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My Worst Investment Ever January 2023

Ep645: Larry Swedroe – Beware of Idiosyncratic Risks

BIO: Larry Swedroe is head of financial and economic research at Buckingham Wealth Partners.

STORY: Larry chose to invest in an individual bank stock in the mid-80s instead of following his gut to invest in a portfolio of stocks. The bank’s President committed fraud, and the company went bankrupt. Larry lost about 80% of his investment.

LEARNING: Avoid idiosyncratic risks by hyper-diversifying your portfolio.

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ISMS 3: Will the US Have a Recession or a Soft Landing?

Never has the US gov’t caused such a massive move in GDP. The question is, “which way is GDP going?” Will we see a recession or a soft landing?

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Ep644: David Siegel – Don’t Reduce Climate Change to a Score

BIO: David Siegel is an entrepreneur who has started more than a dozen companies. He has written five books on technology and business, given more than 200 professional speeches worldwide, and was once a candidate to be the dean of Stanford business school.

STORY: David joins the podcast again, this time around discussing climate change.

LEARNING: It’s wrong to reduce climate change to a score. We need a better alternative to the UN’s Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) movement.

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Ep643: Maxwell Nee – Never Get Too Attached to an Investment

BIO: Maxwell Nee is the Managing Partner of OENO Wine & Whisky Investment. He’s a multi-award-winning entrepreneur making alternative investments in wine and whisky.

STORY: Maxwell bought an apartment in an off-plan contract and paid 45,000 Australian dollars as a downpayment. He was to pay the balance once the apartment was complete in about 36 months. Mid-project, he realized the deal was not worth it, so he pulled out of the contract and lost his downpayment.

LEARNING: Slow down and think about something before you commit. It’s okay to walk away from a bad investment.

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ISMS 2: The Man Behind the Most Successful Recession Indicator Questions It

In a recent LinkedIn post, Campbell Harvey outlined why his yield curve inversion theory, which has a perfect record of predicting recessions, may no longer work. He concludes that we may not get a recession in 2023.

He argues that the labor market is strong compared to the past two recessions. Unfilled jobs are still high, and skilled workers losing their jobs have shorter periods before getting a new job.

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Ep642: Cameron Herold – Unleash the Power of Your COO

BIO: Cameron Herold is the mastermind behind hundreds of companies’ exponential growth and has earned his reputation as the business growth guru.

STORY: Cameron is back on the Podcast with tidbits from his upcoming book, The Second in Command: How to Unleash the Power of Your COO.

LEARNING: A working relationship between a CEO and a COO can grow a company exponentially. Make your company culture conducive to retain your employees.

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Ep641: Kim Scott – Don’t Always Accept Funding Just Because It’s Been Offered

BIO: Kim Scott is the author of Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity and Just Work: How to Root Out Bias, Prejudice, and Bullying to Build a Kick-ass Culture of Inclusivity, and she is a co-founder of the company, Radical Candor.

STORY: Kim got an idea and $2 million from a friend to build an app for her company Radical Candor. What Kim didn’t realize was that the app was doing the exact opposite of what Radical Candor aimed to do.

LEARNING: Just because somebody offers you money doesn’t mean you should take it. Don’t throw good money after bad. Don’t grow for growth’s sake.

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ISMS 1: The United States Won WW2.5, but Who Lost?

WW2.5 is what I like to call “The US against who?” You may say China or Russia. In my opinion, those are both wrong. It’s the US against Europe. And the US just won. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has encouraged US dominance over Europe. Let’s take a deeper look at this dominance.

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Ep640: Peter Johnson – Pick the Right People to Work With

BIO: Peter W. Johnson, Jr. is the founder and principal of PWJohnson Wealth & Legacy, LLC, a fee-only Registered Investment Advisory firm based in Silicon Valley, California.

STORY: Peter invested in two business ideas that came too early for their time. Both businesses had minimal uptake because people didn’t understand what Peter was trying to do.

LEARNING:  Never invest all of your money in risky things; always stay diversified. Pick the right people to work with. A great idea is not the only thing you need to succeed.

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Ep639: Morad Fiki – Don’t Partner With Someone Who Has Nothing to Lose

BIO: Morad Fiki is a former U.S. Naval Officer and #1 Real Estate Expert on Social Media in Texas. He has been awarded Top 1.4% Real Estate Agents In the United States through Real Trends and has over 100 Million dollars in Career Sales.

STORY: Morad got into the restaurant business without prior due diligence causing him to buy a non-profitable business. In addition to that, he got into a partnership where he was the sole financier.

LEARNING: Don’t go into business with someone who has nothing to lose. Do your research.

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DISCLAIMER: This content is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Readers should not consider statements made by the author(s) as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. While the information provided is believed to be accurate, it may include errors or inaccuracies. The author(s) cannot be held liable for any actions taken as a result of reading this article.