Blog Archives

16 Feb

Confidence

Confidence! Confidence is often our best friend in competition, sports, or being a businessman. When can confidence be a problem? When we’re investing! If our confidence in investing is centered on markets, this is troublesome. We will surely lose if

16 Jan

New Years Resolution

By Craig Smith, CFP®, CFA®, CKA®
In Blog

New Years Resolution One of the “classics” in investing literature is Charles Ellis’ Winning the Loser’s Game. I happened to reread it recently, and what follows has heavy inspiration from the themes in his book. As the calendar has recently

16 Dec

Let’s Enjoy the Holiday Season

Let’s enjoy the holiday season! Many people can only find joy by giving. Of course, some people think that the only joy they can find is from receiving! I believe joy comes from confidence. Confidence in our plan. Confidence in

17 Nov

Of Adam Smith, Pyrrhic Victories, and your “Why?”

By Craig Smith, CFP®, CFA®, CKA®
In Blog

Of Adam Smith, Pyrrhic Victories, and your “Why?” You are probably familiar with Adam Smith, often called the Father of Economics. Most people associate him with his book The Wealth of Nations which was published in 1776 and remains widely

17 Oct

It is the Season

It is the Season – To worry about things, we cannot control, nor that may even have much effect on our day-to-day life! The political season is just starting. Everybody knows who they hate and mistrust; no matter what they

15 Sep

Staying Found

By Craig Smith, CFP®, CFA®, CKA®
In Blog

Staying Found Years ago, Melinda and I hiked the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) from Ashland, OR to Manning Park, British Columbia. We learned a lot about ourselves during the roughly 900 trail-mile trip, celebrated our first wedding anniversary sleeping on

18 Aug

Who Owns Today?

Who owns today? We often give our day up to those we don’t know. We look at Facebook, TV, or some form of media. We may not know whose agenda we are hearing, but we still let it impact our

14 Jul

Everything You Own

By Craig Smith, CFP®, CFA®, CKA®
In Blog

Everything You Own A realtor friend jokingly congratulated me on purchasing my home in 2009 by saying, “Welcome to the class of ‘home-moaners’!”. Get it? Homeowners constantly moan about their property’s maintenance, upkeep, and to-dos. If you’ve owned a home

15 Jun

Thoughts or Strategies?

Thoughts or Strategies? Which is worth more? Many people have thoughts about financial plans. They have opinions that they’re willing to give you. But is that what you want to build your future on? Probably not. I have many thoughts

15 May

6 Ways to Increase Your Probability of Success

I recently talked with a man that was almost irrational with anger. Something else had performed better than his portfolio. In his career he had been a perfectionist and only the best was ever acceptable. If you only accept being