Investing? Invest In Yourself.

“If M.A.D starts making gold out of lead, it will undermine the world economy!” – Inspector Gadget

CAT

I invested in a series of walking trails for mental patients, but it failed.  I guess Psycho-Paths® was a bad name.

By the time the stock market crashed to signal the beginning of the Great Depression, the economy of the United States had already gone through an amazing decade of change.  Electrification was moving rapidly across the country, and prisons could finally retire the acoustic chair.  Radio was a miracle that was now bringing masses of people together as the radio waves propagated across the country at the speed of light.  Natural gas, long a nuisance in the oil patch, was being piped and compressed and shipped across larger areas of the country, bringing instant heat (and some explosions, since they hadn’t added the stuff that makes it smell bad yet) to millions.

Perhaps one of the biggest dislocations was that horses were rapidly being replaced by cars and trucks.  The economy was being motorized.  Some have even come to the conclusion that part of the dislocation in the economy was that the millions of horses required to plow, move freight, and move people weren’t required anymore, leading to an oversupply of horses.  That’s not a situation that lasts long – the oversupply of horses, can, um, be solved.  I mean, too many horses for the barns?  That’s un-stable.

But if once the oversupply of horses is solved what about the oversupply of food for the horses?

Well, what are they going to do with all of that farmland, now suddenly made even more productive through the addition of tractors and cheaply made nitrogen fertilizer?

Produce more.  Which drives prices down.  Which leads to . . .

Deflationary depression.

AMISH

It’s hard for the Amish to travel – their system is a little buggy.

I would say that “for the want of a horse, and economy was lost,” but in hindsight the real problem was the bankers.  The bankers during the 1920’s and 1930’s even developed the first birth control – their personality.  The Federal Reserve Bank® (which is neither part of the government nor really a bank) managed to destroy the economy through poor currency manipulation choices.

Part of the secret of the efficiency of market economies is that there is no controller telling people to start restaurants or PEZ® vineyards or bikini ranches.  The feedback from the economy is measured in customers buying the product, and if the product is good enough, profit encourages people to make it.

The flip side of that is business failure.  I originally wrote that was the down side.  It’s not.  Businesses, in a normal economy, that can’t produce a viable product should fail.  Note that I’m forced to write in a normal economy.  2020 has created the situation where tens of thousands (I’m not exaggerating) of businesses have failed due to the restrictions from the reactions to COVID-19.  It’s even been an international problem – Finland closed their border.  No one will cross the Finnish line.

COVID

The riots in Detroit don’t get many news stories, but I heard the rioters there have caused $20 million in improvements.

That’s not normal, of course.  Hair styling places are failing in the more restrictive states.  In Modern Mayberry?  Not so much.  But in San Francisco?  You can’t get your hair styled, unless you’re Nancy Pelosi.  I guess that the rules prohibiting business operation are only for common people.  St. Nancy can go in and get a cut and a blow dry when no one else can.  Sadly, Nancy wasn’t wearing a mask, which was the only positive thing about CoronaChan since the whole thing started.

In normal times, business thrive or fail, and both of those things lead to a stronger overall economy.  The services and goods that aren’t wanted anymore go away, like Beanie Babies®.  Thank Heavens.  But in these times of artificial economic crisis?  Good, strong businesses fail.

Regardless of the type of crisis we have now, it is upon us.  Whether or not the business would have failed is irrelevant.  The only real question is what happens next.

One thing that is sure, the economy after this crisis passes won’t look like it used to.

I’ve posted about possible good investments in the past – if I were betting, I’d bet that gold in ten years would be a better bet than Netflix® or Tesla™, even if Tesla© starts its own religion, and builds Elon Mosques.  But who knows what the economy will even look like after this crisis?  I can’t guarantee any of it.

TESLA

I hear that Space-X has designed electric grass for Mars.  They call it E-lawn.

So what to invest in?

Yourself.

Time is potentially quite short.  How should you invest your time?  In yourself.

There are so many skills that are required of a human.  PowerPoint® is probably not really high on them, so I wouldn’t spend much time there.

The first place I’d begin to prepare is mental.  In the United States, we have become very used to the most modern conveniences.  Air conditioning when it’s hot.  Central heat when it’s cold.  Even in Modern Mayberry, day or night I can go and get gasoline, a gallon of milk, and some beef jerky.  Fast Internet that allows me to stream a television show that’s been off the air for nearly 20 years.

What happens when you don’t have those things for a day?  A week?  A month?  When you’re used to being able to see what the temperature is in Moscow, Manila, Manhattan or Manchester, what happens when the weather becomes a mystery?

