The problem with having written this column for over 18 years is that you eventually start sounding like a broken record, for millennial readers that is those vinyl black things in a cardboard box in the garage. The thing about
Inflection Point
Expectations regarding the future are usually an extrapolation of the recent past; in behavioural finance this is known as hindsight bias, which is one of the most common mistakes made by investors and I am not only referring to Mr.
Five key tips for DIY investing
If you planning to be the next Allan Gray, then this article should be of interest to you with five tips for successful DIY investing. Tip 1: Read articles on behavioural finance and study the various biases, which wreak havoc
What you don’t want to hear from your financial adviser
As investors we hate ambiguity, we want certainty, which is why we dislike the idea of randomness. We want our advisors / managers to know exactly what is going on. Financial experts must speak confidently and explain what is driving
Negotiating uncertainty
I can quite honestly say as an investor for over 26 years now that I have never experienced a dull day, but that said, there is a Chinese curse, which says, “May he live in interesting times.” As investors we
Financial advisors also act, speak like preachers
At gym, the other day a local minister mentioned that he regularly read my article. He questioned me on the difficulty of selecting a new topic each week. His passing words were, “at least you know how we ministers feel
Keep those emotions at bay
Our love for stories and the ability to share stories widely has been mooted as the key determinant of our success as humankind, but also our potential downfall as investors. We cannot resist a good story, which talks to our
Emotional investors need good advice
Allan Gray asset management recently came under fire in an article, in which the author opined their recent poor relative performance. The author, who will remain nameless as I think he may have been looking for publicity, blamed the disappointing
Last March’s panic selling is a loss one will never recover
The price of generating real above inflation returns by investing in the share market is accepting the inherent volatility associated with equity investing. Investors must remember that short-term price volatility is not the risk per se. The risk is how you
Proper Investor’s input is best
Harry Markowitz developed Modern Portfolio Theory, which theorized that investors could design a portfolio to maximize returns by accepting a quantifiable amount of risk. In other words, investors could reduce risk by diversifying their assets and asset allocation of their investments using