Portfolio Management: How and Why I Do What I Do
Mike’s Memo – Inaugural Edition
…Cue up to your Portfolio Management Maestro
The Orchestra Analogy
As your porfolio management maestro, my approach is to manage money at the Household level, not the Account level. This means that all of your accounts are reviewed as a whole, not separate parts. Using multiple resources available to me, I build a Portfolio for the Household, a tested blueprint which I refer to as the “Target Portfolio.” Staying disciplined to Target is constant; it works. I’ve spent years perfecting it. If a piece is underperforming, I replace it, still adhering to the Target.
Household Accounts Are The Orchestra Sections
A Household may have multiple Accounts, including Individual, Joint, IRA’s and Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans. The account values will vary. Those that are significantly higher may have more opportunities to take advantage of investment and dividend payout options.
Each Account has a function (e.g., first violin) to help along the Household. Using an orchestra as an analogy, every orchestra member has their part to play. They are not equal. That’s what makes great music!
Continuing that analogy, when attending the orchestra performance, you listen to the whole body of the work, and probably won’t even notice should there be one flat note in the brass section
Common-Sense, Steady, Long-Term Strategy
In the Portfolio Management world, don’t worry about whose account is doing what. You look at the whole Portfolio. If you focus on separate parts or a disappointing period, you will drive yourself insane!
The frustrating part of investing is that unlike the bank, we don’t lock in gains or losses. It’s a bumpy road. Always has been, always will be. Unfortunately, Advisors can’t take out all the bumps. However, we can diversify your Portfolio so that risk and volatility (speed bumps) are minimized.
The best friend an investor has is patience. Check your emotions at the door; they are the enemy of the investor. Trust in the system, as it has worked for many years for my clients. Should your trust waiver, call me!
Managing a Portfolio looks easy on the outside, but it takes a ton of research, communication, monitoring and tweaking to make it all come together.
So that’s how this Portfolio Maestro does it:
Making sure you have enough when you’ve had enough.
FACTOID!
The Market may swing from euphoria to misery, you need not share in these mood swings.
Cooking on my Big Boy Smoker!
Cheers,
Think of Mike‘s Memo as a conversation about topics and issues relevant to your portfolio and financial planning.
What’s on your mind that you would like me to address? And please share with friends and contacts.
