In my conversations with you, we talk about the markets. We talk about prices. We talk about how your portfolio is aligned. We talk about when the next Black Swan will swoop in because it always does—just never on anyone’s schedule. As Your Survival Guy, my goal is to craft investment plans that may handle the hardest of times. Investors know about the Great Depression and other horrible markets, but they don’t always invest as if they do. There’s often an “it won’t happen to me” or “you only live once” attitude. I’m here to say it can happen, and one should prepare as if it will. The … [Read more...]
Human Nature: Looking at Today for Tomorrow’s Answers
Good morning, time travelers. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen rates this high. It’s human nature to look at today’s yield curve and have all the “answers” about how to invest for tomorrow. But you know Your Survival Guy isn’t in the interest rate prediction business. I look at what the markets are giving me and invest accordingly. The same is true with stocks, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average as a good proxy. There are plenty of bumps along the way, which is why I like a solid mix of blue-chip, dividend-paying stocks and laddered bonds. Action Line: Being a … [Read more...]
This Belongs on a Loved One’s Fridge
Your Survival Guy recently featured the prudent man in this piece “Investing Mistakes to Avoid: #3 Back 40 Back.” As you know, dear reader, I write to you about what I think I know, personal experiences (not all good), and life in general. As a fiduciary, I look to the prudent man as one of my personal guides. If someone you love would benefit from his wisdom, send this along. It’s perfect for the fridge. We’re in this together. A timeless piece from The WSJ: Adam Smith, “The Theory of Moral Sentiments” (1759): The prudent man always studies seriously and earnestly to understand … [Read more...]
A 2045 Space Odyssey
Imagine you’re a time traveler who is on the back end of a 2001 space odyssey. You don’t remember much from the journey, but today, 22 years later, you have a pile of money that, thankfully, was invested in the price-weighted 30-stock index Dow Jones Industrial Average. You have no recall of the gut-wrenching volatility. You’re a time traveler, preparing for tomorrow. As you ponder the past from the flight deck, you think to yourself, “What’s all the fuss? That wasn’t that bad.” But today is always today, with no clear path to the unknown of 2045. Yet today, you have this pile of cash … [Read more...]
Investing Mistakes to Avoid: #3 Back 40 Back
Your Survival Guy and Gal saw Luke Combs on Saturday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The song I can’t get out of my head is “Back 40 Back.” Combs didn’t play it (it’s not the song to keep a stadium on its feet), but it’s a reminder of the way life used to be—when there was a back 40 of land or open space that has too often now been replaced by a concrete jungle. I’ve been thinking about when I was a kid, going to Fenway Park to see Jim Rice, Dwight Evans, Carl Yastrzemski, and Fred Lynn. The old Boston Garden, where you could hear and smell the game. Memories of … [Read more...]
Swimming with the Sharks
Your comfort level as an investor should be like your comfort level sharing the water with sharks: somewhere between scared to jump in for fear of “Jaws” or cool as a cucumber like Ocean Ramsey. Look, our mind plays terrible tricks on us, whether it’s fear of sharks or markets. According to AccuWeather, the odds of getting struck by lightning are 1 in 500,000 versus the odds of being attacked by a shark, which are 1 in 3,750,000. But when you see the movie “Jaws” your mind doesn’t care about odds. Emotions set in, and forget it. Also, if you’ve ever been on a boat during a lightning … [Read more...]
I Like Fidelity’s Treasury Money Market, Should You?
Time for a mid-summer announcement. Don’t let your lazy cash get too comfortable. Yes, banks are doing their best to keep it around, but not quite enough. Plus, how safe is anything above FDIC coverage? All is calm for now, but I don’t think we’ve heard the last of it from banks. Get some of that lazy cash working this summer. Get it into my favored Fidelity Treasury Money Market yielding 4.75%. One of the reasons I like Fidelity’s Treasury Money Market (FZFXX) is because it’s not a cd. It’s not stuck in a CD for days, months, and/or years. It can’t be called away from you, either. If … [Read more...]
Investing Mistakes to Avoid: #4 Mr. Happy Yappy
Like in school, investors should get rapped on the knuckles for not keeping their eyes on their own portfolios. But investors are sensitive to the "other" guy. Investors hate missing the boat. Nothing irks them more. They're fine hearing that someone else is doing worse. But when someone else is smiling carefree and yappin' away about their good fortune, that makes investors' blood boil. Nothing makes the phone ring more than a down quarter. In my conversations with you, we spend time talking about how you, not anyone else, got to where you are. We talk about why you're looking for an … [Read more...]
Should You Convert to a Roth IRA?
I want you to read “How to Leave Grandkids Your Retirement Savings—and Not a Huge Tax Bill” by Ashlea Ebeling from The Wall Street Journal below. Roth IRA conversions are a most personal decision. She writes: It is becoming harder for older Americans to leave retirement savings to their grandchildren without sticking them with a big tax bill. Most heirs other than spouses must draw down inherited retirement accounts within 10 years, under rules that took effect in 2020. They used to have decades. The timing change has grandparents ripping up their estate plans and drawing up new trusts … [Read more...]
Expect Your Advisor to Fight Tooth and Nail for You
When Your Survival Guy sees major financial institutions asking how they’re doing (in the form of a questionnaire), it makes me think their complaint box overfloweth. Service is key in times like these. It’s my belief investors want their money fought for tooth and nail, not fighting political ESG and DEI wars. Investing Mistakes to Avoid: #7 DEI DOA Your Survival Guy puts in a solid effort to recycle his trash weekly. Rolling out the blue bin to the curb makes me feel good and a bit anxious, wondering if they can track me down for misallocated debris. But, when it comes to my money, I don’t … [Read more...]
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