One of the key principles of money is ‘opportunity cost.’ It means that when I buy something, I have to give up something else in return. We think we buy because we need something, but we often forget that we could buy something else instead. We rarely consider ‘opportunity cost’ when making a purchase. We do not compare other values against our needs. Buying something means giving up something else, but we often don’t realize it. When we spend money, we should also consider the ‘opportunity cost’; yet, in reality, we aren’t trained to do so. By making a purchase, we bypass the value comparison that may not offer any additional benefits. Maybe it’s because we lack knowledge, or perhaps the idea isn’t appealing. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”
The price of a stock reflects the current valuation of a company based on its anticipated future performance. If the future looks uncertain, the current price is likely to fall; if it appears promising, it will rise. In other words, the company’s outlook on the future is mirrored in the current stock price. Investing in stocks essentially means buying and selling future values while trading at present prices. However, the reason I can’t buy the stock now is that I’m afraid its price will drop in the future. Conversely, if I cannot sell the stock when the price decreases, I struggle to do so because the loss caused by the expectation that the stock might increase, or by the missed timing for the sale, is too significant; this can overwhelm me with fear. Thus, stock prices are most readily influenced by the weight of ‘fear rather than desire.’ Even though the current stock price reflects future value, it often happens that this future value is not trusted. When we say that time is money ...