Financial Thoughts for Young Couples

I had the pleasure of attending my cousin’s wedding yesterday afternoon and after the ceremony I started thinking about some of the financial considerations young couples face. Given that the majority of problems in a marriage ultimately stem from disagreements over money, I thought in today’s post it would be a good idea to touch on this subject. Please note, however, if as a newlywed you and your husband have just purchased a $10M apartment in New York, and you make comments like “I’m not fundamentally interested in making money,” please just close this internet browser now. Doing so will save you the confusion of many of the terms below like “work,” “mortgage,” and “embracing risk.” If you do not fall into the above category, good for you! The challenges facing a young couple are tremendously rewarding and if approached in the right manner will, I guarantee you, be some of your fondest memories in years to come.

Almost all the successful couples I’ve had the pleasure of working with over the years generally have many similarities; they have discussed their financial goals together, they have written these goals down, and they have acted on these goals. The REALLY successful couples have embraced risk. We’ll get back to the last point later, but I wanted to start with discussing, writing, and acting.

As a financial farmer, we know the value of discussing our plans aloud to provide our thoughts and also to hear what others might have to say. In a marriage, this is vital on the financial front because each spouse may have a different role in the relationship, different experience with money growing up, and drastically different goals than the other spouse. This is why going over expectations of income, housing, entertainment, lifestyle, etc. are so important. Talk all of it over and see what you’re each expecting.

Any couple, young or old, should be aware of the financial landscape, which segues nicely into writing down a summary of where you stand currently and also where you would like be down the road. Writing a goal down is very valuable, it sets in motion a whole chain of events. This financial snapshot should accurately capture as thoroughly as possible the complete situation; assets, liabilities, income, goals, etc. This experience usually isn’t done overnight, and it usually shouldn’t be done just once; financial planning in a relationship is an on-going element in your marriage.

The next, and critical step, is to act on your plan. If you want to buy a house immediately or in the next couple years, do your your research; understand the home buying process, understand financing, interest rates, and down payments. If you plan to rent an apartment and invest the difference, what type of monthly budget are you planning to use? When you’re a young married couple the runway is long and even minor advantages you implement early can have a meaningful impact on your net worth over time. The same, of course, can be said of mistakes. If you’re lacking in financial planning, talk with several financially successful older couples you respect and pick out what they did to succeed, and also if they’re willing to share, ask them about their financial failures.

As briefly mentioned above, this process of discussing, writing, and acting is not a stand-alone event; both of you need to be involved in laying the foundation of your future wealth.

One final note I’ll make today, and it is this; embrace risk. I’ve only seen lasting wealth created in a handful of ways, below are three of the most common that I’ve seen repeated often enough to make copious notes on the subject:

1. Steadily rising income that is squirreled away into a portfolio of investments that have the possibility of compounding exponentially, and rarely, if ever, touching them. Squirreling-away implies living below your means for a sustained period of time.

2. Being crafty, prudent, adventurous, careless, or whatever else in picking the RIGHT piece(s) of real estate at the RIGHT price (the money is made on the purchase, even if the sale is made decades away), at the RIGHT time. Buy the RIGHT real estate. When done correctly, real estate is the IDEAL (Income, Depreciation, Expense, Appreciation, and Leverage) investment vehicle.

3. Determined that a profession and real estate are both ridiculous, the entrepreneur chooses to spend every waking moment creating a (fill in the blank) company that does (fill in the blank) better than any other company. The success of that company then sustains everything else in life.

Now there’s a flip side to this coin, presented almost perfectly in a recent article I read titled “Failure to Launch” (hyperlinked) which bemoans the situation of the “New Lost Generation,” more often referred to as the Millennials.

Some generalized findings from the report: there are no good jobs, there are no good industries, there is a paradigm shift, and basically Millennials will probably earn less than their parents and work longer. And die younger. And listen to worse music. And not laugh as much.

So what? Life is a struggle. For each of these findings I can list ten advantages the Millennials have over previous generations. Here are a couple; it has rarely ever been easier to start your own business, interest rates are at historic lows, there are abundant entry-level jobs you can work to learn a trade, skill, or profession. Millennial computer skills far, far exceed the average of any other generation. Productivity in a creative environment is almost unrivaled. The list goes on and on.

