Adaptation Through Acceptance

“You’re going to catch your death.” My grandmother was right about many things, but not that. You don’t get sick just because you step outside into the cold without wool underwear.

In February, and I hope she’ll forgive me, I took it a step further. At 1,800 meters above sea level in the Italian Alps, near Aosta, I meditated in the snow wearing only underwear. I wasn’t the lone eccentric from Vienna; I was part of a group attending a week of Tummo Yoga*.

Deliberately exposing yourself to the cold, whether sitting in the snow or immersing yourself in ice water, helped me think more clearly about the current heat in financial markets around artificial intelligence. Progress often comes through acceptance. It’s about embracing a changing environment and finding new ways forward. Learning to remain calm in ice water makes it easier to stay composed during periods of elevated market volatility.

Reaching the Goal Together

No one becomes invincible through cold exposure, but it certainly expands your tolerance. Equity investors who expose themselves to sometimes brutal market shifts also need time to adapt and withstand setbacks. Mental resilience helps us analyze the dramatic price swings in software stocks with composure and act deliberately rather than react in panic.

Equally important is community and guidance. Together, it becomes possible to move through moments that might otherwise lead to surrender. That sense of partnership is available to all our clients across relationship management, portfolio management, and senior leadership.

Anyone who feels entirely comfortable about the developments surrounding artificial intelligence hasn’t been paying attention. We cannot eliminate uncertainty. We can, however, navigate it together and position ourselves thoughtfully for what lies ahead.

*Tummo (Tibetan for inner fire, inner heat) is a practice designed to expand cold tolerance through voluntary, controlled exposure to cold.