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Anyone talk investments with friends?

larryB
in Other Investing
My few pals generally discuss health and politics way more than money. Yesterday one of two best friends who has revealed he is 60/40 admitted he only checks his portfolio when the monthly statement is issued. Had no idea about recent market conditions. Other friend is very ill and in a care facility, he told me yesterday that he will run out of money in 2.5 years but had a plan to generate “ 10-12% return from his portfolio. He watches CNBC all day. I guess my point is that, unless one is a boglehead,,, we all invest in way that is uniquely personal.

Comments

  • DrVenture
    edited November 18
    I often get weird blank stares, if I bring up investing. Weird because most of my friends know/suspect that I am way more versed than they are. Maybe they think that I am bragging. I have been told, "I do not pay attention to that stuff, I have a FA".

    Then, I realize that I really do not want them acting (half-heartedly) on things that I might say, without proper monitoring and follow through.

    I do have one friend who I talk with about such things, but we have very different approaches.
  • mskursh
    IMO even bogleheads invest very different from each other surprisingly.

    Most of my friends don't care or pay attention to anything around investing or retirement.

    that said they know i pay attention and have asked me for information here or there. I have a few books that i recommend or lend out. most of the time even if they read them, it doesn't bring about much discussion. or we'll talk about it.

    whats funny is that I know pretty well about half a dozen financial advisors and even they don't like talking shop. The one friend who is largely a insurance salesperson moreso an advisor and I have pretty great conversations because he is genuinely curious and feels like he's been led astray somewhat by the industry he's in.

    The guys that taught me were older gentlemen. they loved talking this and its what got me to start paying attention.

    people want conversations around 10X'ing on some stock, nobody wants to talk about what trowe price, vanguard, or capital group is doing in the world of mutual funds and ETF's.

  • hank
    edited November 18
    A very good near life-long friend (since college days) got me interested in investing 40+ years ago. He was far ahead of me then. So I’m ever grateful. We much more enjoy talking about fishing, travel, sports when together. We don’t dwell on investing, though it occassionally comes up in a casual manner. I know him to be a more stable individual than myself. So he might make 6 changes a year in his positioning while I probably make that many in a month. Making generous use of Fidelity’s “baskets”, I currently have 30+ holdings - my friend fewer than 10. We don’t compare numbers, but I’d guess he’s done a lot better than me with a fraction of the time & effort.:)
  • larryB
    @hank. Don’t you think we put the time into this stuff for more than just the possibility of extra profit? I hate to say it’s for fun or pleasure,,,, but we enjoy it in some perverse way.
  • DrVenture
    Yes. I know people who gamble in the traditional way. I do not. Except in the stock market, where it is practically assured that I win in the long term. And I have the statements to prove it! lol
  • hank
    larryB said:

    @hank. Don’t you think we put the time into this stuff for more than just the possibility of extra profit? I hate to say it’s for fun or pleasure,,,, but we enjoy it in some perverse way.

    It’s either a game or an addiction. Perhaps both.
  • larryB
    @hank. Both. My other current addiction are Korean coffee sticks.
  • peak2climb
    I have a neighbor who is a generation ahead of me and who enjoys discussing investments and taxes. He and his wife, both in their 80s, still actively invest in dividend-paying stocks (oil, tech, and utilities) and do fairly well. One thing I find nutty about him is that he never wants to sell a profitable stock in his taxable portfolio, fearing huge capital gains. He wants to keep it until he and his wife pass, when the portfolio will be given to his children at a revised cost-basis, thus eliminating decades of CGs (and taxes).

    Hopefully, this strategy works out for his family. I rib him that they should enjoy his investment success and spend some it on themselves. But he is set in his way.
  • hank
    DrVenture said:

    Yes. I know people who gamble in the traditional way. I do not. Except in the stock market, where it is practically assured that I win in the long term. And I have the statements to prove it! lol

    I assure you your odds are better than they would be with DraftKings.
  • a2z

    as FIRE, the youngsters prefer my career advice to investment advice !
    when it comes to investments, they would rather hear\opine on what i have been doing, rather than what i would do in their situation (since that has previously been rather boring). its a good vent for what has stunk the most.
  • CrashCrash
    Ya, I'm babysitting $$$ for three others, now. The amount doesn't add up to much. But they didn't even have a clue about how to get in. I often "discuss" via email with one. He has the most at stake, still under $100k. But he is quick to confess that he un-learns it all as soon as we hang up the phone, and blames it on his ADHD. My son is afflicted with it, too. I dunno how such folks survive, but they DO.
  • Old_JoeOld_Joe
    @Crash- maybe follow up phone with an email covering the main points of your conversation? He could save those for future reference.
  • CrashCrash
    Old_Joe said:

    @Crash- maybe follow up phone with an email covering the main points of your conversation? He could save those for future reference.

    YES! EVENTUALLY, he'll get to them. Might be 3 weeks old, stale. Not much of an "Executive" brain function to work with, so focusing on something--- particularly something uninteresting to him--- is a challenge. (In fact, I just sent him highlights by email last night after watching the Gundlach thing which @hank put on the board.)
  • Old_JoeOld_Joe
    10-4... great minds think at least 70% of the time.
  • larryB
    @crash. I babysit our daughter’s portfolio. I have to remind myself that she is 34 and not 76. She is both a highly paid busy professional and profoundly disinterested. Makes my role very awkward.
  • Old_JoeOld_Joe
    You guys are hardly alone... Catch22 has been remarking on this for many years now.
  • Tarwheel
    None of my friends like to talk about investing. From the little that they’ve said, it seems that they all use financial advisors. I’ve got no problem with that, but find investing very interesting and would enjoy talking about it.
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