At least Biden can hide his own Easter eggs.

When you’re used to seeing real-time riots in Kenosha or Portland, what happens when you don’t know what’s happening in your own city?

I’m not saying that’s going to happen – the Internet is robust, and the systems we have built for delivering milk, gas, electricity and natural gas have redundancy.

But still, these things are possible.

Have you put your mind in a place where they have happened?  What would you do?  I mean, if your spouse convinces you to go to a psychiatrist, will your couch talk you out of it again?

After the mind, invest in your body.  If you’re out of shape, get in better shape.  Anything will help.  Get out and run.  If you can’t run, walk.  Being able to count on your body is always good – and if you’ve been neglecting it because of work, it’s time to pay back that debt, with interest.  I am fortunate enough to already have the body of an athlete already – a sumo wrestler.

Hmmm.  Maybe I need some work, too.

SUMO

I got a sumo wrestler for Christmas one year.  I had asked for a heavy sweater.

What other ways can you invest in yourself?  There are thousands of skills that are valuable, no matter what the future brings.  Can you do basic medical care?  I’m not asking if you can sew up a lung, but can you clean a flesh wound?  Do you have Band-Aids® and Neosporin™ for a year or two?  Iodine?  All of that is cheap and available now.  Will it be in six months?

The Mrs. bought a book on medicinal plants that showed up the other day.  I was surprised that it didn’t list thyme as a remedy – I heard that thyme cures all wounds.  What kind of books do you keep?

Can you garden?  Annually, The Mrs. spends about $117.53 to grow about seven tomatoes.  I would make fun of that, but I would also say that The Mrs. has learned lots of ways to not grow tomatoes, too.  Her gardening knowledge is better than mine.  It’s a little late to invest in gardening this year, but it wouldn’t hurt to start to understand what it takes.  There’s a whole Internet.  Heck, you could practice by killing some houseplants, like I used to do.

This isn’t a bad time for a hobby.  What kind of hobby?

  • Lots of farms have auctions and I’ve seen farmer forges there.
  • Carpentry, with and without electricity.
  • Small engine repair. Small engines can do a great deal beyond weed eating.
  • Always easier when ammo isn’t so dear, but we are where we are.
  • Making wine or whiskey – both are great for barter, and legal to make in most places.
  • Fixing things around the house. When’s the last time you patched a leaky roof?

I could probably come up with a dozen more in ten more minutes, and I imagine the comments will fill up with them.  Again, in some circumstances, these are nothing more than hobbies, and if you pursue them with a local club or group, you’ll build more community in addition to building yourself.

Regardless of the future we will see, investing in yourself pays dividends.  Plus?  It’s always better to try to grow tomatoes and fail when failure is just results in a humorous story.

Author: John

Nobel-Prize Winning, MacArthur Genius Grant Near Recipient writing to you regularly about Fitness, Wealth, and Wisdom - How to be happy and how to be healthy. Oh, and rich.

29 thoughts on “Investing? Invest In Yourself.”

    1. Ironically, I seem to have available a few acres where I could grow some steaks, but I would be the Oliver Wendell Wilder of our Modern Mayberry.

  1. Technically it’s a federal crime now to make whiskey at home but in 10 years that may be a lot like selling marijuana in Colorado.

    I thought I’d mention it as I don’t think you’d do your best writing from Club Fed.

    Opie Odd

    1. You’re right. Post changed. Although I hadn’t checked the laws (or made any myself!) I had been under the impression it was legal in limited quantity, especially since YouTube had suggested dozens of “how to” videos on that several years ago. It is not legal to make your own whiskey in the United States. Thanks for the correction!

      1. It may be Federally illegal for individuals in their back yard, but in the South where there’s a will there’s a way if you really wanna make whiskey.

        https://www.distillerytrail.com/directory-distillery/locations/alabama/

        https://www.tnwhiskeytrail.com/

        I’ve spent many a happy day up in Lynchburg touring the HUGE Jack Daniels distillery multiple times, which every American should do at least once as a national pilgrimage. The George Dickel distillery just down the road from there is also well worth a stop.

        I’ve also stood in line multiple times at Lowes Mill right here in my home town for my ration of Irons One on the one day a month they sell it. Irons One is mighty good whiskey.

        https://huntsvillebusinessjournal.com/news/2019/01/10/irons-one-whiskey-a-personal-touch-every-step-of-the-way/

        https://yellowhammernews.com/huntsville-bourbon-receives-highest-award-in-national-fifty-best-rankings/

  2. On the topic of tomatos and gardening, I often quip that Amish women spend about twice as much time trying to give away excess produce as they do actually gardening. On the other hand, it serves a useful purpose they don’t even think about. Sure they can get produce cheaper at the store and save a lot of time but the skills they learn and pass on to their daughters will come in handy when the shelves are bare at the store. It is a hassle now but it might save some lives down the road.

