By J.P. Dahdah, Founder & CEO of Vantage
Trust Thyself
Money is personal. Unfortunately, most financial institutions and advisors have led us to believe it is all about them…their research, their investment philosophy, their advice and more importantly, their products. Their message to you is something like this: “We are experienced investment gurus. You are not. We know the market. You do not. If you follow our advice and invest following our well diversified asset allocation strategies, you will be financially successful.”
Recent market performance has certainly made us re-evaluate this premise, has it not? When these professionals are paid big commissions for products that do not perform as you expected or “do not guarantee future results,” people get angry. When the end result is a substantial decrease in your retirement account, people get even angrier. To add insult to injury, many of these same companies have been bailed out by the U.S. Government with, once again, your money.
Anger no longer expresses how most Americans feel today. Your trust has been violated. This violation has led the U.S. Government to increase regulations for Investment Advisors and other financial professionals. A new fiduciary standard is being imposed in which products that Brokers have simply deemed to be “suitable” will no longer cut it.
Money is Personal
One of the most valuable lessons my nineteen-year financial career has provided to me is that the best way to achieve true financial success is to Trust Thyself. To be able to Trust Thyself, you must Know thyself and be honest about your level of financial literacy. You must also Educate thyself. You must learn before you can earn. You must Discipline thyself, by not risking money you cannot afford to lose and not spending money you do not have. Lastly, you must Commit thyself. Direct your IRA money into strategies that you fully understand and feel comfortable with.
It is your money. It is your financial future. Stop believing someone else will care more about those two things than you will. They won’t (no matter how much you pay them). Is it easy? No, it can be challenging. Are there short cuts? No, there are not. Can you be successful? Of course, but you may stumble along the way. Adapt and adjust as necessary, learn from your mistakes and avoid making them again.
I’ll close by sharing one of my personal investing mantras, which I hope you apply in your financial life: “If I lose money, I don’t want there to be anyone else to blame but myself.”