My Worst Investment Ever Podcast

Guest profile Andy Hill is the award-winning blogger and podcaster behind Marriage, Kids and Money Podcast His podcast and blog are dedicated to helping young families build wealth and thrive. His advice and personal finance experience have been featured in major media outlets like Business Insider, Market Watch, and NBC News. Trusted as a personal finance influencer by National Financial brands like Quicken Loans, his message of family financial empowerment has resonated with listeners, readers, and viewers across the US. When he's not talking money, he enjoys wrestling with his two kids and singing karaoke with his wife.   “I made a promise after that home purchase that I would never buy a home that took up more than 25% of my after-tax income.” Andy Hill   Worst investment ever Excited to be a young homeowner When he was 22, Andy decided to invest in his first investment, buying his first house. He had saved $20,000 working odd jobs and couldn’t be more proud of himself. All along, he had heard that the best thing one could do with money is to buy a home and become a homeowner. So this was a big deal for him because he had worked hard and felt proud of that. Andy ended up looking in a great suburb where a lot of young people lived after they graduated college and found a $200,000 house. He put 10% down and bought the home. He was excited; it was going to be his bachelor pad close to downtown where he could hang out with friends. The bills start trickling in Once he got the keys, he started to get the bills. He quickly realized that this mortgage was going to take up about 70% of his income. As if the mortgage was not enough, things started breaking. The roof needed replacing, and the kitchen needed some work. Andy didn’t have the income or the funds to properly fund this investment that he had plunged all his savings into. He ended up taking out a home equity line of credit (HELOC) on his home to keep up with his living expenses. Shacking up to pay up The bills started to rack up, and he got into debt. This was not the investment that he thought it was going to be. So he ended up getting some roommates to help him pay for his living expenses. Some of them worked out; some of them didn't. Getting out of his worst investment ever To get out of that mess, he worked harder to grow his income to pay his mortgage. Eventually, he just had to sell the house. At this point, he had done some updates to the kitchen and the backyard. And all in all, when he sold the house, he barely broke even. He sold it for $225,000.  But he had spent more than $25,000 in repairs. Lessons learned Don't buy more house than you can afford While it was commendable that he could get a loan at 22 years of age, at the time, he was making $28,000 a year, meaning that he would have to cough up almost all of his income to pay the loan. Keep your mortgage payments below 25% of your income Andy made a promise that he would never buy a home that took up more than 25% of his after-tax income. Andrew’s takeaways The homeownership trap Buying a house can be a trap, so be prepared to be trapped for the next five years if you're lucky, or 10 if you're not so lucky. And if you're very unlucky, you might lose it all. Widen the gap between your income and your expenses The creation of wealth happens at the gap between income and expense. Wealth is not the amount of income. It's not even that you own a business. If you want wealth, make sure that the gap between your income and your expense is as wide as possible. Homeownership isn’t necessarily the best investment Homeownership, unless you do your research very well and get the right place, is not the best investment out there. Don’t take homeownership advice from just anyone. Do thorough research before you take the first steps to homeownership. Actionable advice Before you jump into homeownership, plan out a budget beforehand that showcases your entire living costs or your potential living costs. Calculate how much your mortgage is going to take up from your income. Also, look at things that are not normally factored in, such as furnishing. Plan for repair costs. Make sure you also factor in an emergency fund. So you're not relying on credit cards or a home equity line of credit to cover you. Think about those things before you make what could be the largest purchase of your life. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Andy and his wife are planning on buying their first rental property. They’ve been saving up for a while now so that they can buy it with cash. So in the next 12 months, they’ll be looking at rental properties, but only the ones that they can buy with cash because no mortgage equals fewer worries. Parting words   “Before making any big investment, do a lot of research first, plan it out and make sure it's a good fit for you in your specific situation.” Andy Hill   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Andy Hill Twitter Facebook Instagram Pinterest YouTube Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast

Nick Bradley is a business scale up specialist helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses to create freedom, build wealth, achieve their mission, and live life more on their terms. He is the founder of the Fielding Group, a growth accelerator that helps companies improve business performance. He works with private equity firms across the UK and the US, leading business turnarounds, mergers, acquisitions, and scale-ups. Over the last decade, he has bought, built, and sold multiple businesses creating significant value for shareholders. Nick is also the host of UK’s number one business podcast on iTunes, Scale Up Your Business. His mission is to help bring an entrepreneurial skillset and mindset to people all over the world as a driving force of progression and prosperity. Originally from Australia, Nick is a dedicated family man who has a strong background in physical fitness, having completed 67 marathons and 24 ultramarathons worldwide. He's also a qualified personal trainer and performance coach.   “The worst time to make an investment decision is when it's based purely on emotions because you're not seeing the bigger picture, and you're not being objective.” Nick Bradley   Worst investment ever Starting his entrepreneurial journey Nick’s entrepreneurial journey started when he was 18 years old when he started a gym. Personal training back in the late 80s was still a new idea, so in some ways, he was innovating, but he felt the need to get out of the environment. So he sold that business to a friend for a little bit of cash, packed up all his belongings, and left the little town of Adelaide, South Australia. He ended up in Sydney with about a month's worth of cash. Jumping into the corporate world Left with barely any money to survive on and about to move back to Adelaide, he was lucky enough to bag a job as marketing manager of Men's Health magazine. His new job earned him some good money. He loved his job and did everything he could to get ahead in his career as quickly as possible. Sometimes he had to step on people to get to where he needed to get. Board member before he was 30 Nick’s drive to succeed saw him become a board director of a company in the UK before he was 30. So he left Sydney and moved to the UK after he got transferred there by one of the media companies he was working for. Grinding his teeth, literally All this corporate work was stressing him up. One night he was quite stressed and wasn't feeling great. He was taking some of that stress out on his young family as well. So this night, he had a whole heap of stuff going on with the company he was working in. The stress had him grinding his teeth in his sleep. He woke up and realized that he had cracked all his back teeth on the right side. He had ground his teeth right down to the point where the pressure of the clinch broke his teeth. This woke Nick up to the reality that he couldn’t continue working his job. He wasn’t feeling fulfilled, and he was not the person he wanted to be. He went for a long run, and when he got back home, he had made up his mind to stop working for the private equity firm and instead buy a business. Excited to buy a business There was someone who Nick knew by association, who was trying to retire from their business, and they and their business partner offered him to buy into the business as a management buy-in (MBI). The stress of his corporate job had him looking for something where he could jump ship. So buying an existing business was a decision he made because, at the time, he badly wanted to get out of what he was doing. The six-figure decision He invested a six-figure sum of money in buying the business. The sellers decided to do a seller-financed agreement so that he’d be paying off the remainder over three years. His ownership stake would increase over time as he continued to pay the price of the business. He was too excited to get out of the corporate world that he never thought of the factors to consider when buying a business. He didn’t even give the sale agreement much thought. He signed the dotted part without doing his due diligence. What he didn’t see coming was the fact that this agreement meant him coming in essentially as an employee, again, which he wanted to avoid by quitting his job. The cookie comes crumbling After a while, Nick realized that he had made the decision to buy a business from an emotional state, and now everything was coming down on him hard. First, the person who he thought he knew, turns out he didn't know him very well. Second, the two business owners didn’t quite exactly intend to sell the business and let go of their management role. So even though Nick had put some money into the business, they weren't prepared to let him run the business. Sacked from his own business There were a lot of fighting and disagreements. One day, at a board meeting, there was quite a huge disagreement, and the two owners decided to sack him, and they weren't prepared to give back his share of the money he invested. Nick went to court to try and get some cash back. He also had to hustle to get another job, which he did very quickly because he had a good network. Luckily, he managed to get some of his investment back. To date, this remains his worst investment ever. Lessons learned Emotions and decisions should never go hand in hand Making decisions that are purely based on your emotions is never a good idea. Not to say you shouldn't think about things from both your heart and head perspective, you need to connect with both. But if you're in a position where you're looking for a way out, that very emotion prevents you from seeing the bigger picture and being objective. Do your due diligence Before diving into any investment, do your due diligence. You've got to do your homework. Look for multiple insights and pieces of information so you can make a truly informed decision. Failure is not the end Don’t treat failure as the end of your investment plans; it's the beginning. It is the origin of what you become in the future, so don’t let failure stop you. Just pick yourself up, get going again, learn from the experience, grow and become better from it. Andrew’s takeaways Be wary of debt Debt is the number one risk factor in business because if something goes wrong, you can quickly lose control of your business. Avoid debt for as long as you can. Change is internal, not external Whenever you are going through emotional turmoil, moving to another city, state, or even country won’t change what you’re going through. True change starts from within. When you're in emotional turmoil, and you're making a decision, thinking that the decision is going to bring you to another place, unfortunately, you'll be bringing yourself with you. When your emotions aren't right, you get out of balance. Be on the right side of the deal Make sure that you get the right terms in a deal. Don't rush into something without understanding the terms of the deal fully; otherwise, you may end up making your worst investment. Professionals are the worst decision-makers Professionals are the worst in the areas that they're experts in. Most brokers or investors end up risking it all on some overconfident bet. This is because they tend to feel confident in what they’re doing and end up not doing their due diligence in their deals. Actionable advice If you've got a big opportunity, and even if someone's pressuring you, you've got to push back on that and give yourself an extra few days if you need it, whatever the time frame is. Then write down the reasons why this is a good investment as well as the reasons why it's not. What does it give you and what does it not? How does it take you to where you're trying to be in your life and your business? How does it hold you back? Does it fit with your values? Does it fit with your standards? Is it going to give you what you want? Be clear on these things. Surround yourself with people who are trying to do the same thing. Such people can give you a sounding board to make sure you make sound investment decisions whether you go ahead with the investment or not. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Nick and his business partner have an objective to have no less than five acquisitions on the cards in the next 12 months. Their vision for the next 10 years is to have over 100 million invested assets in businesses that they own. Parting words   “Treat failure as a learning experience. It's hard to deal with it, but you are going to grow from that, and you are going to become better from that experience, even though you may not feel that way then.” Nick Bradley   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Nick Bradley LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast

