Somehow I found myself in a conversation the other day concerning what we perceived were the most interesting investment choices we knew friends/family to have made. The one that immediately came to my mind was the one a family member had the misfortune of being a party to. Continue reading “Beware of the “It Must Be Fate” Investment”
With talk about a possible “double-dip” recession looming, investors had better take precaution. I’m not here to say that I think another recession will occur, but at the same time I don’t think the best approach is to bury your head in the sand and hope that everything turns out okay.
There are several things investors can do to prepare for the possibility of another economic downturn: Continue reading “Playing it Safe”
DATELINE: November 2008
Participants: Myself and a loving family member
ISSUE: Wanted to sell out of the stock market
MISSION: To turn a emotional decision into a well thought out one (rational)
In my workshops to clients and also in one on one discussions, I am often asked how investors get through the inevitable market declines. I would usually describe the tenet of taking time to assess a situation before making a decision, or in other words taking the emotion out of the equation. Sounds easier to say than it is to do. That is why I now use an example of a wonderful family member who, unbeknownst to them, has provided me a real life example of moving from an emotional decision to one devoid of emotion. Here’s what happened: Continue reading “From Emotional to Rational in 45 Minutes”
One of the great benefits of doing educational workshops is that I can share personal stories and strategies with large groups of people with the end result being that those attending often have more confidence in the investing strategies they employ.
So what are some of my strategies? Those of you reading this as you are having your favorite meal are about to find out one of the key strategies I use (and in my very humble opinion, one that the vast majority of successful investors use). That strategy is simply having what is called a “sell discipline.”
Let me give you a recent example. Continue reading “A Strategy for All Markets”
There’s an awkward moment in virtually every conversation I have with HR executives about retirement plan education when they ask the question they’ve been waiting all meeting to ask:
“What do you think of target funds?”
(Translation: “We have target date funds in our plan, we used to think they were a great idea, but they’ve performed terribly and employees don’t seem to understand them. Now I’m wondering if we made a big mistake.”)
