11–20 of 51 posts
I work in mining, as long as the price of gold and iron stays relatively good, I'm not too phased.
Gold is one of the few areas which should do very well.
Its value came as a somewhat rare, status consumption good. But today, gold is much less important as a status consumption good. As India modernizes its banking/financial industry I expect to see gold prices fall with a glut of supply.
NOTE: via legit markets, not the catalytic converter black market.
Financially, I moved from the EU to South East Asia, decreasing cost of living by 70-80%. Additionally, just before I moved I was able to get a position with a 50% increase in pay. I'm saving a lot of money here, and locally am investing it into quite a few ventures which would continue to exist if the worlds economy would go south. Mentally & physically, I am taking beatings, right and left, every day, doing martial…
Financially, I moved from the EU to South East Asia, decreasing cost of living by 70-80%. Additionally, just before I moved I was able to get a position with a 50% increase in pay. I'm saving a lot of money here, and locally am investing it into quite a few ventures which would continue to exist if the worlds economy would go south. Mentally & physically, I am taking beatings, right and left, every day, doing martial…
What kind of venture is profitable (enough to beat inflation) and economy-going-south resistant?
If the recession does get bad, so what? I don't have a family to support. I don't have many financial obligations aside from rent and my car payment. I could survive on a retail or fast-food job if I had to.
I feel as if we've been warned of a looming recession for years now. It'll come in full force eventually, no doubt. But I don't plan on living my life in a perpetual state of fear because of it. I have enough anxiety as is. When it comes, it comes. I'll survive. I'll retain my current skill set. I'll make it out the other end. Not much else matters to me.
> probable recession Not to be pedantic, but we're already in a recession, defined by a fall in GDP in two successive quarters. What's coming for the US and EU, given bad debt levels and inflation levels, is much, much worse than that. To your question: I would say, look for roles at organizations which are likely to ride out the storm. I think you can't be overly cautious (in all financial aspects) for the next year…
If you want to get really pedantic the US is not officially in recession until the NBER says so [1]. [1] https://www.bea.gov/help/glossary/recession
> probable recession Not to be pedantic, but we're already in a recession, defined by a fall in GDP in two successive quarters. What's coming for the US and EU, given bad debt levels and inflation levels, is much, much worse than that. To your question: I would say, look for roles at organizations which are likely to ride out the storm. I think you can't be overly cautious (in all financial aspects) for the next year…
If you want to get really pedantic the US is not officially in recession until the NBER says so [1]. [1] https://www.bea.gov/help/glossary/recession
Does the NBER make such determinations for all countries? Ha.
Are you being pedantic por are you being gullible?
The term recession has been well-defined in economics for decades.
I accidentally made several decisions in latest years that (in retrospective) made me more prepared for worsening of world economy.
- A couple years ago, I decided to quit a full-time "office" job and return to free-lancing. Within a year, I had 4-5 projects running simultaneously (with clients from different countries). It helped tremendously when I had to escape Russia in March 2022. It also feels much more reliable than a single source of income.
- we've been living in various cities for 4-6 months, "trying them out", hunting for the best balance of climate and quality of life. So we prepared ourselves to change location with less effort. Currently living in Tbilisi, Georgia.
- my wife trained me to optimise our spendings ;-) And that is a great thing actually. We only have necessary belongings (because we move a lot), we cook at home often, I use Hi-End in-ear headphones (because they have great sounds but cost less and take less space when moving), etc.
At the same time, people don't seem to be having much trouble finding new jobs - none of my colleagues who have left (voluntarily or not) seem have had issues in that regard. (Though I don't know everyone who's left, so, I can't speak authoritatively.) For my part, I like my employer and my job pretty well, good pay, good benefits, so I don't plan to make any big changes unless I don't have a choice or something egregious happens.
All that is to say that right now I am not doing anything in particular aside from making sure my income / savings are at the right level and that I have a backstop for any future trouble. I feel the anxiety, but I don't see that there is anything productive I ought to do about it that I am not already doing. I don't think that in an honest assessment I'd have any real trouble finding employment if I lost my job, especially if I had a couple months to look with pay.
Should I feel differently or be acting with more urgency? I'm genuinely not sure. The uncertainty is killer, even if I am in a good position in reality, which is what I suspect.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Gold is one of the few areas which should do very well.
Gold has likely lost its place as a store of value. Its value came as a somewhat rare, status consumption good. But today, gold is much less important as a status consumption good. As India modernizes its banking/financial industry I expect to see gold prices fall with a glut of supply.
So what is its replacement as a store of value that is broadly trusted?