In spite of my admonitions and those of most other finance experts, many people still insist on actively trading stocks in an attempt to beat the market. If you are one of these people, then I recommend you at least consider using the following principles in your active trading strategy so you have a higher […]
This is my second post on New Year’s resolutions, with this one focused on how to improve your finances. Many people choose to have spending and saving goals for the new year. This is wise, because if you don’t maintain some sort of financial plan or target, your random daily spending decisions during the course […]
I realize that most people like budgeting about as much as they enjoy going to the dentist, so I’m not going to tell you that you need to create a detailed household budget. It would be useful, but most people just aren’t going to do it. However, there is one simple money management exercise that […]
In previous posts I have advocated investing in a home as a way to build wealth. Renting for long periods is generally a bad idea because you are not taking advantage of a U.S. tax code that incentivizes home ownership, and you are not building wealth in the form of home equity. Now I want […]
This might be one of the most difficult financial decisions parents have to make. Every household has limited finances, and the cost of a college education has skyrocketed in the last couple of decades. Also, many professions now require a master’s degree (post-college graduate education), so it is not unlikely that you […]
Everyone who invests has the same question: how can I beat the market? There actually is a way, but it has nothing to do with actively trading stocks, which as I have already said is a fool’s game. You’ve probably never heard of this particular method of beating the market. This might make you suspicious […]
I received a lot of positive feedback on my recent post, “6 Key Pieces of Financial Advice for Your Young Adult Child,” so this article expands on that topic. One of my readers said it would be helpful if I would discuss what her adult daughter should focus on, financially, as she progresses through her […]
One of my readers asked me what financial advice I would give to a young adult. She was concerned that her recently college-graduated daughter might begin making money mistakes, such as overspending on credit cards, which would jeopardize her finances. She said if I did a post on this topic she would pass it along […]
One major reason why people fear investing is that financial institutions have created so many different types of investment products that it is nearly impossible to choose among them. This is somewhat just the nature of a market economy, whereby every possible “flavor” of a product is offered for sale by companies to consumers. Unfortunately, […]
Some of the people I assist with financial planning have been astute enough to ask the following question: “So you recommend Vanguard as an excellent mutual fund company to use for my investments. Well, what happens if Vanguard goes bankrupt? Shouldn’t I spread my money around to more than one mutual fund company? You’ve told […]
Don’t Allow Unnecessary Negativity to Hold You Captive
This is the second article in my continuing series on negative and irrational thinking. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to quickly identify negative thoughts and replace them with positive and realistic ones? If you can master this technique, you will be much happier and more peaceful. The best tool for identifying and replacing […]
“I’m Too Old/Busy/Tired to Get in Shape”
Bill Quick is a great friend and my personal trainer. (Yes, even personal trainers like me can benefit from using another trainer, for advice and motivation.) Bill is an interesting guy. The photo accompanying this post is a picture of him taken around the time he won the Mr. Illinois bodybuilding competition a couple of […]
Warren Buffett: I Bet on Index Funds—So Should You
Warren Buffett is so thoroughly convinced that high-cost actively managed mutual funds cannot consistently beat low-cost index funds that he bet $1 million on it! Now that’s putting your money where your mouth is. Buffett knows that over the long term actively managed mutual funds rarely justify their high fees with market outperformance. As a […]
Connect with us on the following social media platforms.
Connect
Connect with us on the following social media platforms.