It’s been a month since I last wrote. So before I dive in, I hope you all are having a happy holidays! Now on to the story.
During the process of founding Aurvandil (a 250m SPAC focused on Space), I was advised by a good friend of mine to get rid of all my content and social media presence on the net.
I did… I got rid of an Instagram account of 26,000, a LinkedIn of 8,000+, a growing podcast based on positive content, and more… All of these would have facilitated a much easier launch of a new company or a book (have a deal with a publishing company) if I kept them.
AND THEN, with the markets being lukewarm at best, I decided to start Litepulse, a remote power platform for space. Which because fundraising conversations with VCs, necessitated having some presence on the net. Thus, I compromised, got back on LinkedIn & Twitter for announcements for Litepulse, and started my personal website (which I must thank you for checking out) and am slowly building them.
My point is that is it short-sighted to act as if one is a vacuum. As if the current circumstances will continue for an undefined period of time. This brings me to the actual topic of this post.
I see a lot of people crying out that we are about to go into a massive recession. The stock market will drop a lot more than it has, the venture market will tighten further, companies will go out of business and it’s like ’08 all over again.
Stop. Seriously just stop…
It actually doesn’t matter if all that happens or not. What I mean by this is to not fret about things you can’t control and just focus on the things you can. That way you will be prepared for both the good and the bad. The biggest thing is to get rid of your debt. The US system is predicated on the masses having a lot of debt to be able to pay for things they can’t afford. So, it’s imperative to conduct your life in a way that will allow you to not only survive the downturns but thrive in them. So buck the national norm and get rid of your debt.
I can say from experience the best investments you can make are during downturns. The multiples you pay are drastically reduced, competition is reduced, but OPPORTUNITIES are plentiful. So along without having debt make sure you have cash saved up to invest at times when multiples are distressed. There are tons of businesses that have gotten killed over the last year but are not in danger of going out of business. You can look at the Space sector to see a ton of opportunities.
These times will improve, it’s not linear, it’s a cycle.
The reason why many people fear downturns is because they fear losing their business or their job. But that leads to the question - why does that business or job exist in the first place? If it is only needed during good times, is it really a good business or a good job to have? I would say not. With the number of jobs and business opportunities available here in the US make sure you are doing something that has future potential. It’s really that simple.
Don’t get caught up in the mindset that there’s nothing else available to you. Build your skill set to be able to adapt and change so you are never in an “expendable” position. That way you will be prepared to act decisively when the next down cycle happens…
Think about it…
Happy Holidays!