Sound Investing

In this episode of "Talking Real Money/Sound Investing,” Paul Merriman, Tom Cock and Don McDonald each bring a “common investor myth” that the three discuss. Paul’s myth: “We don’t believe in market timing.’" Tom’s myth: Rebalancing means beating the market and makes you more money. Don’s myth: "I’m entitled to a high rate of return on my investment." The conversation on myths starts at 1:35. Get for FREE: We’re Talking Millions! 12 Simple Ways to Supercharge Your Retirement by Paul Merriman and Richard Buck at paul merriman.com/signup Get for FREE: Financial Fysics: How Money and Investing Really Work by Don McDonald at talkingrealmoney.com/free Tom and Don at Vestory.com offer free help to all investors with no sales pitch, no obligation. This podcast is also available as a YouTube Video at- https://youtu.be/1Lzhkuk9QEQ

Paul takes you “behind-the-scenes” to the work he and his foundation have been doing this year along with what is upcoming, including Chris Pedersen’s new 2 Funds For Life book, Daryl Bahl’s new tables and an exciting calculator in development to construct your own situation using our tables of historical data. And he addresses some frequently asked questions from young, mid-career and retired investors. Topics and Q&A include: · Our surprising most-popular video · Expectations for the ETF project by Chris Pedersen · Buying 10 years of retirement $3,650 · Lump sum vs. dollar cost averaging · Lifetime investment strategies · Dreaming of winning the lottery · How to determine your glide path · Target date fund considerations Suggested reading: 101 Investment Decisions Guaranteed to Change Your Financial Future.) This podcast is part of the educational offerings from The Merriman Financial Education Foundation, a registered 501(c)3. If you found value in this podcast, here are five ways to support the podcast and our foundation: 1)  Leave a podcast review on your player of choice. 2)  Sign up for our biweekly newsletter at PaulMerriman.com and receive a free pdf copy of We’re Talking Millions! 12 Ways to Supercharge Your Retirement. 3) Use our M1 Finance affiliate link to set up a brokerage account and use our portfolio suggestions. If you fund your account with a minimum of $1,000, our foundation will receive a one-time affiliate fee — at no cost to you — which helps support our financial education projects. 4) Buy our latest book, We’re Talking Millions! 12 Simple Ways To Supercharge Your Retirement available at Amazon and other online outlets. 5) Consider making a tax-deductible donation to the Foundation to support our mission to provide financial education to investors at all stages of life. Thank you!

Today, on our joint Talking Real Money/Sound Investing podcast, Don and Paul Merriman discuss index funds and why they are the only way to build a decent portfolio. It's almost impossible to beat the market, so just be the market. Paul and Don show you: The best indexes to own based on science. Keeping costs low. The differences between funds and ETFs. How to maintain your long-term discipline. Visit Paul at paulmerriman.com

Welcome to another joint Talking Real Money/Sound Investing podcast. Today, Don, Paul, and Tom update you on the latest cryptocurrency news. Plus, with more than 10,000 mutual funds and ETFs available in the US, how do you choose the best ones for your portfolio?

In this engaging conversation with Romanian financial educator, writer, podcaster and YouTuber, Victor Vulpescu, Paul covers a wide variety of investor issues you likely may not have heard before in this way. He talks about his own life as “a series of opportunities and mistakes” and addresses the pitfalls of thinking “You only live once” and other ways investors trip themselves up with emotional-based decisions. They also cover such topics as: The up and downside of using leverage to reach your goals The importance of balance and habits The best time to invest Dollar cost averaging versus lump sum investing Market volatility and risk management Market timing and regrets When to rebalance your portfolio How to know when you have enough to retire And much more. According to Victor, although Romania's Main Stock Exchange was founded in 1882, only 1.5% of Romanians invest in the stock market, compared to 50% in the U.S.  He says Romanians are more comfortable buying apartment houses as they are perceived as less risky and less volatile. Additionally, with the availability of just ETFs in UCITS format, they have less investment options. However, Victor is committed to providing his fellow Romanians with sound investing information. In addition to Paul, Victor has recently interviewed Larry Swedroe, Meb Farber and Rick Ferri. He also offers an eBook and course for beginning investors and personal coaching. You can find all this at his website, translated from Romanian as “Intelligent Investor”: https://victorvulpescu.ro/ This “Sound Investing podcast is also available to watch as a video at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9qxyLlam6c

Paul Merriman interviews Tim Ranzetta, President of Next Generation Personal Finance (NGPF.org), about his organization’s commitment to financial education for teachers and students, which is extraordinary. NGPF was created on the belief that financial literacy is the key to creating stable futures for the next generation. It promotes financial education in our public schools, and provides free engaging curriculum and professional development for any educator who is interested in the program, with an abundance of free resources for all. Learn about the results NGPF is tracking and the reasons not every student in the U.S. is being given access to this valuable, life-changing education. Discover the actions you can take to improve the financial future of your children, grandchildren and other young people (and educators) in your life and community. NGPF produced a video called “The Most Important Class You Never Had,” (watch on YouTube), which explains the critical impact of financial literacy on our lives — and how improving an understanding of finance during youth can change behavior into adulthood. NGPF focuses on helping students in grades 6-12. This interview is the final in the 2021 series of Financial Literacy Month events, “Take Control of Your Financial Future,” sponsored by The Merriman Financial Education Foundation, Bainbridge Community Foundation and Library U, a resource of the Bainbridge Public Library.

