Once upon a time it was all about leisure; now it's about work. Maybe it is because work is so hard to come by that it's back in fashion. Those of us of a supine persuasion could hardly be heartened by the news that Felix Rohatyn, a former titan of Wall Street, is returning to be a special adviser at Lazard, an investment bank.
He was already considered to be on his last legs when I first started in financial journalism nearly 20 years ago, best known for his role in saving New York City from bankruptcy in the 1970s. Since then he has been the US ambassador in Paris. He first joined Lazard soon after the Second World War, at the age of 20.
But now, at 81, back in the office? Perhaps my father, equally sprightly but pushing 85, should abandon his efforts to master golf and return to London Bridge where he worked many years before. Rather than spraying Titleists about the course he could be adding to the family fortune, thus freeing me to saunter about the links, where at least I stand a chance of making the occasional birdie.
Has Mr Rohatyn's return anything to do with the financial crisis? There are those who say it was created by the bonus culture, others by the laxness of the credit ratings agencies or the idleness of financial journalists. (The latter I can vouch for.) But I also think it was fuelled by the youthfulness of many of the participants.
They were keen, they were eager, they had much to prove. Alas, they knew very little. It is said that financial crises occur when the final person who remembers the last one has retired. Just shows how quickly people retire these days, because they seem to come around much quicker than they used to. Stock market crashes are one a penny these days. The dotcom crash of 2000 was memorable, as was the Asian crisis of 1998, an incidental highlight being the amusing decline of Long-Term Capital Management. The hedge fund was set up by a couple of Nobel Prize-winning economists, and quickly dubbed "Short-Term Capital Management". And if I cast my mind back, there was the 1987 crash, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 22 per cent in one day: even those sober types at The Wall Street Journal might call that a plunge.
So you don't have to be that old to remember when the good times came abruptly to a close. You might even think that people working in an industry might study some of the lessons of the past so they wouldn't be forced to repeat them. While we must all admire the recklessness of youth - occasionally being made to defer to it - it has to be said that most young whippersnappers know less than old codgers. Why is this? Because as you get older, you learn things. If you are smart, you remember them.
Take management, for example. There are good reasons why people who are mature are placed in positions of power. Management is about common sense and sensibility. As a manager it might be tempting to behave as if you were in a fraternity house and hand out all the baubles to your pals, while ignoring the merits of others, but this will only infuriate the good people, who will leave.
I have tried this management lark myself at various times. It's dreadful. You end up being an agony aunt for people who don't want to work, or who hate their neighbours. "Just shut up and get on with some work," you want to cry, but of course you don't. "I understand," you say, but you don't. If you could, you'd sack them all, but then you might have to do some work yourself.
Experience helps of course. Just as no insurance company will insure a young man aged 20 to drive anything more than a bicycle, nor should you make them a manager. Of course there are exceptions. William Pitt the younger became Britain's prime minister at the age of 24, but he had been to Cambridge when he was 14, so he probably found everything after that a bit of a let-down. Napoleon Bonaparte, France's greatest son with the possible exception of Zinedine Zidane, the headbutting footballer, was crowned first consul at the age of 30, and emperor of La Belle France at 34. But such examples are few and far between.
Why? Because management is akin to controlling children. It is only when you reach 35 or 40 that you begin to realise that work situations are much easier to control than the rabble that stay in your house and make infuriating demands. How to keep them under control? Threats, bribes and humour are the only way. And they are very hard to sack. Of course, you can always send them to boarding school, but these days that is ruinously expensive.
There are some types who are unmanageable. They always think they could do the job better, give you no credit for your decisions and jeer at your management-speak. They are called journalists. One of the reasons they are so hard to control is that those put in charge of managing them are often journalists themselves, without the first clue about anything. The best journalists are mavericks who sneer at authority. Put in power, they make Napoleon Bonaparte seem like a man seeking consensus before ordering a cup of coffee. Maybe what they need is a person of Mr Rohatyn's experience to keep them in check.
@Email:rwright@thenational.ae
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
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- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
How to become a Boglehead
Bogleheads follow simple investing philosophies to build their wealth and live better lives. Just follow these steps.
• Spend less than you earn and save the rest. You can do this by earning more, or being frugal. Better still, do both.
• Invest early, invest often. It takes time to grow your wealth on the stock market. The sooner you begin, the better.
• Choose the right level of risk. Don't gamble by investing in get-rich-quick schemes or high-risk plays. Don't play it too safe, either, by leaving long-term savings in cash.
• Diversify. Do not keep all your eggs in one basket. Spread your money between different companies, sectors, markets and asset classes such as bonds and property.
• Keep charges low. The biggest drag on investment performance is all the charges you pay to advisers and active fund managers.
• Keep it simple. Complexity is your enemy. You can build a balanced, diversified portfolio with just a handful of ETFs.
• Forget timing the market. Nobody knows where share prices will go next, so don't try to second-guess them.
• Stick with it. Do not sell up in a market crash. Use the opportunity to invest more at the lower price.
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Scoreline
Saudi Arabia 1-0 Japan
Saudi Arabia Al Muwallad 63’
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
More coverage from the Future Forum
How Filipinos in the UAE invest
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Pakistan T20 series squad
Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shahzad, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Mohammed Hafeez, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammed Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Amir Yamin, Mohammed Amir (subject to fitness clearance), Rumman Raees, Usman Shinwari, Umar Amin
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