|#527 MWAVC| — Luck & Risk
Hi,
Welcome to MWAVC, a newsletter about finance, investing, venture capital and all that jazz. My name is Ato (more about me here and here) and I try to write every single day. Most of it is stuff I find interesting that I’d like to share and hear your thoughts on. If you’d like to sign up, you can do so here. Or just read on.
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One takeaway from the book, Psychology of Money.
Luck and risk are two sides of the same coin.
Examples from the book: Countless fortunes (and mistakes) owe their outcomes to leverage. The best (and worst) managers drive their employees as hard as they can. "The customers are always right" and "customers don't know what they want" are both accepted business wisdom. The line between "inspiringly bold" and "foolishly reckless" can be a millimeter thick and only visible with hindsight. Risk and luck are doppelgängers.
Takeaways:
Be careful who you praise and admire. That commenter who joined a unicorn at Series A may look like a genius on the outside, but they may just be lucky and cannot repeat it again.
Be careful who you look down upon and wish to avoid becoming. That poster who joined WeWork may look like a fool, but they made the best decision based on the information they had at a time. They took a risk and got unlucky.
Therefore, focus less on specific individuals and case studies and more on broad patterns.
Furthermore, when things are going extremely well, realize it's not as good as you think -- like the stock market right now.
On the other hand, we should forgive ourselves and leave room for understanding when judging failures -- like the stock market in March.
Sign up to my cousin Yasbo’s newsletter, ChopLife Express btw AND listen to her podcast, Savings or Current. She’s already been dropping some serious gems, including this one on time management and this one on how the economy works.
Also, Afrobility Podcast is exactly what you need to be listening to for the deep-dives into Africa’s most note-worthy companies.
Recommended Substacks: Afridigest by Emeka; African Entrepreneurship Series by Jeph; Getthebrief by Loye and Fola.
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📱📱Quote of the day
“A boy isn’t sent to collect the honey.”
Remember: “Until the lion learns to write, every story will glorify the hunter.”