Coruscation

Frederick Peters, the owner of Warburg Realty Partners, had run his business well in the 30 years he had owned Warburg Realty. Now through no fault of his own he found himself in a financial crisis that threatened the future of his firm. This was the definition of a clutch situation. Over the next few months, he responded well because his actions were guided by the five traits of people who are great under pressure:

1. focus


2. discipline


3. adaptability


4. being present


5. a mix of entrepreneurial desire and fear of losing his business

He also avoided the three traps that cause most people to choke:

1. he took responsibility for what needed to be done


2. he did not overthink the situation


3. nor grow overconfident when his business stabilized.
   

Alec Haverstick II, a co-founder of Boxwood Strategic Advisers, provided a tool that could take the passion out of financial decision-making. His rule was that when you have less than 12 months of cash left to cover your debt payments, you need to start selling assets. His prescription applied to anyone because the advice was not based on having a lot of money so much as being smart with the money you have left.