DOING
well in the market does not require some verification check at the door. The market is purely egalitarian. All are welcome, but only the savvy stay. Everyone else is shown that same door, on the way back out.
You’re in.
The market’s open–and you’re invited. We’re inviting you. Join us on the way to more, for you, and us.
Spring brings relief from winter and a migration of new college grads out from the university system. New grads are not professionals and the ensconced professionals want to keep it that way. Each in time will discover that professions are clubs, complete with all the ritual and exclusivity.
Professions are clubs built on exclusivity. No club includes everyone. That’s the point. New applicants are viewed and treated as either gofers, or threats. No? Ask any hospital intern on a 36 hour shift.
The popular conception is that only financial professionals can make money in the market. Guess where that idea came from? Financial professionals who collect commissions and fees for your business. Salesman sell. That’s what they do.
Financial advice exists in part because investing is complicated and risky. Ever dealt with office politics? Then you know complicated. Financial advising also exists because some people do not trust themselves to make important money decisions. That makes sense. We began there. But we didn’t stay there.
Acquiring money chops means gathering concepts, like compounding. One concept at a time investors gain understanding, and increasing confidence. That is precisely why we are here.
Trust is not a substitute for knowledge. Never was. Fact. The only substitute for knowledge is greater knowledge.
STOCKjAW offers tools, insight, and perspective to people interested in building their money, by building their money chops. It matters. For those who suggest money doesn’t matter, we reply “would you rather be in a car wreck in a Volkswagen Beetle or a Benz?”
“Leave it to the professionals. Money managing is too much for anyone else, right?”
Professionals? Precisely how smart was the Volkswagen emissions scandal? Professionals. How bright was it to build the six Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors right on the coast? Professionals–GE. Remember Three Mile Island? How clever was it to bet against volatility? Professionals.
How about the Deep Water Horizon Macondo well blow-out? BP. Professionals. Who filled 11,000sq. miles of Prince William Sound with crude oil? Exxon. Professionals.
Who nearly imploded the global financial system in 1997 by making ultra-massive bets on quantitative modeling? Long Term Capital Management, or the “quants.” LTCM–professionals so arrogant that they never honestly considered that their modeling could be flawed. It was. Remember financial “contagion?” That came from the massive global collapse of LTCM’s modeling bets. Who drove the United States directly into the worst recession in American history? Wall Street. Professionals. This list is literally endless.
Such actions deserve ridicule and derision. Together they serve as proof that the realm of the titled “professional” is a very mixed bag. Mistakes happen, however these events are failures of design, rather than a single, oops “that single-hulled oil tanker really isn’t as strong as we thought–and who knew the captain was drinking?”
“If your argument relies on credentials or job titles then you need a better argument.”–Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist, author, science liaison.
Scads of people understand investing, yet not all provide the open door that newcomers need. Investing is tough work. Doing it alone is unnecessary, and unwise. The first task of those new to investing is to find a voice they can believe. Here’s our best steer. Pulsar brilliance work/thought balance–he has a team too. They’re Eagles too.
Watching Mad Money with Jim Cramer is in our view an acquired skill. Why? His passion moves him, and viewers. Over time his deeper sensibilities become easier to track. What he truly likes most becomes clear–like, say Apple.
It’s like first seeing a movie. You’re all jacked. It might feel like lotto ball madness. The trick seems more allowing things time to shake out a bit, before taking any action. A feeling for how it works only emerges over time. That’s our take.
We are STOCKjAW. Serious investing insight, for those who want it. We’re learning everyday. Join with us. Share the journey to more–more knowledge, greater confidence, and gains you can bank on.
THEME JAM: DONALD FAGEN, SUNKEN CONDOS, “I’M NOT THE SAME WITHOUT YOU.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMLDLRSzip8
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