As a newbie in the world of gold investing, I felt very unconfident and ill-prepared. But once I realized that the very thing that I believed held me back was actually my greatest strength.
The great realization was that as an underground miner I had a network of hundreds if not even thousands of former co-workers from all over the world in all different types of positions and in a multitude of differing minerals, gold, silver, nickel, copper, diamonds, potash and on and on. So I was able to reach out and talk to a guy that was working for that company and in that mine that actually see’s day to day the mineral deposit and the actual grade of the ore. This was a game changer.
It took me twenty years to build this network. Thousands of hours of heavy back breaking bull-work underground drilling and blasting and all the other tasks it takes to mine for gold naturally builds strong friendships that last a lifetime.
How can you build this valuable network?
If your lucky enough to be in the mining industry as I was then your job is to put in the time and build those valuable working relationships in two ways. The first being work your ass off. Literally say yes to every shit job offered and do it with a smile, this will endear you to the crew and especially to the older experienced miners. This is only a short phase because once they know you and like you, you’ll be paired up with these guys and you’ll be learning to operate drills and they’ll teach you what they know, now you’ve just levelled up.
Second is fitting in. You can be the worlds hardest most savage worker but if you have shit people skills you’ll be a grunt for the rest of your career. Mining is merit based but I’ve seen many useless, lazy and trouble-making miners that are a complete disaster that get fired repeatedly who are still never out of work. They always have the next job. They might have six T4’s every year but they are working and thats because they are likeable. You need to develop these skills. If you are smart (meaning you never fuck up) work your ass off while maintaining a positive attitude and have a high likability factor, you’ll be amazed by how fast you can build a strong network in the mining industry.
Here’s a little inside mining industry fact.. The bar is set so low nowadays that it’s easy to excel in the mining world. Trust me on this.
If you are not in the mining industry you can also acquire this valuable investing tool. Miners are always very ready and willing to discuss mining and share with you everything they know, especially to outsiders because miners are proud of what they do. They have a ton of stories and if you are someone that has never been in that world and are eager to learn more about it you can dig up a wealth of useful information that will give you an insight into these particular mines and companies you are interested in and provide you with an investing analysis method that no one else has access to. That is an unfair advantage that is exciting, especially for new investors in the precious metals market.
Using LinkedIn to build your network
I’ve collected phone numbers and built an email list of people I’ve worked with and that was great but what I needed the most was to reach the people that were connected to my immediate base of co-workers and to do that I needed to use something that gave me exponentially more reach. That tool for me was LinkedIn. I was initially uninterested in LinkedIn and found it even ridiculous. But I was convinced by an ex girlfriend who was in human resources and she was so adamant that I fire up an account that I did, just to shut her up. Well fast forward a couple years she’s no longer around but I’m so thankful that I took her advice.
Having LinkedIn has provided so many opportunities in my life that I can’t say enough good things about it. It’s got me numerous jobs that have paid me above and beyond what some of the other guys I know currently have. As well, it’s because of LinkedIn that I was able to get my first job over seas which anyone in the mining industry can tell you is very difficult to get your foot in the door for those opportunities. There are so many positives about LinkedIn, but the most important utility of all hands down is the ability to do deep dive research in any company or project I’m interested in investing in.
I’ll go through my links and connect with thirty or so people that are currently working or have worked for a particular company or project and message them directly. Open up a conversation by asking them about their life as a mining professional and what they know about the mine and what’s going on behind the scenes.
Because here’s another inside mining industry fact.. What management tells outsiders is usually not the entire story.
Miners are always open
What I always find amazing about miners is their open nature. They will talk for hours to you about mining and the tactics that the mine is incorporating into their mine plan. They will fill you in on the availability of the mines equipment and how they manage their maintenance, which is a good indicator of the future of the mine. If they’re not maintaining anything and the whole operation is run as a “jackpot” (miner slang for just taking the easy ore and then running the whole mine into the ground and leaving) then you know that maybe this mine is best as a short term play.
But maybe the preventative maintenance program is world class, good sign! Now you dig a little deeper and find out the safety program at this mine very good. Like actually good, which is to say that some mines say that the well being of the men is number one, but when push comes to shove and the meters aren’t getting drilled and the tons aren’t getting to the mill. all of sudden it becomes an attitude of” just make it happen”. At these operations you’ll find that moral is low and that has a huge impact on the productivity of the mine and in turn your investment. So if you know that the mine actually takes a strong stance towards the safety culture in that mine I’d say that good indicator for a long term play.
Another often over looked but very important indicator of a potentially great mining investment. Is the politics of the mine. You can get an idea of company politics at the top levels by doing your standard due diligence, reading annual reports and earnings forecasts etc. but what are the politics at the lower management level? How does the mine manager and mine superintendent get along? Is the mine captain incompetent at his job? What do the guys think of their shifters (mine slang for direct supervisors). This to me is invaluable data that lets me know how efficient the mine is.
Build yourself a mastermind
Now that we understand the importance of building ground level relationships with the actual miners in these project how do you use this tool to get the ultimate benefit? Well I firmly believe in building a group that exchanges valuable data on a larger level that will super charge the power your company analysis. Build a mastermind, which is a group of likeminded individuals that are equally motivated to succeed and on their own are successful but combined under a mutual goal become even more dynamic. Miners have a production mindset and will fit perfectly into a mastermind environment.
Given the opportunity a miner will be a great asset to you and will give you exactly what you need to build confidence in your future precious metals investments and in turn can benefit the group in their own individual investment interests.
Everybody wins.
Conclusion
Just like any other method of analysis, this takes time to excel at. like I said, for me this took twenty years to develop but it’s never been a time in history easier to build business relationships than it is today. I’m still a youngster in my gold and silver investing journey but knowing I have a mining family of thousands in my corner gives me all the confidence I need when I’m doubting myself. I strongly encourage anyone new to the gold and silver markets to give this a try, the opportunity I feel is so untouched and easily available. And if you are reading this and are an old hand in the precious metals world then for you this would be like hunting with a bunker buster.
RN