So what am I trying to say? The field is fertile with opportunity, especially for young couples that have discussed their financial situation, written down their goals, and are taking effective actions to accomplish them. If you’re reading, you also probably have a pretty good understanding of one additional almost unquantifiable element, embracing risk. Go forth and do likewise!

The Business Cycle

"Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil and you're a thousand miles from the field."

-- Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1890-1969, 34th U.S. President

DJIA: 15,133.14   S&P 500: 1693.87   NASDAQ: 3815.02   OIL: $104.10   GOLD: $1,320.60  10-YR: 2.62%

I like Ike. In many ways, the agricultural cycle of planting, nurturing, and ultimately harvesting is similar to the business cycle. To readers who are unfamiliar with the business cycle, the premise is that our economic system is based on a boom and bust paradigm. This theory identifies the cyclicality of the economy in terms of growth, credit availability, profits, losses, booms, and busts.

Historically, the business cycle was facilitated by the primary function of credit; if there was ample credit to be had at a reasonable rates, then the economic conditions would generally improve or grow. When credit became too easy, the economy then entered a far faster growth spurt than could be sustained. This became known as the boom part of the cycle. Inevitably, and history is replete with numerous examples, this boom ultimately led to a bust. Credit availability tightens. Real asset prices fall. Typically when this "adjustment" occurs it is swift and extremely disruptive, a herd mentality prevails where every investor heads for the exits simultaneously.

In the the bust period, there are few bids on assets as the herd is trying to sell at any price. Farmers flush with cash need take note of this scenario. This is the proverbial "bust" period. I repeat, as the heard is trying to sell, often at any price, there are few bids on assets. A prudent financial farmer always has boring old cash handy, he knows full well purchasing during a bust may have exponential returns in the years and decades that follow. That last sentence is worth your time to read twice. Historically speaking, busts (those intense periods of rapid, unmitigated dumping of assets) are usually short-lived. And that makes sense, because intense periods of volatility in-and-of themselves are very unstable.

The boom and bust cycles are at constant odds with "the average" or mean, which is why the term "reversion to the mean" is so powerful. This average can apply to a host of scenarios, from real estate, stocks, and yes, of course, farming.

Investing like a farmer implies an understanding of both the above-mentioned business and agricultural cycles. The value of understanding, respecting, and acting on the cyclicality of events is vital. The reason why literally hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year on research is that investors are constantly seeking some foresight into what will happen next. Crystal ball or not, fortune-telling is big business. Although by no means perfect, understanding the cyclicality of events, the business seasons, is akin to having a trusty farmer's almanac handy.

With an appreciation for what might happen next, the financial farmer needs to act decisively. What to plant. How to plant it. Why to plant it. When to harvest it. A whole host of questions need to be answered, but they need to be determined far ahead of the actual planting. It is this very thought process that this blog will hopefully help you develop.

The Next Most Valuable Website on Earth?

What makes the most valuable website on Earth the most valuable website on Earth? (And which one of the over 650 million sites holds that distinction?) Currently, I think a strong case can be made for either the social networking one or the search one (you can probably guess who I have in mind!) But I think the NEXT big thing is going to be someone or some company that can integrate the complexity of health exchanges; and looking beyond that, a personalized roadmap of tailored DNA-specific medical coverage. 

Both of the two website examples above (social networking and search) are instantly recognizable by their functionality, yet both make their revenue on advertising. Interesting, yes? Which leads us to today’s blog thoughts, identifying the next big website.

Just because we Invest Like A Farmer doesn’t mean we don’t get off the financial farm once in a while and do a little surfing! In our quest to find promising seedlings to plan in our farm it has proven extremely profitable to pick some website-based companies, and also extremely painful to pick others. Why don’t I name names? Well, for one this blog is dedicated to looking at macro (large) investing principles and hoping to catch the swell before it builds and crests; rather than name names, I’d prefer to focus on the specific DNA that seems time and again to succeed. If you connect the dots you’ll soon see some very specific options emerge that follow the general template listed today.

This actually leads us to two discussions; the public company method of purchasing a piece of web property (i.e. you purchase publicly traded common stock in a major corporation whose major business is run through the website) and/or the alternative investment method of purchasing your own claim.

In regards to the latter, for those of you who missed the past two decades starting with the fixed monopoly of Network Solutions owning the sole right to register “.com”, “.net”, and “.org” to today’s widely dispersed method of registration (well somewhat widely, as a handful of registrars still control the bulk of website registration) this has been a proverbial "land rush."

A significant reason why you see so many neologisms is that many (some would say all) of the standard words are gone, registered long, long ago. So now you see three consonants in a row followed by five vowels, or some fashion of its anagram. All the boring, grammatically correct words are gone. Boring? We like boring don’t we? If you didn’t catch it the first time, here is Invest Like A Farmer’s first general guideline:

1. Boring is undervalued. Look for companies with established brands. If they are exclusive, finite, hard-to-get, vital, addictive, and/or monopolistic, so much the better.

Hmmm...substitute out “companies” for “words” and I think we have a match! An EXACT match, meaning having boring regular word domains can be lucrative, especially considering the relevance placed by the the search engines on word selection.

Will Rodgers once said in regards to land “they ain’t making any more of it.” Although, they (there are AT LEAST 10 organizations “administrating” the internet) are adding different extensions seemingly by the year, I argue that “.com” extension will always carry a premium and have intrinsic value simply because of their very foundation in the internet. Plus, in terms of uniqueness, there really is only one “.com” per word in existence.

What does this have anything at all to do with being a financial farmer? The financial farmer is always looking for potential investments to help compliment his or her equity holdings. And to me it seems prudent that a basket of common word “.com” domain names hooked up to some type of advertising platform might well produce a steadily increasing source of revenue as the both the underlying physical population and the corresponding population of internet users grows. That’s a bag of seeds most financial famers wouldn’t mind having!

But if we want to look at the MOST valuable website on earth, rather than an exact word match, it is vital to focus on utility and mass appeal. To become the most valuable website on earth you need both; utility and mass appeal. A simple recipe for success.

Look across the web and I think you’ll find the most successful websites fulfill a basic utility perfectly and offer mass appeal. Let me write that again, a basic utility is fulfilled (networking, a payment, search, a retail purchase) and it is done seamlessly which leads to mass appeal. When you use the site you never ask yourself why, it is apparent by the very fact you are there; from a mass appeal standpoint, the website does what its utility intended as perfectly as possible. There usually is tremendous vertical integration as well to fulfill the utility and mass appeal. Nothing is left to chance and nothing should interfere with the utility. Everyone loves a winner, and everyone loves a website that accomplishes what he or she wants effectively without any problems.

So we mentioned social networking earlier, there are a couple companies doing that right now. Let’s brainstorm for some others; retail, check; wholesale, check; medical, hmmm?

That’s where I think the greatest opportunity to create the next big thing is; health exchanges. Keep an eye out for early movers and also established companies as they might move to lock up the social utility of health exchanges. Going forward, however, I think the implications to medicine, specifically a DNA-based solution to health care, has real promise. Along with that comes infrastructure build-outs like bandwidth, processing power, security is a big concern, and the health care providers themselves from the HMOs, drug companies, device companies, and even the various payment processors. 

But enough about my speculation, what is important is the framework to predict where we’re going from where we are; a pragmatic farmer needs to keep an eye out on the world as well as the fields to determine where the various seeds of wealth can be purchased, at what price, and ultimately their true potential. Focusing on utility and mass appeal are great starting points.

Capital and Butterfly Effects

Lights out? It sure looks that way! Without an approved legislative proposal, the U.S. Government shut down today for the 18th time in history. While I’m actually fine with this situation, as long as the IRS is shut down first, what can be gleaned from this situation? All kidding aside, something very, very farmer-like; namely, without capital and self-discipline, little else matters.

It is also crucial to consider the potential butterfly effects this shutdown generates. Aptly pulled from chaos theory, these “butterflies” often result in unanticipated, and consequential, results. In the social pecking order, what is going to be shut down first? Why? And what repercussions may arise or opportunities present themselves? 

Let’s see what the coming days bring, because the reader who wishes to Invest Like A Farmer knows well enough that some of the most meaningful changes to his or her portfolio actually occur thousands of miles away from the farm; a speech, legal change, or regulatory movement can all have significant long-term impacts on your portfolio and underlying capital. Which by the way, is a very nice segue into talking about about the first thing any investor who wants to Invest Like A Farmer learns about; capital.

Chapter 1

Capital

“Capital is that part of wealth which is devoted to obtaining further wealth.”

--Alfred Marshall, English Economist, 1842-1924

Capital is capital, from whence it is obtained varies greatly.  Maybe you’ve inherited a large sum of money.  Perhaps you’ve worked your entire life putting aside money every month.  Or maybe you’re just starting out and wondering what to do when you DO make some money.

