Life is fast, dynamic, and highly volatile.
Let’s face it….sooner or later we all have an event happen in our lives that matches no other. Sometimes they are good, and many times they are bad. We can win the jackpot, find the love of our life, and be a winner in life….or we can lose everything, watch our loved ones pass on, and be at the very depths of depression. The very second these events occur; we suddenly realize that we are not really in control of our lives.
Defeat is enevitable.
In a flash, as if called by a noble leader, an insurmountable army of emotion ascends upon us. It’s now, when emotions consume us, that we are most vulnerable to the potentially disastrous side effects they can cause.
Let’s call these living events “stages”. We go through hundreds of these volatile stages throughout our lifetime, even though we only remember a few significant ones. There’s one commonality to every stage; it’s emotion.
Emotion vs. logic.
It would seem that emotion and logic sit on opposite sides of a scale. When there’s balance, we seem to function in an acceptable and appropriate manner. But given an overload of emotion and logic seems to go hide in the storm cellar. The degree of this overload can significantly alter your rational being and decision making. Many skilled salesmen and marketers recognize and use this simple knowledge to their benefit and at your expense.
Combat emotion.
We can never eliminate emotion, but we can learn to recognize it and react to it. Set some rules to follow so that emotions don’t trump your decision making. Here’s a few ideas:
- When emotion rules, let decision making die.
- If you have to make decisions, then use another person as a sounding board.
- Make sure you have qualified people to use as sounding boards.
- Get a second opinion.
- Remember that all things pass, and so will your emotions.
Advisors can play a crucial role in helping during life’s volatile stages, however this is contingent upon having a pre-existing advisor relationship and the advisor has no conflicts of interests when it comes to helping with your decision making.
Your best relationship would be with an advisor that has a “fiduciary duty” to you and who will not benefit from any part of the final decision. RIA’s, CPA’s, Attorney’s and Doctors all have a fiduciary duty to their clients but many insurance salesmen, stock brokers and others “touting themselves as advisors” do not. In fact, many of these want to take advantage of the situation.
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