Tag Archive for: denver post

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The Gray Area of Good Investor Behavior

If you’re a frequent reader of this column, you know that I’m a large proponent of good investor behavior. Though I’ve spent a great number of column inches espousing the traits of investors I admire or those who have done well by adopting…
tiramisu
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Improving Investor Behavior: The Peloton and Tiramisu

If you're like me, you exercise a lot. Maybe not every day, but you try to hit the gym most days. You sweat, you grunt, you grind it out, every session. Exercise does two things: it makes you hungry, and it gives you a sense of pride or accomplishment.…
cash register

The Flaw of Average Inflation

The flaw of averages is the idea that plans made based on average assumptions are wrong on average. As an example, think about the statistician that drowned while crossing a river that was, on average, three feet deep.
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Improving Investor Behavior: Show Me Where it Hurts

Even with a rising paycheck, people feel inflation. Whether it's the cost of a can of soup or the price of gasoline, everything feels (and is) more expensive. Inflation puts a dent in household budgets and a psychological dent in attitudes. While the U.S. economy may be booming, the smaller economy of household budgets and expenses takes a hit.
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Building Durability Into Your Plan and Portfolio

Never invest in anything that can kill you. Now I don't mean cigarettes or other harmful items, but instead making the mistake of investing so much of your capital into one venture that its failure could knock you out. That's the gist behind…
thanksgiving dinner

Improving Investor Behavior: A Mentality of Abundance, Not Excess

We've often said time is our most precious resource. More valuable than money, more fleeting than possessions, nothing can be done to stop the spending of our time. But like money and possessions, having too much time can be a bad thing.  I'm…
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Improving Investor Behavior – Feeling Confident? Are You Sure?

I’ve contributed to the Denver Post monthly for a while now, and I’m grateful for readers who have reached out to me with thoughts, comments, and questions. Some about my writing, the market, and broader topics like the meaning of wealth…
contractors working on a house

How Do You Measure Your Wealth?

How do you measure your wealth? Most people assume there are two typical ways. The first is a simple money calculation that takes everything you own, subtracts everything you owe, and that formula gives you your net worth. Simple. Others say wealth is not a measure of the money one has but of the intangibles such as relationships, time, health, etc. 
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Improving Investor Behavior – Deciding on Enough!

At a party given by a billionaire on Shelter Island, the late Kurt Vonnegut informed his friend author Joseph Heller that their host, a hedge fund manager, had made more money in a single day than Heller had earned from his wildly popular…
Contractors install siding

Improving Investor Behavior: Sometimes Nothing is the Hardest Thing to Do

The United States has embarked on a historic economic experiment. Initially, $1.9 trillion was borrowed by our government to fund the American Rescue Plan (ARP). So far, the government has committed more than $5 trillion to support our nation…
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?
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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…
Campbells Chicken Noodle Soup
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Improving Investor Behavior – Campbell’s Soup & Rising Income

Cold winter weather means it is soup season here in Colorado, and none feel more familiar than Campbell’s Tomato Soup. Campbell’s tomato soup is an excellent benchmark for understanding the impact of the persistent enemy of all investors: inflation. For more than 100 years, the size hasn’t changed, but the price sure has. About 45 years ago, in 1974, the soup cost about $0.12 per can. Today, it retails for about $0.87 per can. That points to an average inflation rate of 4.3 percent. Forty-five years may sound like a long time, but that’s about the length of a typical retirement.
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Improving Investor Behavior: The Sharp Knife of Compound Interest

As investors, we seek to understand and control compound interest. Like the knife, when used correctly, compound interest is a powerful tool. Even better, the three variables behind compound interest can be put to work for anyone, regardless of income or amount saved.
Alarm clock sitting on a table

Improving Investor Behavior: The Price of Time

Money is a resource; there can always be more of it. But time is finite, and there is no getting it back once it’s gone… or is there?