Do you have a financial planner? Does one of your friends have a financial planner? Maybe you take your advice from your broker. As I have said countless times before a broker will make you broker. And a financial planner won't do any better. I know. You thought they would.
Let's look at the real reason investors choose to take advice from these so called "experts". Once they get you into their office or sitting with you at the dining room table or kitchen table you are doomed. Mr. F.P. has come prepared with beautiful slick color brochures and will have a presentation that will utterly confuse, bedazzle and befuddle. You will sit there and be afraid to ask a question because you know it is so dumb. You can't say 'no' or you will be admitting how dumb you are. And he knows that.
It is not that he is a liar. (I hope.) It is that all financial planners and brokers are taught the Wall Street method of "making money". Unfortunately it doesn't work.
The basic things that have been pounded into their heads are false. Let's look at the big three: Do Research, Dollar Cost Average and Buy and Hold. There are others, but these you will hear from every broker and financial planner because that is what the big brokerage companies and mutual fund families want. They want your money and they want to keep it even when the stocks or funds you own go down. In fact, buy some more.
Research is like blowing in the wind. You will be inundated with green sheets, blue sheets, red sheets, slick full color glossies, videos, etc., etc. Think about this. If you can obtain this information then so can everyone else. Everything that is known about a particular stock is reflected in the last price. Morningstar will sell you a beautiful package about a company, but it is worthless. What you really want to know is will it go up after I buy it?
Of course, if it goes down you will be encouraged to buy more to average out your price so that when it heads up again you will make a fortune. Yes, and pigs can fly.
If it does go down your advisor may say to hold on as the market always comes back. He doesn't tell you it may take 20 years or that the company might go out of business. Buy and Hold is the greatest myth of Wall Street. No one ever tells you to sell. Have you been told you don't have a loss until you take it? Please!
You got that advisor because you have not admitted to your self that you cannot pull the trigger. When you have a stock or fund that is falling you don't want to sell. You have to take charge of your money. Just you.
When you look back at the performance of most financial planners from 2000 to 2003 you know you can do a better job. Always ask to see what they did then. If they lost money you don't want them. Don't let them compare their performance to the S&P500. That's smoke and mirrors.
You can do better. Just do it.
Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
family-safe home cleaners Lincolnshire ..Most stock traders know that momentum trading can be a... Read More
Using Swing Trading Strategies and Technical Analysis when Trading Stocks... Read More
If there is one term over-used when talking about making... Read More
According to Investopedia Inc. the penny stock market has seen... Read More
The basis of diminishing return discussions surround such simple notions;... Read More
Let me start by saying that...Most online brokers do not... Read More
You must take the time once a month to review... Read More
Economists know more about how the fragments of society work... Read More
Mutual funds were created with the idea that one person... Read More
There is nothing more exciting than finding an undervalued stock... Read More
I have been trading for several decades and was an... Read More
Most stock market traders have a favorite technical indicator.The one... Read More
In his wonderful book, 'Multiple Streams of Income', best selling... Read More
Where is the beef? Or maybe it should be where... Read More
I am hearing predictions by brokers, financial planners, talk show... Read More
Dollar cost averaging is one of the most popular ideas... Read More
Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are a group of passive index... Read More
If you haven't heard of the technical indicator with the... Read More
Do you have a financial planner? Does one of your... Read More
When it comes to buying a stock or mutual fund... Read More
As an investor you will want to check out any... Read More
It has often been said that there is only two... Read More
Ever done any whitewater rafting or canoeing? Long periods of... Read More
If you are fed up with early redemption charges and... Read More
Regardless of the fact that the world's stock markets have... Read More
maide service in Buffalo Grove ..It depends on your level of understanding of the market... Read More
It's about time someone spoke the truth concerning outsourcing. The... Read More
I receive emails from Morningstar. This company provides statistics and... Read More
Because you don't feel too sure about which stock or... Read More
Every successful trader has a winning system. There are of... Read More
For some "long term" would mean holding a stock position... Read More
When you become interested in a stock or mutual fund... Read More
You probably know the story of Sherlock Holmes and the... Read More
There are many good penny stock investments available, which could... Read More
When we go to the circus we see a trapeze... Read More
We learnt the following the hard way! If any of... Read More
I often hear from people, "I don't trade. I invest.... Read More
You read and hear a lot about hedge funds. Unfortunately,... Read More
Did you know you can make money (and a lot... Read More
Carefully thinking through your goal as a trader is of... Read More
Forget making a profit; instead focus on the income provided... Read More
There are major differences between trading stocks and trading futures.... Read More
There has been great condemnation recently because China has been... Read More
Before you embark upon a journey of trading stocks or... Read More
Have you bought any mutual funds this year or late... Read More
The Bollinger Band theory is designed to depict the volatility... Read More
In one of my previous articles (Investing in the stock... Read More
The spring-loaded rat catcher is the ultimate low-tech device invented... Read More
How do you invest? What do you really pay? At... Read More
"There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action!" Johann... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |