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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
A new weather term popped up this week – Polar Vortex. If you were in its path you quickly found out what it meant. COLD. Not surprising really. Anytime they give weather patterns a special name, it never turns out good. Continue Reading…
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I’ve never been a fan of New Year’s resolutions. It’s usually a last-minute, half-hearted attempt to do something different or better. Then, a week or two into the year, things are back to normal. There’s a few reasons for this.
First, there’s the idea that self-improvement can only start on January 1. What if I’m not serious about losing weight until May? Wait seven months? That’s one reason most fail. Our hearts aren’t 100% committed. We know we need to do it, we just don’t want to yet.
Second, most resolutions are about breaking old habits. You’ve been doing something for a decade or two (or five) and now you want to quit? It’s possible with a lot of hard work. Given the choice of breaking a habit or finding a way around it, I have a higher chance of success with the latter. We can take advantage of systems that simplify or automate things. For instance, if I have a habit of forgetting things, like paying the bills or making IRA deposits, I can automate it. Continue Reading…
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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
Welcome to the last post of 2013. This just seemed like a good place to wrap things up for the year since the holidays are stuck in the middle of the week. I’ll be spending the last few days with some technical behind the scenes stuff that needs to be finished up (actually it’s everything I’ve put off for the past 12 months) and, of course, getting in some relaxing holiday time too. Continue Reading…
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Every year the predictive powers of Wall Street are put on display for all to see. What follows is a wild mix of forecasts for the next year. Some are outlandish, others obvious, but another main theme plays out. Skepticism at the thought itself.
Should we be surprised? Not really. Much like baseball, batting .300 is a good year for forecasters. Far too often the focus turns to the one or two home runs they hit every year while ignoring all the strikeouts.
For me, it’s a way to test my understanding of what’s going on and have some fun in the process. That last part can’t be overstated enough. This exercise is meant to be fun first. Honestly, I just hope to do better than last year.
Call it what you will. Predictions. Best guesses, some more educated than others. It’s what I think will happen based on what I know now. Of course, rarely do things go as planned. There are always a few surprises. I don’t expect 2014 to disappoint either. With that, here’s my take on the next twelve months. Continue Reading…
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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
Every year, a bunch of people release their forecasts on the new year. It starts around now and trickles in through January. Some are doing it to make a name for themselves. It’s the ultimate hype machine for anyone with some wild and crazy predictions. Continue Reading…
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Every year the market never fails to surprise us with big winners and losers. The S&P 500’s 22% rise was one winner, but it wasn’t the best and far from the worst. This is the third year for the best and worst market awards with the focus on finding this years best and worst performing investments across several categories.
I do this every year for three simple reasons. The first, its fun to see the winners and losers of the year and compare it to earlier years.
Second, we might actually learn something. Outliers exist inside of every market that offer greater rewards and risks than your typical index fund. Whether it fits your investment strategy or not, finding out why can be helpful if not educational.
Third, it stands as a reminder that every year is different. The old disclaimer about past performance is true. You only have to look back at last year’s awards to see that it doesn’t guarantee future results. That said, investments don’t stop being naughty or nice because the year is over either. And whatever you do, don’t blindly invest off this list before doing some research first. Continue Reading…