Column published in ToyoKeizai ONLINE: Strong investors

Good morning, this is Matsushita.

In December 2004, in a meeting room in Gotanda, Tokyo,

I gave a 30-minute explanation about trends in the stock market.

That was the day I first taught investment.

More than 12 years have passed since then,

I have met directly with more than 10,000 investors,

taught more than 30,000 investors,

and recently I realized one thing.

I am aiming to nurture a “strong investor.”

For you, what kind of investor is a “strong investor”?

An investor who can continually rake in profits?

An investor who can achieve disruptive performance?

For me, a strong investor is not only one who makes profits,

but also a person who can

“continue to profit over a long period.”

And,

“an investor who can think for themselves and overcome difficulties on their own.”

In order to continue long-term,

to think for yourself and overcome difficulties,

you need an understanding of the market and investment.

That understanding doesn’t have to be broad,

doesn’t have to be new; it’s something that has existed in the market for a long time,

the very basics, the roots of investment,

and the essence of what investing is.

Because I have always believed so,

the Dow Theory-based trend recognition I spoke about in the Gotanda meeting room 14 years ago

is still spoken of in the same way today.

Understand the basics deeply and firmly

By doing so, investors become stronger,

they can make profits,

they can limit losses,

they can endure losses, and

even when confronted with new unknown difficulties,

they can think for themselves, overcome them, and continue to achieve the next profits.

After finishing last week’s school,

I suddenly thought in that way.

I will teach the fundamentals of investing,

which is to nurture strong investors.

Because by understanding the basics, you can become a strong investor.

Understand the fundamentals of investing,

become a strong investor, and continue to generate profits for life.