When I look at the offerings of the financial media today whether it is radio, TV, newspaper or magazine. I always walk away with the feeling that if I don’t know everything about investing, I’m somewhat inferior. And that I should feel guilty for not being on top of all this financial stuff.
This is the biggest injustice the financial media has done to us!
If this kind of logic made any sense at all then you should know how to put an automobile together! Ludicrous thought I know, but think about it. Next to a home the area that most people will spend the greatest amount of money on in their lifetime is an automobile. Therefore, at least according the financial media, you should be on top of all the details that go into an automobile so you can be a wise consumer.
Well if you have all this knowledge then you would pretty much know how to put an automobile together, right?! I don’t know about you, but I’ve intentionally chosen not to spend my time learning all this dribble. Oh I’m sure there’s someone out there that finds this to be an enjoyable and rewarding way of spending their time. I just happen NOT to be one.
Since I’ve intentionally chosen not to understand how to put a car together, I also choose not to do any of my own repairs. Including changing the oil.
What I’ve chosen to do instead is find and delegate this to a mechanic I can have a high level of trust and confidence in. I trust that they know what they’re doing and have confidence that they’re not going to rip me off.
I find that I have little if any interest in any radio or TV show dealing with repairing your car. Nor do I buy books or magazines on repairing your car. I’m sure the folks responsible for the radio and TV programs and the books and magazines on this subject would prefer that I had a higher interest in the subject matter. If I did they’d have another viewer or subscriber and would be able to charge higher rates for their ad space or commercials.
Always remember when it comes to any of the financial media. Their primary job is not to inform and educate you! Their primary job is to sell more of their advertising space. They do that by delivering more viewers/readers for their advertiser.
I know this may sound self serving and certainly just a little bit biased, but the plain old truth is we all have 168 hours in a week, why not spend them doing only those things that bring immense joy and satisfaction into our life!?
I find no satisfaction in fixing my car. All I want to do is turn the key and have it get me from point A to point B.
You need to be brutally honest with yourself when it comes to money and finance. It’s OK if you don’t find joy and satisfaction in knowing all the ins and outs about investments, taxes, insurance, estate planning and all the details that go into a “worry free retirement”.
Just focus your attention on finding a trusted advisor to work with.
The Magazine Cover Indicator At Work Again
One indicator that we have found very useful over time is the “magazine cover indicator.” “What’s that?” you might ask. Over the years we’ve found that whenever something finally makes it to the cover of a magazine, the move has typically run its course and the stock or sector is ready to head in the other direction.
So, if we see a positive magazine cover, the stock has usually already had a great rally to get to such a position. After the cover is launched we often see that everyone who wants to be in, is already in. Conversely, if the cover is negative on a stock or a sector, by the time the move down is exaggerated enough to get the attention of the journalists & editors, most everyone who wants to sell has already sold.
Then, when we go forward in time a year later and look at what has happened to the magazine cover stocks, it usually shows you would have been better off to do the exact opposite of the cover! Now, we don’t have any scientific numbers on this, but if you look at this sampling below from a host of different magazines you’ll begin to see our point.
This will also explain to those of you (you know who you are) who bring in investment ideas from various magazines or newspapers why we rarely find a true investment opportunity. By the time the journalist/editor ever hears about it, everyone who wanted “in”, is already in. This means demand has probably started to weaken. If there isn’t going to be increasing demand (relative strength) then odds are prices/values aren’t going to go up much either!