Capital in our discussion will refer to a very specific type of money.  Planting money.  Planting money is money in excess of your day-to-day living money.  Some people call it “disposable income” and that’s just what they use it as; but I see it for much, much more than that pejorative description.  I see it as seed money.  The proverbial seed money that hopefully you’ll be able to plant using some very farmer-like techniques to eventually harvest a much, much larger crop.  Throughout this discussion, let’s remember the definition of planting money.  It is money that is largely in excess of your day-to-day expenses.  It is not rent money.  Mortgage money.  Emergency savings.  Vacation funds.  My friend, it is none of those things.  Planting money is money that you are going to use for building wealth, and it might be tied up for some time.  Months, but more likely years.  Many years.

Take pause for a moment, and even reread the above paragraph.  A fundamental and truthful understanding of capital is of utmost importance.  Having the understanding also implies having the self-discipline to utilize capital correctly.  A breakdown in self-discipline can and will cause serious, even disastrous, effects on your investing farm.  This theme, of self-discipline, will run its course throughout this book and hopefully impart its value.  In regards to capital, self-discipline often dictates whether capital is increased or decreased, how it is used, and probably most importantly, how long you as an investor can withstand a downturn.  It has been said the markets can remain volatile far longer than an investor can remain liquid, and that is true.  And it is also precisely why the concept of capital, an understanding of its use, and associated constructs, are so important.  Self-discipline, consequently, is of utmost importance to the investor at all times.  At all times.

With a sacrosanct understanding of what capital is and its value to the investor, and possibly its holding period as well, let’s start thinking about what type of farm, or more specifically, what type of farmer you plan to be.  There are all sorts of considerations for the modern gentleman farmer; soil, seeds, knowledge of weather, farming methods, and a host of other concerns.  But this all can get pretty complicated.  Let’s go through a couple of these thoughts in the upcoming chapters step by step, row by fertile row.

That my fellow financial farmers is a brief description of capital; at least that’s how I define it. Hopefully this concept of capital can help you run your own financial farm efficiently and profitably.

Although the lasting economic effects from the previous 17 shutdowns have been dubbed "negligible" by the major media outlets, I wouldn’t be too sure that they have had “no” influence; a well-oiled and running tractor plows many acres on the field, while the idle machine accomplishes nothing but to till the smirks other farmers.  

The Case for Gold

The Case for Gold

The farmers I know, and this is coming from an avowed city slicker, are hearty, resolute, and self-reliant. As a financial farmer, I think we can all learn a lot from that temperament. I particularly wanted to focus on self-reliance today because all this talk of a government shutdown got me thinking; what if, on this the potential 18th time of a government shutdown since 1976, we didn’t reopen? Although I peg the possibility of a sustained government shutdown at 0%, just for a mental exercise, a la Lumosity, let’s play this out along a possible outcome.

Depending on the severity and length, I suspect there would be a gradual worsening of the overall societal situation. Initially, I think there would be little to no effect, a small crack in the social order. There even may be a short-term boost in productivity, but as more and more governmental organizations cease to function, in particular those that support infrastructure and the rule of law, I can’t help but believe our society is adversely impacted. That small initial crack now spiders. 

Many elements that we take for granted; from defense, social programs, and medical services begin to fracture. Over time, logistics like food supply, fuel, and delivery of basic services like water degrade. By definition of the law of supply and demand, the demand for these services remains constant or may even increase while the supply falls, making them more and more scare (and expensive in real dollar terms.) On a sliding scale, I would argue there would be a noticeable and sustained movement towards a “gold, ammunition, and canned goods” portfolio and away from one of equities, bonds, real estate, art, and paper currency. Gradually, then all of a sudden, portable wealth and power become more important. The last two elements of the “crisis portfolio,” namely ammunition and canned goods, I don’t know too much about to make educated comments. But gold on the other hand, I think I know enough to build a plausible theory of what could happen next.

