Working as a physiotherapist has changed how I think about financial goals, because the first thing someone says they want is rarely the thing they care about most. A patient might come into the clinic saying they want less knee pain. If we keep talking, they may want to run a 10K in the spring or kneel in the garden without worrying about getting back up. Once I know that, I can build treatment around something that matters to them. Financial goals get clearer when they are tied to something you want your life to look like. Saving for a house, a day off each week, or two months with family across the country gives the number a job. Last summer, I took two months off work to visit my parents in BC, which only worked because I had set money aside for that exact purpose. The balance mattered because of the time it bought me. When a money goal feels vague, I come back to the question I ask in physio: what do you want to be able to do that you cannot do right now? What would your money let you do if the plan worked?read more
$RKLB just announced a delay for the unnatural Neutron launch to 2027. That one stinks for holders. Not a great day to announce it. Nail in the coffin. Just wow. Just gotta accept it, no other choice. I don’t even think I’ll have ice cubes, maybe just grass.read more
One of the best parts about the Blossom community is how open everyone is sharing knowledge and experiences. To make things easier for anyone just starting their investing journey, here’s a simple glossary to help understand and simplify various terms. Common Terms: Dividend: A share of a company’s profits paid to shareholders, usually quarterly. Ex-Dividend Date: The cutoff date by which you must own a stock to receive its next dividend. ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund): A fund that holds multiple stocks or bonds, traded like a single stock. Covered Call ETF: An ETF that owns stocks and sells call options to generate extra income (higher yield, limited / capped upside). Earnings Report: A company’s quarterly financial performance summary. EPS (Earnings Per Share): A company’s profit divided by its number of shares. Market Cap: A company’s total value (share price × number of shares). ACB: The total amount you’ve paid for an investment, including the purchase price plus any fees or commissions. Book Value: The value of a company according to its financial statements (assets minus liabilities). Yield: Annual dividend as a percentage of the stock/ETF price. Liquidity: How easily an asset can be bought or sold without impacting its price. Volatility: The degree of price fluctuations in a stock or market. Index: A benchmark of stocks (e.g., S&P 500, Nasdaq, TSX). Bull Market: A period of rising stock prices and optimism. Bear Market: A period of declining stock prices and pessimism. False Breakout: When a stock’s price moves above (or below) a key level, making it look like a new trend is starting, but then quickly reverses back. P/E Ratio: Price-to-earnings ratio (stock price ÷ EPS), used to assess valuation. Blue Chip: Well-established, financially strong companies with a track record of stability. Diversification: Spreading investments across assets to reduce risk. Broker: A platform or firm that facilitates buying and selling investments. Limit Order: An order to buy/sell a stock at a specific price or better. Market Order: An order to buy/sell a stock immediately at the current market price. Bid/Ask Spread: The difference between the highest price buyers offer and the lowest price sellers accept. Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA): Investing a fixed amount regularly to reduce the impact of market swings. Capital Gain/Loss: Profit or loss from selling an investment for more/less than its purchase price. IPO: When a company first sells shares to the public. Index Fund: A fund designed to mirror the performance of a market index. Short Selling: Selling borrowed shares, hoping to buy them back cheaper. Margin: Borrowing money from a broker to buy investments, which amplifies gains and losses. Margin Requirement: The minimum amount of your own money (equity) you must maintain in a margin account to open or keep a leveraged investment position. Margin Call: A demand from your broker to deposit more funds or sell assets because your account equity has fallen below the required margin level. Time Horizon: The length of time you plan to hold an investment before needing the money. Short horizons = more risk-sensitive, long horizons = more room to ride out volatility. Stock Split / Reverse Split: A split increases the number of shares (e.g., 2-for-1) while lowering the price per share. A reverse split reduces the number of shares (e.g., 1-for-10) while raising the price per share. Your overall value doesn’t change just the math. Long (Being Long): Buying a stock or asset because you expect the price to go up. Short (Being Short): Selling a stock you don’t own because you expect the price to go down, so you can buy it back cheaper later. TER: The total yearly cost of owning a fund, including the management fee plus other costs like administration, audits, and legal fees. MER: The annual cost that a fund charges for management (includes any leverage costs if used). Management Fee: A portion of the MER that goes directly to the fund managers for running the fund. Withholding Tax: A tax deducted on dividends/distributions from foreign investments (e.g., U.S. dividends to Canadian investors face a 15% withholding in