Chris Farrell: Amid the gloomy news, an old friend can revive your soul

Elon Musk is the richest entrepreneur in the world, so it’s no surprise that people paid attention when he said he had a “super bad feeling” about the economy.

Jamie Dimon, the veteran chief executive at JPMorgan Chase, the nation’s biggest bank, has also warned investors to prepare for an economic “hurricane.”

The legendary venture capital firm Sequoia Capital cautioned its portfolio of companies that the good times are over.

I’ve been gathering comments like these recently with an idea that they would lead to a “prepare for the worst” column.

The worries are understandable considering the lingering impact of the pandemic, the Federal Reserve’s tighter monetary policy, four-decade high inflation rate and the negative economic reverberations from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. All this before taking America’s dysfunctional politics into account.

But this column has a different theme than the one I initially imagined, thanks to two recent weddings and a long walk.

Weddings are wonderful celebrations of love and community. Pessimism is simply impossible after multiple conversations with young people about their ambitions, their dreams, their ideas and their energy (as I waved goodbye at a sensible time in the evening).

The memorable walk was in Washington, D.C., with a friend who wondered about investment possibilities that were being overlooked because of the gloom. Where are the underappreciated opportunities, he wondered?

That’s the right question (and no, I don’t have any blazing investment insight to offer). Of course, if household finances are fragile, you’ll want to focus on getting better prepared for the possibility of hard times.

But if your household balance sheet is reasonably healthy, now is a smart time to look for intriguing opportunities, to take risks that might lead to a more satisfying career, to embrace the kind of changes that offer the prospect of greater meaning and purpose.

While economic forecasts are increasingly dire, the current moment isn’t. Inflation is too high, but the job market is strong. Employers have added more than 400,000 jobs a month for a record 12 consecutive months and last month, the 13th, came in at 390,000. Employers are still hiring and that provides an optimistic backdrop that supports risk-taking and the search for opportunities.

Don’t get caught up in the gloom. Think weddings and stimulating walks with friends instead.

Farrell is an economics contributor the Star Tribune, Minnesota Public Radio and American Public Media’s “Marketplace.”