In a ‘post-Lehman Brothers’ world, an investment ad in the subway ironically reads, ‘Be humble, the stock market is probably smarter than you.’ This seems to speak of the so-called ‘wisdom of the masses’. But are the masses necessarily wise? What about the ‘delusion of the masses’? If the masses are so wise, why is the global financial situation run by financial giants in shambles? Everyone in the stock market tries to outsmart one another, while many assume they are the smartest, when they are mostly none the wiser. It’s really investment in arrogance and presumptuousness.
The truth is, a globalised market driven by unchecked capitalistic urges will burst, if not already, simply because the environment and its people can only take so much greed. Greed seems to lead to prosperity for a while, but it leads to bankruptcy too, when excess greed makes extreme gambles… and loses eventually…. not just of the gamblers’ money, but that of the investors (also driven by greed) who placed their stakes in their hands too. One of the reasons worldly finances rise and fall is due to such greed cycles in motion – involving both the sellers and the buyers.
However, this round, something unprecedented is happening. The world is waking up to the truth that natural resources are limited, and that it’s crazy to milk the planet dry to keep the economy thriving via consumption. It’s time to wake up. We need to spend and invest mindfully, only for needs. Greed says the idea of ‘enough’ is never enough, because greed is essentially bottomless, while enough is always enough. ‘Be realistic, the stock market is probably not always wiser than you (can be).’
Being in the finance industry for near to 10 years, this year is the most difficult one for me. My company went through 3 retrenchment exercise already due to this financial crisis. Even though I feel confident in my work performance, this is the first time I feel very insecure in my job.
Just yesterday, one of my colleagues whom I work with for at least 5 years got laid-off. Its seems at this time nothing is predictable.
I have always been passionate about investment, and love to simply look at the market movement. However as many people lacking the knowledge in investing, parted with their hard-earned money, sometimes makes me worried for them. It is best to always seek someone’s opinion if you are unsure, just like I always warn my mum not to take up any investment plans when she visit the bank. :p
It is true that investment does not guarantee profits, just like no one can predict the future. But with the right knowledge and right attitude, people can still benefit from investing.
I only hope that the economic would recover soon, otherwise I would be the next person on my company’s retrenchment list.
But like what my husband sometimes tell me, just leave our fate to Amituofo and everything will be fine. 
Hmmm… i think the genuine fear of retrenchment despite being in the industry for a decade really reflects how unstable global finances are currently. Even investment firms are becoming uncertain about their own investments, so who is the real expert to consult? I honestly dunno, but thankfully, my refuge is not centred on money. 8/ Amituofo
Hi Shian
A few clarifications to make on your comments. :p
“Even investment firms are becoming uncertain about their own investments”
From a company’s perspective, retrenchment is a way to cut cost in order to keep the business going, whether or not you are in the Finance Industry. In a way, its to protect the investors’ interest but certainly not a sign of uncertainty about their own investments. As far as I understand, the portfolio managers in my company are required to invest a certain % of their salary in the portfolio. I believe the purpose of this is to ensure that all portfolio managers handle investments prudently and ethically. Well, but I am not saying that those companies who do not have this requirements are acting unethically. :ninja:
“so who is the real expert to consult?”
From an investor’s perspective, I would say doing homework is vital, such as checking on the company’s background and looking at that financial statements. It is also mandatory to do a risk profile analysis for people who take up investment plans, another way of protecting investors’ interests.
Even though I am fearful of retrenchment at these times, but what we are going through is a period of bear market. Its not really about how unstable the global finances are. Its more on what causes the market downturn each time. Rather than being pessimistic about the economic outlook, I choose to believe we will emerge stronger from this and this will teach us not to always take things for granted. Amituofo. ^_^
For one, Lehman Brothers is a classic giant investment firm that became uncertain of their own overhyped investments, and declared bankruptcy. Because they already were so-called ‘time-tested’ experts, it makes it hard to decide how much homework (done by non-experts) on other so-called experts is needed to be safe. The causes of stock crashes is always due to greed and delusion, which people are not readily learning from enough. This is why history repeated and will repeat