4/5/2016

12RussianCommandmentsofSurvivingEconomicCrisisFortRuss

12 Russian Commandments of Surviving Economic Crisis

NikolayBogdanovBelsky

April27,2016
MikhailDelyagin
TranslatedbyKristinaKharlova

Howtoovercomethecrisis.12immutablecommandmentsfromMikhailDelyagin

MikhailGennadyevichDelyaginisaRussianauthor,politicianandeconomist,formerpresidentialadviser.DirectoroftheInstituteofGlobalization
Issues(IPROG)andformerchairmanoftheideologicalcounciloftheRodinapoliticalparty.

Weareeducatedbypastcrises.Thedefaultof1998,theplungeof2008,andlittlenoticedbymostbankingcrisesof1995and
2004unfoldedaccordingtothesamepattern:asharp,almostinstantaneousdeterioration,fromtwotosixmonths,andlong
gradualrecovery.
Andnowweareexpectingthesame.
Wehavebeenwaitingforimprovement,andithasn'tcome.
Itistimetounderstand:itwillnotcome.
MikhailDelyagin

Weenteredanothercrisis.Thestandardoflivingofthemajority,asevidencedbyconsumerbehavior,begantodeclineinthe
summerof2013.CapitalflightanddevaluationstartedinJanuary2014,withhighoilpricesandYanukovychinKiev.It'snotablowitisaslow
strangulationbycorruptionandmonopolism.
Andit'sheretostayforalongtime.
Inordernottogocrazyandnotlosetoomuch,weshouldfirmlyknowsomeverysimplerules,whichwhenfacedwithdailyadversitieswetendtoforget.
Soletmeremindyou.
1.Thecrisisisalossofmoney.Backin2008,notlovedbymeGref[MinisterofEconomicsandTradeofRussiafromMay2000toSeptember2007,
currentlytheCEOandChairmanoftheExecutiveBoardofthelargestRussianbankSberbankFR],annoyedbystoriesthat"crisisisanopportunity",
explained:Yes,opportunity.Butforthemajorityitisthesameasinacollisionwithaconcretewall:twoweeksinacast.Therefore,youwilllose,and
that'snormal,andyourgoalistominimizelosses.
2.Thetwentiethcenturywasbrutalandsmart.Researchhasshownthatincamps,prisonsandcrisisoptimistsdiedfirstthosewhoexpectthatthe

