It was a misty night back in March 2000. I had just come home from work, settled onto the couch, and switched on the evening news. Dan Rather was reporting that the Nasdaq had shot up once again and was now poised to pass the 5,000 mark. My stomach twisted into a knot. I had no investments in tech companies, and I could feel myself growing more destitute by the minute. Desperate, I phoned my financial adviser and ordered him to buy Internet stocks. I didn’t need a windfall—I had enough money to cover my material requirements—but at that moment I certainly wanted one. More than anything, I suppose, I didn’t want to feel left out of the party.
A version of this article appeared in the February 2003 issue of Harvard Business Review.
