Market Forecasting: A Loser’s Game

It’s Friday, August 2, and I’m writing this article with CNBC open on my browser. The headline shouts, “Dow Loses 750 Points, Nasdaq Enters Correction After Weak Jobs Report.”
tree standing alone in a field

Compounding Quietly

Compounding growth, whether in nature or finance, is similar: enough time can bring impressive results. Seemingly every few years, a familiar story is published. A quiet person from a forgotten town, typically with little or no education and a low paying job, accomplishes the unusual.
speaker in a lecture hall

Selling Fear, Greed, or Both

Across social media and YouTube, there are no shortage of pundits, professional or otherwise, offering financial “advice.” I congratulate writers focused on educating readers about these concepts. But my sense is many of these “gurus’” acquire and grow their income not on the education they offer, but on the number of eyeballs they attract.
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Planning for Lasting Inflation

If you’ve been to a grocery store lately, the announcement from the Federal Reserve last week should not have been surprising: inflation seems to be sticky. While some progress has been made in reducing the inflation rate, prices remain elevated…
sale displays

The Value of a Sale

Did you partake in any Black Friday sales last year? The annual shopping event following Thanksgiving, named black Friday for its ability to get retailers “back into the black,” had retailers concerned in 2023. With prices rising everywhere…
house
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Is Your Home an Investment?

The former home of Groucho Marx, the cigar-chomping, round-glass wearing comedian of the 1920s, is up for sale in Long Island, New York. For the low price of just $2.3 million, you too could own the five-bedroom, 3,800-square-foot home built…
coffee and pad of paper
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45 Years, 25 Lessons

A few weeks ago I attended the retirement party of someone I’ve called a dear friend for over 49 years. Long ago, we were both young financial advisors chasing similar career paths. We even migrated to independent businesses around the same…
nixon outside white house

Where Were You 50 Years Ago?

October 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most tumultuous months in American history. Do you recall the events of October 1973? October 6, 1973 – On Yom Kippur, the most sacred day in the Jewish calendar, Arab states led…
compass on newspaper

The Pro’s and Con’s of Passive Investing and When To Engage a Financial Advisor

Passive investing, an investment strategy aimed at maximizing returns over the long run by keeping the amount of buying and selling to a minimum, is a popular choice for many. However, like any financial strategy, it has its pros and cons. To…
chess pieces

FOMO No “Mo”

The 'Twaddle Tendency' is a term coined by Charles T. Munger, an American investor and philanthropist, to describe the inclination of people to have opinions and hold beliefs about subjects that they do not fully understand. It's a potent cognitive…
Alarm clock sitting on a table

Let Compounding Run Wild

Albert Bartlett's quote, "The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function," encapsulates a profound truth about human understanding and financial growth. The principle of compounding, represented…
fortune teller sign

Forecasting: An Illusion of Knowledge

Have you ever tried shaking one of those magic eight balls found in the toy aisle? You know the gist: Ask a random but important question like, “Will the Broncos win the Super Bowl this year?” Then get a generic answer like, “Ask again…
hand over chart

How Your Financial Plan Should Drive Your Investment Allocation

In the world of finance, there is a popular sentiment that aligns with the philosophy of the renowned investor, Warren Buffett: "Do not save what is left after spending, but spend what is left after saving." This nugget of wisdom speaks to the…
okay

The Problem with Pessimism

With markets improving and the overall economy strengthening, why is everyone so negative about our country’s current financial state? By many measures, I believe our economy is far better than people’s sentiment toward it. The last two…
neon bond sign

Own or Loan? Equities vs. Bonds

With interest rates on the rise, we’ve had an uptick in people asking us about bonds and whether it makes sense to re-evaluate fixed income in a portfolio. For readers of my column, you might remember that I’m not a fan of bonds for one…