don't worry be happy
10 Aug 2011
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ipac money mentors
He graduated from the Australian National University 30 years ago, but tonight Arun Abey is back in Canberra to talk from the pulpit about why happy people make better investors.
Happiness, Abey says, has a huge effect on our success in life.
On a day where the markets are chaotic and anther global financial crisis is touted, the Chairman of ipac Securities, Global Strategy Consultant, Director of the Smith Family came into the studio, telling Louise Maher succeeding in this climate is all a state of mind.
"For most of the evolution of the human brain, our focus was on short term survival," Abey said.
"On the African savannah, a good day was getting through to lunch without being lunch. So our minds are fantastically wired for short term survival. The modern world, with the fantastic options we have is just a second in the clock of evolution. So that's kind of the bad news...
"We lack perspective; we make short term decisions. The good news is we know thanks to neuroscience we are able to rewire our brains by taking on some knowledge and modifying our behaviour.
"When someone sees a headline with 'Share market: $20 billion written off' it triggers about 64 hormones, which are the equivalent of the hormones you see if you bump into a lion in the savannah and it triggers a flee impulse.
"The skill we need to learn in the modern world, not just in terms of investment markets, is when to use our evolutionary propensity to flee to good effect and when to manage it.
"The way you change that behaviour and your genetic inheritance is working out what makes you happy."
Arun Abey, Chairmain of ipac Securities spoke to Louise Maher from 666 ABC Canberra radio.
Click here to hear audio of the interview.