I can not help but look at the current disturbance in the financial markets without being reminded of one of my unusual medical conditions. My thyroid secretes way too much of the “fight or flight” hormone – which produces massive adrenaline dumps into my bloodstream if it is unchecked. Fortunately, there is a simple solution to the problem, one that I have availed myself of for more than 25 years; and it enables me to stay cool and calm. The comparison to today’s financial markets ought to be obvious; most of us are faced with a threatening economic situation, more crucial to some than to others, and it is bound to make many very anxious. Yet this disturbance in the world’s economy, grave though it may be, will pass – whether there is a “medication” for it or not. Panic will often lead to foolish choices – avoid it. Find your own “medication” in your personal world view; look for opportunities rather than wring your hands.I count among my friends a gentleman who suffers from diabetes that, as he ages, increasingly imposes physical hardships upon him. Beyond the physical, he has been retired for several years and his current lifestyle is maintained by his investments in the stock market. If ever there were a man with a right to be fearful, it is he; yet he endures, usually without complaint. Fear has neither panicked him nor crushed him. Perhaps his age and prior experience of other physical hardships and economic disturbances have strengthened his innate stoicism; but whatever the case may be, he sums up his current challenges with a shrug of his shoulders and, “Oh well, what can you do?” The current disturbance is just a recurring part of the business cycle. In 1973 we (our business) roared, well stocked, into Christmas only to find our country hit with an Arab oil embargo. Gas prices soared, there were long lines at many filling stations and Christmas shopping was so drastically curtailed that it was a real economic hardship for us. We persevered and we endured. At the end of 1979 the Soviets invaded Afghanistan and gold rocketed up to more than $800/ounce. This threw much of the jewelry business into a panic; but we persevered and we endured. In 1987 the stock market crashed and many shoppers scaled back their purchases of luxury products such as ours; but we persevered and we endured. Disruptions occurred again in the 90s and again after 9/11 but we persevered and we endured – and my bet is that you did too. To borrow a line from Franklin Roosevelt, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” While I certainly won’t urge you to take a frivolous look at our current circumstances, I will urge you to do something meaningful for yourself about them. Do you think there must be banking reform? Don’t sit on your hands; work for it. Do you grow angry at the remuneration awarded corporate executives regardless of their success or failure? Go to shareholder meetings, if you can, and voice your protest. Support corporate reforms any way you can. Do you dislike computerized voting? Do something about it to make the results more secure – at least support a non-partisan voting reform group. Act, don’t wail; and that carries over into your personal life. Isn’t it possible that your spouse, or you, is so caught up in “gloom and doom” that you’ve forgotten how to enjoy life together. When’s the last time you went out to dinner? Here in the Chicago area you live in a universe of cuisines and inventive approaches to cuisine; take advantage of it. Dinner with the society of your spouse, with or without friends, is a simple luxury you both deserve. Go for a walk and listen to the chatter of migrating birds. Listen to some music you’ve ignored for 20 years just to see if you’ve “grown” or have been missing something. Savor the moments of joy in your life and build as many emotional bridges as you may need to get over the strains and crises of the moment. Believe in yourself and in the future. Remember, the future is mutable; it will be what you make of it.

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