Countercyclical investing, 3 advantages and 3 disadvantages

It is easy to start with a quote from our, unfortunately deceased, national hero, Mr. Johan Cruijff, that 'every disadvantage has its advantage'. That may be a truism, but it becomes a lot more complicated if the advantages are not directly related to the disadvantages or vice versa. The question then is: is it wise, smart to invest and what does the well-known gut feeling say? You make that choice yourself or with your team. And the far-reaching consequences that this can have could easily give you a stomach ache. To reduce the chance of this happening, I would like to take you through a number of considerations.

Advantage 1:

Furthermore, this brings us to the age-old marketing principle of supply and demand. If there is little demand and a lot of supply, prices and conditions are under pressure. It is important to carefully assess how large your demand or

Moreover, the need is; are you able to resist the temptation to decide quickly simply because it is so “favorable” right now.

Furthermore, if there is sufficient demand, purchasing can be done under very favorable conditions—and yes, I deliberately write conditions, because purchasing solely on price can boomerang back at you in the future.

Furthermore, be aware of this and consider service terms and support services during negotiations, such as the use of a helpdesk or employee training.

Disadvantage 1:

That is why 'Buying costs money, not investing costs a fortune' is a common saying among entrepreneurs. That may well be true, of course, but you do need to have the money or opt for financing, and then it remains to be seen whether that is beneficial.

Consequently, an assessment will have to be made depending on the type of investment.

Subsequently, if you invest in sustainability, for example, there may well be a windfall to be had in terms of subsidies and investment deductions. Investing continues to entail risks, so weigh this carefully with experts such as accountants and bookkeepers.

Advantage 2:

By investing, you also send a signal. You are probably familiar with others asking you: “You guys must be having a tough time too?”

In short, this is a search for allies, and the question often stems from one's own insecurity. And let me emphasize: a healthy insecurity is certainly not wrong; it motivates better performance, but it should not be paralyzing. But anyway, back to the signal.

For example, suppose your answer is: “Oh well, what is hard, I did invest in ……….. last week and am going to invest in …………….. next month.”

After all, something happens to the other person then. And companies still like to do business with other successful companies; success is like a magnet and attracts other success.

Disadvantage 2:

Moreover, investing negatively impacts your annual figures; you could easily end up in the red for the current year. That signals nothing good and is difficult to explain afterwards, so it needs to be planned.

Moreover, it must be substantiated with clear arguments why the investment was made and what long-term benefits can be expected from it.

That demonstrates vision, and if there is any logic to be found here, it commands respect. Communicating the right message through the right channels is important in this regard, however, as there is a high probability that it could be misinterpreted.

Ultimately, to summarize briefly: manage this process and the expectations, and it might just be received very positively if the red figures suddenly turn out to be 'merely' light pink.

Advantage 3:

Hence the P for Personnel, or Human Capital, lauded by many organizations. In times of crisis, many companies let people go under the guise of cost-cutting, and there may well be good to very good employees among them.

Nevertheless, now is the right moment for you to launch a campaign to recruit staff, particularly in those sectors where things are difficult, and to invite prospective employees to participate in a recruitment and selection process within your organization.

So take the time to do this in order to arrive at well-considered choices.

Disadvantage 3:

In fact, doubt sets in; you invested your own money in things that seemed really sensible, and now things are going against you after all.

Even in markets that have come to a standstill against all expectations, without our all-knowing economists seeing it coming (I promise I'll write something about economists sometime too).

In the meantime, leadership comes into play, and the well-known saying "calmness can save you" applies.

Additionally, with the good employees from benefit 3, you can adapt your organization quickly and flexibly—we call that 'agile' these days. Involve these individuals and create an action plan, because employees still work hardest for their own plan.

Moreover, that brings me to a fitting conclusion: “WINNERS HAVE A DYNAMIC/ADAPTABLE PLAN AND OTHERS HAVE WEAK EXCUSES”

Furthermore, good luck with entrepreneurship, leading, and managing everything that comes your way.

KENNETH SMIT, Peter Verstoep

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