WELCOME TO SOMETHING NEW. After working together for many years, Paul Merriman, Tom Cock and Don McDonald are teaming up for a new audio/video podcast every two weeks. The audio podcasts will become a part of both the Talking Real Money and Sound Investing podcast feeds and the videos posted here and at paulmerriman.com. In this episode, Tom, Don, and Paul discuss cryptocurrencies in detail, exploring the pros and cons of these hot speculative vehicles.

Stan The Annuity Man®, by the title of this podcast, summarizes two key points of this conversation with Paul Merriman, as part of Stan’s “Fun With Annuities Podcast Celebrity Series.” Stan writes in his podcast notes, “I’d choose Paul Merriman advice over that of Warren Buffet.  Once you listen to this podcast, you will know why.” Meanwhile, Paul considers Stan “a Truth Tellers among financial educators.” They discuss: Making decisions that are in your individual best interest. Understanding what you’re trying to achieve and what you want to do with your investments in the market. Navigating the forks in the savings road. Finding your “good enough” return. Key Takeaways: To be a successful long-term investor, you have to shut out all of the noise. There is always a “good news list” and a “bad news list” for all market decisions. Stay in your lane — investing takes time. Every stock has reason to buy, and every stock has reason to sell. If they didn’t, there would be no trade. Connect with The Annuity Man: Website: TheAnnuityMan.com Email: Stan@TheAnnuityMan.com  Book: Owner’s Manuals YouTube: Stan The Annuity Man Fun With Annuities Podcast is hosted by America’s Annuity Agent®, Stan Haithcock, The Annuity Man®. Hear brutal annuity facts with no sales pitches from one of the top independent agents in the country, licensed in all 50 states. Author of 7 books, Stan dives deep on all annuity types and strategies. It’s fun, learning the contractual truths on how annuities actually work and if they’ll fit your personal retirement lifestyle. Listen or watch how you can be livin’ the reality, not the dream. Subscribe on YouTube, Libsyn, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, and Spotify. This podcast is part of the educational offerings from The Merriman Financial Education Foundation, a registered 501(c)3.  If you found value in this podcast, here are five ways to support the podcast and our foundation:

In this conversation, Paul Merriman talks with Rational Reminder Podcast hosts Benjamin Felix and Cameron Passmore, about how the right habits and investing approach can add millions to your retirement nest egg. Topics include: Paul’s investing philosophy, and how it’s been influenced by the work of Eugene Fama. Why Vanguard’s portfolio allocation ensures that clients have the smoothest possible emotional relationship with their investments. The benefits of simple vs. complex funds, and how simple funds fit with the preferences of many do-it-yourself investors. Why emotion — and not strategy — gets in the way of successful investing. The challenges of sticking to portfolios that are heavily weighted in small-cap value stocks. The difficulties in working with clients, and the role of financial advisors. Top habits and beliefs that lead to investing success; a key focus of his latest book, We’re Talking Millions. Target date glide paths. How Paul’s foundation educates investors. The relationship between money and a life well-lived. The Rational Reminder Podcast is a weekly podcast on sensible investing and financial decision-making for Canadians. Each week, hosts Benjamin Felix and Cameron Passmore, Portfolio Managers at PWL Capital, discuss topics related to personal finance, investing, behavior, and financial markets with the intention of making our listeners better, more rational investors. You can watch this interview on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SPAYhKKDDY

Paul Merriman interviews Larry Swedroe, renowned speaker and prolific writer on the science of investing, about his new, updated book, The Complete Guide to a Successful and Secure Retirement. But the discussion focuses on the validity of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, including the Dogecoin, the $36 billion dollar joke.  Larry wrote a blog about cryptocurrencies in 2017.  He stands by those statements. The interview also covers the following topics: investor challenges with markets at very high prices and lower expected future returns Historically low bond yields and low expected future returns Steps investors should take to live in a period of lower expected returns Additionally, Larry responds to questions from Paul and viewers about asset allocation, asset location for stocks and bonds, distribution limits, Roth conversions, considering Social Security as a bond, his own favorite asset allocation, future premiums for value and small cap asset classes, the importance of working with a fiduciary, the value of a family financial mission statement, how much to share with family members, reverse mortgages, the use of Monte Carlo studies, the role of annuities and many more important issues. Read Larry’s article, “How to Treat Social Security and Your Home in Your Financial Plan,” which addresses how investors should consider Social Security in regards to their equity/bond asset allocation. Paul strongly recommends the 2021 update of Larry’s book, The Complete Guide to a Successful and Secure Retirement, citing that investors will benefit from becoming aware of and avoiding at least 25 mistakes… every one of which is potentially  a life-changing move.   This conversation was part of a free series Financial Literacy Month presentations, “Taking Control of Your Financial Future,” co-sponsored by The Merriman Financial Education Foundation, the Bainbridge Community Foundation and Library U, a program of the Bainbridge Public Library.