http://www.fortruss.com/2016/04/12russiancommandmentsofsurviving.html

1/3

4/5/2016

12RussianCommandmentsofSurvivingEconomicCrisisFortRuss

2.Thetwentiethcenturywasbrutalandsmart.Researchhasshownthatincamps,prisonsandcrisisoptimistsdiedfirstthosewhoexpectthatthe
troubleswillsoonbeover.Survivedandeventuallyovercamethecrisisthepessimists,acceptingthehardtimesasthenewnormalestablishedfora
longtime,towhichwemustadaptandinwhichwemustsurvive,ifwecannotchangeit.
Andthecurrentcrisisisheretostay.
3.Hurryslowly.Nofuss,thinkoveryourbusinessandyoursteps,thinkaboutplans"B"and"C":actquicklytoachieveyourplans,withallmeansand
withouthesitation,andcarefullyanalyzethesituationandconsiderotheroptions.Drawaplanforaweekoramonth:ithelps.Rememberthe
commandmentofpilotsandairtrafficcontrollers:"Actingfastmeanstomakeslowmovementswithoutbreaksbetweenthem".
4.Psychologicalhygieneisasimportantaspersonal.Panicisworsethenlosses:nowonderforpanicatwartheyshotwithouttrial.Jealousy,hatred,
angerareunacceptable,asitdestroysyourbody,anddespairkillsmoresurelythanagun.Theyshouldbeavoidedlikedrugs.
Don'tbeafraidofchange:trytounderstandthatconstantchangeisthecurrentformofstability.Andifyouarenotabletounderstanditjusttakeit
forafact.
5.Strengthensocialties.
"Don'thaveahundredrubles,buthaveahundredfriends:themoneycanbetakenaway,butfriendsremain."that'swhatitreallymeans.
Yourpensionisyourchildren.Theymustbeproperlyeducatedtoachievesuccessandbecomeyourlifelineandnotastonearoundyourneck,andyou
shouldhaveatleasttwo,sowhenyoubecometheirburdeninoldage,youdon'tbraketheirback.
Bethebackboneofyourfamily:thenyouwillbeabletorelyonit.Tellyourwifeandlovedones,whenthechildrengetolder,howwasyourday,what
youaccomplished,andwhatdidn'tgowellandwhy,listentotheirstories,andgivekindfeedback.Thereisnothingeasierinacrisisthantolosethe
emotionalconnectionwithyourlovedonesandfallintoloneliness.Discussingyourproblems,youdisciplineyourself,andeventuallywillstartfinding
unexpectedsolutionsdiscussingtheproblemsoffamilymembers,atleast,willbroadenthehorizon,andmostimportantlywillsavetherespectofthe
familyevenintheeventoflife'sfailures.
Donotcountthesheepbeforesleepdrawconclusions,identifythecausesoffailuresandsuccess,andbuildplans.You'llsleepless,butdeeper.
6.Savemoney.Recordexpensesandanalyzethemattheendoftheweekandmonth.Compareprices,utilizesalesandInternetshopping,analyzeprice
vs.quality.Thinkwhyyouneedeachproduct,donotbuyfornoreason.Beforegoingtothestoremakeashoppinglist.Insupermarketsbewareof
productsatfacelevelandthosenexttosales,theyareusuallyoverpricedandcheapgoodsarelocatedat'uncomfortable'height.Trytopaycash:paying
withacard,youdonotfeelthepartingwithmoneyandspendmore.
Don'tforgettorelaxandhavefun(evenifjustplayingwithkids),maketimeforhappyfamilycelebrations(eveniffreeorcheap):withoutityouwillgo
crazy.
Leadahealthylifestyle,eatbalancedmeals,walkinthefreshair,engageinphysicalactivity,donotskimponfoodandhealthoritwillcostyoumorein
theend!
7.Typeofsavings,ifany,dependsonthetimeframe.UntilNovember,youcankeepmoneyinrubles.Pastthistimeinforeigncurrency,betterin
dollarsondepositinastatebank(or,atleast,inamajorbankwithtoptenassets).Ifyouholditinotherbankssplitthedepositssothatevenafterthe
devaluationoftherubleby50%eachdoesnotexceedtheamountinsuredbythestate.Foreigncurrencies,exceptthedollarandtheeuro,arelessliquid:
theyshouldbeconsideredifyouwon'tneedyoursavingssuddenly.Goldisfor5yearsandmore.
Realestateinacrisisisaliability,andnotanassetthepurchaseofunnecessaryappliancesisalossofmoney,securities"Russianroulette".
Ifyouwanttospeculatewithmoneyestablishtheminimum,includingthenecessities,thatyourfamilyspendsinsixmonthsinforeigncurrency,
increasethisamountby30%,addthenecessaryexpensesforthenextyear(formedicaltreatment,education,repairs,etc.).
Thisisyourrequiredreserve:youcanspeculatewiththerest.
8.Fornowthecrisisisnottooseveretostockup.Buttherangeofproductshasbeenalreadyreducedandifyouneedraredrugsstockupsubjectto
expirationdate.Thisalsoappliestoimports:anewroundofdevaluationwillraisethepriceofimports,anditmakessensetostockupuntiltheendof
October.
Youneedtostockupifyouliveinasmallvillagewithoneortwostores.But,thenIguessyouhaveitalready.
9.Holdontoyourjob:inacrisis,permanentincomeismoreimportantthanitsamount.Evenlargesavingsareeatenawaysurprisinglyquickly,but
workkeepsyouinshapeandafloat,evenifrevenuesfall.Oftenlayoffsarecarriedoutcallously,forcingpeopletoleavethemselves:holdonuntilyou
findthe'alternateairfield'.Knowyourrights,buttrytodefendthemproperly,withoutbecominganenemyevenofinsensitivemanagement.
10.Ifyou'regoingto"fleeRashka"[RussiaFR],remember:youarepayingforthesafetyandcomfortofyourchildrennotonlywithyourfate(youwill
atleastendurealongcultureshockfromimmersioninadifferentlanguageenvironment),butalsothefactthattheywilllosetherighttochangethe
rulesoftheirsociety.Notbecausetheyareimmigrants,butbecauseeventhecitizensofdevelopedcountriesforgotaboutthisrightthemselves.
Trynottobuyaticketfor"Titanic"(asMuscovites,wholeftforKievin2000's,asimmigrantsfromtheSovietUnion,whofoundthemselvesinGermany
nearrefugeecamps).RememberaboutthevulnerabilityofdownshiftingattheexpenseoftouristsorrentingaRussianapartment.
Exploretherealandnottheadvertisedrulesoflifeinthecountrywhereyouaregoingnottoendupinabadneighborhood,nottoloseachildfor
slappinghimonthestreet,nottoreporttopolicefortakingashowerafter10pmandknowthatcallingthepoliceifyoudon'tknowwhorobbedyou,
maycostyou.
11.Goingtotrustthegovernment?Gotothecemetery:stayinthecompanyofotherslikeyou.Ifyoudonotwanttohurrythinkforyourself.Untila
governmentstartstoinvestinthecountry,teachandtreatchildren,jailthieves,trustinitisfraughtwithlosses.
12.Finally,mostimportantly:dowhatyoucanchangerightnow,withoutdelay:'later'willnotcome.Don'tworryaboutwhatyoucannotchange:you
don'tpunchthewallbecauseofcoldweatherbutlookforwarmclothes.Andconstantly,likechildren,testtheworld:ascrisisunfoldsthescopeofyour
possibilitieswillexpand,andwhat'simpossibleyesterdaycaneasilybecomeavailabletomorrow.
Anddon'tyoudarefeelsorryforyourself:it'sthemostdespicablewaytocommitsuicide.
OurnotsodistantancestorssurvivedseveralwavesoffamineattheendofthereignofNicholasII,FirstWorldWarandCivilwar.Ourforefathers
enduredruin,industrialization,collectivization,"thegreatpurge",theGreatPatrioticwar,postwarfamineandrepressions.Ourparentsresistedthe
fearoftheKGBandthe"timelessness"that"infuseduswithvodka."Andweourselvessurvivedthe90'sexceptthosewhosincerelylovethishappy
Este sitio emplea cookies de Google para prestar sus servicios, para personalizar anuncios y para analizar el