Frank Paiano is a retired professor from Southwestern Community College, where he was teaching his favorite course Introduction to Investments. He started as a computer programming teacher and mathematician but then moved his way into investments in finance after working at a brokerage firm as a programmer for a while. He’d been a broker now for over 20 years. Aside from that, he is also an insurance agent. He plans on getting right back to teaching and helping young people to improve their financial lives.   “You need to make a choice, and you need to invest. The world doesn't end if you choose carefully and wisely. You are going to do well.” Frank Paiano   Worst investment ever Losing a tremendous opportunity for not doing anything Frank’s worst investment was an investment he never made. At that time, Frank was putting as much as he could into stocks through 403b, which is like a 401k, an employer-sponsored retirement plan. One day, a duplex became available for a fairly reasonable price, just down the street from Frank. He thought it was a pretty great deal. And now, he was torn between focusing on investing through his 403b, which would suffer if he invested in the property. In the end, he did not buy the property at $250,000. Eight years later, at the peak of the market in 2007, that same property sold for $765,000. Lessons learned Make a choice, but do your research first If you are not sure about what investment to choose, do your research, find someone you trust, get a good referral, or take a course and learn how to value individual securities, how to research mutual funds, how to look for real estate, and make your choice. Do not give up You’ll probably mess up the first time but learn from it and do it again successfully the second time. Andrew’s takeaways The concept of alternative outcomes There are many possible alternative outcomes to an investment story. Always remember them when you look back from that investment you did not do. Do not fixate on one thing There are so many things happening around us. Just accept the fact that you’re missing something every single day. Actionable advice You need to get in the game. Do your research or find a competent advisor that you can trust. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Frank is hoping to join a subscription service where he can travel to Mexico at very low fare so that he can have a vacation there every month. Parting words   “Best of luck and success to all the listeners!” Frank Paiano   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Frank Paiano LinkedIn Twitter Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast

Michelle Russell is an author, speaker, and an amazing host of the Short-Term Rental Revenue podcast. She has a history of successful investments in a wide variety of markets and has learned only from some of the best real estate gurus. Her experiences from investing in real estate have taught her the value of short-term rentals and getting the most out of your properties. Now, she wants to share her knowledge with other people and teach them how to rent or buy a property to turn it into a short-term rental and create a profitable residual income, one that keeps coming in month after month, to build your wealth and create a healthy retirement.   “It’s all about business. You need to be rational. Don’t think with your heart and feel that you need to help people out. You are not their savior.” Michelle Russell   Worst investment ever Don’t let pity cloud your judgment Michelle bought a property for $100,000 and had it rented to a couple for three years. Unfortunately, the man died leaving his mourning fiancé with nothing. She told Michelle that they were planning to buy the house after their wedding, if not for the tragedy. Feeling obligated to help, she sold the house to the woman. A year after, she got a call from the same woman and asked if she could lend her some money to pay for the mortgage of the house. Instead of lending her money, Michelle bought the house again and planned on renting the house again to the woman. While she was processing the papers for the house, she lost contact with the woman, so she decided to give her a visit. The price you pay for bad decisions To Michelle’s surprise, the once immaculate house a year ago had turned into a horror house. As she described it, 40 animals were in the house and feces were everywhere. Black molds were seen on the wall and not to mention the bad smell that was pungent inside the house. It turned out, the woman, after the tragedy, never recovered. She got depressed and was fired from her job. Left with no choice, she evicted the woman and had to spend $185,000 to renovate the whole property. Don’t try to wait until you recover the cost spent After getting the appraisal, instead of selling the property, Michelle let her emotions decide again and let her daughter move into the house and stay there for a couple of years until she finished school. However, the economy crashed, and the value of the property decreased until it was too late for her to recover the costs. It took her a decade to get a reasonable price and sell it eventually. Lesson learned Due diligence is a very important step yet people tend to skip it Michelle was not new in real estate when she dealt with this property, yet she forgot to do all the due diligence that she knew necessary with buying a property. People who do not do their due diligence are bound to make bad decisions. Never let your emotions decide for you Always work with your brain and not your heart when it comes to investments. Try not to mix up helping people and your business It is great to help people, but you can always do that in many other ways. Don’t let it entangle with your business. Andrew’s takeaways Never ever skip due diligence You can save yourself from all the trouble if you will diligently research a prospective venture and gather enough information to make a justified decision. Never let things go too far If it is going too far, stop and plan your next calculated move. Don’t wait until you get back your cost because you may never recover it. Help other people with your profit Don’t aim for your business to do charitable work. You can donate money when you make a profit, and that will be better for everyone. Actionable advice Create a set of standard operating procedures (SOP), which will consist of all the steps of due diligence you need before going through with an acquisition. Even if for a moment, you get swayed by somebody else’s story, if you have your SOP, you will never miss a beat. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Michelle is planning to add 100 more units to her short-term rental list. Parting words   “I realized that everything happens for a reason. You fail big, and you’ll learn to pick yourself up. Those failures are there for a reason. Don't be afraid of failing. Get in there.” Michelle Russell   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Michelle Russell LinkedIn Facebook Podcast Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast Further readings mentioned John C. Maxwell (2007) “Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success”

