When selecting a financial adviser, few distinctions are more important than whether that adviser is a fiduciary . A fiduciary is legally and ethically required to act solely in the client’s best interest . This obligation applies not only when advice is first given, but on an ongoing basis as circumstances, markets, and tax laws evolve. An important distinction Many large financial service providers—particularly those operating brokerage, bank, or insurance-based models— do

Investors often look to market fear as a signal—assuming that rising anxiety means trouble ahead and that falling anxiety means safety. The VIX index, commonly called the market’s “fear gauge,” is frequently used for this purpose. But history suggests a different and far more counterintuitive lesson: the size of market returns is strongly correlated with the level of fear , and some of the strongest positive returns have occurred when fear was at its highest . What the VIX ac

How a Handful of Trading Days Drive Long-Term Market Returns Investors often think of market returns as something that accumulates gradually—day after day, year after year. In reality, market returns are highly concentrated . Using daily U.S. Total Stock Market data, we can measure how much of each year’s performance came from just the five best trading days  of that year. The results are striking—and explain why staying invested during uncomfortable periods matters far more

Why Short-Term Data Misleads Long-Term Investors Investors often experience a frustrating paradox: Markets feel risky day to day Yet long-term outcomes are overwhelmingly positive Both statements are true. The confusion comes from misunderstanding how risk changes with time . Using daily U.S. Total Stock Market data, we can measure exactly how often investors lose money at different holding periods—and why short-term market data creates a distorted view of long-term risk. D

When markets fall sharply, many investors respond by stepping aside and waiting for “clarity” before getting back in. The instinct is understandable: losses feel real, uncertainty feels dangerous, and cash feels safe. But what does waiting actually cost? Using nearly a century of daily U.S. Total Stock Market data, we can quantify—precisely and historically—how much return investors have typically missed by sitting in cash after a market decline and delaying their re-entry. T

When investors think about market risk, they often focus on volatility or average returns. But those measures do not reflect how investing actually feels . The moments that test discipline are periods when markets fall and portfolios are below their prior highs. A more practical way to think about risk is through drawdowns . What is a drawdown? A drawdown measures how far the market falls from its most recent peak. If a portfolio reaches $100,000 and later drops to $85,000,

Stocks' return volatility declines significantly as the holding period lengthens even moderately

Investors with moderately-long holding periods should prefer a world in which stocks experience high, unpredictable short-term volatility

Questions you should ask investment advisors

Under quite reasonable assumptions, it is possible to be $250,000 wealthier if you reduce investment expenses

International exposure in a portfolio is crucial, yet many investors may have significantly less international exposure than they think

Portfolio management is the process of combining securities into a portfolio tailored to the investor’s unique financial circumstances

Make sure your investment portfolio is maximally diversified before volatility hits and then do not react when it does hit.

Yes. Investing internationally provides a significant benefit to almost every investor.

The major determinants of a retirement portfolio's future value are (1) asset allocation, (2) diversification, (3) contributions & (4) cost

The Efficient Market Hypothesis, which was awarded the Nobel Prize, implies investors should prefer index funds over actively-managed funds.

The difference between an independent RIA and major financial services providers such as TD Ameritrade, Fidelity, Wells Fargo & JP Morgan

We reduce taxes in a taxable trading account by applying tax loss-harvesting

Funds with high expense ratios rarely earn back their expenses.  This implies investors should hold low-cost index funds.

We build the best possible portfolio using Nobel Prize-winning methodology