None of my clients were prepared for this, yet all of my clients were prepared for this.
A private equity client said to me, “We’re lucky we got our fund raised last year.”
There’s still tons of hard things they face from this situation.
But if it had happened while they were in market it would have been a total mess.
You can never time the markets, or anything else.
They certainly had no idea that this was coming, but they did go to market with a sense of urgency.
“Make hay while the sun shines”
Another client said to me.
He had a booming last year and got some big deals closed right before all this happened.
Again, he had no clue this was coming but as he often says, “Squirrels prepare, for winter is coming.”
That’s been a powerful lesson many people have seen in this.
Some saw the opportunity to make a lot of hay since the last credit crisis.
But plenty others feel they missed opportunities when the times were good.
It’s not to say those opportunities are gone for good. (as I’ll write more on later)
Yet we know that in good times you can develop a sense of complacency, can’t you?
When that is surely the best time to be reaping what you sow.