Otavio “Tavi” Costa is the portfolio manager at Crescat Capital and has been with the firm for six years. Tavi built Crescat’s macro model that identifies the current stage of the US economic cycle through a combination of 16 factors. His research has been featured in financial publications such as Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, Financial Post, The Globe and Mail, Real Vision, and Reuters. Tavi is a native of São Paulo, Brazil and is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, and English. Before joining Crescat, he worked with the underwriting of financial products and in international business at Braservice, a large logistics company in Brazil. Tavi graduated cum laude from Lindenwood University in St. Louis with a B.A. degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in finance and a minor in Spanish. Tavi played NCAA Division 1 tennis for Liberty University.   “We all need to be able to respect and apply risk and uncertainty. You know the changes in probabilities.” Otavio Costa   Worst investment ever Bearish and bullish are terms that Tavi understands, like the back of his hand, given his background in business model analysis and macro investing. Tavi is an expert in analyzing and predicting business cycles. The expert is tested The period between 2014 and 2018, however, put his expertise into a real test. Between 2014 and 2015, the market experienced a global GDP decline of 6%, almost as significant as the global financial crisis. There were a lot of reasons for that. Oil prices were collapsing, the dollar was strong, and other commodities were collapsing. Also, China was going through a turmoil with Chinese stocks going from a boom to bust in less than a year. And then investors were pulling money out of China. Capital flows started picking up, and businesses started doing well. Boom! Here comes an unexpected wave Then came the elections that changed everything. Nobody saw a republican sweep coming. A synchronized growth environment came up, and China printed more money, increasing liquidity. This completely shifted the narrative. Tavi and his team thought that China was on the brink of a credit collapse and would get a lot worse in the short term. However, this business cycle extended for a couple of years. Things get bearish In 2017 the market became pretty bearish, and so the team started to do a lot of research and focused on what other indicators they may have missed in terms of liquidity. They created different macro models that revealed that liquidity was still growing in 2016 and 2017. Not so perfect model However, their models missed the fact that liquidity wasn't growing in 2018 and so they ended up missing a bullish moment in 2017. To deal with this, the company had to shrink its positions. They also had to apply new forms of risk metrics to be able to trend those positions and be able to stay in the game. Lessons learned Respect uncertainties You never know the probabilities of when a business cycle could extend for whatever reason.  Being aware of the shifts in the narrative is, therefore, very important. Be open-minded The world will always look vastly different, than most people expect, five years from now. So stay open-minded to change and apply that to your investment process. Refresh your portfolio Work intensely in terms of refreshing your portfolio positions. You want to take a directional position in terms of your trade so that you’re still diversified and not just taking one concentrated position. Andrew’s takeaways Have a framework to be able to deal with inevitable change Change in any investment is inevitable. Have a framework to help you deal with change and manage your risk. Always question, always learn Don’t just be curious about your investment always question your thesis and be sure to move into a thesis a bit more careful. You don’t want to go all-in on one thesis. Instead, do your research so that you can expect the outcome, and then put your thesis to test. Actionable advice If you’re starting today, do extensive research on liquidity and its historical impacts. You also have to understand how global macro research works. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Tavi hopes to profit from what he believes is one of the best macro setups he has seen in his career and to grow Crescat Capital. He also hopes to continue to evolve as an ambassador and also has a goal to run his fifth marathon next year. Parting words   “Losing is part of the game but, try to learn as much as you can from other people’s mistakes and apply those lessons to your investment process.” Otavio Costa   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Otavio Costa LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast

Meb Faber is co-founder and Chief Investment Officer of Cambria Investment Management and manages Cambria’s ETFs and separate accounts. He is the host of the Meb Faber Show and has authored numerous white papers and leather-bound books. He is a frequent speaker and writer on investment strategies and has been featured in Barron's, The New York Times, and The New Yorker. Meb graduated from the University of Virginia with a double major in engineering, science, and biology.   “The funny thing about investing in the computer age is we can now rely on an enormous library of investing ideas and concepts.” Meb Faber   Worst investment ever The young investor with a chip on his shoulder Like many young investors, when Meb got into investing as a young biotech engineering graduate in the 90s, he was full of vigor, overconfidence, and believed that he was the best investor on the planet. At the time, the US was hit by the Dotcom bubble and US stocks were the most expensive they've ever been. And so, it was a wild time that made crypto look basic. Wild times for investors It was a pretty wild time to be investing, but also, biotech was a big deal. The human genome was getting sequenced by the government as well as the company Celera, and so biotech stocks were also going crazy. Amid this madness, Meb identified a good stock to invest in, Biogen. This was in the early 2000s when biotech and pharma stocks were extremely volatile creating a lot of investment opportunities. The storm that is biotech stocks In most cases, biotech stocks, unless it's a monster like Pfizer, will have these binary events where they have a drug that's either going to get approved or not, in which case the shares will go 100% up or down. The whole company is leveraged to one outcome. And so that creates a lot of opportunity and volatility. So with Biogen, everyone knew there was a date in the future where the company would announce whether the drug was approved or not. Meb believed that the drug was not going to get approved. Choosing his best investment options Meb decided that he was going to balance his equity investment in Biogen and build a trade so that in the off chance it does get approved, he wouldn’t lose all his money. He bought both puts and calls with the understanding that there would be a very large market move. Now, if the drug did not get approved, he would make an enormous amount of money. If it did get approved, he would probably break even. By the time the day came to announce the decision, the options had doubled in value because the volatility had increased. Had he taken off a half or a quarter of his position at this point, as it was already making money, and sold it off he’d have doubled his money. He could even have sold his entire position and be done with it without having to wait for the event to happen. Too overconfident to think straight Meb was, however, overconfident and wanted to make tons of money. He waited for the results to be announced. The drug got approved. And as he had predicted, his position broke even, but he did not make a ton of money as he wanted. Now, if he had been thinking straight, he would have stuck with his original investment plan to exit the trade and move on. But his overconfidence led him to a decision that saw him make his worst investment. Meb decided to let the stock drift for a day or two and watch the market, hoping the stock would go up, and he’d squeeze out a little more profit. Well, what happened was the company decided for no known reason other than to themselves, that they should pre-announce earnings. This caused the stock to drop all the way right back down to where it was trading before the announcement. Suddenly, this made both sides of his positions completely worthless. So instead of making a fair amount of money before the announcement or making a little bit of money after the trade, he ended up not only not making money but losing all of his money. Lessons learned Consider the size of your position Do not put massive leverage on one position. You want to live to bet another day, and if your bankroll gets taken away, you can't bet, you're finished with the game. So position sizing is really important. Always have an investment plan If you're going to place a trade, come up with a plan and account for all the possible outcomes. Have a written portfolio policy. Your plan doesn't have to be complicated, make sure you have something written down so that when shit hits the fan in the future, you can refer to your plan and stick with it. Andrew’s takeaways Investing is like a contact sport Investing is just like a physical sport because every single thing that's happening in investing has an emotional and a neurological impact. This impact manifests itself in your body. As it is with any physical game, success lies in discipline and having a structured way of looking at things as well as having a plan. Have a plan and stick with it Having the best investment plan possible and sticking with it is a very hard thing to do but a necessary thing if you want to be a successful investor. Whenever you’re forced to sell,  remember that you don’t have to buy. When a trade comes to an end, you don’t have to execute another trade immediately. Stick with your investment plan. Don’t be sucked in by investment scams Often scams promise massive returns that aren't realistically attainable by using various derivatives or other exotic instruments. Options can be very complex, and can easily cause you to lose all your money. So be careful not to get sucked into some idea that you’re going to make a lot of money from some complex strategy. Actionable advice Have an investment plan, write it down, share it with someone, and make sure that you implement it. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Meb is a skier and intends to try out a couple of skiing spots in the US in the next 12 months. As far as his work is concerned, his goal is to grow his business and enjoy doing it. Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Meb Faber LinkedIn Twitter Website The Idea Farm Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast Further reading mentioned Jason Zweig (2007), Your Money and Your Brain: How the New Science of Neuroeconomics Can Help Make You Rich

Richard Flint has been speaking and changing lives for over 30 years. His staying power comes from a strong following of corporate clients and associations that invite him back year after year. As one of America’s top personal development speakers and coaches, he travels and speaks over 175 times per year and personally coaches businesses and individuals while on the road. Considered a well-guarded secret by many, Richard Flint inspires, teaches, and helps people and companies to transform into their Power To Be, so they can do or have anything they want. Interestingly, he does it without you having to set goals. Richard is on a mission, which he calls a crusade, to help people have their Best Life Possible. He knows how through his own experience.   “Smarter is not being the most knowledgeable person. But it's being able to use life's experiences because I think life is just a library of experiences.” Richard Flint   Worst investment ever Born into a world where love did not exist Richard was born in New Orleans. He never got to know who his dad is and his birth mother was a prostitute and so he was the result of a one night stand. When he was two weeks old, he was given into a family where the man wanted a son but the wife didn't want him. She found every opportunity to prove to him that he was unloved, unwanted. From when he was six, he would repeatedly tell him that he was the stupidest kid she’d ever met, that he was never going to amount to anything in life and that she was sorry they adopted him. Out in the cold alone at a tender age When he was 15 his adoptive mother told him that he had to get a job and pay room and board to live in her house. A year later, at 16, she threw him out. He was working at an IGA grocery store in Ardmore, Oklahoma, when his dad brought him his suitcase and informed him that his mother had decided, Richard could no longer live in her house. Defeated, Richard walked into downtown Ardmore, Oklahoma and checked into hotel Ardmore. The staff looked at him funny but he had the cash to pay for the room. To live or to die? When he walked into his room on the seventh floor, he walked straight to the window. He didn’t even turn the light on. He sat on the ledge and for three hours he tried to decide whether to live or die. After three hours, he figured out on that ledge that if he jumped his adoptive mother would win and he wasn't going to give that lady that kind of victory. Richard called his best friend’s dad who helped him decide the next course of his life. He decided he was never going back home. So he helped him find a room with a lady who was the editor of The Daily newspaper in Ardmore, he paid her $5 a week to live in her house. Facing his fears head-on After some years Richard realized that he had believed all the things that his adoptive mother had told him. His worst investment was accepting what his mother said as truth because parents don't lie. This held him back from his true success. Eventually, he decided to confront his adoptive mom because the more he refused to confront her the more he validated her. He was extremely afraid of doing it but he chose to face his fears. He never got to talk to his mom because she couldn’t face him but he made peace with his past and it’s all behind him now. Lessons learned Not everyone who says they love you loves you Don’t believe everyone who says they love you and want the best for you. Observe their behavior because behavior never lies. Hear everything people say to you, but study what they do because trust is built on behavior. The greatest strength you have is your belief Trust and have faith in yourself because that's what allows you to be an original and not a carbon copy. Don't be fearful of today Living and hiding in yesterday makes you fearful of today. When you bring the fear of yesterday to today, you don't have today but an extension of yesterday. So let go of and face your fears from yesterday so that you can enjoy the freedom of today. Stay in tune with what God wants for your life Everyone has a story. You either use your story to justify your fears or to free yourself from it. You use your story to either blame others or to hold them accountable. Andrew’s takeaways Your past struggles shape, what you share with the world Richard had a truly painful story of his youth. But he took that painful story and used it to shape what he is sharing with the world today. That makes him authentic. When you’re truly authentic to your struggles and to the things that shape you, you get tremendous value. Learn how to face your fears head-on and turn them into a positive There are chances that you cannot escape the thing that you fear the most in your life. This fear is going to affect the rest of your life either negatively or positively. What will determine whether this fear will affect you positively or negatively is your ability to find it, face it, and control it. Once you face it, just as Richard faced his mom, the fear disappears. So know how to confront your fears. Actionable advice Before you make any decision in your life, no matter what it is, take a deep breath. Why? Because it slows you down emotionally. Then ask yourself if that decision will feed your confusion or strengthen your clarity. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Richard’s number one desire for the next 12 months is to finish the two books he’s working on right now. The two books are going to be titled So What's Your Excuse?, and I'm Sorry, I Didn't Mean to Pee on You. Parting words   “Strengthen your belief, your trust and your faith in yourself and you will overcome the limits that you self imposed on yourself.” Richard Flint   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Richard Flint LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Instagram YouTube Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast Further reading mentioned Richard Flint (2008), Behavior Never Lies: 8 Ways to Create Consistency Between What One Says and What One Does

Scott Royal Smith, Esquire, founder, and CEO of Royal Legal Solutions prides himself on successfully conveying the essentials in asset protection to audiences nationwide. Scott is no stranger to high stakes litigation and has spent his career deconstructing asset protection structures and developing strategies that serve both to protect what you own as well as leverage your income and maximize your tax savings. With experience in entrepreneurship, starting several successful companies in owning real estate in 10 states in America, Scott pulls from his experience as a lawyer to put a new and valuable perspective on business ownership. No one wants to get sued. But if you plan to start a business, the question isn't if, but when you’ll get sued. Scott is the attorney who will have your back. He's smart, savvy, and he's got a great sense of humor. And he has a gift for simplifying the complex.   “Try to find someone like you businesswise and ask that person a bunch of questions about what you should be doing because they've already gone through it all once.” Scott Smith   Worst investment ever Launching his business idea Driven by a sense to help people with things that he had already figured out, things he had spent the time to figure it out, he started to teach and do it for others. His law degree also came in handy, especially when advising people on how to launch a new business or choose investments. Letting excitement get to him People wanted his services. Within no time he had a really popular podcast. Then pretty soon he had a rapidly growing business. Everything was going too fast and was way beyond what he understood regarding the business. But the growth got him all excited and he felt pretty confident that he now knew just about everything and that whatever he touched would turn to gold. So he kept things moving fast. Fast and big is not always good His business continued growing fast and he got to a point where he realized he did not know what to do with all of that growth. He found himself having to solve problems that he didn't understand. He was forced to hire people to solve the problems for him. Because he didn’t understand what the problems that needed solving were, he ended up hiring