This Day in History...

On October 19, 1781, British General Lord Cornwallis surrenders 8,000 British soldiers to a combined French and American force at Yorktown, Virginia.
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Since 1776, the Colonials under George Washington had fought few major battles and usually came up short when they did. Washington led rebel militiamen in driving the British out of Boston early in'76, but afterward his outmanned Continental Army suffered mostly through minor defeats, humiliation and retreats. He refused to give up, but he also refused to risk his entire force when annihilation was a possible outcome. Washington avoided the big loss until opportunity knocked.

For six years he conducted a defensive war, avoiding a decisive engagement until he had the advantage of numbers and surprise near Yorktown. Washington managed to slowly erode the British will to fight, while refusing to commit his entire force to anything like a decisive engagement. In investment terms, he made the most of his opportunities. He had the patience to wait and avoided the emotional temptation to bet it all on one throw of the proverbial dice. Independence, financial or from monarchs, is won by strategic thinking, patience and an unwillingness to take outsized risks for uncertain gain.