Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 6A
Chris Kimas
Columnist
As an investor, it’s easy to
“follow the herd” and just do
what everyone else is doing.
When the market is soaring,
and everyone is pouring
money in, it seems to make
sense to be aggressive.
Conversely, when we’re in a
long bear market, and every
one around you seems to be
selling their stocks, or just sit
ting on the investment side
lines, then you probably feel
pressure to do the same. But
in the investment world,
“going along with the crowd”
can be a costly journey.
Intuitively, you might feel
that it’s actually “safer” to act
as others around you are act
ing. After all, you may reason,
there’s got to be some com
mon rationale for investment
behavior. Unfortunately,
though, that’s not the case.
When the investing public
acts in unison, two things are
usually happening:
• Over-reaction to past
stimuli - If masses of people
make similar investment deci
sions, they’re usually reacting
to past stimuli, such as news
of a “hot” market sector. At
one time, these types of events
may indeed have been highly
relevant to investors. But
what was true then may not
be true now. Yesterday’s hot
sector may have cooled off
today - and its prospects for
tomorrow may look even
worse.
• Decisions driven by emo
tions - You may have heard
that “fear and greed drive the
market.” And that saying is
usually true when you see
huge run-ups or declines in
stock prices. When the market
is going up, greed can cause
investors to keep buying and
buying, under the mistaken
belief that prices can keep
moving higher indefinitely. As
a result, stock prices are driv
en to unsupportable levels. On
the other hand, investors’ fear
of losing money can cause
them to sell their holdings at
the wrong time, and then
jump out of the market. When
enough people do this, overall
prices can be pushed lower
than would otherwise be the
case.
So, what can you do to avoid
this type of investment “group
think”? For starters, always
strive for objectivity. Evaluate
a stock on its own merits. Are
its financial fundamentals
strong? That is, does it have a
strong track record of earn
ings and a manageable debt
load? Is its management team
solid? Do they seem to have a
clear vision of where they
want to take the business?
How about the company’s
products? Are they competi
tive within their industry? Is
the industry itself strong, or is
it declining?
These are just some of the
questions you should be ask
ing about any stock you’re
considering. To make an
informed investment decision,
you need to have a detailed
understanding of the company
and its prospects.
To get this kind of informa
tion, you may have to do some
digging. But you’ll find it’s
worth the effort. The more
you know about your invest
ments, the more comfortable
you’ll be with them. You won’t
get this knowledge by “run
ning with the herd” - so you
may have to blaze your own
trail.
Famous Homemade
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Photos by Luci Joullian
Warner Robins Business After Hours, sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, was held at
Nichols, Cauiey & Associates on Corder Road last Thursday. People from a variety of local busi
nesses attended the informal gathering, which was catered by Sonny’s Real Pit Bar-B-Q.
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Photo by Judy Hall
Supporting foster care and adoptions
Chip Lollis (left) and Dale Kimberly of Eddie Wiggins Chevrolet in Warner Robins talk with
Kimberly D. King, Resource Developer for the Houston County Department of Family and
Children Services. King works, in the area of foster care and adoption.
The staff at Eddie Wiggins supported the program by donating two vehicles for King to use in the
Perry Parade on October 5, 2002 and the Warner Robins Christmas Parade on December 7, 2002.
For more information on how you can become a foster and/or adoptive parent, call Houston
County DFCS at 478-988-7541 or 988-7523.
Business
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Resources (op Rodina Youp iuiHn»
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My columns in the past two weeks addressed our need as
humans to "find our niche" in life and to contribute using our
unique gifts and talents. Today I share resources you can use if
you are exploring.
At the outset, I acknowledge
that 14fcend to favor resources
with a Christian worldview (so
most of the following are avail
able in Christian bookstores).
I believe that God created each
of us with a purpose in mind,
and part of our task on this
earth is to allow and encourage
God’s plan to emerge. My
experience with finding pur
pose in our lives is that it is
more of a discovery process
than it is a process of option
generation and option-selec
tion.
It is helpful to learn about spiritual gifts, and I direct readers
to their pastor for both education and application of their gifts
in a local church ministry. I like the "Team Ministry Spiritual
Gifts Inventory", $3, distributed by the Church Growth
Institute, E O. Box 7000, Forest, VA 24551.
There are a number of commercially available instruments for
personality analysis to learn about and appreciate one’s
strengths. Florence Littauer’s book, (sl3)
includes a simple self-assessment and uses the terms initiated by
Hippocrates: choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, and melancholy.
"Personality 1.D." is a self-assessment with lots of explanatory
material (sl4), available from Crown Financial Ministries,
~<h.t, (800)-722-1976. This
tool uses the DISC profile that is commonly used today: domi
nant, influencing, steady, and conscientious.
John Trent is an author who has chosen animals to describe
the personality types: lion, otter, golden retriever, and beaver.
He’s also chosen to develop assessments in on-line formats, with
applications to ministry, marriage, family, and workplace ($27
each). These offerings are at
Crown Financial Ministries (contact information above) also
offers a more comprehensive assessment that profiles not only
personality but also interests, skills, and values ($100). "Career
Direct" is available in either CD-ROM format (which generates
immediate output reports) or paper format (send in your
responses and the reports are mailed back to you).
A long-standing favorite resource for learning about oneself is
by Richard Nelson Bolles.
This dedicated servant, now in his mid-70’s, has updated this
book annually for over thirty years! I particularly recommend
the section dealing with "How to Find Your Mission in Life" and
the pages dealing with your transferable skill areas (working
with people, with things, and with information).
The Bath: Creatine Your Mission Statement for Work and for
Life (Mi) by Laurie Beth Jones has been recommended to me
for a couple of years, but Id not read it until last week as I was
writing this column. I agree with (and thank) those who have
told me that it is powerful. It is easy reading, and Jones provides
encouragement to compare ourselves with Biblical individuals
who used their gifts to deal with the circumstances in which
they found themselves; Joseph, Moses, Ruth, Nehemiah, Esther,
and Jesus,
I love helping people learn about themselves, about what’s
important to them, and about how they can develop the basic
gifts and talents God provided. I use a tool that assesses in
about 45 minutes your strengths and limitations in a variety of
leadership and management competencies. I am happy to pro
vide to you a complimentary self-assessment. Just call me at
(4781-988-0237 and we'll arrange a time.
Space limitations constrain me. If you know of more
resources (and I've not mentioned one of your favorites), please
contact me and share your knowledge. I will offer additional
thoughts next week, along with suggestions provided by loyal
readers and supporters.
Serving the Lord
-and His pepple
with gladness.
(lh(Mi|Kr2<" juno.iom
(475) 988-0237
LANDINGS
Golf Club
Winter Golf Special
s2o°°/Person
Monday-Friday
Ocoo
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Weekends £r Holidays
(Price includes 18 Hole Greens’ Fee and Cart Fee)
MUST PRESENT COUPON
Coupon Good for 1-4 Players
Valid Thru Febuary 28, 2003
www. land ingsgolfclub.com
(478) 923-5222
jmm 309 Statham’s Way
Warner Robins, GA 31088
_£ H
. even greater things..
Dennis Hooper
dhooper2@juno.com
F. Dennis Hooper
Personal Coach and Collaborator
“Is there a gap between where you are
and where you want to be?”
Hooper and Friends, Inc.
DECEMBER 17, 2002