John Candy’s roles often resonate because he embodies the everyday person. Think of Uncle Buck, or his iconic character in Planes, Trains and Automobiles. And then there’s The Great Outdoors, a vacation movie that, while distinctly 80s, remains incredibly relatable. In it, Candy plays Chet Ripley, a humble, down-to-earth guy, pitted against Dan Aykroyd’s Roman Craig, a boisterous, arrogant city trader.
There’s a memorable scene where, amidst a barbecue, Aykroyd’s character brags about a staggering 300% profit trading Deutschmarks in a week. Candy, as Chet, delivers a timeless line: “Well, easy money is money easily lost.” Aykroyd retorts, dismissing Chet’s thinking as “old-fashioned.”
John Candy and Dan Aykroyd grilling in The Great Outdoors, depicting contrasting characters Chet Ripley and Roman Craig.
The irony, revealed later in the movie (spoiler alert!), is that Roman, the purveyor of easy money talk, ends up broke due to bad investments. Chet, the slow and steady one, represents financial prudence. Roman is flashy and takes big risks; Chet is risk-averse and initially feels inferior to Roman’s apparent success symbolized by his Mercedes. Yet, in the end, it’s Roman who needs Chet’s help.
Dan Aykroyd as Roman Craig in The Great Outdoors, boasting about easy money and profits.
Watching The Great Outdoors recently, the dynamic between Chet and Roman mirrored the market frenzy of the past few years. Remember the period after the 2020 crash? It felt like easy money was everywhere.
Jason Zweig highlighted this in a Wall Street Journal article, noting that an astonishing 96% of U.S. stocks delivered positive returns in the year following the March 23, 2020 bottom. This unprecedented surge made investing seem effortless.
It was too easy. Stories of overnight riches in stocks, crypto, SPACs, IPOs, NFTs, and collectibles dominated headlines.
Screenshot of a headline proclaiming "easiest money ever" in the market, illustrating the hype of easy gains.
But these narratives often lacked a crucial perspective: the inevitable downside. We rarely heard about those who bought at the peak and faced devastating losses, or those who failed to rebalance their portfolios and watched their paper gains vanish. The speculators who got rich quickly often found themselves equally quickly broke.
Many newcomers to stock investing in 2020 experienced phenomenal returns simply by picking trending stocks. However, the reality is that most of these once-hot stocks have since plummeted, erasing those initial gains.
Consider these “stock darlings” of 2020. The table below illustrates their dramatic rise from the March 2020 market bottom and their subsequent falls from their peaks:
Table showing stock performance of 2020 darlings, highlighting gains and subsequent drawdowns, illustrating the fleeting nature of easy money gains.
This period underscores a critical lesson: easy money gains are often ephemeral. They are, indeed, “money easily lost.”
Back in January 2021, amidst the market euphoria, I wrote an article titled “It’s OK to Build Wealth Slowly.” This wasn’t just financial advice for others; it was a personal reminder about the dangers of market speculation and succumbing to FOMO (fear of missing out) during irrational market booms.
Human nature makes us susceptible to herd behavior, especially when markets are soaring and everyone seems to be making easy money. It’s tempting to join the party, but market parties, however exhilarating, always end.
In the short run, the allure of easy money, the Roman Craig approach, is strong. But for long-term financial health, the slow and steady path, the Chet Ripley strategy, is far more sustainable. Hard-earned, sustainable wealth trumps the fleeting illusion of easy money in the long run.
Further Reading: It’s OK to Build Wealth Slowly