TFSA/Non-Registered accounts). Total Returns: The full picture of an investment’s performance, including both price gains and dividends/distributions. CAGR: The average yearly growth of an investment over time. NAV: The price of one share of a fund (stock or etf) NAV Depreciation: When the fund’s share price goes down over time. Mutual Fund: A pool of money from many investors used to buy a mix of stocks, bonds, or other assets. Bond: A loan you give to a company or government, and they pay you back with interest. Asset: Anything valuable you own that can generate money. Portfolio: Your collection of investments. Option: A contract that gives you the right (but not the obligation) to buy or sell a stock at a set price. Future: A contract to buy or sell something at a set price on a future date. REIT: A company that owns real estate and pays investors income from rent. Alpha: A measure of how much better (or worse) an investment did compared to the market. Beta: A measure of how much an investment moves compared to the market. Sharpe Ratio: A way to see if returns are worth the risk taken. Hedging: Protecting your investments from risk. Rebalancing: Adjusting your portfolio back to your target mix of assets. FCF: Free Cash Flow Understanding these terms makes investing far less intimidating. If anyone feels other terms should be included, please share in the comments. I’ll update this post so we can build a complete beginner-friendly resource together! *Sorry tagged a few etfs for reach 🫣read more
President Trump says Russia will supply millions of tons of diesel to U.S. and global markets. 📊 Key Highlights: ⛽ U.S. diesel prices hit around $6.28 per gallon. 🤝 Trump reached a supply agreement with Vladimir Putin. 📉 The goal: Increase supply and bring fuel prices down. ⚠️ The U.S. temporarily eased sanctions on certain Russian diesel shipments. 🌍 BUT THERE'S A CATCH! Analysts question whether the deal will significantly lower prices, while Ukraine criticizes the move. 📈 Could this change the global energy market? 💬 What do you think? Smart move or risky decision ?read more
One chip held its floor today, and it is the one least tied to the AI datacenter trade. Out of twelve, only Qualcomm closed above its weekly floor, and Qualcomm lives on phones and cars, not AI datacenters. The three deepest breaks were the opposite kind of company: the equipment makers that build the AI buildout, Applied, Lam and KLA. Line the twelve up and the break roughly tracks one thing, how much of the AI capex trade sits inside each name. Read it that way and the selloff takes a different name: the AI buildout getting re-priced, the same doubt that started with one revenue number a week ago. So Friday’s close is bigger than twelve floors. Does the AI trade steady, or keep leaking down the supply chain?
I've been really MIA on Blossom since the passing of my sister... It's given me a lot of time to reflect on things. I still enjoy everything about finance and check my portfolio often, but I really want to stress the importance of realizing why we are doing this. What is the end goal of all of this? Seeing a loved one go in their early 30s is difficult, and it's made me realize that the time we have on this planet is really, really short. I have come to the realization that staring at numbers and watching them grow isn't as important as spending some of that time with loved ones. I want to start taking the kiddos on more vacations, buy the van that the wife wants, and try to see my parents more. The key for me will still be to be responsible with my finances, but instead of waiting for that next portfolio goal, waiting for the kids to grow older, or waiting to retire... why not live now? The whole point of becoming wealthy is to USE THE WEALTH, not to stash more and more so we can become so rich that we never actually enjoy the short time we are given on Earth. When the drunk driver went head on with her Uber vehicle, I truly believe she had no clue, could've just been chilling on her phone in the back then dead the next second...goes to show our life could end at any second and we might not even realize it. This post isn't saying we shouldn't be financially responsible, but that we should also enjoy life today... Tell your loved ones you love them, and use your finances to better your life. Willread more
Today, I’m taking a moment to appreciate how far God has brought me. This car means a lot to me because I know the work, patience, and sacrifices that go into building the life you want. It hasn’t always been easy, but I’ve learned to keep going, trust God, and stay focused on my goals. I’ve also learned that you can’t please everybody. Some people will celebrate your progress, while others will question your decisions. That’s life. At the end of the day, you know what you’ve worked for and what it took to get here. I’m grateful for how far I’ve come, and I pray God continues to give me the wisdom to keep growing. Never forget where you started, and don’t be afraid to appreciate how far you’ve made it. ❤️🙏 All thanks and glory to God for this blessing, and special thanks to $SPCX for last week’s trade with my trading community. I’m grateful for the opportunities, the lessons, and everyone who’s been part of the journey. 📖 ECCLESIASTES 3:12–13 “I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life. And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.” To me, this verse is a reminder that it’s okay to enjoy what you work hard for. Sometimes we’re so busy chasing the next goal that we forget to appreciate what God has already blessed us with. Not everybody will understand your choices, and that’s okay. I’m just thankful for what God has allowed me to accomplish. All glory belongs to Him. 