Ducks

[npg]

"If you're a duck on a pond, and it's rising due to a downpour, you start going up in the world. But you think it's you, not the pond."

[Charlie Munger]


Well, today the pond is sinking. Applying Charlie's multi-disciplinary approach, there is something quite suitable. Concentrate on the essence! I learned that from playing competitive tennis in my youth. When under pressure from an opponent it is important to take a step back and remember what the key focus points and their purpose are. Focus! Keep focussing on what matters in order to win. That's very powerful stuff...

Applying this to my portfolio I remember why any of the positions are there in the first place. Has their business changed? No. Has the industry they operate in changed? No. Are they great businesses, the leaders in their industry? Yes. Would I want to buy them whole given the chance? Absolutely, I'd be ecstatic if I could! Are they businesses that I want to hold for 10 years? Yes, absolutely. I have complete confidence in them.

The current decline happens all over the world today. I leave it up to you to make your own conclusions, but to me it's the pond that now goes down, not my business interests. I hold.

[hitone395]

Exactly!!!!

I remember training as a professional kickboxer. when we got into trouble we would always go back to basic. Basic was left jab, right cross, left hook. That always got us back to where we needed to be. Same thing as when I was a professional bodyguard.

Same as investing...go back to the basics. Wonderful company underneath. Know why you bought it and realize that the business has not stopped just becuase the stock has dropped.

Hitone395

[bovverd]

Originally Posted by npg

"If you're a duck on a pond, and it's rising due to a downpour, you start going up in the world. But you think it's you, not the pond."

[Charlie Munger]


Well, today the pond is sinking. Applying Charlie's multi-disciplinary approach, there is something quite suitable. Concentrate on the essence! I learned that from playing competitive tennis in my youth. When under pressure from an opponent it is important to take a step back and remember what the key focus points and their purpose are. Focus! Keep focussing on what matters in order to win. That's very powerful stuff...

Applying this to my portfolio I remember why any of the positions are there in the first place. Has their business changed? No. Has the industry they operate in changed? No. Are they great businesses, the leaders in their industry? Yes. Would I want to buy them whole given the chance? Absolutely, I'd be ecstatic if I could! Are they businesses that I want to hold for 10 years? Yes, absolutely. I have complete confidence in them.

The current decline happens all over the world today. I leave it up to you to make your own conclusions, but to me it's the pond that now goes down, not my business interests. I hold.

A fanstastic quote and once that pond becomes dry I want to be sitting there ready for the rain.

[joshuat]

Sorry, but I am not holding in this environment.


I'm buying! :)

[npg]

Hehehe indeed, indeed.

"Be fearful when everyone is greedy, be greedy when everyone is fearful." How many people cite this quote but fail to perform this useful mantra when the time has come?

Quack, quack!

[nilminih]

Hi NPG,

I love the quote "DUCK and the pond". I sold my UNH before losing my earnings. I did not want to lose. But I am trying to get back in again hopefully where I started last time. Several times I thought about the compounding interest. But I couldn't see the losing side much.. Also I sold all my bank stuff (LYG, WFC) and waiting to find the bottom:)

Originally Posted by npg

Hehehe indeed, indeed.

"Be fearful when everyone is greedy, be greedy when everyone is fearful." How many people cite this quote but fail to perform this useful mantra when the time has come?

Quack, quack!

[npg]

Originally Posted by nilminih

Hi NPG,

I love the quote "DUCK and the pond". I sold my UNH before losing my earnings. I did not want to lose. But I am trying to get back in again hopefully where I started last time. Several times I thought about the compounding interest. But I couldn't see the losing side much.. Also I sold all my bank stuff (LYG, WFC) and waiting to find the bottom:)

Hmmm, did you sell that yesterday? Because yesterday turned more into a rally when you consider the extraordinarily low opening. You may have booked an unnecessary loss there.

If that's the case then don't worry. Everybody has done that at some stage. Even Warren Buffett.

Selling based on the opinion of others not only incurs higher frictional costs, but it also increases the likelihood of making bad calls. I prefer to limit the amount of decisions I have to make about a business. As long as the business is OK then I would be reluctant to give up my stake. If anything, I would take further advantage of the dips and deploy any newly saved cash into these positions, unless there is a far better opportunity on the horizon.

[nilminih]

Nooo. I sold it on the 18th. I still have WLP though and I can see that it is going down below what I paid for few months ago.

What would you do if the price goes down below the purchsed price, few months after you purchased it? Companies like UNH, WLP, LYG, do you hold on to it though you can see easily that you are losing thousands of dollars a day? Since I am still new to this stock market, I get confused and may be made bad decisions

Originally Posted by npg

Hmmm, did you sell that yesterday? Because yesterday turned more into a rally when you consider the extraordinarily low opening. You may have booked an unnecessary loss there.

If that's the case then don't worry. Everybody has done that at some stage. Even Warren Buffett.

Selling based on the opinion of others not only incurs higher frictional costs, but it also increases the likelihood of making bad calls. I prefer to limit the amount of decisions I have to make about a business. As long as the business is OK then I would be reluctant to give up my stake. If anything, I would take further advantage of the dips and deploy any newly saved cash into these positions, unless there is a far better opportunity on the horizon.

[npg]

Nothing. I would do absolutely nothing unless something fundamental has changed.

[nilminih]

I feel better now. Gained most of it back today. Also I got BRKB when it was down and already earned little over 7%:)

Originally Posted by npg

Nothing. I would do absolutely nothing unless something fundamental has changed.