Jozef Markovic @Dodulik: "What sayings do people have..."

Slovakia

What sayings do people have in their countries? In Slovakia, where I was born and raised, we have one that often comes to my mind when I invest: "He, who wants to reap, must first sow." In a way, investing isn't all that different from farming. Every investment is a seed you plant for your future financial success. Before you can enjoy the harvest, you first have to plant a seed. You put it into the ground, water it, give it sunlight, and then... you wait. Buying a stock feels very similar. You do your research, choose a company, invest your money, and hope that one day it will reward your patience. Sure, not every seed grows into a healthy plant. Some never sprout. Others look promising before they slowly fade away. That's simply the nature of the business. No investor gets every decision right.. What matters is continuing to plant good seeds. Over the past year, I've been planting mine mainly in three areas: gas, healthcare and, more recently, software. Some of the seeds I planted in the gas industry and healthcare have already started to bear fruit. Looking back, they didn't reward me immediately. They first demanded something much more difficult than capital: patience. Holding positions while nothing seems to happen is often the hardest part of investing, but that's usually where returns are earned. More recently, I've started planting seeds in software companies. They haven't produced a harvest yet, but that's perfectly fine. Not every plant grows at the same speed. Some need one season, others need several. I believe time will eventually reward those businesses as well. Markets will always be noisy. Headlines will change every day. Prices will move far more than company fundamentals. Despite all of this, some investments — the little seeds we plant — will eventually grow and reward us with a fruitful harvest. "If you want to reap, you must first sow." Proverbs often carry the wisdom of generations in just a few words and I'd love to hear one from your country. Greetings, Dodulik (My past performance below) $SAP (SAP SE ADR) $ORCL (Oracle Corporation) $UNH (UnitedHealth) $HUM (Humana Inc)

Not investment advice. The author may have financial interests in the mentioned instruments.