The trading office, which is where I started my career in asset management, is one of the most exciting places to work in any investment firm. People speak a "foreign" language, manners are often left outside the door and the pace is fast.
I recall interviewing for a new assistant. As part of the selection process, the candidates had to take down messages from the stockbrokers on the floor of what was then the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
The candidate who got the brokers to repeat what they said until he or she got it right, got the job. Needless to say, the candidate who handed me a message sheet with "40 rolls a quarter" written on it, did not make the grade. In fact, the broker was offering us 40 000 Vaal Reefs shares at R100.25.
The trading office was an environment of half-a-litre of coffee and three samosas before 7.30am, and you
certainly could not afford to take things personally. I am glad the wireless mouse was invented years later, because quite a few of them would have hit the wall when a trade went against us or we missed a line of stock.
On that note, let's find out what your score from the quiz I've run in the past two columns tells you about your appetite for investment risk.
- If you scored below 21:
You are likely to be on the conservative side, almost allergic to risk. More creative investing probably leaves you cold, and you reach for the cortisone cream when you consider the risks attached to some of the schemes doing the rounds. You like to know what's what, past, present and future.
- If you scored between 21 and 35:
You are an active investor, but you take calculated, prudent risks. You don't mind venturing a little into the unknown, and find comfort in doing as much homework as possible.
- If you scored over 35:
You are a venturesome and aggressive investor. While you may throw your toys when an investment does not work out, you probably get over it quickly and move on, or put more money into the share that fell.
I have seen many investors take things personally and muddy their decision-making in the process. It is probably rather arrogant to think that a share fell 10 percent in two days just to spite you, but people do tend to make that mistake, and then sell it without even checking the valuation.
There is a degree of subjectivity and fun in the quiz, and you should not take the results too seriously - and definitely not too personally.
However, it should get you thinking the next time you are faced with an investment decision, or when you review your portfolio.
There are many paths to financial success, and being true to your temperament can help you deal with the inevitable hiccups in such a way that you stay on track.