We are a product of the choices that we make AND the choices we choose NOT to make. So when you choose to have 200 shirts and 50 pants, its a choice YOU made to choose every morning what to wear. If you have 5 black pants and 10 white shirts, you have again made a choice of NOT worrying about what to wear every morning. Actually it is the small things like this that sap my energy, and I am happy eliminating all the small choices in life.

In my portfolio too now my aim is towards simplification. So the shares that have rewarded me well in the past and have a reasonable future, stay on in my portfolio for the next 10-15 years. In the year 2032 (assuming I am alive till that date, of course) I shift to a simple index portfolio + an annuity. The choices that we make – or rather the decisions ‘not to act’ are just as important as the choices that we make. So if I choose to buy Infosys in 1993 it was a good decision…and the DECISION not to sell infosys to buy Silverline in 1999 made me FAR RICHER than just the decision to buy Infy in 93. We are a product of some ‘indecision’ too. Like I did not buy Satyam because I knew the broker who was supporting the share – and he told me that he does not trust the promoter. That simple.

How is this related to eating? well if I am on a 9 day holiday and I am eating out on day 1, I choose the simplest of food. Do I like what I eat? Yes of course. Is it the best that I can order? Not sure. I am sure there are far more interesting things. If it is a hotel that I do not trust I make sure that I don’t eat paneer / cheese…because there is a lot of adulteration possible. Very little chance of them making potato curry badly. So it will be a dal and rice – both easy to digest, and very little chance of over eating!

We struggle with investing too. Everyday you get a full range of 9000 shares in the equity market. You realize that only 100 have created wealth for the shareholders, but you are willing to take a traders punt on many of the shares. However, when you are confronted with the facts, you choose SANITY over some profits. Recently I think I have missed a good chance for a trading punt by picking up Kwality at Rs. 11. My broker friend had asked me to buy, but I choose sanity over greed. If a company can go from 160 to 11 in one year (or lesser), it is not a company that I want to buy. To make sense I should have bought at least 100,000 numbers. And I would have worried if it did not go up (now the price is Rs. 26, so i have missed an opportunity to make about Rs. 1.5 million). Like I said my portfolio is a function of choices made and choices foregone. I have by now perfected the art of not reacting to macro noise, but I am still carried away by the short term micro noise. However, I am using the short term noise A LOT for my benefit – of seeing how people WILL behave. It makes money with small quick and nimble trades. So when a company ‘misses’ the earnings a quarter, I sell KNOWING that there will be a big group selling AND I will get a chance to buy it back. EVEN IF THE SHARE IS A PART of my core portfolio. Even EiD parry, Rane Madras, Equitas kind of companies (poor liquidity I mean) fall for such quarterly buys and sells. Of course out of say 40 shares in my portfolio I may choose 5 to do delivery based trading. WHICH MEANS 35 shares I have made a choice of NOT WANTING to act. It is a choice for sure.