Hey, everyone!
I took a couple of weeks off from the board, but I got caught up on all the messages last night.
I will be up front. I have been frustrated with the general tone of our board at times lately, particularly since the last two deal announcements. And I believe it may have harmed our collective goal, as some of the best news we have had in a long time has been released since then, and some new eyes (and potential investment capital) may have taken a gander our way for the first time in a while.
I sent out PMs to a bunch of other posters last night, many of which have reduced or ceased their postings as well in the past month or so, just to sanity check my perception of the board. Not everyone has responded yet, but enough have echoed my thoughts that I feel comfortable posting this message now.
To be clear I am not knocking anyone’s right to say what they want on this board. And I do not want to paper over mistakes made by Joe and others in the past year or two or discourage the group from acting as a check on the system.
However, this is our current reality, and these are the current options that are available to Joe and to us. If we are all truly shareholders here, we should all want the overall impression that is painted on this board to be a net-positive one. Because what we need most of all in this stock is new investors. And, for now, these investors are not funds and managers, they are mostly just regular individuals like ourselves.
After new investors read a PR or an article or view an interview about a stock like GNBT, where do they go? There is no analyst coverage. There are no professionals from investment firms “covering” this stock. In cases like this, potential investors come to the boards to see what people who are involved in the stock think about it. First they might go to YMB. Oh boy… great first impression. But after they get disgusted with that, maybe they end up here. Frankly, for the last few weeks, since our latest positive news, IH has not looked much more enticing than YMB at times.
I am not trying to say that Joe did not make mistakes or that maybe a different path should not have been chosen at certain points along the way. This has been a rough road. Some of those bumps and potholes could have been repaired or avoided, but some were thrown right in front of us.
I am also not suggesting you swallow your thoughts and concerns. But instead think before you post your comments (especially on days when new investors might be checking us out) if there is a better avenue down which you could pursue them. How many of you have contacted Joe about your recently voiced concerns on dilution? Or Bintai and its partners? I suggest you all do that at least once, if you are comfortable with that approach. It is a unique situation when your CEO is as open as Joe is, and it can be one of the quickest ways to allay your frustrations or get clarification. If you are not able to do that or are not comfortable with that approach, send someone a PM and see if they share your concern and can clarify or will follow up with Joe.
Like it or not, this group is a surrogate for our investment due to the depth of our experience with this company. What we post here has an air of knowledge and authority to new investors, whether we like it or not. There is so much knowledge here that can be shared with potential investors, if we can only encourage them to engage. So before we post (again, especially when good times are trying to bubble up), maybe we can ask ourselves a few questions:
- Is my post unproductively negative? Instead of reinforcing a negative feedback loop, is there a way I could have the same communication and maybe get better feedback by phrasing my comment a different way?
- Is my post liable to lead to no good end other than to turn people off on our collective investment? (We've all vented occasionally. But this should not be the main area of content on our board.)
- Is my post really regarding something that is in the past and that no one can do anything about? Or has something become so personal that I need to deal with it in a different way?
- Should I take this offline to a PM w someone who usually knows about this topic?
- Should I do more homework or call/email Joe?
- Maybe most important: Is a solution to my issue in the works, and I just need to be patient? Sometimes, as this morning has shown, silence can be an acceptable option.
Once again, I know not everything is positive in Generex/NGIO world. There is much frustration built up over the past year or so, and I share that with all of you.
I also know how exhausting this has been for all of us, how much effort has been put in by so many people here, and how this board has been unnecessarily and unfairly personal at times. And many of the events, SEC docs, technical concepts, etc. of the past year or two have been challenging for those of us that are not professional investors.
But I also know that our collective investment is in a better position now than it has been in a long time. So let’s remember that, as we discuss our questions, ideas, and concerns on this board, potential investors are watching. Let’s be up front, curious, and rigorous. But in the interest of all of our investments, let’s be constructive.
Sorry for anyone I may have offended or appeared to single out here. That is certainly not my objective…
I remain as positive as I have been in a long time (much more so than when I was a frequent "venter" over the summer!). And I look forward to the pieces coming into place over the next few months.
Thanks for your consideration, and have a great week, everyone!
