Emotions & Finance

People can sometimes feel paralyzed by the need to follow an optimal or efficient path towards a goal. But progress is uncertain. By focusing on what we learn at each step, we can mitigate the feelings of anxiety that come with any uncertain endeavor.

Fulfillment in work requires a balance between the emotions of safety and excitement. We achieve this by building a portfolio of "bonds" and "stocks." From a place of safety, when the right opportunity presents itself, we can have the courage to go all-in on a home run opportunity.

People assume that we need to go all-in on creative projects to make them work. However, that turns creative projects into life-or-death situations that must work for us to survive. Adding a stable, low-risk project to our portfolio is a better way to manage risk.

People often mistake busywork for the important work that leads to real change. The important work is scary, especially because the initial feedback can be negative.

Losses are a natural consequence of playing any game with a difficulty level appropriate to us. The key to long-term success is distinguishing between temporary losses and permanently destructive losses. When we hold on through the former and cut the latter, we win in the long-term.

"Keeping options open" is often times a disguise for avoidance and fear of commitment. If we never commit, we lose the chance to gain the compounding returns from choosing a course of action and sticking with it.

Success in markets (or in life) requires the willingness to accept the pain of loss, as well as the ability to endure pain over a long period of time. Ultimately, those who win in markets and in life are those who can sit with pain the longest.

Society tells us to generate confidence and self-worth internally, and to not rely on external validation. But external validation is like a price signal from the market--we may have an asset which is very valuable, but we have no idea of its worth without information from an external source.

We can feel frustrated when we "do everything right" but don't get the result we want. This post unpacks the assumptions underneath "doing" "everything" "right."

In finance, "good" things like assets, returns, and money come part and parcel with "bad" things like liabilities, risk, and time investment. We can guide our personal growth by looking for the "bad," knowing the "good" will come automatically.