    1. That’s exactly it. The Mrs. has had very productive gardens in the past, but usually gets bored around July. If our lives depended on it . . . I imagine boredom wouldn’t be so much of an issue.

  3. On the subject of getting your body in shape – I’m signed up with Weight Watchers (I know, I know – Oprah is the LAST woman whose diet advice I would follow).
    However, I’ve been successful in losing weight with them – worth the money to get rid of the lard.

    1. Me? The formula when young was to work out. When older, I could diet. Now? It’s both. I imagine as I get older amputation might be my only choice.

  4. September is NOT a bad time to take up gardening. In fact, it’s an excellent time to identify the space, smother the grass, weeds, or whatever else is growing there, maybe trim or cut an inconvenient tree casting shade, start accumulating mulch materials (grass clippings, raked leaves in a month or three), plan your crops and learn how to grow them, buy fertilizer, identify sources of supplies, mark your calendar out for future tasks (including: order your seeds early!). Just last week, I was sifting stones out of an idle garden plot. I filled a four gallon bucket (and then some) with the stones from a 4’x4′ square, and this was the SECOND sifting for that plot. Want to use raised beds? Now would be a good time to construct them, fill, and fertilize them, for spring planting.

    Some crops, planted now, will provide a harvest (depending on your climate) either later in the Fall, or early Spring (e.g., kale). You don’t LIKE kale? Sorry, dude. That’s not one of your choices. It’s nutritious, so eat it. (My favorite way is to mix one big leaf of kale, chopped, with two beaten eggs and an ounce of cheese, cooked in a cast-iron frying pan lubricated with bacon drippings.)

    1. Okay, that sounds good. I’d even eat cabbage that way. And a good point. Good gardens aren’t just a summer event. This might be the year to put one in. And chickens next spring?

  5. Rather than ‘maters, try ‘taters. A little easier to grow, way more calories. Also turnips and rutabagas and parsnips, for the same reasons. It’ll take several seasons to get yourself trained and your garden producing, so If you think you’ll need a garden next year, better start now, because it’s already too late to start last year like you really should have.

    I just used a loader to clear another 1/4 acre for garden. It’ll be ready to grow food after a couple of years work building soil. No immediate plans for the area, but by the time I have plans it’ll be ready to use.

    1. Plus ‘taters are in the ground, not above it. Makes a difference when the hords pass thru (see e.g. Irish)

    2. Thanks for the thought. Our current place has might have a spot where some spuds might grow. Ma Wilder tried spuds one year back on Wilder Mountain in the Rockies – and got the smallest potatoes I’ve ever seen. She didn’t spend enough time building the soil.

  6. Making whiskey in most places in the USA will earn you a 10 year vacation at Club Fed. Perhaps you meant ‘wine and beer’???

  7. Sweet potatoes grow well in Florida I’ve found. Tomatoes not so much, without lots of TLC and chemicals.
    THO I know mater’s can be done. Got chickens ? Keep them bugs down some…

    1. I might not be really popular with the neighbors if I have chickens, and I imagine there will be more than one chicken massacre before I figure out how to keep the predators out and the chickens in . . .

  8. After four decades of pondering my choices during my youth, the lack of a huge income yielded me the abilities to build just about anything, including a multi-span concrete bridge, basic electrical skills, plumbing skills, carpentry skill, welding (gorilla welds – ugly but strong) pipe-fitting, equipment operating up to 65 ton cranes, a good physical condition (this may be accidental), and an attitude that is crumbling into the chasm of chronic curmudgeonly behavior. I’m blessed, since I can probably find a way to survive in the worst of conditions, but really don’t want to ever face such things.

  9. The next six months are likely to be very turbulent, even in some Mayberrys.

    Home defense should be a priority.

    Fire extinguishers might also be a good investment. Good to have anyway just in case.

    1. I keep one by my writing area, and one by my bedroom door. The big one is by my bedroom door. Oddly, those are also the locations I keep my more, um, reachy-outie things.

  10. Band-Aides–are those some sort of batmen (British meaning) for musicians?
    I’d bet that when they’re injured they put a Band-Aid on it.

  11. Perfesser,

    Please, adjust the biden meme… just for me!
    I prefer “His caregivers were concerned [* before *] they realized [* i *] he meant the airport”.
    What do you think?

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