Transcript

Panicking #1122 · From Chad

0:01
They're all different. That's what makes them all the
0:04
same. There's a story behind that.
0:08
This is your daily message from Chad #1122 to upgrade your
0:12
mental game today by telling yourself a better story.
0:14
Because the most important story you hear is the story you tell
0:17
yourself. This message is dedicated to
0:19
David Sinra. Here's the upgrade.
0:21
You think you'll rise to the occasion when all hell breaks
0:23
loose. But upgraded thinking does the
0:25
real work before all hell breaks loose.
0:28
Here's the story. Hedy Green, who lived from 1834
0:33
to 1916, was the richest woman in America in her day, standing
0:37
beside Carnegie, Morgan, and Rockefeller, she was the single
0:40
biggest individual financier in the world.
0:43
And she built that fortune living through a lifetime of
0:46
financial panics. The Panic of 1857.
0:49
The Panic of 1873. The Panic of 1893.
0:52
The Panic of 19 O 7. Each one arrived wearing a
0:57
different costume. One was because of railroads,
1:00
another silver, another the banks.
1:02
Each one felt unprecedented to the people inside it, and each
1:06
one broke the fortunes around her while hers grew.
1:10
Why? She carried no debt, defiantly
1:13
independent. She bought low and sold high and
1:16
never panicked during a panic. The same events that ruined
1:20
everyone else were opportunities for the prepared, and Hetty
1:23
never begged for rescue. She twice bailed out New York
1:26
City. Ray Dalio saw the same pattern
1:29
across his investing career. Up close, every crisis looks
1:33
like a unique life or death ambush.
1:35
But over decades, each one became another one of those that
1:39
he could approach calmly, like a biologist might approach an
1:42
encounter with a threatening creature in the jungle.
1:45
You name the species, you remember how it behaves.
1:49
Every founder in the middle of a crisis believes theirs is
1:52
unprecedented. History says otherwise.
1:55
The names and details change. The cycles of mania, panic, and
1:58
crash do not. History doesn't repeat, human
2:01
nature does. So if the crisis is always the
2:04
same, why do the outcomes differ so wildly?
2:07
Because the crisis is the constant.
2:09
You are the variable. In 1920, the American economy
2:13
collapsed and car demand collapsed.
2:15
With it, 2 automakers faced the identical storm.
2:18
Henry Ford, self financed and debt free, shut down production
2:22
in 24 hours and came out stronger.
2:24
Billy Durant, leverage to the hilt, lost General Motors, the
2:29
company he founded. Same crisis, opposite endings.
2:33
The difference wasn't decided in the storm.
2:35
It was decided years before the storm.
2:38
In every choice about debt, discipline and preparation, Bill
2:43
Walsh, the great 49ers coach, warned about the macho fantasy
2:47
that says I'm at my best when all hell breaks loose.
2:50
It's almost never true. Nobody thinks clearly while
2:53
engulfed in stress. Walsh said it plainly.
2:57
When it counts is before all hell breaks loose.
3:01
If you're constantly throwing Hail Marys, it's because you
3:04
didn't prepare. The better story to tell
3:07
yourself is this is another one of those.
3:10
Your crisis feels unprecedented. They always feel unprecedented,
3:15
and that's exactly what makes them all the same.
3:18
Name the species and do the real work today, before all hell
3:23
breaks loose. Tell me a story of a crisis you
3:26
were ready for to from chad.smith@gmail.com.
3:29
Send someone a text and ask them what was the last crisis you
3:32
weren't prepared for. You can get a free copy of my
3:35
book, The Most Powerful Story in the World by going to from
3:37
chad.gumroad.com. The transcript of this message
3:41
and hundreds of others are always available at
3:43
www.fromchad.com.