Business & Money

It might seem counterintuitive to some, but the best time to buy stocks is during a downturn. And it’s no secret that the markets have been getting hammered for about a month now. My portfolio is down 11% from its September 28th high. That never feels good.

But you have to have a plan for times like these so I thought I’d share a bit of my approach.

I have a theory about what stocks perform best after market corrections. Okay, it’s not some special theory that I came up with on my own. But one I’ve taken from a few different people and places.

The theory is that there are 2 categories of stocks that perform best immediately following corrections: 1) stocks that are hit the hardest (fall the most), and 2) and those that hold the best (barely fall at all).

So a few specific ideas:

Starting with category 1: Netflix is down 27% from a July high. Trupanion (VIC 126) is down 46% from its July high. Blackline is down 27% from its July high. Illumina is down 15% from its September high. Grubhub is down 35% after its best quarter ever, a sign of what looks like indiscriminate selling. I’ve initiated and/or added to positions for each.

For category 2: Prologis is down 5% (VIC 118). American Tower (VIC 121) has continued a steady uptrend. I initiated small positions in both last week.

I have no idea if the market will continue to slide, but there’s no way to time the bottom so you have to have courage and conviction in your beliefs and you have to press the buy button when opportunities present themselves.

Human Progress

If you’ve ever read any of the Amazon annual shareholders from  Jeff Bezos, you’ll notice that he always ends the letter by pasting in his first shareholder letter from 1997. He does that because of his famous idiom that “it is always day one.”

Day 2 is stasis. Followed by irrelevance. Followed by excruciating, painful decline. Followed by death. And
that is why it is always Day 1.

It’s such a powerful refrain.

And what’s interesting is that it applies far outside of business. Take this weekend for example. My wife and I were celebrating our 1-year anniversary at an incredible restaurant here in New York City called Blue Hill (I highly recommend it). The year has gone by so quickly and there have been many good times and also a few tough ones. But we remain utterly obsessed with one another and we thought that it would be a great idea to remind ourselves that it is always day 1 in our relationship. So we each read the other’s vows from our wedding day while we waited for our food. And it was such an incredible reminder of why we decided to get married in the first place. It brought back all of the happiness and elation from that night at The Metropolitan Building here in Long Island City exactly one year ago today. (and I may have cried at the restaurant just like I did when she read her vows to me that day 😭).

So whether you are building a company or a life together, I’d say it’s always good to remember that it’s day 1.

Philosophy

I’m so so lucky and my heart is filled to the brim with gratitude after this weekend!

The woman of my dreams threw the best birthday party I could ever Imagine.

Friends from many different parts of my life came together to celebrate.

So many wonderful gifts, phone calls, smiles and good vibes in general.

I’m in good health and high spirits.

Each and every one of you is so special and so special to me!

Thank you for your replies to the VIC newsletter!

Thank you for text messages and Facebook posts!

Thank you for the emojis on Instagram!

Thank you for your smiles and positivity!

Thank you for pushing me to be better and calling me out when I’m not good enough!

Thank you for the colorful balloons!

Thank you for so many gummy bears!

Thank you thank you thank you for being you! I have no idea what I would do without you! 😍🤗❤️

My Latest Discovery

Casa Dragones Blanco Tequila is absolutely delicious! It’s 100% pure blue agave and so so smooth!