Hello Sir,
I have read multiple interviews and books on the lives and investment philosophy of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Ramesh Damani and Ramadeo Agarwal.
Apart from the fact that they are among the richest investors in India, do you know what is the one thing that I found common among all of them?
They all are optimistic by nature and have always believed in the potential of the Indian Economy.
This optimism and belief is one of the most underrated skills that any long term investor can have. We all know that investing requires a certain kind of temperament to be successful. If you are a long term investor then an unshakable belief in the Indian economy is what is going to help you throughout your journey.
In his book, 'The Psychology of Money', Morgan Housel said it best 'Save like a pessimist but invest like an optimist'
During the course of any bull market you will see situations of economic and political unrest. The markets will correct time to time and the news all around will keep telling you that the whole world is falling apart. In those uncertain times you will need something to hold on to. A belief that will help you think rationally and make the right choices.
It was this unshaken belief that helped these investors buy the dip when everyone else was panic selling. You can see in the chart below the number of times the market corrected severely but despite all of it bounced back stronger than ever.
An interesting observation from the above chart - Look at how small the 1992 Harshad Mehta scam correction looks now. Almost a blip. The correction was obviously big in those times, but with the passage of years, the SENSEX has compounded so much that it seems irrelevant now.
Luckily, our country has the youngest workforce in the world. Our entrepreneurs are leading industries across the globe. The world is also starting to recognize our potential and the foreign investor interest is rising continuously.
If you are below 50 and your major investing years (10-30 years) are ahead of you, it's a great time to be an investor in India.
Best Regards,
Archit Mehrotra