If you haven’t had a chance yet to read the Crisis of 1837, please do. It is a very real example of what happened when our economy collapsed and the ensuing rush to obtain gold coins, then termed “specie,” occurred. Although over 175 years have passed, I think the game plan remains the same, as gold would replace paper currency for many transactions and “Pay at time of service” becomes the norm. Rather than the 1 oz. Gold Eagles we typically see for sale, I suspect smaller denominations like 1/10 oz. Gold Eagles become the most common unit of currency because they can purchase basically a portable amount of food, fuel, and basic supplies. The $5 face value U.S. Gold Eagle represent a value that is understandable and quick to trade on; and gold’s timeless value has been built on the simple fact that gold equals toil. Toil in mines, toil in processing, toil in manufacturing, toil in storage, and toil in safety; gold equals portable, almost impossible to replicate toil. 

The $5 face value 1/10 oz. U.S. Gold Eagle become the true “bit” coin; I find it hard to believe that our entire computer system will be functioning perfectly, that merchants will accept electronic money over physical gold. Bitcoins? I don’t think so. Diamonds? Possible, but too few people know how to adequately value them, and there is just too much value in some to purchase small quantities of necessities. Art? Maybe, but at what value and to whom? The end game is physical goods for physical goods. I think nothing captures that trade-off better than gold.

Could the U.S. Government close down for a week? Two weeks? A month? Maybe, but as mentioned above, I think there is a 0% chance of a sustained U.S. government shutdown in the foreseeable future. Too many indicators point to continued prosperity; from the housing recovery, decrease in unemployment, and most importantly the loose monetary policy.  In my view, the bullish case is just too strong. What we’re seeing now is political posturing at its worst, with U.S. citizens held captive to this Washington drama. Nonetheless, I think it behooves the financial farmer, indeed any investor, to think about a worse case scenario that may occur some time in the future. 

A prudent farmer has a grain silo and is rarely without capital in its many forms; I think $5 face value, 1/10th ounce U.S. Gold Eagles are a good choice. The closer you can obtain them to the true spot price of gold the better. They’re portable, useful in small bulk purchases, and challenging to replicate. They don’t rust and aren’t vulnerable electronic corruption. There’s a reason why gold has been so dear over thousands of years; new “currencies” may emerge, but until alchemy finds a way to turn lead to gold, it still has the best luster.

 

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A Tip of the Hat to Breaking Bad

A Tip of the Hat to Breaking Bad (and International Coffee Day!)

With our government on the verge of its 18th potential shutdown since 1976, I thought our time today would be better spent discussing something, anything, rather than the precarious position our political leaders have put this country in once again.

So with a tip of my hat to Breaking Bad, arguably the best drama series ever, I wanted to talk today about one of the greatest products ever successfully “farmed” out of the field; caffeine.

Invest Like A Farmer likes to take a unique approach to looking at macro-economic trends. What we often see, is that great wealth often comes from the soil. Let me repeat that, great wealth often comes from the soil. More than virtually anything else, land seems to drive the creation of wealth from farming, to manufacturing, to the location of educational hubs. But in the case of caffeine, many great empires (think of your leading coffee retailers and carbonated beverage manufacturers) have been built around what is commonly found in the coffee bean and kola nut; that’s right, the “cola” nut!

Take a look at the S&P 500 members and just make a mental note how many are really, in at least some form, caffeine delivery companies; like Walter White from Breaking Bad says, “I want to be in the empire business.” These companies, worth billions, are all in the empire business.

How does this relate to investing like a farmer? Almost perfectly in fact, as one of the core portfolio construction strategies of Invest Like A Farmer is security selection. Indeed, the very first general guideline is:

1. Boring is undervalued. Look for companies with established brands. If they are exclusive, finite, hard-to-get, vital, addictive, and/or monopolistic, so much the better.

While you’re enjoying a “FREE” cup of coffee today from one of the retailers participating in International Coffee Day, think about the process of wealth being created simply by harvesting beans and nuts; and specifically how transformative that process has been over the years on our collective appetites and ultimately society. Pretty powerful!

DJIA: 15,258.24   S&P 500: 1691.75   NASDAQ: 3781.59   OIL: $102.87   GOLD: $1,339.20  10-YR: 2.63%

Yikes! Well after a week of getting trounced in the markets over concerns over a possible government shutdown, it is always valuable to take a step back and look at the big picture. Continuing the theme of investing like a farmer, I wanted to provide some historical reference so today’s investor can take a meaningful look back at current events and put them into an accurate context (a financial farmer's almanac!)

For me, a lot of my investing experience has been influenced by Warren Buffet’s annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder letters, Edwin Lefevre’s “Reminiscences of a Stock Operator” chronicling the life of trading legend Jesse Lauriston Livermore, and finally the Crisis of 1837.

