When talking to people about money the “how much is enough” question often comes up. I usually end up telling some version of this story: Two famous authors are talking at a party thrown by a billionaire. One leans over to the other and says, “our host has made more money in a single day … Continue reading How Much Is Enough?
Tag: personal finance
A Great Player Is Someone Everybody Wants To Play With: Insights from The Pro’s Pro Joe McClean
Before Joe McClean became “the money-whisperer to the NBA elite,” he was a professional basketball hopeful. After almost making the NBA on several occasions, he got cut for the final time. Frustrated but determined to start a new chapter, he made a fresh start in finance - first with asset managers, then as an advisor. … Continue reading A Great Player Is Someone Everybody Wants To Play With: Insights from The Pro’s Pro Joe McClean
Contending With Ourselves
A (spoiler-free) Game of Thrones quote, “We may have defeated them, but we still have us to contend with.” Vanguard estimated financial advisors can add about 3% in value annually to their clients’ account balances. The largest drivers of that additional growth weren’t from picking better investments but were routed in discipline and behavior. It’s no mistake that … Continue reading Contending With Ourselves
The Power of Placebo (Beyond Medicine)
When people talk about the placebo effect they’re usually talking about medicine. It brings to mind clinical trials and sugar pills, where doctors see if a group of suffering people get better by receiving a treatment that has no reason to work (ex. a sugar pill), in an effort to prove efficacy for a treatment … Continue reading The Power of Placebo (Beyond Medicine)
The Madness of Markets, My Dog, and Nic Cage Murder Mysteries
We always want to know what caused what. “The market went down because... oil! The dollar! China! Politics!” “My dog probably got sick because she… ate grass! Ate trash! Ate homework!” What do both protagonists have in common? They both will refuse to answer if you ask them to explain themselves. At least my dog … Continue reading The Madness of Markets, My Dog, and Nic Cage Murder Mysteries
The Anti-Lottery Mentality
A single $2 ticket in South Carolina turned into $1,537,000,000. That’s three commas worth of life changing magic. And yet, lotteries are a funny thing - and not just in the stories about “what do you actually do if you win?” Playing the lottery despite impossibly low odds is still really popular. Americans are very … Continue reading The Anti-Lottery Mentality
No Coasting Without A Proper Climb
In our minds, we’d all love some sustained, peaceful happiness. Coasting downhill on a bicycle feels pretty good. We like that feeling, especially when it’s contrasted against struggling to painfully pedal uphill. But, what good is the coast without the climb? “When I was your age we walked fifteen miles uphill to school! Barefoot! In … Continue reading No Coasting Without A Proper Climb
Cultivate Your Inner Narrator
There’s an expression that people are OK with ignorance, but absolutely hate being deprived of information. Ignorance is bliss - but only when everything is fine. It’s once things start turning negative that we demand answers. If our perception is that someone else is either withholding information or keeping information away from us, things can … Continue reading Cultivate Your Inner Narrator
Must. Delay. Gratification.
The idea of delayed gratification is nothing new. From planting a crop, to gestation periods, to retirement savings - we’ve well mythologized the concept. Before we hurry up and wait for something though - we should ask two questions: “Why wait,” and “compared to what?” For those of us who professionally give advice, we should … Continue reading Must. Delay. Gratification.
For Better Forecasts, Don’t Forget To Get Weird
Steven Johnson, author of Farsighted: How We Make the Decisions That Matter Most, told the a16z podcast we should do 3 types of plans: one where things get better, one where things get worse, and one where things get weird. We can make a simple example using a financial plan. Say a couple wants to … Continue reading For Better Forecasts, Don’t Forget To Get Weird