Stock investment is a lifestyle and a state of mind.

Red and Green Guide:

Stock investing is a job, a way to make money, but due to its unique nature, it is even more a lifestyle and a state of mind.

First, any job is a form of service, and thus requires asking for favors. The hardest thing in the world is reaching for the sky, but asking for favors is even harder. Stock investing doesn't require this.When summarizing his investment career, the stock god Warren Buffett wrote: "In terms of making a living, I am the happiest person in the world because I love what I do so much. No one can make me do things I don't want to do, and I don't have to work with people I don't like."Here, Buffett not only understands stock investing as a job from the perspective of making money but also from a higher level, that is, as a lifestyle.

Second, any job for making a living must earn money, but it's usually done indirectly, following the process of "capital (labor) — goods (services) — money" to achieve the goal of making money.Stock investing, however, makes money directly, expressed as "capital + correct thinking — money."André Kostolany, author of "The Great Speculator" and known as the father of German securities, also gave a classic description of stock trading as a lifestyle. From the perspective of making money, he said: "Money allows people to enjoy life, enabling them not just to study the menu but to taste the delicacies." From the perspective of lifestyle, he added: "When an investment succeeds, what makes me happiest is not the money I made from it, but that my thinking was correct compared to others'." If you truly understand stock investing, among the world's 360 professions, this is the only one that is the "jewel in the crown."

Third, engaging in stock investing brings not only the joy of making money but also the joy of thinking.George Soros's greatest regret in life was not becoming a philosopher, but his achievements in the investment field have made his investment philosophy shine brilliantly. While making a fortune through investment activities, he diligently contemplated investment philosophy, writing works like "The Alchemy of Finance," proposing the theory of reflexivity, and suggesting investment methods that exploit market turning points to break the existing market order and gain profits. Soros's characteristics tell us that as a lifestyle, stock trading is both the execution of a money-making activity and a reflection on the knowledge of making money. Thus, stock investing is a lifestyle that can elevate one's thinking.

Finally, because stocks are a high-risk industry, they naturally can yield high returns.Many investors, after amassing great wealth, begin to help others, bestow kindness, thereby elevating their own souls.Mr. Cornell, founder of Cornell University, lost his chance for education in his youth. After accumulating a large fortune from scratch, he fortunately escaped the 1929 U.S. stock market crash. Deeply grateful, he donated to establish the world-renowned Cornell University. Soros's investment activities harmed the interests of many countries, but in his later years, he focused most on charitable activities benefiting others. The stock god Warren Buffett became the world's second-richest person through investing. He lived a frugal life himself but donated 85% of his wealth to charitable organizations in his later years. It is precisely because of these people's achievements in stock investing that they have the ability to help others, contribute to changing the world, and thus elevate their character and spirit, earning them admiration and remembrance.

Throughout life, people are always comparing—comparing official ranks, comparing wealth, comparing knowledge. But in the end, there is only one comparison that matters: the comparison of one's state of mind.The level of one's state of mind is the core content that determines the value of life, quality of life, and happiness.Tao Yuanming's "Picking chrysanthemums by the eastern hedge, I leisurely see the southern mountains" is a state of mind. Li Bai's "Heaven has endowed me with talents that must be put to use; a thousand pieces of gold spent will come back again" is also a state of mind. Wen Tianxiang's "Since ancient times, who escapes death? Let my loyal heart shine in the annals" is an even more sublime state of mind.

To view stock investing as a lifestyle, in my opinion, is to pursue "health, freedom; knowledge, money; creativity, happiness" in life.To view stocks as a state of mind is to achieve an investment realm of "carefree and at ease, tranquility leading to far-reaching vision, rational yet flexible."Regarding carefree and at ease, the lives of Jim Rogers and Peter Lynch are most convincing. After making $16 million in the 1980s, Rogers quickly retired, then traveled around the world twice, buying a few stocks wherever he found investment opportunities globally and storing them away. After making a large sum managing a fund, Peter Lynch also retired to manage his own wealth, living a carefree life of stock trading. Regarding tranquility leading to far-reaching vision, Warren Buffett is the best example. He doesn't watch market quotes, doesn't engage in short-term trading, doesn't live in bustling New York, but calmly searches for long-term potential stocks. Regarding rational yet flexible, Kostolany is the best example. He openly said he is a great speculator. When the stock market rises, he patiently holds stocks, but at the same time clearly knows in his heart that "trees don't grow to the sky." Once stock prices become ridiculously high, he firmly sells the profitable stocks.

Finally, let's appreciate a passage from Kostolany. He said: "What a luxurious job this is! It keeps him away from goods and dusty warehouses, without having to discuss with merchants. He meditates every day, sitting in a comfortable rocking chair, hidden in the smoke he exhales, thinking, far from the world and its noise. His tools are very close and simple: a telephone, a television, and today certainly a computer and a few newspapers. He also has his secrets; he knows how to read between the lines. He has no employees or managers, doesn't have to greet people everywhere, doesn't have to deal with those headache-inducing customers like bankers and brokers do, and he doesn't have to persuade people to buy things. He is a nobleman who can freely dispose of himself and his time."

Author: Luo Shanqiang