#19 - Ride The Waves

Author

Graham Schroeder
August 16, 2024

Your home base for investing, finance, personal growth.

This week started with some big corporate leadership changes, more AI news, S&P 500 stability, and what to do when life comes in waves🌊 

Market Recap

  • Starbucks Gains New CEO from Chipotle

    • $SBUX replaces Laxman Narasimhan with $CMG CEO Brian Niccol.

    • Niccol has served as CEO of $CMG since 2018 and previously at Yum Brands (Taco Bell). Under his realm with $CMG its share price is up 773%. He also helped the chain rebound from its foodborne illness scandal

    • $SBUX popped 20%+ on Tuesday following the announcement as $CMG shares fell. Will this lead to $15 small portion 4oz Pikes Place cup? Or signal a boom for the company set to open 17,000 stores by 2030?

  • China’s Huawei Plans New AI Chip to Challenge Nividia

    • Chinese internet companies and telecommunications operators have been testing Huawei’s latest processor, called Ascend 910C.

    • TikTok, search-engine giant Baidu, and telecommunications carrier China Mobile are in early discussions about obtaining the chip.

    • If they can produce the new chip quickly and Nvidia is still blocked from offering advanced chips to Chinese customers, Nvidia would lose market share fast in China.

  • WHO Declares Mpox Africa Outbreak an Emergency

    • Outbreaks in Congo and a dozen other African countries were confirmed with a new form of the virus spreading. Few vaccine doses are available on the continent.

    • Mpox formally known as the Monkeypox disease that spreads from animals to humans, with flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body.

    • Health stocks popped after the emergency was declared in domestic and international markets. Even though there are existing effective vaccines, there are not enough doses and there will need to be a spike in production and orders to get ahead of future outbreaks.

Freedom Fund Portfolio

Freedom Fund Background: I created the Freedom Fund as a public brokerage account back in October of 2022 to share that anyone with a social security # and a bank account can begin their investing journey by investing a couple hundred dollars a week. Every week and month I post on X (@GrahamInvesting) public updates about the purchases, exits, dividends, and growth of the fund if you want to follow in real time. The biggest obstacle people have to investing is just getting started so I decided to start a new account at $0 to start from nothing with you.

Quote of the Week

Life happens in big waves and they never happen at a steady pace. Learning to surf the waves of life can be a powerful reminder that no matter what life throws at you to keep learning how to ride out the waves when they come. Many of you will always experience change all at once and not slowly. The best way you can form a mindset around “riding out the waves” of life are by:

  • Accepting Reality: Just as you can’t stop the waves from coming in the ocean, you can’t always control or prevent difficulties or stress in life. Instead of being clueless of the waves or dwelling on them the best thing you can do for yourself is accept that they are coming and do your best to turn off your emotions.

  • Adaptation and Resilience: When the waves are coming at you the first thing that you will encounter is the fight/flight/freeze reaction. Instead of trying to stop these challenges, define tactics to learn on the fly and to navigate and manage them, much like learning to surf. This means developing skills, resilience, and mindfulness to handle whatever comes your way.

  • Empowerment: By learning to "surf" the waves, you’re empowered to make the most of difficult situations and not be overwhelmed by them.

This passage encourages embracing life's inevitable ups and downs with skill and grace, rather than resisting or being defeated by them. Not every wave you will encounter deserves a fight. Not every wave should be ran from. And not every wave should freeze you in your tracks. All waves should be handled with a strategy to better situate yourself for when they hit.

The purpose of Graham’s Gazette is to help others get started and stay consistent on their own personal, professional, and financial journey. I appreciate the time you take in reading & interacting with me and look forward to growing together.

Thanks for investing your time reading this.

Disclaimer: Graham’s Gazette provides information and resources related to investing, financial topics, and personal growth for educational and entertainment purposes only. The content presented is not intended to be construed as financial advice. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with qualified professionals before making any financial decisions. Graham’s Gazette and its creators do not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the information provided nor do they guarantee any specific results from such use of information.