The Noise Created By The 24 Hour News Cycle And Financial Journalism
The Noise!
Every single day each one of us is inundated and sometimes overwhelmed by the tsunami of noise from the 24 hour "news" cycle. Much of it centers around timing of the market and the perfect selection of funds. The "experts" say things like "Big correction coming soon!" or "Here's the three next big technology stocks to jumpstart your portfolio!" and "Inflation is coming, buy gold now!" on and on and on.
Twenty four hours a day we are literally bombarded with the information that these so-called journalists want us to hear. I hesitate to even call them journalists because most of them are actors pretending to be journalists, but that's another blog.
The thing is, they have to write or say something because there are so many hours of air time or pages in the next magazine or newspaper and they have to be filled with something. And if they told us the truth every day, we would quit watching out of boredom. There's a reason Jerry Springer was popular. Americans love watching a train wreck. I mean how many times could I write a blog on the importance of asset allocation before you got bored with it? (The correct answer is one time.)
The majority, if not all, of financial input you get from the "news" is journalistic. And journalism by nature stays in business by selling you the news which is timely, as opposed to the truth, which is timeless. -Nick Murray
All this misinformation ultimately affects the popular culture of investing and it tells the average investor that they can outperform the market and not only can they outperform the market but they must outperform the market to achieve their desired financial outcomes. I'm here to tell you that is an absolute lie.
Outperformance isn't a financial goal at all. If you outperform your neighbor's portfolio this year and next year but in 30 years he still has money to live in retirement comfortably and you don't, did your outperformance achieve your goal?
Outperformance is something that can never be delivered consistently by any financial advisor or anyone for that matter. If an advisor promises you performance you run the other way as fast as you can.
Outcomes Over Outperformance
As a financial advisor that specializes in long-term, goal-focused retirement planning, my value proposition is the achievement of desired financial outcomes in retirement by strategically and systematically investing in asset classes that are appropriate to my clients long term plan. I focus specifically on outcomes over outperformance. They are not the same thing. And the latter will never ensure the former.
A retirement plan requires a planner - not a performance chaser or the empty promises of an index beater. Plans, not returns, lead to successful retirement outcomes.
At 80/20 Financial we are retirement planners. We define your goals, we make a long term plan for achieving those goals and then, and only then, do we build a portfolio containing asset classes which have historically provided the long term returns that our plan requires.
We believe that true retirement planning is aligning your investments to achieve your retirement goals. We aren't interested in creating wealth quickly. We are interested in creating wealth for certain.
You Need A Plan
A goal of retiring - without a plan - is simply a plan to run out of money. At 80/20 Financial Services we specialize in helping cooperative employees plan their retirement. We can show you how to turn your 401k and your R&S lump sum into a stream of income just like when you were working while also helping you achieve your desired financial outcomes in retirement.
The consultation is free and without obligation. Contact us to set up a consultation.
For more articles about retirement planning and investing click here.
Brian Coleman/Electric Cooperative Retirement Specialist
80/20 Financial Services is an Independent Registered Investment Advisory Firm.
We help electric cooperative employees create their retirement income and investment plans.
Photo by Nijwam Swargiary on Unsplash
