An investment lesson from Liu Xiang

I am one of those who want to cry when Liu Xiang could not run today. It is a great pity to lose the chance to win the Olympics in BJ. I know there are lots of rumors about his injuries and many others.... I am not interested in gossips but there is an important lesson that I have learnt.

WIN or LOSE - this is determined before you play the game, before you really fight the battle, before you run... The same lesson may be true in the game of investing. Whether the investment will win or lose is determined before you place your bet, before you take action, before you make any move....If you have a bad injury before the game starts, you know your chances of winning the game. A good investor won't place a single cent to invest in the game and I think this is exactly what Liu Xiang did. A very very difficult decision but I would think the only decision that he should make. Why lose money when you know the chances? After all, Liu Xiang is the only person in the world who knows his chance of winning.

I know some critics are saying that Liu was fearful of losing. No, I entirely disagree. This is not a question of fear; it is purely a question of determining win or lose before fighting the war! Good warriors and generals will tell you that there is no need to fight any actual war; the war is fought well before the game starts. "You know the results before fighting the war" - this is ancient Chinese wisdom if you read The Art of War.

So next time BEFORE you place any bet on any stock, make sure that you already know the result of the bet. I would follow Liu Xiang's example if I have a bad leg injury and...