When Markets (and People) Panic, Do This …

“LISTEN TO ME, LISTEN TO ME THEY’RE ALREADY HERE – AND YOU’RE NEXT!”

– Kevin McCarthy from the 1956 film “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”

It’s the panic and fear in the movie, “Invasion” that is akin to the current situation we know as Covid 19. While the virus is quite real and lethal it is our sensibilities that seem to have run afoul of reason. The toilet paper panic tells us that common sense has slipped its moorings and sailed off into the darkness.

So, what to do given that our business (stocks and bonds) is an essential service? There really are a lot of roads to travel here, but for our purposes, it is the market—it’s always the market. Some simple tidbits:

· DO NOT go to ground. Probably not as prevalent an action as it once was during times of chaos. But, with the market dropping and rising 1,000 points a day the fear of the telephone ringing and ringing can overwhelm one’s sense of responsibility.

· TALK – leave that dark place and bring more reality into the daylight:

· TALK to each other. This always helps to build on the confidence of your fellow IA’s. You can do this at six feet or by way of conferencing if on a work- from- home schedule. You are not alone in your fears and exchanging thoughts and ideas can soothe those ruffled nerves.

· TALK to your clients. That is your job and regardless of how difficult those conversations may get it is your responsibility to carry out that task. Use E/M’s to keep everyone informed on at least a weekly basis; your efforts in this regard will bear results in your relationships well into better times.

· TALK to your staff. Just like you, they have families and financial obligations. Those families are looking for support and a word of comfort. It is a moral equivalent on your part to bring whatever you can to the table. Don’t forget that they set the table for you on a daily basis.

· For those on the executive shelf and those blessed with V.O.G. (voice of God) it is imperative that corporate communications are delivered on a VERY timely basis. These communications are often an issue in the IE. “Report Card” and now is the time to step it up. You are the leader of the laundromat and if the washing machines break down it will be you that will carry your cleaning to the down elevator.

· TALK to yourself and start building your battle plan for the exit of the TERROR. It will end I can assure you and you should be ready. I do not mean catching the bottom, but rather when some daylight appears. The market may pop, but the underlying efforts of the chaos will not respond immediately. Your battle plan must include that reality and how your clients will accept a longer recovery period.

Actually, it was not the replicating of bodies in “Invasion” that the 1956 public was fearful of; it was the Red Scare (communism) of the time that had people in a social and political distancing mode from their neighbours. But, still when I see a farmer’s truck roll up to Sobeys I wonder what he’s delivering. I really do wonder.

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