Skip to main content

BTFD

In investing, when someone is confident of the underlying equity, they'll "buy the f'-ing dip" (BTFD) when prices come down temporarily. 

I'm not a good investor (in fact, whatever I buy dips, I've contemplated on coming up with reversed trade calls before😓). 

Anyway, the BTFD concept is very apt for today's world. 



BTFD in the real world

Life likes to send challenges in our way. 

Covid was one major challenge.

How one reacts to such challenges (or 'dips') can make a huge difference, for example:
  • Businesses which managed to pivot quickly during the lockdowns are now thriving.
  • Folks who have made career switches that allow them to serve more clients remotely instead remain working for 'the man' have seen their income skyrocket.
  • Others have launched side hustles and now can maximise the time spent at home. 
These are just some success cases of BTFD-ing, in the real world. 

Don't stay down, BTFD!

When shit happens, if you have the confidence that your circumstances will improve and that there are ways to ride on the wave up, bet on yourself and BTFD.

still reading?

Okay, here's more:

Like investors, we can approach our slumps with some objectivity. Alas, not every stock is the next Tesla. Likewise, we should not take on every of life challenges head on, opportunities do not lie behind every challenge.

In my opinion, there are "pre-requisites" of sorts to think through when we're approaching any of life's challenges:

the BTFD pre-requisites

1. Am I prepared to maximise the current situation?
Not every challenge is worth taking on, sometimes, it may be a better decision to keep our heads down and tide through the tough times. 

Those who can distinguish the difference, will emerge as winners.

For example, during the lockdown we saw a rise in the number of home bakers. Some went on to become full-fledged businesses, others dwindled and disappeared. If you are out looking for opportunities, make sure you are ready to maximise your current situation so that you have a higher chance of being in the former group.

2. Weighing your outcomes
"is the potential outcome worth the effort?"
If you are in the fortunate situation to ponder on this, do it. 
For example, folks who are looking for a career switch during an economy downturn. It's always wise to weigh your outcomes in such situations. 

there's a way out

It can be depressing when we find ourselves in a bind, especially when we are caught by surprise. But covid and the lockdown has shown us that there's always a way out.

Take a deep breathe, think through your options and BTFD. 👊

Popular posts from this blog

how 2021 started

I ended 2020 with "The Midnight Library", a fiction book about a girl in despair who finds herself in a library filled with infinite possibilities to how her life could be, after an attempted suicide. The plot was predictable, but the journey was memorable. A good reminder that we already have everything we need to become who we want to be. We just need to commit to the goal and have the guts to take on the process. I started 2021 with the docu-film, "Dick Johnson is dead" (available on Netflix), a lighthearted take on the impact of dementia and pending death. "He's a psychiatrist. I'm a cameraperson. I suggested we make a movie about him dying. He said yes." - Kristen Johnson Kirsten Johnson comes up with comical ways her dad would die, in an attempt to help them and their loved ones cope with his pending death. It was funny, intimate and surprisingly intimate.  "She kills me. Multiple times. And I come back to life. I...

Ulysses Pact - how to prevent your future self from screwing up

Ulysses (aka Odysseus) is a Greek hero and King in Homer's Odyssey  which describes his journey home after a long, drawn out war. Along the way, his ship had to pass by the Sirens, whose songs were said entice sailors to change course and suffer a shipwreck.  Like any of us, he was curious about the Sirens' songs and he wanted to hear them for himself.  But he also wanted to make it back home without a shipwreck.  What did he do?  Source: Wikipedia As the captain of his ship, he ordered all his men to cover their ears with wax so that they do not get seduced by the Sirens' songs. Next, he made a pact with his men to bind him up on the mast, to ignore his demands of changing the course of the ship while they passed the Sirens and to have their swords on hand in case he breaks free from the mast.  They survived the journey passed the Sirens without a shipwreck.  This became known as Ulysses Pact or Ulysses Contract - a decision made in free-will today,...

Big Picture Easy, Execution Messy

It’s easy to see the big picture, really. Read some relevant books, read some articles posted online, read some forum reviews or experience sharing by people in the industry. And almost everyone can become a consultant. Just look at the big picture, spot the obvious gaps, and…yak. Talk is cheap. Execution is what brings in the money. But Execution is messy. There are legacy issues. There are stubborn mindsets. There are cemented SOPs. There are undecipherable data. What makes you special today is the ability to convert your big picture, empty talk into executable actions that bring the results you talk about. But few can do that. Can I?