The same thing is happening AGAIN!

 

News like these will not the first and they will not be the last. As the world economy is becoming more and more unstable with continuous distrust among nations coupled with the emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI), companies from around the world are starting on a radical shift in their hiring process. As more retrenchment news continue to flood our shores, one begins to wonder if they too will be affected by this world movement. With inflation rocking high due to energy disruption, we are beginning to unfold a little of what Covid-19 has taught from the history books. Unlike the pandemic where people were dying and government scrambling for vaccines and cures with very little to no information about the virus, the current energy crisis and high inflation is somewhat pre-emptive with possible extreme solutions. As it is, the Strait of Hormuz remains open, close, open, close, open, close, the ceasefire agreement is ever changing with little to no progress. Amidst these uncertainties, doubts and fears, one thing remains clear, all of these will eventually go away. The only question is how soon? As investors, we need to understand that while the world is evolving, life keeps moving. No one is stopping for anyone. Humans are a highly adaptive breed, we change as we move, we think as we go and we feel as we see, we adapt. If the wall is high, we go around the war... nothing is going stop humans from moving forward, from horse riding, rail invention to autonomous driving, we keep moving. As we look back into the declining histories of wars, inflation, depression, pandemic, real estates, dot com, we always come back stronger and this time, it is no different. Stay true to the cause, look ahead and stay consistent. If there is anything that is affecting your myopic view, zoom out and let time do the talking. 

During the pandemic, my business was greatly affected, imagine devoting your entire life into active income only to be told to close with immediate effect, not because you want to but because there are no other choices. For the fear of the virus, no one wants to go outdoor, let alone organize any team building games. Full closure equates to zero income encroached with a full liability on mortgage, lease, salary and commitment to suppliers. It was tough! It was during this moment that I have decided never to fully rely on active income. These series of job cuts and retrenchment will hurt, people will go out of job in this high inflation environment. For those with an emergency funds to tie over, the loss of job allows one to think and re-think of what they really want to pursuit. For those who are caught with their pants down with ongoing payment liabilities, there is no time to think and getting into a job has to be the top and number one priority. 

Coincidentally, I was chatting with a friend over Whatsapp. He is interested to venture into investing but does not have the know how. After many years of pursuing him to start investing, his excuses always come up to be the same, he is either busy at work, need to take care of his young kid, just embark on a new job, currently having an unstable income, cannot afford time to  no time, blar, blar, blar.