Evaluating financial advice since Y2K.
First of all, being flexible has been of tremendous importance. Being “locked in” to a limited stock and bond only portfolio mostly hurt in 01 and 08.
I bought a fund called The Prudent Bear in 2008 after Lehman Brothers went down. The Prudent Bear was inverse (short) US stocks.
A self-directed Roth 401K and a Roth IRA allow for flexibility. These accounts are double edged swords. Your bets have to mostly be right.
I didn’t know it in 01, 08 or 2020. But intraday options strategies can be very good too.
Back to the 401K. The suggestion to consider one’s vesting schedule gets ignored? Why “lock in” to a 401K if you may not be around long enough to get the match. Chalk one up for the Bernie bros, who want personal finance to be [acceptable to elite democrats].
Changing gears to employment. Remote work saves gas, day care, clothing and food expenses. Remote workers are home with their kids.
If you can work from anywhere, you can choose a rural area, overseas, or in a state with a healthy, sane government.
As I noted a few years ago, some rural areas are plagued by meth users and foreign companies.
In Oregon, you’re a wallet, whether you are a fifth-generation entrepreneur or a nearly homeless person.
“IT’S A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME!!”
Sure pal.
Back to investing.
You can minimize fees and expenses better by having a portfolio of stocks you choose.
But when to buy? When to sell? If you can keep 10-20% of your accounts in cash, you can buy the lows.
And to sell the highs, sell your principal and play with the house’s money.
When your thesis for buying a stock is disproven, sell right away.
There are millions of advertisers and salesmen who need in your head.
They’ll do seemingly anything to influence your thinking to get you to look stupid while half-assing something or by taking your chips down.
Having a paid for house was a huge blessing in all three crisis, as the Treasury printed money and drove up inflation.
The “vote harder” adherents can’t get state governments under control. The vote harder normies only make examples of their own. Normies also frown on self-directed study and seminars.
Expatriating is an option for some people. But who says the USMC will never go back to Costa Rica?
Finally, we have gold marketers who point to gold miners tripling. Not to brag, but I held PLTR from COVID til last year and I made 900%. Should I request a “do over?”
In summary, I see flexibility and debt freedom as two essential components of financial independence.
Go censor and gaslight me and my readers, numb nuts.
One day, it may be revealed that Bernie bros were sent to water down the FI-RE movement. Plus, Dave Ramsey lets non-believers in his circle (if you catch my drift).
There are other independent voices that can be found. But they’ll be censored and mocked, too.
(I wonder if you can find some of these objective voices someplace on this web site?)
See our Bookstore.
Also, see our own unique Caclculators.
Talk about the #DOGEdividend anyway.