Daily Intent

Ladies and Gents,

This is real.  2009 is here to stay.  Another 365 days to build, create and grow.

Are you prepared for greater days?  Are you prepared to have “the best of your todays be the worst of your tomorrows”? (Life getting better by the day)

Warren Buffet in his memoir The Snowball is quoted saying, “The big question about how people behave is whether they’ve got an Inner Scorecard or an Outer Scorecard…If the world couldn’t see your results, would you rather be thought of as the world’s greatest investor but in reality have the world’s worst record?  Or be thought of as the world’s worst investor when you were actually the best?”

There is plenty of uncertainty with all our professional lives going into 2009.  Don’t let this be an indicator of your self worth.  In 1999, Buffet saw Berkshire Hathaway’s stock drop below the market averages while Dot Coms rocketed upward.  People said he was past his prime.  He was too old school.  We all know the outcome.  Mr. Buffet was true to himself and his Inner Scorecard.  Today he is back to dominating…in reality, he was always dominating.

You must know yourself to have an Inner Scorecard.  So before planning out your 2009 business plan, goals, aspirations, etc…, take a few moments to align yourself.  Dive deep into your heritage profile.

The first time I did this exercise was at a three day silent retreat put on by Santa Clara University.  We were asked to break our life down into categories.  Who did we grow up around?  What were our parent’s names?  Siblings?  Grandparents?  Cousins?  Best friends?  What were their characteristics?  Education?  What education did we receive? Favorite teachers? Religion?  What region did we grow up in?  What was the natural demeanor of the people?  How did the language shape how we saw the world?  How did we learn how to feel the world?  What is our natural rhythm?  …Create a Heritage Profile.  It’s pretty awesome what results.

This should be easy if you visited home for the holidays.   The impressions surely are strong.  And I suspect the times with your friends and family amplified the intense feelings of a yearning to fulfill your Outer Scorecard.  Am I living up to the expectations others had and/or have for me?  My profession?  My income?

Be yourself.  Live Your life.

…on this note: to my family, high school, college and newly acquired friends, thank you for being you.  This time returning home made me more thankful than ever to have grown up around, learned and shared life as an adolescent with you all.  Moreover, I’m thankful for the times we get to share today, in the rain and the snow, in the bars, at the movies,  over a meal.

Buzzword: The Santa Claus Rally
“A surge in the price of stocks that often occurs in the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. There are numerous explanations for the Santa Claus Rally phenomenon, including tax considerations, happiness around Wall Street, people investing their Christmas bonuses and the fact that the pessimists are usually on vacation this week.

Many consider the Santa Claus rally to be a result of people buying stocks in anticipation of the rise in stock prices during the month of January, otherwise known as the January effect. “  -Investopedia

Six Points to Ponder:
1. Santa Claus Rally is real - The Dow is up on the week, currently at 8921.  S&P 500 finishes year above 900.  Nasdaq over 1600.  Oil is up to $46.
2. Year changes from 2008 to 2009.  The Earth continues its trek around the Sun.
3. Mortgage rates stay historically low, though they’ve been tempting themselves upward.
4. Cuba celebrates its Revolution 50yrs ago.  Might the next 5 yrs transform their reality of open markets?
5. Gymnasiums are packed across the nation.  3 weeks to bear the madness before it returns to normalcy.
6. PAC 10 goes 5 - 0 in bowl games.  USC dominated in the Rose Bowl, intensifying the debate once again for a playoff system.

Positives:
* A small stock market rally is helpful to end and start the year.  Be on the look out for the next couple of weeks for they say these weeks are huge indicators on how the rest of the year will perform.
* 2009.  9 is my favorite number.  “The Hebrews looked at 9 as the symbol of immutable Truth.  The Egyptian, Celtic, Greek and Christian myths all have an ennead of nine gods and goddesses, representing the entire archetypal range of principles.”  There is even a book titled, The Secret of Nine.
* Savings continue on the loan front.  My clients have surpassed $60K in yearly savings.  Let’s continue the trend.  I want to save $100K by January’s end.
* Millions will be in better shape three weeks from now.
* The Cuban youth are beginning to realize the benefits of open markets.  They didn’t get electricity for the general public until the mid 1980s!  Carts still outnumber cars.  I’d love to see it.  But I wish them the best in their transformation and openness.
* The college football teams we get to watch on a weekly basis are extremely athletic and dominate!

Negatives:
* By the end of January, many will have given up on training and getting into better shape.  Breaking through 3 weeks of training is the most difficult.
* USC will be left out in the cold with regard to a National Championship title.

Local:
Passport to the World of Wine
Where: Pierre La Fond.  State Street
When: 6pm
Cost: $25
Why: Pinot Noir is the wine of focus.  Relax and learn.

Live and Be Well,

Jeff Bochsler