shopping at the market

Intelligent Investing: Overcoming Inflation Using a Familiar Friend (Part 2)

For investors, inflation is the erosion of your money, a "cancer," if you will. It is the slow, subtle decline in what your money buys or the purchasing power of your money. Last month we covered what inflation is, how it works, and where…
Citrus fruit in a grocery aisle
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Improving Investor Behavior: Understanding inflation, the cancer of retirement planning (Part 1)

One of the greatest challenges to retirees and investors alike is inflation. Not only is this principle often forgotten, but rarely understood. So let's discuss inflation: what it is, where it's been, and where it might be going in the future. How can you as an investor combat inflation over long periods of time, helping to ensure that the purchasing power of your money remains unchanged for years to come?
Gold bars and coins

Why Do People Really Buy Gold And What Are The Alternatives?

Warren Buffet once said, “Gold gets dug out of the ground in Africa, or someplace. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again, and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility. Anyone watching from Mars would be scratching…
Carved pumpkins

Improving Investor Behavior – Fear: Acknowledged and Avoided

It’s that time of year again when pumpkins start appearing on porches and horror movies are on TV. Halloween is when we indulge in our fear each year. We welcome it into our homes, knowing the temporary fright is sure to pass and make way…
Capitol Building

What Are You Doing on November 4th?

Election Day, Tuesday November 3rd, is only a week away. While 2020 has been historic, it seems that everyone has a dramatic expectation of what will happen in the investment markets, as if it will be the "next" big 2020 disruption. This morning…
Woman viewing a laptop
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Your Comprehensive Financial Planning Guide For Women

Over half of the wealth in the U.S. is controlled by women.[1] You are probably reading this because you are one of those women. Finances can be intimidating, so I have dedicated my career to helping women like you gain the confidence to take…
I voted stickers
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Improving Investor Behavior: Keep Politics Out of Your Portfolio

With the election a short 45 days away, the news stream is unrelenting. Political TV ads, postcards, and of course those phone calls during the dinner hour - it’s an all-out media assault designed to convince you that if the “other guy”…
Person holding viewing glasses

Improving Investor Behavior: Blind Spots & Confirmation Bias

We talk a lot about perspective in this article. Our perspective is the lens through which we view the world. It is our way of framing everything we see and ultimately defines how we react to what life throws at us. We believe what we believe…
Friends enjoying a picnic in a New York park
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Getting Back to Better

My goal as a parent has always been to build a better future for my kids, and to give them opportunities that I didn’t have. Whether that’s financial, educational, personal, or whatever it may be. It’s an essential part of my “why.” I think deep down there’s a part of us that wants our kids to be better than we ever were. To me, that’s progress and hope. It’s an innate and immeasurable desire - to want our tomorrow to be better than our today.
Elevator buttons

Improving Investor Behavior: Fear is a Very Powerful Emotion

After almost 45 years as a financial advisor, one realizes that there’s truth behind the phrase, “Reality is made up of circles, but we see straight lines.” Market cycles, crises, and investor behavior are all echoes of things we’ve seen in the past and will likely experience again in the future. No doubt the COVID-19 crisis impacts us all, and while it may feel like something completely new, it really isn’t.
Face mask made to look like the American flag

Improving Investor Behavior: An Unintentional Sabbatical

Has it been a month already? In some ways, this feels like the longest 30 days many have ever experienced. For others, it seems to have gone by way too quickly. When much of the world is committed to staying home and avoiding COVID-19, time…
Buttons to report a fire or call police
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Fire Drills and Why We Do Them

Every meeting we have with clients includes a line item on the agenda: Fire Drill.  What would you do if the market dropped significantly tomorrow? What would that look like for you? For years now it has felt like an unnecessary discussion…
The Cycle of Market Emotions

Timeless Truths & The Cycle of Market Emotions

Just 30 days ago, on Feb. 18th, markets were at all-time highs. Today, fear grips the market and recession is at the top of every financial pundits’ mind. Benjamin Graham, said to be one of the best investors of all time, and a mentor to Warren Buffett reminds us: Control what you can control: yourself, your emotions and your response (or behavior) to those emotions.
Emergency Exit Sign
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Improving Investor Behavior – Investing in Panic

A lot can change in 30 days. One short month ago, markets were knocking on the door of all-time highs, businesses were doing well, and Joe Biden was behind several candidates in the Democratic primaries. Oh, how things change quickly. Very…
Rollercoaster
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A Note to Clients on Virus Volatility

As I’m sure many of you are aware, this past week has been a difficult one for investors. The broad market indices have seen swift and dramatic drops, leaving many scared, confused, and upset. Make no mistake; it is moments like these that define all of us as investors. Fear is an emotion, and one that can quickly snowball into an all-out panic. We’ve often said your behavior as an investor will ultimately have a far greater effect on your outcome than when or how you are invested. This is one such moment.