Today, I am in a reflective pose, a sort of soliloquy, questioning my questions and being philosophical about my answers.
Is thinking about raising $6million (about N1 billion) optimism or daydreaming?
Where does one draw the line between being pessimistic and being realistic? For example, if you tell a young man to think globally but act locally, does that make you a 'realist'...and him, unrealistic because he refuses to?
And if you tell a pregnant woman who has had a previous cesarean section to plan for another one in this pregnancy, are you being pessimistic?
What is the probability that the next startup business of a serial entrepreneur who has had successive startup failures will be a Unicorn- reaching a billion-dollar valuation, or a Black Swan- causing an highly improbable impact and industry disruption?
In fact, does believing in Black Swans qualifies you as a skeptical empiricist; or not, an empirical skeptic?
Prudence, Stinginess and Frugality in Personal Finance
In Accounting parlance, Prudence is a concept, a key accounting principle which makes sure that assets and income are not overstated, and liabilities and expenses are not understated. It is used to accurately depict the true financial situation of an organisation or entity, and help it remain 'prudent'. So you record liabilities or expenses immediately they occur, and do not record results until they are gained.
In everyday use, Prudence refers to "Care, caution, and good judgment, as well as wisdom in looking ahead."
Stinginess is defined as "Not wanting to give or spend money, being miserly."
While Frugality refers to "Being economical or prudent with money or resources." Frugality is the quality of being frugal, sparing, thrifty, prudent or economical in the consumption of consumable resources such as food, time or money, and avoiding waste, lavishness or extravagance.
If one isn't careful, one can quickly go from being frugal, to being stingy, and from stingy to being foolish.
#thinkpennywisepoundfoolish)
Should I buy my groceries weekly, or in bulk, monthly? Should I give to charity? Why does he beg and not get a job? Should I indulge my cravings? I won't collect and spend my annuity savings till I am 90 years old.
Being prudent in investing means knowing when you should be greedy, and when you should be fearful. So also in personal finance, being prudent will show you when stinginess is a virtue and when attempting frugality simply equates stupidity.
Back to philosophy and my soliloquy
But does prudence necessarily indicate realism...and optimism, a lack of it?
My accountant always tells me I am too optimist in my financial estimations/projections of our company.... I guess it is because I am an incurable optimist, and I received training in Medicine (only just learning about Accounting).
We need a good balance of the three to effectively manage our finances. It will do us no good to be overtly pessimistic or stingy. Neither will it augur well if all we do is look only at the bright side of things, all day long.
BE PESSIMISTICALLY REALISTIC, IN AN OPTIMISTIC WAY!
Anyway, I will find a balance between prudence and realism, while not losing my optimistic outlook to catching (after accurately predicting) a Black Swan (event), if I can.
Or create one, if I can't.
World changers are optimistic opportunists
Steve Jobs' Apple said "Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They invent. They imagine. They heal. They explore. They create. They inspire. They push the human race forward.
Maybe they have to be crazy. How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that’s never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?
We make tools for these kinds of people. While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."
Thanks for reading, again. See you soon.
By the way, I found an interesting Nigerian website that has incorporated a marketing idea I once mentioned in an earlier post (-A store where everything sold there goes for a particular (small) amount).
In this case, it is an online store and everything sells for N1500 (about $8). Nice! Nigerians are thinking.
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