It's time to face a painful truth. We're human and we're flawed. We like to think we can do no wrong but it simply isn't true. Even if we're "smart" we often do dumb things. How else to explain boy bands and "reality" TV?! If we didn't listen or watch it would go away. When [...]
One of the biggest challenges in determining when to claim SS benefits is determining which strategy would maximize the monthly inflow. However many who claim SS benefits do so not because of maximization efforts but because the cash is needed immediately. One strategy that seemingly reconciled the competing ends was benefit repayment. Recipients would receive [...]
Think that's hyperbole? Not according to a recent survey from Nationwide Financial. In a survey of potential investors with at least $100,000 in investable assets: 83% fear another financial crisis 62% are scared of investing in the stock market 58% fear death
Building wealth is supposed to be like watching paint dry. Boring. Successful strategies are tried and true. Save, invest wisely, mind your spending, live within your means, etc. Yet sadly and all too often we hear from clients and prospects about so-called strategies that are nothing but self-defeating behaviors and attempts to add excitement where [...]
If recent fund flows are any indication then the sad truth is the typical retail investor continues to prefer the ‘buy high, sell low' approach. The past few years have seen investors pile into the perceived safety of bonds despite record low interest rates and, in many cases, negative real returns (nominal returns adjusted for inflation). Even [...]
The hidden costs of mutual funds are neither hidden nor costly. The proof is in the performance of index funds. Want to know more? Read all about it here.
Yesterday saw the major US equity indexes fall over 2%. Headlines blared "markets tumble!" (Why say fall when they can say tumble? Does 2% qualify as tumbling? Which is the more image-evoking word? Which is designed to get us to click on the headline or watch the story? For shame ‘trusted' media!) The talking heads [...]
Sometimes that chatty person in the airplane seat next to you has something useful to say after all... Years ago I found myself on a flight home after visiting a client. It was an uneventful trip - terrible airport food, inevitable flight delay and so forth. The person occupying the seat next to mine began [...]
We're conflicted about this article. On one hand we understand quite well. Thanks to regulatory requirements we have a treasure trove of archived e-mails. We too were overwhelmed with fearful clients pounding the table to sell. The best (or worst?) example is a panicked client who e-mailed us on March 6, 2009 (the S&P 500's trough) [...]
We play games for a variety of reasons - they entertain us, they are a social activity, they teach us, they cure boredom. Some games are simple. Some are complex. Some are expensive. Some are free. What makes for a good game is a combination of things. A game that's challenging yet fun or a [...]