The American economy is a story most of us know well. It went through a massive boom in the '80s, the dot-com frenzy of the '90s that fizzled out in the early 2000s, and the 2008 mortgage crisis that triggered a global recession. More recently, we've all navigated the pandemic. For many, this volatility makes feel intimidating, but it also creates opportunities.
It’s not easy to revisit our biggest mistakes, especially when they involve a lot of money. But back in 2007, I made a blunder in the stock market that cost me nearly two-thirds of my capital, and the lesson is too important not to share.
A renowned investor, Peter Lynch, once said, “I've found that when the market's going down and you buy funds wisely, at some point in the future you will be happy.” This idea of buying wisely during downturns is at the heart of the investment strategy we’re about to explore.
Even Benjamin Graham, the father of value investing, admitted back in 1934 that he had little faith in the ability of most people—even professional analysts—to consistently pick winning stocks. His solution was a simpler, more standardized approach: just try to match the market's performance. This very idea laid the groundwork for what we now know as Exchange-Traded Funds, or ETFs.
When you’re first learning about , it’s easy to get lost in a sea of conflicting advice. But over time, you start to see that a few core truths matter more than anything else. These are the principles that separate consistently successful people from those who are always one step behind the market.
Day trading gets a bad rap, and for good reason. Most people who try it end up losing money. But over the years, I’ve relied on a simple strategy that cuts through the noise. It’s a method that works by capitalizing on a fundamental truth of the stock market: the biggest players are also the slowest.
New traders often ask me if they should get involved with Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). The short answer is tricky: for someone who knows the ropes, IPOs can be incredibly profitable. But for those who don't, they're often a quick way to lose money. Let's break down why.
Whenever Warren Buffett breaks down his approach to , he makes it sound deceptively simple. The strategy? Just buy a great company at a reasonable price and hold on to it for the next half-century. Looking back, it seems obvious that a company like Coca-Cola was destined for success. But honestly, how many of us have held that stock since 1988, when Buffett made his move?
So you’ve opened a brokerage account and you’re ready to start putting your money to work. The big question is: what should you buy first? For many people just getting into , the answer isn’t a single stock but an entire index.