Perhaps the approaching Thanksgiving holiday has made me more sensitive to this type of thing, but in the process of counting my blessings I’ve started to become more cognizant of just how negative investing discussions can quickly become. Turn on the TV or browse the internet, and it seems there is a never ending stream of stories feeding your sense of financial inferiority. The better ones tend to focus on how to avoid stress, fear, and greed which is certainly a good message, although running from negative emotions still is not particularly motivational.
The more I think about it, the more I realize there are surprisingly few people out there describing a vision of a healthy investing mindset to aspire to. That’s a shame, as investing is about so much more than flooring it on a mountain pass while struggling to keep the car on the road. So let’s take a moment to pull over, check out the scenery, and think about the real purpose of our journey.
After years of learning the hard way, I’ve come to appreciate that successful investing requires not only a smart plan but also a positive outlook. In my experience, the transition involved a shift in thinking from one of scarcity where more is always better to one of abundance where the concept of “enough” unlocks entire new areas of personal fulfillment. And the key to that abundance mindset is a simple principle that investors too often take for granted — Thankfulness.
Are you a thankful investor?