🙏 🙏 MY PRAYER FOR EVERYONE READING THIS ❤️ Heavenly Father, I pray for everyone reading this post. You know what each person is going through, even the things they don’t share with anybody. You know their worries, their struggles, and the things they’ve been praying for. Lord, please give them strength when life gets hard, peace when their minds are troubled, and hope when things don’t go as planned. Bless their families, provide for their needs, and open doors of opportunity for them. For those who have been working hard and waiting for their prayers to be answered, please give them the patience to keep going and the faith to trust in You. Father, guide their steps, protect their homes, and surround them with people who genuinely want to see them do well. Remind them not to give up just because things are taking longer than they expected. Help them appreciate the little blessings along the way and give You thanks through both the good days and the difficult ones. My prayer is that everyone reading this finds a reason to smile, receives good news, and sees better days ahead. May God bless you and your family, provide for your needs, and give you the strength to keep moving forward. In Jesus’ mighty name, AMEN! 🙏❤️ read more
Down 4.81% this week, but honestly this was a week of buying, adding to positions, and continuing to build the portfolio. Red weeks are part of the process. Stick to the plan. Keep adding. Keep building. Who else was buying this week? 👀
⚠️ Warning: This post was vetted through AI. You may want to look away now. 😂 After experiencing the uninformed and unwelcome opinions of people shaming the use of AI, and, even more frustratingly, misrepresenting my financial situation, I decided to reread The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fck*. It reminded me of something I already knew: Not every opinion deserves my attention. Fundamentally, I don’t participate in negativity, harassment or hate. I don’t need to convince everyone that my choices are right, and I certainly don’t need the approval of people who have decided they know my financial situation better than I do. But I did feel that the developing culture of AI shaming deserved my attention, not because I want to argue with the naysayers, but because I think there’s an opportunity to have a more positive, productive and inclusive conversation about it. I genuinely enjoy sharing my financial growth, milestones, lessons and journey here on Blossom. It’s one of the fun parts of this app for me. I’m excited about what I’m building, and I enjoy sharing the process with people who are interested in learning, growing and having conversations about money. And just to be clear: I don’t use AI because I’m illiterate, incapable or unintelligent. I was a professor in a dental department at a post-secondary institution. I know how to think, research, question information and form my own conclusions. Using AI doesn’t equal incompetence. It’s a tool. A tool that helps me organize my thoughts, be more productive, communicate ideas and accomplish my goals. And I actually think there’s something beautiful about that. Technology can make participation more accessible. It can help someone find the words they struggle to find, organize thoughts that feel overwhelming, communicate in a language they’re still learning, or simply make it possible to participate when life is busy. That feels more inclusive to me, not less. Of course, AI isn’t perfect. It can be wrong. It can misunderstand context. It can produce information that needs to be checked. That’s why I believe in using it responsibly: question it, fact-check it, protect your privacy and ultimately take responsibility for what you choose to publish. That isn’t giving up your intelligence. That’s using your intelligence to use a tool well. AI is here. It’s ubiquitous. And honestly, it has barely begun. We don’t shame calculators because people used to do long division. We don’t shame spreadsheets because people once balanced books by hand. So why are we suddenly treating the use of a new tool as a character flaw? Telling someone to stop using AI because it’s “not real” is about as logical as trading your laptop for a pen and paper, your smartphone for a corded home phone, and your GPS for a paper map. Technology changes. We adapt. And perhaps the most important part of all of this: The people who have reached out privately, with thoughtful messages, encouragement, curiosity and kindness, far outweigh the toxic noise. Those are the people I choose to give my energy to. AI isn’t going away. Neither am I. And I’m not going to spend my time arguing with people who are determined to misunderstand me. I’d rather keep learning, keep questioning, keep investing and keep moving forward. You don’t have to use AI. You don’t have to like AI. But you also don’t get to decide what tools someone else is allowed to use to build their life. And yes…AI helped me write this. 😉 I’m okay with that.read more
The greatest loss in 2026 is common sense. I dont like elon. Thats plain to see, but if I had to put a reason to it I would say it is because he is a salesmen first. Just a reminder that powerful people will say what is in there best interest first. We should do what is in our best interest first.
