equals the size of the force on the bird; the direction of the force on the air (downward) is opposite the direction of the force on the bird (upward). For every action, there is an equal (in measure) and opposite (in direction) reaction. Action-reaction force pairs make it possible for birds to fly. Consider the propulsion of a fish through the water. A fish uses its fins to push water backward. But a push on the water will only serve to accelerate the water. Since forces result from mutual interactions, the water must also be pushing the fish forwards, propelling the fish through the water. The measure of the force on the water equals the measure of the force on the fish; the flow of the force on the water (backward) is opposite the flow of the force on the fish (forward). For every motion, there is an equal (in measure) and opposite (in current) reaction force. Action-reaction force pairs make it possible for fish to swim." Even if we looked at a rocket's action is to push down on the ground with the force of its powerful engines, and the reaction is that the earth pushes the rocket upward with equal force.
A curious child asked his mother: “Mommy, why are some of your hairs turning gray?”
The mother tried to use this occasion to teach her child: “It is because of you, dear. Every evil action of yours will turn one of my hairs gray!”
The child replied innocently: “Now I know why grandmother has only gray hairs on her head.”
This principle is a part of every aspect of our lives." In life, nothing happens in a vacuum. Whatever I have done, has already returned to me with equal force. As my grandmother would say, you reap what you sow. Even the bible is cognizant of this truth, the golden rule, "do unto others as you would have them to do unto you." Our outcomes are mirrors of who we are. So it's not a stretch to assume that where we are currently in our lives is a direct result of the seeds we have sown.
“The first thing you have to know is yourself. A man who knows himself can step outside himself and watch his reactions like an observer.” Adam Smith, The Money Game
To sum it up, what I put into the world comes back to me; it creates my current reality. To change my present condition, I must produce something different to create a new life changing, result. The definition of insanity is to continue to do the same things and expecting different results. We are indeed the captain of our souls and the master of our fate. You alone have the ability to change the trajectory of your life.
The marketplace is simply a reflection of the human experience. As an investor, one of the great lessons is that being a successful investor has as much to do with who we are, as the investment itself. Investments are at the core of our lives. In their simplest form, investments are equivalent to choices. For many, money is a limited resource. Meaning that everyone will have a set amount that they are likely to earn throughout their life. Therefore, the choices you make with those earnings will have an impact on your future. In life, our most limited resource is time, and how you choose to spend or invest your time will dictate your future. To increase my time, I must spend it wisely on things that are timeless. Think of time as a seed, so I will plant that seed into relentless pursuits, into things that will last for generations. The same applies to money. I am likely to earn a set amount in my lifetime, to increase that number, I must think of it as a seed. So, I work diligently to plant/ invest into enterprises that have the likelihood to produce limitless growth opportunity. For this to be true for business, the company would need a track record of stability, profitability, adjustability, and sensibility. Those attributes are nurtured in an environment of timeless principles; character, loyalty, commitment, and service.
Now, the same applies to the individual. The more of these attributes mentioned above one has increases their effectiveness and gives them the ability to recognize these principles in others. As Gandhi said, "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." To understand character requires us to be a person of character. To understand commitment compels us to put commitment into action. Again, the principle applies, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. We cannot expect to see in our lives things that we wish not to do. Benjamin Graham said that the “the investor’s chief problem and even his worst enemy is likely to be himself.” Many of us deceive ourselves into believing things about ourselves that are not true. We must look into mirrors and judge our actions by the results they produce. As investors as in life, who you are matters, and the better you know yourself, the better you will do. Know yourself, and that alone will make you a more effective investor.
AUTHOR: MARCUS TURNER
EDITORS: LCM TEAM
