The Money Guru: Don’t chase the wave

At any given time, there is always something that captures people’s attention and nurtures their entrepreneurial spirit. A business trend, a new financial product, an emerging way of doing things.

Certainly, people in business should always keep up with the latest developments, but that does not mean they should blindly follow what others are doing.

Chasing the wave, to use a surfing term, usually ends up in failure and disappointment, whereas staking out a good position to let the wave catch you as it grows makes for a far better experience.

That is how Amazon founder Jeff Bezos explained his philosophy.

“You want to pick something you’re passionate about,” he said. “That’s the number one piece of advice I give to somebody who wants to start a company or start a new endeavour inside of a bigger company.”

He continued: “Make sure it’s something that you’re interested in, something that you’re passionate about. Missionaries build better products and services.”

Last year, Mr Bezos shared a Barron’s article from May 1999, titled ‘Amazon.Bomb’, describing his new idea as “silly”.

Listen and be open, but don’t let anybody tell you who you are. This was just one of the many stories telling us all the ways we were going to fail. Today, Amazon is one of the world’s most successful companies and has revolutionized two entirely different industries. pic.twitter.com/MgMsQHwqZl

— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) October 11, 2021

"Listen and be open, but don’t let anybody tell you who you are," he tweeted. "This was just one of the many stories telling us all the ways we were going to fail.

Today, Amazon is one of the world’s most successful companies and has revolutionised two entirely different industries.”