Investing is not as Hard as Some Think

 Hope, Success
Sep 132012
 

I’m a value oriented investor, or more specifically, a growth at a reasonable price investor. Pure value guys tend to look at really desperate companies that need a turn around, but I rarely buy those names. Investing is not as hard as some people think. Its about finding a value priced company when compared to the overall universe of publicly traded companies.

Here is a fantastic summation about value investing – 120 seconds well worth watching twice – because it says so much with so few words:

Invest in companies like Apple, companies that are priced at a discount to the market yet are growing faster than the market, and you will find that you will do very well over the next decades.

I.M. Optimism Man

A Good Speech

 Key Issues, Persuasive Speech, Wisdom
Sep 092012
 

I try to stay away from politics but this election seems more important than any in recent years. President Obama is not only heading in the wrong direction but he is spending so many billions than the government takes in. Four more years will likely produce a financial hangover that may persist for multiple decades. Entitlements are a runaway freight train – take a look at this essay but buckle your seat belt first!

I am tired of America’s penchant for electing unqualified guys without big business or large organizational experience to our highest office. It would have been really interesting if Perot would have won because there is no way it would have been the same-ole same-ole inside the Beltway. It is high time we elect a business man to office and see if practical problem solving can turn this trajectory around. President Obama and the Dems continue digging a deeper hole and I’m sure our preferred destination is the center of the earth or China. The Dems continue to produce policy after policy that punishes the business man and the entrepreneur, also known as the employer. They punish those who succeed and create more commerce and employment. We must not forget Calvin Coolidge’s spot-on observation that “the business of America is business.”  America is great when business is bustling.

Many political speeches put us to sleep but former Governor Mike Huckabee did a great job in summing up what the Republican prescription for the turnaround is: less regulations, less taxes, less welfare, more business, more employment, more personal freedom. If you have a few minutes, please watch and listen to his optimistic perspective from the GOP convention — it is short and to the point:

Lets make America great again!

I.M. Optimism Man

The Big Picture re: the Election

 Key Issues
Sep 062012
 

Rick Santelli knocks it out of the park with this very short rant outlining the key issue that we should pay attention to in the upcoming election:

If you remember Rick’s pies analogy, it is easier to see through the political shell games that look like this:

A shell game is designed to take your eyes off what matters, so it also looks like this:

 and

and

and

and

Lets keep our eye on the ball. Elect a president that will incent growth and investment in America. Growth happens through pro-business policy, not ever increasing taxation and wealth redistribution / entitlements.

I.M. Optimism Man

Play the Cards that You are Dealt

 Choice, Happiness, Hope, Inspire, Pale Ink, Wisdom
Sep 042012
 

Many people spend their lives wishing that they were dealt a different hand of cards to play. In doing so, they waste valuable time or even waste their entire life. You must play your hand in life’s game of poker, no matter if you hold a lowly pair of deuces, three kings, a full house, or nothing more than one ace.

This video is well worth watching. It runs a little over an hour. I promise you that it is an 76 minutes well spent. Randy Pausch might just change your life for the better.

After you have watched Randy’s lecture, I have a small challenge for you to think about.

Have you written a letter to your spouse and kids in case you get run over by an 18-wheeler on the way to the work today? Or recorded an audio file? Or taped a video? It is worth doing. Randy has left something truly great for his kids. And it has a side benefit — it might help you play the cards you have been dealt better too. Remember that pale ink helps you think clearly.

Rest in peace Randy.

I.M. Optimism Man