Squinting into the future
“The world is simply way too random a place to make reliable forecasts a year into the future. That is not enough time for the longer-term secular trends to play out, but it is a long enough period for millions of random events to temporarily derail the dominant trends in place and derail our expectations.”
– The Big Picture blogger Barry Ritholtz, in a 1/8/24 post laying out the bull and bear cases for 2024. Read more at bit.ly/3vOTgh0.
A resolution for life
“As a diversified investor, you have no ability to control the timing or magnitude of returns. Put simply: they’ll be what they’ll be. What can you control? Your habits and your behaviors. On the habits side, that means simple things like living within your means, trying to save more when possible and following a regimented investment plan. On the behavioral side, that means not succumbing to the two most destructive emotions: fear and greed.”
– Charlie Bilello, in a 1/11/24 post on his Creative Planning blog in which he encouraged readers to make a resolution not just for the new year, but for life: focus their time and attention on factors they can control. Read more at bit.ly/494iuq4.
You can’t win them all
“Truly accepting that whatever way you choose to invest cannot always be the best and that occasionally the stock market will go down a lot is liberating. That mindset eliminates the fear.”
– Roger Nusbaum, in a 12/30/23 post on his blog, Random Rogers Portfolio & Retirement Lab. He said the unpredictability of the market’s performance each year, coupled with a history of rising more often than falling, argues for taking the long view. Read more at bit.ly/4baVHe8.
Vanguard resists the Bitcoin tide
“[Spot Bitcoin ETFs] are not aligned with our longstanding focus on offering core building blocks for long-term investment portfolios to help clients meet goals such as retirement or saving for college. Unlike equities and bonds, they generally lack intrinsic economic value and do not generate cash flows like dividends and interest payments.”
– From a Vanguard statement on 1/12/24, explaining why the company won’t offer Bitcoin exchange-traded funds on its platform, despite the SEC’s recent approval of such products. Read more in this 1/19/24 New York Times article: bit.ly/48HpvgG.
Life after work
“The transition to retirement is hard. Your entire world changes and most folks are unprepared for how dramatic that change will be.”
– Fritz Gilbert, in a 1/4/24 post on his blog, The Retirement Manifesto. He said the difficulty or ease of the transition largely depends on how much time and effort people put into planning for their retirement — both the financial and non-financial aspects. Read more at bit.ly/3Oh6rh1.
Every financial decision is a spiritual decision
“Our use of money and possessions is a decisive statement of our eternal values. What we do with our money loudly affirms which kingdom we belong to.”
– Randy Alcorn, in a 1/10/24 article on his Eternal Perspective Ministries website. Read more at bit.ly/4b8sYqd.
