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A King was famous for his work as he tried to improve the living situation of his people. One day, when he was in a village, a button of his shirt broke. A tailor stitched the button quickly. The King asked him, “How much should I pay you?” The Tailor replied, “Maharaj, it was a small work. I cannot take money from you.” When the King insisted, the Tailor thought, “I should ask only INR10 but what if the king is testing me and feels disrespected.” After much thinking the tailor said, “You give me whatever you think is right.” Now, the King had to give as per his status and so he gave him two villages as payment for his work. The tailor thought, “I was going to ask INR10 for this, whereas the King made me owner of two villages.”

Many a times, we limit our w ealth creation efforts to short term possibilities. We fear uncertainty of the long term as the path is ridden with adversities (volatility). But in hindsight the market/ funds can give multi-bagger returns over longer periods of 20-25 years. How many of us have been able to capture this rise? The markets, like the king, can distribute immense wealth but most investors tend to encash before time and miss out on bigger wealth creation opportunities (had they been patient). The tailor didn’t ask but waited for the king to give. So don’t try to time the market but rather stay invested across market cycles and create wealth. A mile of highway will only take you further by a mile but a mile of runway can take you really far to any destination. Take the runway not the highway.