Canada has lost a total of 110,000 jobs over the past two months, including 68,000 in September. Canada's unemployment rate also jumped to 6.5%. Not the be a bummer but Canada has gotten the worse of the trade war since it started. Something needs to give.
Two dividend ETFs. One massive debate. $VIG pays the smaller check. $SCHD pays the bigger one. $VIG: 0.04% fee, ~1.6% yield, only companies with 10+ years of dividend growth. $SCHD: 0.06% fee, ~3.2% yield, built for income today. 5 years: $VIG 13.1% a year vs $SCHD 12.1%. $1,000 turned into $1,715 vs $1,543. The growing check beat the bigger check. But the income crowd will say a 3.2% yield pays the bills TODAY. I've got my eye on $VIG myself. So which team: bigger check now, or a check that grows? Where do you stand? 👀read more
Hello Everyone, I wanted to hear peoples opinions on some stocks I should research. You can name any stocks, but usually I prefer beaten down or stocks with low valuations, as they usually have higher upside potential, and less risk. If you have any suggestions, let me know. Good night folks.
Personally, growing up, life wasn’t so easy for me. There were zero handouts. There was an ugly divorce between my parents that shattered us further financially. And by no means would there ever be a trust fund. But here’s the deal, I am forever grateful for all of it. Why? It built me into a machine. By 31, I hit coast FIRE and now I spend most of the year traveling and living what I call my rich life. I’m sharing this with you all because it wasn’t ever and will never be about the money. Yesterday evening, I walked into a restaurant here in Montenegro overlooking the sunset. The waiter asked me what I wanted upon entering the restaurant as he held a menu up. My reply: “give me your best, no menu needed.” I had fresh sea bass paired with a tasty Greek salad and a glass of local wine. Investors, please do yourself a favor and stop living for money. Live life and experience it all. Money is merely a tool to allow you to experience. Now I’m here to just document my journey to $1M and share how I will be 100% work optional by 35: https://www.instagram.com/ari.gutman?xtok=MTZlYW1ldjNqaHM2bA%3D%3D&utm_source=qrread more
MSCI just finalized new index rules that put Strategy ($MSTR) at real risk of being kicked out of its global equity indexes. Here’s what actually happened today (Oct 15): MSCI adopted a new framework to identify and exclude “non-operating companies.” These are firms whose value comes mainly from holding assets (like Bitcoin) rather than running a traditional operating business. The rules use a two-step test: 1. Does the company have substantial operating assets? 2. If not, it gets measured against five financial ratios (operating asset intensity, expense intensity, cash flow, fair-value changes in non-operating assets, and dependence on external financing). Companies that fail the operating-asset screen and at least four of the five ratios become ineligible for MSCI’s Global Investable Market Indexes. Timeline: • Final list of companies affected drops November 11 • New rules take effect at the close of November 30 • Existing index members (like Strategy) get a buffer — they generally need to fail the screen across two consecutive annual filing periods before actual removal Earlier simulations (using May 2026 data) already flagged Strategy, Japan’s Metaplanet, and uranium-holder Yellow Cake as likely candidates. Ethereum treasury firm SharpLink was also mentioned as potentially at risk. The money at stake: JPMorgan has estimated that if Strategy gets cut, index-tracking funds could be forced to sell roughly $2.8 billion of MSTR stock. That’s pure passive, mechanical selling — not discretionary. Strategy has pushed back hard, calling the approach discriminatory against digital-asset treasury companies and arguing that index providers should reflect the market, not decide what assets companies are allowed to hold. They’ve said any removal would have no meaningful impact on their actual business model. This isn’t a surprise — MSCI previously floated (and then paused) more crypto-specific exclusion rules earlier in the year. The new version is broader and asset-class neutral on paper, but it lands hardest on pure Bitcoin (and similar) treasury companies. Watch November 11 for the final list. That’s the next real catalyst.read more