As Livermore famously said, “Nowhere does history indulge in repetitions so often or so uniformly as in Wall Street.” To that end, I think it is vital to read arguably the best account of the Crisis of 1837 by Edward M. Shepard. This literary gem reads like it could have been published just yesterday, but recounts events over 175 years ago. I think you'll find we could substitute out many of the names and dates of the Crisis of 1837 with nearly EVERY other crisis, panic, crash, or recession. The similarities are too numerous to be taken for granted. If you don't have time to read it all today, print it out and bring it with you to read over the coming week (consider it a homework assignment.)

The combination of the above influences, along with personal trading experience, has led me to form the Invest Like A Farmer theory. This theory is loosely based on a “Buy and Hold” concept, but I refer to it more as a “Buy and Grow” approach to investing in which an individual investor’s core portfolio is built along the following general guidelines:

1. Boring is undervalued. Look for companies with established brands. If they are exclusive, finite, hard-to-get, vital, addictive, and/or monopolistic, so much the better.

2. I prefer companies that pay me to own them. Specifically, I want to buy companies that pay quarterly dividends that have historically risen over time.

3. Of the four possible outcomes; high margin, high volume is best.

4. A steadily moving higher and higher left to right stock chart is a good thing. The inverse is not.

5. Inevitably, and by definition, more time is spent holding a losing position than is necessary. Don't be afraid to cut your losses; the financial farmer has a healthy understanding and respect for the risk of ruin.

In summary, I look for boring, dividend paying companies that have a high margin, high volume business with steadily increasing left to right stock charts. I’m not afraid to cut my losses early to help avoid the risk of ruin.

Don't let the word "boring" fool you; boring is the new "sexy" in terms of potential portfolio earnings power. Spectacular earning results come from "boring" companies all the time.  In regards to dividends, I'm a big believer in getting "paid out" on your investments on a consistent basis; this is a big part of investing like a farmer. These dividends are literally your crop yields and a large part over time of your total return.

High margin, high volume revenues typically translate into what a financial farmer is looking for; profits! The combination of these two elements is generally a healthy sign for your financial farm (portfolio.) The high margin and high volume company usually transforms its profits into a higher and higher left to right stock chart, which is an indication of both success and momentum. I'm a strong believer in historical chart growth and expansion, it visually helps us recognize success.

Finally, cutting, trimming, and slashing losses from a portfolio can be hard to do, especially if we have an emotional tie to the respective company; the financial farmer needs to value his or her farm, however, over any one particular crop. There is a reason for crop rotation and also for letting fields stay fallow on occasion. The guideline I typically like to use is a short-term drop of a pre-established percentage would trigger either an outright sale or partial reduction. There is nothing to say you can't buy back a position in the future; time, winds and weather are always changing. With that said, however, the financial farmer who indeed wants to Invest Like A Farmer has a healthy understanding and respect for the risk of ruin. The risk of ruin, simply defined, is the point of no return. It the point where your financial farm (portfolio) ceases to exist because it is bust. It is paramount to avoid the risk of ruin.

All of these themes are going to be discussed much further in the blog in the future, but I wanted to provide a general overview today to help the reader navigate further posts with the help of a little historical background and context of the Invest Like A Farmer theory.

I hope you've enjoyed today's post and that it helped add to your understanding of the Invest Like A Farmer theory that I espouse.

Enjoy your weekend!

DJIA: 15,328.30   NASDAQ: 3878.43   OIL: $103.03   GOLD: $1,323.60  10-YR: 2.64%

Welcome to my first blog post! I’m hoping this will be an effective medium to help share my thoughts and some of the insights I’ve picked up over the years investing personally and on behalf of clients.

Let’s lay the foundation today prior to providing any market commentary just yet. The first question is probably what exactly does “Invest Like A Farmer” mean? 

Investing like a farmer is more than just a methodology or a strategy; I believe it is a thought process that when enacted can make great things happen today, tomorrow, and well into the future.  At its core, investing like a farmer involves a thoughtful portfolio selection process, a pre-defined holding time, and an understanding of macroeconomics.  All of these factors come to bear for the financial farmer.

Over the course of the next couple weeks, months, and years I’ll delve deeper into this theory of investing.  I look forward to sharing my investment process with you and also systematically improving the format, content, and overall delivery experience with each successive post.