people that weren’t that great. He was hiring and firing people so fast. He should have outsourced It was only after he had spent over a quarter-million dollars that he realized that he was struggling to create a system or a solution to something that someone else already had out there. He realized that had he taken a pause, slowed things down with the business, he’d have been able to figure out what the business needed and then hire an agency and offload things on them. But no, his excitement to keep things on a high saw him make his worst investment ever. Lessons learned Delay launching a new business Yes, you have an awesome idea. Yes, you feel ready for a business launch. Delay that launch by at least three months. Take those three months to learn. Take a course on how to launch a business online, get someone to mentor you, get a good framework first and then go ahead and launch your business idea. Ask the right questions The thing that ruins your business is being overconfident. Overconfidence kills your curiosity. It stops you from asking questions. And that's where you always get beaten. Asking the right questions is extremely important. Andrew’s takeaways You don’t know everything Often, we think that we know everything about our businesses and we get overconfident only to realize we know nothing. Be open to learn no matter how long you’ve been in business. If you’re feeling overconfident, then you’ve learned nothing. Slow down, maintain your cool Slow down, take it easy, because if you are a person with a lot of ideas, you want to go big and want to get there fast. But sometimes you've got to go slowly to be able to maintain your position at the top. It's no good to get there and not be able to hold that position relative to your competitors and satisfying your customers. Actionable advice Find somebody who is like you. Who likes doing things the way you do. So if you're hard-charging, have high energy, and want to go quickly, find someone who is like that. Then try to persuade that person by offering them some type of value and in return help mentor you into what to do. There are 1,000 ways to build the kind of business you want. You just don’t know what way is best for you. So find a person who will be able to tell you, here are all the ways you're going to screw it up and how not to keep screwing up because they've already gone through it all once. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Scott’s number one goal for the next 12 months is to work on how to create more sustainability with his mental, physical and spiritual well-being. He wants to build more habits that will prioritize him instead of his company. Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Scott Smith LinkedIn Facebook YouTube Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast Further reading mentioned Andrea Waltz (2008), Go for No! Yes is the Destination, No is How You Get There

Tristan Wright is the rock star Business Sherpa from down under. He is based in Melbourne, Australia and has a background in leadership coaching and applied business. He studied engineering and industrial design. He worked in that space for a couple of years but decided to start his own cycling clothing company, Seight, at the age of 24. Presently, his company, evolve to GROW gives business owners and entrepreneurs the tools and support they need to simplify their workload, grow their profits, and reclaim their time.   “At the end of the day, I'm not responsible for how they feel and disconnected myself from that outcome. So, I have my own goal plan and I know what I want to achieve. People can see that I'm driven with where I want to get and they can see that I'm congruent with what I want to achieve, and how my actions align with that.” Tristan Wright   Worst investment ever It is not always great to be at the top of the world At a very young age, Tristan Wright had already made a lot of money from his successful sportswear business. He started across Australia and ventured into different countries across the world. He was indeed feeling on top of the world for owning a seven-figure business at the age of 26. However, because of his initial success, he thought that he needed no one’s advice. He felt invincible and believed that if he has achieved something others could not, what was stopping him from doing more? Woke up with debt One day, Tristan was this successful businessman from Australia dominating the sportswear industry, the next day, he woke up with a quarter-million dollars of debt and a wife who told him that they were over. For six months, everything just went from bad to worse. The Australian dollar dropped against US dollar just at the time he was investing in growing his business. Mindset investment is equally important as monetary investment What Tristan means by mindset investment is investing in yourself before investing in others. Earlier, he thought that making other people happy, would make him happy as well. He was living a life according to what society wanted him to be and how they perceived him to be. He was so focused on making other people happy, putting up a show for them by looking nice and successful that he forgot his own goal plans. He disconnected himself from what truly made him happy. Yes, he was successful on the outside, but he felt empty and inauthentic inside which made him really unhappy. Personal development includes minding your own business When Tristan hit rock bottom, he realized that he had no one to turn to. Those people who he invested so much in were never there to support him. With that, he realized that he needed to put an end to the show and live his true self. He started investing in himself by following what his goal plans were. Little by little, he saw improvement in his personal life. He was able to recover from his losses, grew the business again and eventually sold it. Lessons learned Live your own goal plan Your goal plan should reflect who you are and not what others perceive you to be. What you want to do and not what others expect you to do. And how you want to achieve that without losing yourself in the process. Take ownership and responsibility for all your actions Anything that happens to you is the product of your own doing. If the results are great, then you only have yourself to be grateful to. If it’s not, then reflect and move forward. Work on yourself first To be able to be successful not just in business but in life as general, people need to continue to invest in themselves. If they want to go to the next level, they need to explore who they are as a person to be able to continue to move forward and grow. Surround yourself with people who are ahead of you It is