📊 Investors rotated out of AI and into value as another hot inflation print landed. The Dow jumped 1.08%, the S&P 500 added 0.33% and the Nasdaq edged up 0.08% after being down 1.4% at its low. September PPI rose 1.3% on the month and 6.3% on the year, the biggest gains since 2022. 🤖 Anthropic’s third quarter revenue grew to $16.8 billion from $11.6 billion in the second, sources told CNBC, a slower sequential climb than the jump from $4.7 billion in Q1. Some traders read it as too slow to justify the run in chipmakers, though the Financial Times reported the company turned cash flow positive in the quarter. ☁️ CoreWeave ($CRWV) rebounded 5.94% to $69.69 after sinking as much as 9.5% in the morning. Deutsche Bank’s Brad Zelnick called Wednesday’s 15% drop a buying opportunity, arguing the company is scaling responsibly with near-term liquidity in decent shape. 🐊 Crocs ($CROX) spiked 6.15% to $124.77 after Barclays upgraded it to overweight and lifted its target 18% to $139. Analyst Adrienne Yih pointed to direct-to-consumer strength, promotional discipline and growth coming from newer franchises rather than the Classic Clog. 🏦 Bank of America ($BAC) got an upgrade to outperform from Baird, which kept its $62 target for 21% upside. The firm called Wednesday’s selloff overdone and likes the 2027 net interest income outlook, despite yesterday’s earnings miss and higher expenses. 💾 Chip stocks fell for an eighth straight session, the longest slide for the iShares Semiconductor ETF since 2015, down more than 15% over the stretch. Seagate ($STX), Western Digital ($WDC) and SK Hynix extended losses on memory glut fears, with Elon Musk posting that China will be making a lot of RAM in 2028. 📉 The Russell 2000 fell into correction Wednesday, ending 11% below its August 14 record close. Breadth improved elsewhere though, with more than half of S&P 500 names back above their 200-day moving averages, up from about 40% in late September. 👨🏻💻 Researched and written daily by @timeminoread more
Here are my top 9 most favorite books on the topics of money, investing, and the psychology related to it. 🙂 I have also shared my short takeaways from each of these books: ✅ Reboot Your Portfolio (Dan Bortolotti): By simply "owning the market" through globally diversified index funds, you will almost certainly enjoy better performance than the vast majority of investors who buy actively managed funds or try to pick their own stocks. Over the long term, index funds offer the highest probability of achieving your investment goals. ✅ Atomic Habits (James Clear): If you can get 1% better each day for one year, you’ll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you’re done. Focus on making tiny adjustments to your behavior, as small changes lead to lasting improvements. ✅ Die with Zero (Bill Perkins): Maximize meaningful and memorable experiences in your lifetime when you are healthy and have the capacity to do so. Invest in experiences that yield long-lasting memories and pay you regular "memory dividends". ✅ The Simple Path to Wealth (JL Collins): Build a financial cushion (F-You Money) to give you a choice, and invest through low cost, broad-market, diversified index funds. ✅ Rich Dad, Poor Dad (Robert Kiyosaki): Use your money to acquire assets instead of liabilities. ✅ Choose FI (Chris Mamula, Brad Barrett, Jonathan Mendonsa): Achieving Financial Independence requires a plan, much like building a house, but it is not a one-size-fits-all approach and you can tailor it based on your own journey. ✅ Quit Like A Millionaire (Kristy Shen, Bryce Leung, JL Collins): Spend your money on experiences that last a lifetime that on material stuff and consumer debt. ✅ The Psychology of Money (Morgan Housel): Managing your emotional impulses and learning how to behave in face of challenging money decisions, play a crucial role in your financial success. ✅ I will teach you to be rich (Ramit Sethi): Develop a "Conscious Spending Plan" that aligns with your values and financial goals. 📚 Learn More: https://youtu.be/KIXOYvKgtnw ➡️ What are your favorite money/investing/self-development book recommendations?read more
