March 25, 2022 How to Be a Genius Napoleon’s definition of a military genius was “the man who can do the average thing when all those around him are going crazy.” It’s the same in investing — especially as markets get wild, as they’ve been these past few months.  It may be hard to tell from the indices that make most of the headlines, but as

February 24, 2022 The Canary in the Coal Mine Many investors think of the stock markets as a giant cash register. Just put your shares in and take cash out. However, there is not an endless supply of cash in the markets. Someone must be on the other side of the cash register putting money in so you can take it out. That is called liquidity,

January 28, 2022 What the Boogeyman Looks Like The most frequent question I get from clients is what will happen to my investments if ____ happens? (Insert your fear of choice)  I remember getting into the finance business back in the 1980s when the Iran/Contra scandal caused a constitutional crisis resulting in indictments of Caspar Weinberger, the Secretary of Defense, and the conviction of National Security

December 31, 2021 Index Investing Isn’t What You Think “In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”– Eric Hoffer I love this quote as it accurately describes the current investing environment. Index investing is the current rage because it is easy to understand with a one-decision-and-done allure, and it is

November 26, 2021 Caveat Investor: Regulators Slam Automated Advice Firms In a November 10, 2021 article for Financial Advisor magazine, Tracey Longo reported that the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) slammed almost all “Robo-Advisors” with deficiency letters.    Robo-Advisors are low-cost digital investment advisors offering automated advice with little or no human interaction.    Deficiencies noted in the SEC risk alert include those centering on robo-advisors’ fiduciary