What D-I-Y Has Taught Me About the Market

As I have said in the past, I am a tool addict. I love tools. However, in order to justify buying tools I feel like I should be working on something. We should put up crown molding in the bedroom = a 15-gauge finish nailer. We should put in a pull-down staircase in the garage for storage = a reciprocating saw. And my wife will never let me forget how installing a dimmer switch in the walk-in closet spiraled into a complete redesign (and a right angle drill.) You get the idea...

The push to "justify" has even extended beyond my own home. Once a month I get together with a group of old friends to work on someone's house. I have so far resisted the urge the buy tools for that but the clock is ticking.

It was that monthly get together which recently made the connection between DIY and the market for me. I was at a friend's house and the project had spiraled a bit beyond his initial "scope" due to some complications he didn't consider. As I was trying to calm him down and explain that this was "normal" and he shouldn't panic, I said (with a slight groan) - "There are always complications"...

In the back of mind I immediately made the leap to investing and realized one of the important points is to understand what you don't understand. Or, said another way - realize that you don't know what is going to happen next. It is always good to have a plan but you need to factor in some degree of flexibility to account for what you aren't expecting.

Whether that "surprise" comes in the form of a plumbing pipe that "shouldn't" be there or blathering from a former Fed head, that fact is that "surprises" do happen - and often. Going into a project (investment) with the idea the some sort of complication may arise can you help you weather the storm and avoid panicking.