Stocks & Mutual Funds Information

Staying Sane While Wall Street Crashes


Everybody is riding the Wall Street Roller coaster. Even if you are not invested, the headlines scream out one word: PANIC!

It's hard not to join in the panicking. The Panic Crowd seems to be having all the fun these days. But they don't have all the happiness. You see, it's true what your mother told you: money doesn't buy happiness, at least not for most people. But the lack of money does buy pure misery.

Did you ever wonder why so many office towers have fusion-sealed, micron-proof windows to keep office workers safe from any semblance of fresh air? It has to do with the stock market. During The Great Depression, just too many brokers were jumping out of windows. This enraged a nation of vengeful investors, who demanded to kill their brokers personally. So henceforth all windows were sealed.

(The good news is that by the time the windows were sealed, The Great Depression had ended, so there have been very few reported cases of enraged investors killing their brokers. However, there have been several incidents of "office air suffocation syndrome" -- but that's another issue for another column.)

Oh no! Not another Top Ten list!

Here are The Happy Guy's Top Ten Tips for Staying Sane While Wall Street Crashes Around You:

  • Don't panic. Enough people are doing that already; you're needed elsewhere.

  • Don't join the Panic Crowd. They are NOT having more fun, they just act that way to attract new members fold. Misery loves company.

  • Take inventory. Do you have the basic necessities? If so, you are OK. When they come to take away your television remote control, then panic.

  • Smile at your neighbor. A smile lifts everybody's spirits, but most of all your own.

  • Remember the Great Depression. It sucked, but people survived. It's amazing how many non-essentials we take for granted. Rent a movie about the 1930s, sit back, and laugh about how much better our depression is going to be.

  • Learn a new skill. In hard times, it pays to be very, very employable. And you may even be lucky enough to have two jobs. Oh, wait. That's our problem now.

  • Start saving now. Then when the bottom falls out, at least you'll have something to live on for three-and-a-half weeks.

  • Start spending now. It's folks like you, saving all your money instead of spending it, that are killing the economy.

  • Stop listening to people telling you to save or to spend. In fact, stop listening to news about the markets. It's just too depressing.

  • Ignore top ten lists. They are way too gimmicky and seldom give any truly useful information (except for this one, of course!)

    There you have it. The Happy Guy's Top Ten Tips for Staying Sane While Wall Street Crashes Around You. All the advice your mother didn't tell you about financial markets, and more importantly, about keeping happy while others suffer. The bottom line is don't panic, don't invest all your emotions where your money is invested, and focus on what really matters.

    About The Author

    David Leonhardt is The Happy Guy. He is an energetic motivational speaker and author of Climb Your Stairway to Heaven: the 9 habits of maximum happiness. Visit him at

    http://www.TheHappyGuy.com

    David@TheHappyGuy.com


    MORE RESOURCES:

    The New 'Cakedex' vs. the S&P 500
    Seeking Alpha, NY - Sep 4, 2008
    Cake has ratings for 2033 stocks, mutual funds and ETfs (versus 3069 for Schwab and 4074 for Morningtsar). Cake Scout: A stock recommendation system that ...


    Cramer's Tip For Investing In A China Rebound
    TheStreet.com - Sep 3, 2008
    I can't stand ETFs. These "exchange-traded funds" are an affront to my stock picking abilities. Be darned if I am going to own some instrument that has ...


    Morningstar, Inc. Completes Acquisition of Financial Computer ...
    MarketWatch - Sep 2, 2008
    Morningstar provides data on more than 280000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles. The company has operations in 18 ...


    Preparing for house ownership through mortgage credits
    The Punch, Nigeria - Aug 31, 2008
    It is also interested in the borrower‘s other assets, like stocks, mutual funds or personal property like a boat or cars. All these are also considered in ...


    Why you can't beat forced savings for long-term gain
    South China Morning Post (subscription), Hong Kong - Aug 30, 2008
    Besides life-insurance policies, I invest in blue-chip stocks, mutual funds and properties. When I buy a new property and move in, I usually keep the ...


    It doesn't take much to be green
    Norwich Bulletin, CT - Aug 30, 2008
    Because of the newness of this industry, there are no long track records for these company stocks. Mutual funds have generally been safer vehicles for ...


    SEC Weighs Overhaul of 'Index' Annuities
    Wall Street Journal - Aug 16, 2008
    But the SEC wants indexed annuities to be considered "securities," just like stocks, mutual funds and even variable annuities. ...


    Ibbotson Selected by ING Financial Advisers to Create Model ...
    MarketWatch - Aug 13, 2008
    Morningstar provides data on more than 280000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles. The company has operations in 18 ...


    Taiwan's Cathay Life Invests in Blackstone Capital
    Trading Markets (press release), CA - Aug 28, 2008
    Cathay Life said its investment strategy is to diversify its invested assets into a variety of portfolio products such as stocks, mutual funds, ...


    Financial planning: It pays to start right
    American Chronicle, CA - Aug 26, 2008
    Assets can be your bank balance, investment in stocks, mutual funds, gold, property, insurances, vehicles etc. And liabilities are the loans to repay (they ...

    Stocks-Mutual-Funds - Google News

  • Good Credit Loans | home | site map | School Bus Clothing | Florida Pool Heating
    © 2006