Open Book: Think Like a Bull, Avoid Disaster

Recently, thousands of financial service workers and investors experienced shell shock at the news that the pristine institution known as Bear Stearns (BSC Quote) had crumbled. I will not soon forget the frantic calls that I received from clients who had money invested in the markets and from the financial advisers who worked for this historic staple in the financial services industry.

It was truly a tragic time that spotlighted the likes of both JP Morgan Chase (JPM Quote) and Lehman Brothers (LEH Quote), two other banks with a great deal of clout on Wall Street. My patients' emotions ran high and ranged from shock to despair, anger, sadness and panic.

This event reminded me of the downfall of Enron and WorldCom a few years ago and how violated we felt by corporate America. Investors developed a sense of mistrust of CEOs, and their risk appetite for investing appeared to decrease substantially.

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