How does a 16-year-old build a six-figure stock portfolio? In this episode of the Retail Rundown Podcast, 16-year-old Charan from New Jersey shares how he went from a 7th grade stock market competition to running a six-figure portfolio, while building 240K+ followers on Instagram and a 30,000-member Discord community along the way. That journey has included some huge swings, including a nearly $100K win on $PENG options and a $60K options loss on $AAOI that completely changed how he sizes trades, takes profits, and cuts losses. Charan explains how he researches stocks using AI and social media, why he’s bullish on memory stocks like $SNDK and $MU, why he bought $NBIS after Michael Burry went short, and why he thinks dropping out of high school to day trade is a mistake https://youtu.be/ZZ_PetTNbBo?si=QSEmMhrjwRYQ9Alw
$RKLB is down almost an -8% AH as Sir Peter Beck announced that their medium-lift rocket, Neutron, will unfortunately be delayed from EOY 2026 to next year because of some manufacturing defects in its first stage forward propellant tank dome and because of this, structural integrity is compromised. I rather it being delayed to fix safety issues than launching and having a catastrophe on ignition. So we'll have to wait a little longer for Neutron's inaugural lauch, but I sure see this as buying opportunities at a lower price. 😎
Is it okay to pause investing when life gets expensive? And how much does having kids really change your family budget? Welcome back to Episode 24 of Financial KarMoe! This time, @karyungtom and I talked about the financial realities of raising a family. We share our experiences with slowing down investments, the impact of parental leave on household income, preparing for major home repairs, and why paying down your mortgage can also be part of building your net worth. We also discuss whether it's worth continuing to invest small amounts when you need to focus on other financial priorities. 📈 We get into covered-call ETFs, investment fees, and why comparing portfolio returns isn't always as straightforward as it looks. Kar explains why it's important to distinguish between comparing investment strategies and trying to isolate the impact of fees. We also touch on why covered-call ETFs may lag during a rapid Bitcoin rally. 🧸 And because we're both dads, we talk about the expenses that come with raising kids, from daycare and extracurricular activities to toys, family vacations, and airfare. We even share some thoughts on buying secondhand to save money and the challenges of finding time for a date night when you have little ones at home. Shoutout to @matt.41, @cjs033, @noviceadvisor whose questions/comments we featured. 💬 We'd love to hear from you: What's the biggest expense that has increased since you had kids? Let us know in the comments! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1MRpfzzoxQread more
📊 Hot inflation data and an AI selloff pulled stocks lower. The Nasdaq fell 1.88%, the S&P 500 dropped 1.11% and the Dow slipped 0.09%. September CPI rose 0.6% on the month and 3.7% on the year, above the 3.6% expected, with core at 0.3% and 2.6%, both a tick hot. ☁️ CoreWeave ($CRWV) nosedived 15.46% to $65.78 as worries mounted about how much debt tech companies outside the Magnificent Seven are taking on for the AI buildout. Its bonds got hit too, with the 2032 notes yielding 14.8%. Oracle ($ORCL) fell almost 9%. 🏦 Bank of America ($BAC) declined almost 5% after third quarter revenue missed. Regulators also hit the bank with more than $1.2 billion in federal penalties for failing to report over $5 billion in suspicious transactions. Morgan Stanley ($MS) beat expectations but still closed nearly 3% lower. 🥄 Bending Spoons ($BSP) ripped 41.20% to $53.46 after filings showed Berkshire Hathaway put another $330 million into the Italian serial acquirer, taking its stake to 4%. That follows $600 million invested during July’s Nasdaq IPO. 🥇 Morgan Stanley sees gold reaching $5,000 an ounce by the second quarter of 2027, keeping it as the bank’s top commodity pick. Strategist Amy Gower says central bank buying and ETF inflows have pushed prices above $4,000 even though the old relationship with real yields would put gold under $3,000. 🛢️ U.S. oil majors hit record intraday highs as crude climbed on Saudi-Houthi fighting and Iranian attacks on Hormuz shipping. Exxon reached $177.36, Chevron $222.20 and ConocoPhillips $142.50. WTI settled up 1.01% at $95.09, with gasoline averaging $4.33 a gallon against $3.08 a year ago. 👨🏻💻 Researched and written daily by @timemino read more
What’s the most important thing you look for when researching a stock and finding a winner? What are the things that a stock must have in order for you to own it? Let me know below, i’m super curious!
