Force for thought — 28.02.25
To Have and To Hold
How do you hold onto a good thing and not let it go before it has time to work its magic? By mobilising a method that works. No one is insulated from the challenges of sticking with something promising — not a diet, nor an exercise regimen, or even a first date — the moment it becomes uncomfortable and hard. Why should investing be any different?
We’ve collected more than four million data points that demonstrate how a particular methodological communication enables investors to hold on for the ride. The proof stretches beyond investing: our ability to hold on when we least want to — in order to withstand things that can cause our undoing — has application everywhere. Each week, we’ll show how and why a mechanism for holding on, in investing and in life, is so powerful.
Zooming in
“Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all-time thing. You don’t win once in a while, you don’t do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit.” These are the words of the late great Vince Lombardi, the famed American professional football coach and NFL executive. Of all his accomplishments, Lombardi is best known for his time as the coach of the Green Bay Packers (GBP), who under his leadership, won five NFL championships in seven years. (You may have noted in the recent Super Bowl that the trophy is named after Lombardi; his legacy lives on still today). For more than a decade prior, the GBP were in decline. Evidently, however talented or gifted the team was, skill alone was insufficient to make them champions. So, how did Lombardi magic their success?
The team became known for the Packer Sweep, or the Lombardi Sweep, a football play that requires the whole team to work together. But had you asked Lombardi about this strategy, he would not have credited the Sweep itself, but the practice behind it, for the team’s success. “You think there’s anything special about this sweep?" There isn’t,” said Lombardi. “We simply do it over and over and over. There can never be enough emphasis on repetition. I want my players to be able to run this sweep in their sleep.” Like any successful investor, Lombardi knew that talent and skill are not enough to guarantee a win. The GBP’s track record before he came on the scene is proof of that. Only by reinforcing repetitive, habitual and routine behaviour — by highlighting that winning is a habit — was Lombardi able to resurrect the team. His impact is still felt today; the GBP have won the most championships in NFL history. Successful investing demands the same daily discipline of individuals. By actively and routinely practising one’s holdability, individuals can sustain their investments long enough to reap their rewards.
To Have on Hand
This illustration is a useful reminder of the value of consistency in investing. In it, there are two flower pots. The one on the left shows a shrivelled flower beneath an overflowing bucket of water — suggestive of an owner who has forgotten to tend to his plants and is overcompensating to revive them. On the right is a beautiful, blooming flower, with a jug of water above it dispensing just the right amount of water necessary to flourish. From left to right, above both pots, a caption reads: It’s not a matter of intensity but consistency. It bodes well for investors to apply the same philosophy too.