Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine - September 2017 | Page 7
EDITORIAL VIEW
Winning
Back
Personal
Investor
Confidence
Nelson
Mandela
“
Do not judge me by my
successes – judge me
by how many times I fell
down and got back up
again.
E
conomists agree on one thing:
the damage done by politi-
cal instability, corruption and
mismanagement of the economy has
dented confidence of the investor com-
munity and consumers in South Afri-
ca. According to the latest RMB/BER
Business Confidence Index for South
Africa, business confidence slumped by
11 to 29 points in the second quarter
of 2017. This is the lowest value since
the last quarter of 2009, as confidence
declined across all five of the sectors
surveyed.
It might signal that the current
business cycle downswing is becoming
even more pronounced and could get
even worse. Most economists and the
business community would agree that
the main cause of the poor performing
economy is centered on one person:
President Jacob Zuma.
Looking at the international land-
scape, U.S President, Donald Trump
(our front cover story) shares much
of President Zuma’s style. In recent
months, it’s become clear that his bil-
lionaire investment tactics aren’t really
serving American markets, economy,
and people. Markets are reacting neg-
atively to his bravado and political
turbulence. Known for his aggressive
tactics, he criticizes businesses, fires
anyone who disagrees with him, and
is losing face with the electorate, his
colleagues, and the American public.
On top of this, nearly entire team has
changed, leading to market uncertainty.
Local investors have already turned
to safer havens and mainly offshore in-
vestment to spread their risk of having
put all their eggs in one investment
basket, South Africa. Many investors
have been applying this strategy for a
number of years already. This has be-
come more prominent today, while
others have a wait-and-see approach.
While it is easy to point fingers at
governments and blame macro-issues,
it is not wise to leave your destiny in
the hands of politicians and out side
influencers. Investors have to take re-
sponsibility for their own decisions. The
focus must be on micro-issues, which
an investor can control and not-macro
issues where there is no control. This
calls for good financial education, being
disciplined with your finances, and using
street-wise investing methods that can
withstand any market force or recession.
Real estate investing is either an ac-
tive or passive process, both with their
respective pros and cons. Many inves-
tors start their journey buying a house.
The next step is normally buying a sec-
ond property to rent out to a tenant.
As Robert Kiyosaki says, you need
to learn financial skills to survive any
financial crash. In terms of dealing with
adversity, here are principles in business
and investing I learnt from Tony Rob-
bins and how you can take control of
the situation: Firstly, you must accept
the hand that fate deals you, while try-
ing to make the most of it to learn and
take action on it. Problems are oppor-
tunities in disguise and are just there to
test your resolve. Focus on the solutions
and not the problems, no matter how
difficult it can become. Persevere, even
when times are tough. Keep doing what
you are doing in a focused manner.
Enjoy the read and successful
investing
NEALE PETERSEN
PUBLISHER
SA Real Estate Investor Magazine SEPTEMBER 2017
5
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