After nearly 21 years of picking individual dividend growth stocks, I finally reached a point where I had to ask myself the big question.... Do I want to spend the next 40 or 50 YEARS doing this???? When I started investing, I LOVED stock picking. I enjoyed reading quarterly reports, going through investor presentations, comparing valuations and trying to figure out which company in my portfolio was the best place to put my next dollar. And .... I still enjoy it!!! However, after nearly 21 years of doing it, I started looking at the amount of time I was spending versus what I was actually getting in return.... There is a pretty important distinction between being good at researching companies and actually being able to consistently OURPERFORM a broad market index AFTER fees, taxes, mistakes and all the other things that come with trying to beat the market AND add in the time you spent that could have been spent elsewhere, like at my day job. And the empirical data wasn't exactly making me feel better about my odds... it had been glaringly obvious for years. So I did something I never thought I would do as a lifelong stock picker..... I sold EVERY. SINGLE. STOCK. in my TFSA. And then I moved into 7 broad market ETFs 3 of which factor tilt. I still kept some factor tilting because apparently I wasn't quite ready to give up my active investing addiction entirely 🤪 The biggest change for me wasn't actually my portfolio.....It was my LIFE. I was spending easily 10 plus hours a week researching, monitoring and thinking about my investments. And even when I wasn't sitting at my computer, there was always that little part of my brain wondering whether I should be doing something differently. Now?.... My portfolio requires a fraction of the time. I've gained back more than 10 hours a week that I can spend with my wife, working on the things I actually care about or frankly just existing without thinking about whether some company I own is going to miss its earnings estimate by 3 cents and start to crash.. You can put any of the billion scenarios into that sentence and I was thinking of it (ADHD brain). The reduction in stress has been even more valuable than the time. I didn't even REALIZE I was carrying that market stress around... but my wife sure noticed! I'm no longer constantly asking myself whether I picked the right stock, whether I should sell something, whether I'm missing an opportunity or whether I'm doing enough to outperform the market. The funniest thing is.... well not really funny, kind of sad, after almost 21 years of trying to become a better stock picker, I ended up realizing that maybe the better decision was to stop trying so hard to be one. There was still one question I couldn't answer until enough time had passed.... Did I actually make the right decision? It's now been 10 months since I made the change. It's still a very short period of time... but enough to short out my feelings on things. I've just finished my latest portfolio update, where I go through all 7 ETFs, exactly how I've structured the portfolio, how I'm using factor tilts, and most importantly... What actually happened over those 10 months.... and how did the portfolio perform compared to my benchmark and the S&P 500. https://youtu.be/3khfZJ7SY0g I'm not going to spoil the results here..... watch to see whether I regret walking away from over two decades of stock picking.read more
Here are 🚩3 big flags🚩that signal a company might not be a good investment, and I'll walk you through how to check for each one. (Free Stock Checklist at the end) --- 1️⃣ Declining Revenue or Earnings📉 🛑 Why it’s a red flag:A company with falling revenue or earnings may be losing market share, dealing rising costs, or the overall industry is shrinking. ✅ How to Check for This: A) Look at the Income Statement📊 - Find the company’s total revenue and net income in its latest financial report. Top-line & bottom-line, respectively. - Compare revenue and net income across multiple quarters/years. 3 years or 12 quarters is more than enough to indicate a trend - If both are consistently declining, it’s a warning sign. B) Check Earnings Reports🗂️ - Look at the company’s quarterly earnings reports to see if they’ve missed expectations multiple times. C) Compare to Competitors🔍 - Is the entire industry struggling, or just this company? 📚Website for financial reports: https://www.marketwatch.com/ --- 2️⃣ High Debt Levels 🛑 Why it’s a red flag:Companies with a capital structure heavily debt-reliant are more vulnerable in economic downturns and might struggle to repay obligations. ✅ How to Check for This: A) Find the Debt-to-Equity Ratio (D/E)📊 - Go to the company’s Balance Sheetin its latest report. - Find Total Debt and Total Equityand calculate: Debt-to-Equity Ratio = Total Debt ÷ Total Equity** - A D/E ratio above 2.0 (varies by industry) is usually risky. B) Check Interest Coverage Ratio🔍 - Look at the Income Statement for EBIT (Earnings Before Interest & Taxes). - Find Interest Expense and calculate:Interest Coverage Ratio = EBIT ÷ Interest Expense - If this ratio is below 1.5, the company may struggle to pay interest. 