http://www.fortruss.com/2016/04/12russiancommandmentsofsurviving.html

2/3

4/5/2016

12RussianCommandmentsofSurvivingEconomicCrisisFortRuss

fearoftheKGBandthe"timelessness"that"infuseduswithvodka."Andweourselvessurvivedthe90'sexceptthosewhosincerelylovethishappy
Este sitio emplea cookies de Google para prestar sus servicios, para personalizar anuncios y para analizar el
andcarefreetime,becausethat'swhentheylearnedtowalkandtalk.AmonguslivetheheroesofAfghan,thetwoChechenandthedarknessof
trco. Google recibe informacin sobre tu uso de este sitio web. Si utilizas este sitio web, se sobreentiende que
undeclaredwars.

aceptas
el uso de cookies.
MS INFORMACIN ENTENDIDO
Againstthisbackgroundagainstthebackdropofourownfamilyhistoriesourtroublesseemsomehowinsignificant,don'tyouthink?

Yes,ofcourse,"anailinmybootismorehorriblethanGoethe'sfantasy":thisismyboot,notoftheoldGerman.
Yes,ofcourse,thereturnofpovertyisterrible.Andsystemiccrisisintowhichwearepushedbytheliberalservantsofglobalmonopoliesandjust
thieves,scaresusabsolutelyrighteously:itwillbedarkandscary.
Butthatdoesn'tmeanthatwewon'twin.
Wejusthavetoprepareforvictorytoday.
Overcomingthecrisiswiththetoolsathand.
Andenjoyinglife,becausewithoutitwecannotwin.

Follow us on Facebook!

Follow us on Twitter!

Donate!

http://www.fortruss.com/2016/04/12russiancommandmentsofsurviving.html

3/3