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Sound Advice: June 7, 2023

Attention, Traders!

While the investment markets have done little more than marking time over the last couple of months, I’ve noticed an increasing number of TV commercials aimed at the same folks who go to casinos with the belief that they can beat the system.  The typical commercial has a person sitting in front of a large monitor displaying an abundance of charts and tables intended to create the belief that all the magic needed to make a fortune is there waiting for them.

Fascinating?  And absurd. 

Investment analysts whose time is devoted exclusively to wading through all of the information available to determine what’s likely to be a good holding and what’s not don’t exactly have stellar records of making the best choices.  So how is a typical investor supposed to decipher a screen full of essentially useless data?

Quite possibly the extreme example of this was a stockbroker friend of mine who had an opposing pair of large semicircular desks surrounding him.  The rear desk had six massive monitors, each of which had a different chart of something (possibly daily rainfall in New Guinea) for the express purpose of impressing whoever came to consult with him.

Visiting with this gentleman was not unlike a day watching the Jumbotrons at Fenway Park.  From the standpoint of presentation, the guy was a star. 

His career began with a stint in selling vinyl siding and eventually led to managing the office of a regional brokerage house.  The office was elegantly appointed with model sailing ships and other memorabilia intended to build longstanding confidence in the services being offered. 

Along the way, he grew a well-trimmed beard and added wire-rimmed Ben Franklin glasses.  All of this added up to his accomplishment of being the second highest producing broker in the company.

Did he know much about investments?  No, but he knew about people.  His entire approach was about dazzling them with his footwork.

So when your television screen shifts to commercials about how to take advantage of new trading opportunities, please do your best not to gag.

  

N. Russell Wayne, CFPÒ

Any questions?  Please contact me at nrwayne@soundasset.com


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