A (Fake) Market Update for Serious Money Investors
Many of us have wondered how and why the news media attributes daily market performance to some relatively ephemeral news event (e.g., “the Dow was down 250 points today on news of a poor employment report…”) when common sense tells us that millions of investors nationwide could not possibly have responded to the same report in the same way. Those of you who have asked me this question...
Read More2015 Fund Distributions and Your Taxes
It is that time of the year when your mutual fund companies are notifying us of their expected capital gains distributions for 2015. Many of the distributions are expected to be significant, which will have implications for the tax return you will be filing in 2016. With this in mind, let’s spend a little time to make sure we understand why these distributions occur and how they will impact all...
Read MoreHappening Now in 2015
This is the third in a series where I am sharing perspectives on the world of exponential technologies—the technological advances that disrupt current business models, solve big problems, and change the way we live. Two months ago, in a piece titled “10 Years Ago v. Today”, I explored nine huge ways that our daily lives are different today from just 10 years ago. Last month, in a piece...
Read MoreThe World in 2025
Last month I shared an email from Peter Diamandis, author of the best-selling book, Abundance: The Future Is Better Than You Think, describing the amazing advances that have occurred in our world during the past 10 years. How about a look forward to the next 10 years. What might the world look like in the year 2025, living in accordance with Moore’s Law (which postulates that computer...
Read MoreTen Years Ago v. Today
For over a year now, I’ve discussed the amazing times we are living in as the digital age transforms so much of our daily lives. Peter Diamandis, author of the best-selling book, Abundance: The Future Is Better Than You Think, is the expert who monitors and participates in this digital transformation. Periodically, Peter sends me emails detailing his views about the changes we are experiencing...
Read MoreThe Platform of Confidence
We often talk about the Platform of Confidence that we try to construct for our clients at The Planner’ Edge. By way of review for some readers and a fresh explanation for others, I am going to provide an overview of the elements that (hopefully) comprise your personal Platform of Confidence. Three Fundamental Conditions Let’s begin with an understanding that building and maintaining...
Read MoreOil: Supply and Demand 101
Courtesy of my long-time mentor, Nick Murray, I received a refresher course in the most basic of economic subjects: supply and demand. What made the topic interesting was its focus on oil and gas prices, whose recent decline has allowed us all to keep more money in our pocket when visiting the gas pump. It was just this past June that oil prices were over $100 per barrel and gas was $4.00 per...
Read MoreThe Bigger Picture
“The business of journalism is to sell news everyday even when there is no news of consequence.” Nick Murray, 1993 It is very easy (in fact, too easy) to fall into the trap of thinking that what we hear on the news is the only news that really matters to our lives or our investments, or that the latest government policy is what really matters to our lives and our investments. But is the daily...
Read MoreLifeboat Drill
“I must state at the outset that I have no idea when the next correction will occur. This piece does not constitute a prediction that the current uptrend is about to end—only that will end. Jeffrey Ross, Serious Money Talks, December 2013 Our December 2013 newsletter raised the topic of Lifeboat Drills, a discussion to help prepare us for the next inevitable correction in the markets. As my...
Read MoreAfter Digitization
A couple of months ago I wrote about digitization, the process of converting something into binary code that can be read by a machine. This process is happening everywhere and to virtually everything. It cannot be stopped or avoided. Anything that can be digitized will be digitized. So what happens after something is digitized? What happens next is a growth process that travels along an...
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