Page 32 - Masala Lite Issue 160 April 2024

32 CASH COURSE WITH ATUL

MAKE A

SHOPPING

LIST FOR

WHEN THINGS

GO ON SALE In times of extreme fear, lots of assets become cheap. What makes this difficult to navigate
is that environments of despair can easily cause you to hesitate. You may ask yourself
questions like whether people will still be drinking Coca-Cola if the pandemic wipes out
half of the Earth’s population. However, writing things down and committing them to
paper forces you to behave more objectively. Often, this leads to better investment results.

Write Things Down Today
Many markets have a cyclical nature to them – when fear is extreme, prices go down.
A lot. When this happens, your favourite companies, coins, watches, and cars all Do the work now so that you are prepared when needed. Asset prices across many
go on sale. It’s easy to point out that those are the best buying moments. However, markets were pressured in the few years after the pandemic. For the most part, they
fear can lead to indecision, and the opportunity can pass you by. Write down your have recovered, and investor sentiment is overwhelmingly positive.
wishlist now and bring it out when panic ensues, and it will help you operate more In times of peace, prepare for war. If you have benefitted from rising asset prices,
objectively and can lead to better investment decisions. great. Stop celebrating and prepare for the next time markets get turbulent. It will
come. If you are a future investor, there is no better time than the present to prepare.
Make an Investment Wishlist
Make a shopping list of assets that you want to buy when nobody else wants to It is OK to Go Against the Grain
touch them. Instead of giving it to Santa, keep it in your bedside drawer until the Operating in this manner is not an easy endeavour and forces you to go against the
right time comes around. There is a cyclical nature to financial markets that has crowd. However, the benefits are worth it if you put in the work ahead of time.
been demonstrated many times in history. When prices are set by humans, crowd
behaviour results in extreme highs and lows.
In times of gloom, panic takes over many market participants. This leads to selling
and can result in many quality assets going on sale, just like on Black Friday. However, Atul Sethi is the founder and CEO of Farnam Tree, a
there are two differences between this and a shopping sale: licensed boutique investment firm based in Bangkok.
1. You have no idea when the price will crash, and by how much Atul has over twelve years’ experience working in
investment banking and as a research analyst, prior
2. When it happens, most of the people around you will be sellers, not buyers
to starting Farnam Tree.
After the onset of the pandemic in 2020, the market value of Coca-Cola fell by 36
percent between February to March. From the lowest point during that period, today’s
price is more than 50 percent higher.

MASAL A LITE ISSUE 160 - APRIL 2024