The Online Investing AI Blog

I’m a big believer in something I call, “Collective Intelligence.”

Collective Intelligence is a kind of “crowd think.” People tend to move in swarms.  (When I’m feeling snarky, I say people tend to move in herds.)

In either case, these crowd movements can offer hints on how society and the economy is moving. According to an article from Kiplinger.com, changes in the nation’s economic climate might be revealed in some weird collective ways.

These are probably indicators you never considered, unless you sell alligator skins. Here are a few weird ways you can check the economic climate:

Theater Crowds

During economic slowdowns, movie theater crowds increase. Why? Despite popcorn and soda that you need a loan to buy, movies are relatively cheap–and it’s form of escapism, too.

Gardens

Gardens are good ways to cut that food bill, so when the economic future dims, gardens bloom.

Where’s the Romance?

Not only does dating increase during recessions and depressions, but so does the sale of romance novels.

Sleep Patterns

Check out those bags under your eyes, or under the eyes of your co-workers. Signs of lack of sleep indicate a poor economy. The reasoning goes: fear of job loss increases tension; tension affects sleep and that changes our appearance and attitude.

Plastic surgery

If people are worried about making ends meet, they probably won’t be worried about their rear ends… or tummy tucks… or crow’s feet. Therefore, you’ll notice a drop in cosmetic surgeries–and an increase in plastic surgery bargains and discounts.

Makeup sales

It makes sense if cosmetic surgeries are decreasing, cheap ways to improve appearance will increase. (I’m not saying you should look cheap during a recession, though.)

Gator skins

Exotic clothing and accessories are victims of bad times. Well, if you’re an alligator, it turns out that bad economies are good times.

Dry Cleaning

After getting taken to the cleaners economically, you’re less likely to go to the cleaners literally, stats indicate.

Mosquito bites

When the economy bites, so do the bugs. Some economically hard-hit areas report that abandoned and foreclosed homes with pools attract bugs, like mosquitos.

This, of course, isn’t an exhaustive look at how collective intelligence tips its hat to bad times. Another thing I noticed is the parking lots in Big Box and discount stores, like Walmart (WMT) and Target (TGT), are always jammed during recessions.

Related posts:

1. Hacking The Depression: How You Can Use Technology To Thrive In Any Economic Era
2. Investment Climate Change: Three Ways to Adapt During Economic Change
3. 3 Ways Your Beliefs Create Wealth
4. Five Ways That Recessions Are Personal Financial Spinach
5. A Bold Prescription For Economic Growth

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