A hedge fund for love...

In a world where money matters and cash is king, it’s no wonder we've become obsessed with the many ways of making our money go further. Every day, we put our trust in the hands of bankers, brokers and hedge fund managers in exchange for solid investment advice that is meant to guarantee and secure long term benefits. And although the nature of our economy can never be predicted, the prospect of gaining mutual interest seems to be worth the risk.

I couldn’t but wonder whether the same principals could be applied to dating? The more love we receive the more love we want, so we invest the time and energy in new relationships no matter how depreciated our hearts grow along the way.With every investment there's a certain amount of risk to consider and placing our biggest asset in the hands of a complete stranger is not always a sound decision. Of course there's always the safety and security of a stable structure, room for potential growth in the future but at what point do we start losing interest? And with such an unstable economic climate where interest rates are constantly fluctuating, how do we know when and what stock to invest in?

I thought about Simon, the investment banker I had dated back in 2004. Simon had made quite the impression with his corporate intellect, off beat sense of humor and promising venture package. I decided to invest more of my time and energy into this relationship despite my reservations and better judgment based on previous experience. For about a month and a half I noticed a steady incline in my returns which had restored my faith in the market place. Things were moving along swimmingly until one day the contact suddenly stopped. My stock had plummeted without notice or a shred of warning. One awkward phone call later, I noticed a drastic decline in interest. What went wrong? Further evasive behavior was a clear indication that my investment had crashed leaving me broke, frustrated and confused, not to mention the serious impact it had on any future investment.     

Sadly for us, the marketplace is full of heart breakers and not enough heart-brokers to guide us along the way. We rely heavily on instinct and chance which in itself can be risky business. The daunting reality is that every potential relationship comes with high risk with only a 50% chance of growing into something long term and rewarding. One can only hope that after years dating we are wise enough to recognize the other 50% before it's too late. In matters of the heart, when it comes to relationships, is it really worth the risk?