A New Year but Same Stories

February 2011, Business2Business

During the holiday period financial news is often hard to find so “new” stories are often reworked from previous publications.  You may have seen articles in various magazines or newspapers during the last month or so, which seem familiar to ones you read at the same time last year such as:

It's a Stock Picker's Market! This is guaranteed to appear in your local holiday edition. The story goes that the market has made its easy gains and now it's time to put your faith in people who wear out their shoe leather doing research on individual stocks.

New Year, New Portfolio, New You! This trades on our desire for reinvention as the calendar year turns. The idea is that you completely change your carefully considered investment strategy as if you were updating your cookbook. And funnily enough, you may find in these articles, "here's something we prepared earlier".

Different Times Demand Different Strategies! At a time of reflection, we're naturally receptive to stories that suggest the world has completely changed, the old rules (like diversification) no longer work and that we need to rethink our approach to investment. These articles are usually an extract from public relation handouts that offer an overnight solution.

Ten Events to Watch Out for this Year! These are the big surprises that no one foresees, except of course for the person writing the article. The predictions usually involve China, interest rates, trade wars, currency collapses and sovereign defaults; in other words, all the stuff the market is worrying about already. 

Don't Settle For Average! This tried and true pitch tells readers about this mysterious group of investors who beat the market year after year without taking on any additional risk. 

Take Charge of Your Wealth! So many of us are suckers for do-it-yourself stories where you don't need a financial advisor. All you need to do is buy yourself some trading software and a book about playing the currency market from your spare room. 

Ten Stocks for Every Cycle! We all love clothes that we can wear all year round and this story plays off that impulse. What if you could whittle your portfolio down to a handful of indestructible stocks and get rid of the rest? Great idea - why didn't anyone else think of it? It's so simple but it just won’t work.

These headlines are timeless and can be recycled year on year during the holiday period.  Readers are attracted to these headlines as the old year draws to a close and they begin to start thinking about their resolutions for the new year.

By all means read the articles, but there are no “quick wins” for a successful investment experience.  Building long-term wealth doesn’t need to be complex, it doesn’t involve picking stocks, making accurate forecast or using a crystal ball.  It’s about being disciplined, staying focused on your long-term strategic objectives and having a diversified portfolio based on risks that carry a reliable reward.  And of course getting good, sound financial advice!