📚 Resources: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/debtratio.asp#:~:text=Key%20Takeaways&text=A%20company's%20debt%20ratio%20can,has%20more%20assets%20than%20debt --- 3️⃣ Poor Cash Flow 🛑 Why it’s a red flag:A company can be profitable on paper but still run out of cash to fund operations. ✅ How to Check for This: A) Find the Cash Flow Statement📜 - Look at Operating Cash FlowOCF). - If OCF is negative for multiple quarters, the company may be in trouble. B) Check Free Cash Flow (FCF)💰 - Free Cash Flow = Operating Cash Flow - Capital Expenditures - A company with negative FCF can’t reinvest in growth without taking on debt. 📚 Read more about Cash flow: https://www.investopedia.com/articles/stocks/07/easycashflow.asp ___________________________________________ Thanks for reading, I am open to engage in friendly conversations so I encourage you to leave a comment!💬 Access my free stock checklist at the link below⬇️ https://investingwithcole.gumroad.com/l/stockchecklist read more
I am currently 47 years old. Unfortunately in that time frame I have lost a lot of family members. Some (most) were accidents, some to age, some to cancer, and one to suicide. That’s 11 deaths total. Only 1 person out of 11 had a will. When you are grieving the last thing you want to do is close an estate up. It’s even harder if nothing has been prepared in advance. After the initial shock of the death settles (the phase where everyone is usually nice), greed comes through in a most alarming manner. I’ve watched people turn into monsters. Make sure you have a will!!!! or people will fight. I know most people hate thinking about their death or their spouses death but honestly it’s just a fact of life. I’ve personally been the executor of 2 estates now. This is my advice: 1. If your young get life insurance. If you’re retired it’s not worth it. 2. Make sure you have a will. 3. Make sure you have a personal directive. 4. Make sure you have a power of attorney set up. 5. If your married make your spouse the beneficiary of your TFSA and RRSP(has to be done through the account not the will), they will roll into the spouses account without taxation. 6. If you’re married, and you own a house, make sure both names are on the title, joint tenant, NOT tenant in common. This activates right of survivorship on property and doesn’t have to go through the estate. 7. If you’re married, both people should have their name on all the vehicles, joint, otherwise it’s a headache after death. 8. Buy a file folding system. I have a plastic one that has a clasp and handle. 9. Put EVERYTHING in this file folder that would be needed if you died tomorrow. a) all land titles B) information on house insurance so it can either be eventually canceled or name changed over. C) your will (or the location of your will), power of attorney, and personal directive D) the information for your car, car insurance, and registration on vehicles. E) information on life insurance. F) all current year papers needed for filing your taxes. Because the survivor will have to do it and will need that information. G) where your household bills are. ALL OF THEM, electricity, gas, Netflix, magazine, subscriptions everything you can think of that is in their name. Because you are going to have to cancel them. H) their credit card information where to contact to cancel the cards I) birth certificate, SIN numbers, marriage, license, etc. J) information on all your investments accounts, bank accounts, etc. K) anything else you can think of for your situation If you’re married, I’d have one box per person. When you die, the funeral home will issue many death certificates. And your lawyer will give you copies of the will. These will be needed to change over any accounts. Everything else goes through the estate which is taxed and the lawyers take their fees so I’d avoid this as much as possible especially if you’re married. This is why having property in both people‘s names is so important because it doesn’t have to go through probate. I am widowed now and I have my black file folder and my two remaining children know if something happens to me, all they have to do is grab the folder. Everything they need to take care of my estate will be located in this folder. At the beginning of every year, I open this file up and go through everything to make sure it’s up-to-date. If you are young and do not own much or can’t afford a will, you can draft one up but it must be handwritten to be classified as a legal document. You cannot type it out!! If you’re not worth much, everything will most likely be sold to pay your bills and cover your funeral expenses. But you can state who your executor will be in your handwritten will. Disclaimer I’m not a lawyer or an accountant and this is not legal advice. Talk to a lawyer and talk to an accountant. Make sure everything is set up for you and your situation. These are situations that I personally ran into. Good luck Also I’ll add in. IF you have a lot of assets make an appointment with your accountant first. They will tell you how to properly set things up. Then take that information to your lawyer. read more
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