Blog | Personal Finance

Coronavirus Preparation: Preserving your health and wealth in a crisis

Everyone is worried about getting sick, but here’s what you should really be focused on

Nearly nine years ago, I sent out this simple tweet in the wake of the Great Recession that had wiped out about $19 trillion in wealth and sent the unemployment rate skyrocketing to 10%.

The Coronavirus panic

Unless you’ve already retreated to your bunker in the ground, you’ve heard about the panic that Coronavirus (COVID-19) is causing around the world.

As I write this, there are over 100,000 cases reported around the world and over 3,600 deaths. And it only seems to be getting started.

The economic impact of this as it continues will be staggering. The stock market has been on a downward spiral, down 12.9% since February 19th. So far conferences like South by Southwest (SXSW), Adobe’s annual summit, the TED conference, Ultra Music Festival, and more have been cancelled in fear of the virus. Major companies like Microsoft, Facebook, Google, and Amazon have asked Seattle employees to work from home until the end of March and the school systems are closed. And just this morning, as I’m writing, Italy has quarantined 16 million people in an effort to stem the fast-growing cases in that country. And a Catholic friend of mine here in Phoenix said his church is not allowing handshakes, holy water, or wine in the services.

Is the coronavirus threat real?

The spread of information and misinformation, like the virus itself, is fast and unpredictable. Naturally lots of people are confused about what is real and what is not, whether they should worry about coronavirus or whether they should not.

In my latest episode of The Rich Dad Radio Show, I had two experts on to discuss the coronavirus, Dr. Chris Martenson, author of the book “The Crash Course” and expert in pathology with a PhD from Duke, and my personal doctor, Dr. Nicole Srednicki. The general consensus: this is real.

One of the tricky things about coronavirus according to my guests is that unlike SARS and other scares before, the incubation period of the virus is long and without symptoms. This makes it really hard to stop because before someone shows any signs of having the virus, they may have infected unknown numbers of people over many weeks. This coupled with a high infection rate makes it a very scary thing for world officials. So, given that, it’s not surprising to see what’s happening in the news cycle.

How to stay healthy in the face of coronavirus

I’ll preface this with the fact that I’m not an expert in diseases, nor am I a medical professional. But I do make sure to talk to experts in those areas to be as prepared as I possibly can. As always, I encourage you to seek out your own information and experts, but I’ll share here what I’ve learned.

In talking with Dr. Martenson and Dr. Nicole, there are a few things you can do to up your protection against the coronavirus.

Wear a mask. The CDC doesn’t say you need this, but Dr. Martenson points out that the first thing a medical unit will do is put on a mask when there is a patient with the virus around. What Dr. Martenson points out is that what the CDC is really saying is they don’t have enough masks for everyone.

Take vitamin C. Dr. Nicole points out that they are running trials in China with high doses of vitamin C to some good results. Dr. Mortenson shares that one of the things that it's really bad about coronavirus is not the virus itself killing you, but that it activates your own body to go a little haywire and create a lot of damage through free radicals. Vitamin C helps to prevent these free radicals.

Sanitize. Whether washing your hands or using hand sanitizer, it’s important to frequently sanitize your hands so you can prevent the spread of the virus. It’s transmitted like the flu, so you have to be extra cautious just like you would with the flu. But it’s not just your hands, make sure to sanitize your surfaces too, especially your phone, which is very dirty.

How to stay wealthy in the face of coronavirus

The reason I shared my tweet from 2011 at the beginning of this post is because I’ve spent years thinking about how to prepare for crisis to preserve my wealth…and to grow it.

There are both short and long-term things you can do to prepare through the five g’s you need to survive any economic crash.

Gas

The world still runs on oil. If you don’t have enough gas, you can’t get around. It’s that simple. In major crisis, there is always a run on gas. If you want to be prepared for a crisis, the first thing to do is to put some fuel reserves aside in case your local stations are out of fuel for a time.

Grub

People in Seattle are already posting photos of empty shelves at the local grocery stores. Funny enough, it’s empty shelves of toilet paper. But the reality is that local economies simply don’t carry enough food and supplies for a real crisis. Shelves empty fast. If you have a pantry, stock it with non-perishable food. Get the vitamins and supplements you need. Take the time to buy now in case you can’t later.

Guns

Firearms are a sensitive topic, but I believe in the right to keep and bear arms. Besides simply enjoying guns and shooting them for sport, I also want to be prepared should I need to protect my family and my property. I hope it never comes to the point where I have to do this, but should it come down to it, I’m prepared and so should you be.

Ground

Property is an essential need for survival. Even in economic crisis, people need a place to live. I’ve invested in real estate in both up and down markets for years, not for appreciation, but for cash flow through rent. Just like in the Great Recession, economic crisis can provide incredible buying opportunities for real estate. And with mortgage rates at near all-time lows, there are many ripe investment opportunities out there to build future wealth today.

Gold

Recently, my friend Jim Rogers, co-founder of the Quantum Fund and Soros Fund Management, was on Kitco News.

He believes that while the impact of coronavirus might be less than the panic-induced media thinks, the economic impact could still be severe. Jim points out that we’re overdue for a global recession and what’s happening around the world is hitting businesses very hard. Governments are panicking, cutting rates, and printing money, Jim points out.

In the face of this, gold is a safe haven. Even though the spot price of gold has gone down, that simply provides a buying opportunity. In the face of a true economic crisis, people will flock to what is historically real money, and that is gold and other precious metals like silver.