The dominance of short-term perspectives has led to routine decisions in the markets that sacrifice the long-term buildup of genuine value in pursuit of artificial, short-term gains.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I've learned there's a big difference between a long-focused value investor and a good short-seller. That difference is psychological and I think it falls into the realm of behavioral finance.
Our goal is not to produce immediate results. We've been tasked with producing long-term results. That means that there's more risk in any individual thing we take on. But we still aspire to a strong return on investment.
We have to choose between a global market driven only by calculations of short-term profit, and one which has a human face.
Good decisions can have bad short-term outcomes but be great for the business long-term.
Look: invest in what you understand, what's foreseeably going to offer real value and returns, not necessarily what's trendy.
What the investment community does like is short-term measures designed to boost share prices.
Positive defaults align our short-term decisions with our long-term interests. And we don't always do that.
I've come to learn that my initial investment is more about the person versus the product that I am buying into. I've also learned that I really do enjoy giving worthy people an opportunity of a lifetime.
As communicators and marketers, people are so accustomed to thinking from the 'top down.' Finding the great analyst or the famous journalist who will endorse what you do and tell the rest of the world to go and buy your product.
One thing on psychology, which we've always known, is that every investor says they're long-term - and they are until the market takes a hit.