I took a couple of weeks off from the board, but I got caught up on all the messages last night.
I will be up front. I have been frustrated with the general tone of our board at times lately, particularly since the last two deal announcements. And I believe it may have harmed our collective goal, as some of the best news we have had in a long time has been released since then, and some new eyes (and potential investment capital) may have taken a gander our way for the first time in a while.
I sent out PMs to a bunch of other posters last night, many of which have reduced or ceased their postings as well in the past month or so, just to sanity check my perception of the board. Not everyone has responded yet, but enough have echoed my thoughts that I feel comfortable posting this message now.
To be clear I am not knocking anyone’s right to say what they want on this board. And I do not want to paper over mistakes made by Joe and others in the past year or two or discourage the group from acting as a check on the system.
However, this is our current reality, and these are the current options that are available to Joe and to us. If we are all truly shareholders here, we should all want the overall impression that is painted on this board to be a net-positive one. Because what we need most of all in this stock is new investors. And, for now, these investors are not funds and managers, they are mostly just regular individuals like ourselves.
After new investors read a PR or an article or view an interview about a stock like GNBT, where do they go? There is no analyst coverage. There are no professionals from investment firms “covering” this stock. In cases like this, potential investors come to the boards to see what people who are involved in the stock think about it. First they might go to YMB. Oh boy… great first impression. But after they get disgusted with that, maybe they end up here. Frankly, for the last few weeks, since our latest positive news, IH has not looked much more enticing than YMB at times.
I am not trying to say that Joe did not make mistakes or that maybe a different path should not have been chosen at certain points along the way. This has been a rough road. Some of those bumps and potholes could have been repaired or avoided, but some were thrown right in front of us.
I am also not suggesting you swallow your thoughts and concerns. But instead think before you post your comments (especially on days when new investors might be checking us out) if there is a better avenue down which you could pursue them. How many of you have contacted Joe about your recently voiced concerns on dilution? Or Bintai and its partners? I suggest you all do that at least once, if you are comfortable with that approach. It is a unique situation when your CEO is as open as Joe is, and it can be one of the quickest ways to allay your frustrations or get clarification. If you are not able to do that or are not comfortable with that approach, send someone a PM and see if they share your concern and can clarify or will follow up with Joe.
Like it or not, this group is a surrogate for our investment due to the depth of our experience with this company. What we post here has an air of knowledge and authority to new investors, whether we like it or not. There is so much knowledge here that can be shared with potential investors, if we can only encourage them to engage. So before we post (again, especially when good times are trying to bubble up), maybe we can ask ourselves a few questions:
- Is my post unproductively negative? Instead of reinforcing a negative feedback loop, is there a way I could have the same communication and maybe get better feedback by phrasing my comment a different way?
- Is my post liable to lead to no good end other than to turn people off on our collective investment? (We've all vented occasionally. But this should not be the main area of content on our board.)
- Is my post really regarding something that is in the past and that no one can do anything about? Or has something become so personal that I need to deal with it in a different way?
- Should I take this offline to a PM w someone who usually knows about this topic?
- Should I do more homework or call/email Joe?
- Maybe most important: Is a solution to my issue in the works, and I just need to be patient? Sometimes, as this morning has shown, silence can be an acceptable option.
Once again, I know not everything is positive in Generex/NGIO world. There is much frustration built up over the past year or so, and I share that with all of you.
I also know how exhausting this has been for all of us, how much effort has been put in by so many people here, and how this board has been unnecessarily and unfairly personal at times. And many of the events, SEC docs, technical concepts, etc. of the past year or two have been challenging for those of us that are not professional investors.
But I also know that our collective investment is in a better position now than it has been in a long time. So let’s remember that, as we discuss our questions, ideas, and concerns on this board, potential investors are watching. Let’s be up front, curious, and rigorous. But in the interest of all of our investments, let’s be constructive.
Sorry for anyone I may have offended or appeared to single out here. That is certainly not my objective…
I remain as positive as I have been in a long time (much more so than when I was a frequent "venter" over the summer!). And I look forward to the pieces coming into place over the next few months.
Thanks for your consideration, and have a great week, everyone!
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