important to surround yourself with people who you want to be surrounded with. To be able to learn, choose the people who are 2, 3, or 4 steps ahead of you. Andrew’s takeaways If you have a problem with that, that is your problem At the end of the day, you are not responsible for how other people feel and what outcome they want. You can be empathic and kind but there needs to be a clear line delineating you from other people’s problems. Authenticity is what attracts people People value authenticity more than expensive and false advertising. It is authenticity that builds your business. This is the tie that strengthens your relationship with your customers. Do what makes you happy It is not always too late to invest in personal development. No matter how successful you want to be, if you are not doing it for yourself, you will never be happy and satisfied. Actionable advice Start asking yourself if you are living your goal plan. If not, then it is time to do it now. You need to be able to have a clear direction on what you want to be, what you want to do and how you want to do it. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Tristan wants to get on the speaking circuit across Asia. He already started in Australia but wants to have an impact in the Asian market by sharing his story. Parting words   “Think what is possible and make possible your reality.” Tristan Wright   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Tristan Wright LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Podcast Website   Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast

Pete Matthew is a 21-year veteran financial planner, based in Penzance in the far southwest of the UK. In 2010, he began shooting a series of short videos explaining how money works in simple everyday language. This hobby became Meaningful Money, which is now UK’s biggest independent personal finance podcast with over 3 million downloads, a YouTube channel, a book deal and an online Academy teaching people how to beat debt and build wealth. Pete is also the Managing Director of Jackson's Wealth Management, which can trace its roots back nearly 100 years in Penzance. He’s married and has two daughters age 19 and 16. And a Jack Russell Terrier called Maisie.   “We should be intentional with our finances because nothing good happens by mistake. Anything good takes work and intention” Pete Matthew   Worst investment ever Zero financial training Pete grew up in a home where money was an absolute taboo subject. His parents, like many others of their time, didn’t know how to talk to him about money. So he grew up with zero financial training. And thus he never knew how to engage with money, well not until he met his fiancé. Learning how to manage personal finances with his tail between his legs Pete came to learn how to manage his finances in the most embarrassing way. One weekend, he was heading for a weekend getaway with his fiancé, and his brother and his wife. During the car ride, they were talking about paying for the weekend. Pete was filled with fear because he had zero money. He was worse than zero. He had overdrawn his overdraft. He had no choice but to admit to his fiancé that he had no money and there was no way that he would be able to pay for the weekend. The embarrassing part was that they were driving in her car that she had saved for because she had all the financial discipline that he didn't. Right there and then Pete had a life-defining moment where he thought he might lose his fiancé over this because how could she marry such a mess? He had student loans, but no degree to show for it and an overdraft with the bank. Fortunately, she stuck with him and she paid for the weekend, and he eventually paid her back. Money lessons from his fiancé His fiancé and that vulnerable moment taught him a great deal about how to manage personal finances as well as day-to-day expenditures. He realized that his worst investment ever was a complete lack of investment in his ability to cope with day-to-day finances. Lessons learned Don’t self-sabotage yourself When it comes to financial planning we are our own worst enemies. Many times we tell ourselves incredible lies that lead to self-sabotage. We tell ourselves that we can’t do anything about the financial mess we are in and we believe it. So instead of learning about personal finances, we continue being passive about it. Don’t let bills surprise you Practice automatic bills payment with a two account approach. It's very simple. You get paid into one account and process all your bills from that account every month through direct debit or standing order. This ensures that you never get surprised by a bill. Andrew’s takeaways Stop self-sabotaging yourself Most people hate finance, and that’s ok but, don’t keep saying that to yourself because if you do it will cause self-sabotage. Take a moment, stop and let that go. Find a way to start loving finance. Personal finance doesn't have to be complicated and overwhelming Learning about finances and managing your money can be very simple these days compared to a few years back. So go out and learn how to do it and start doing it. Actionable advice Educate yourself, learn about personal finances and don't accept ignorance. The financial services industry may make it look so complicated that you think you need an expert to train you. But take it from an expert, anybody can do it on their own. Personal financial planning comes down to three things. One, spend less than you earn. This is the bedrock of it all. Two, insure against disaster because there are some things you can't control. Three, invest wisely. It doesn't need to be complicated. So find a way that works for you and do it a step at a time. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Pete’s number one my goal for the next 12 months is to lose some weight. This has been a bit of a perennial goal for him but he now feels like he is in a good place for that. He intends to practice the same discipline he applies in his financial planning to achieve this goal. Parting words   “Stay strong, stay the course, it's worth it. Get other people involved, learn from others. Don't be a lone wolf.” Pete Matthew   Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class Women Building Wealth The Build Your Wealth Membership Group Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Pete Matthew LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Instagram YouTube Website Connect with Andrew Stotz astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast Further reading mentioned Pete Mathew (2018), The Meaningful Money Handbook: Everything you need to KNOW and everything you need to DO to secure your financial future