May the story below help to lift up the spirits of those who find the present stock market depressing -
One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth retrieving the donkey.
He invited all his neighbours to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realised what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he stopped crying.
A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.
As the farmer's neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!
Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up. Always think positively and out-of-the-box. Remember some simple rules to be happy:
Free your heart from hatred - Forgive. [For example: forgive the analysts & stocks that caused you to lose a lot of money. Learn from failures.]
Free your mind from worries - Most never happen. [For example: stop worrying when you’re doing well or when you’re not. What goes up must come down & what goes down must come up (provided it does not vanish or degenerate)].
Live simply and appreciate what you have – Be contented & expect less. [For example; each time a stock soars after selling, be happy to take the cash and forego the credit.]
NOW .......
Enough of that crap. The donkey later came back, and bit the farmer who had tried to bury him. The gash from the bite got infected and the farmer eventually died in agony from septic shock.
MORAL FROM TODAY'S LESSON: When you do something wrong, and try to cover your ass, it can come back to bite you.
The donkey is experiencing volatility......The Dow has fallen sharply on poor US job data.
At some point, it would go up next week --- and so it goes. Up down up down. The market can't find stability or confidence to rise until we see stability and confidence in US housing, unemployment, the European debt crisis and the U.S. deficit issues.
A Greek default is likely.... but the financial system is in better shape than in the Lehman crisis. I don't expect the STI to fall to levels in Lehman times.
Keep your bullets for high-yield stocks such as the Reits, & forget about manufacturers which export to US / Europe largely.
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