"Inside Bill's Brain"...that new Netflix doc

So I've been watching bits and blurbs of that new Netflix Documentary entitled
" Inside Bill's Brain" which is a biographical piece about Bill Gates.

One of the things which strikes me most, is how I am reminded once again, just how important to Bill Gates...is his desire to spend time alone reading. He speaks of it more than once in this new documentary.

That same desire to read and think.....preferably while alone....is something shared by
many great minds of our day. Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and other motivational speakers like
Robert Kiyosaki, speak at length, about how important it is to their own personal and professional/business growth to keep sourcing, and hunting down and devouring books.

It is much more than just a simple "success habit"....
It is much more than just another way to "expand one's mind".

Those who really want to make a difference with their lives are often somewhat obsessed with finding quality reading materials, whether that be books or quality magazines or newsletters pr blogs.

Where you get your information from is so very crucial. What you mentally consume, forms and influences your outlook on life......
What you read will fill you with hope, or with despair. It is your choice. Choose carefully..

What you read fills the void. Hunt down quality mental meat with which to fill your mental void.

Don't accept supermarket tabloids and scammy hastily written blogs. Don't fall for click bait.

Pray and hunt continuously for quality information from trustworthy sources. It may take years to develop the networks you need to be able to sniff out good advice and reliable reading materials. Covet them more than gold.

Peace,
Carla.


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He Said "Savers are Losers" ???

Yes, it was one of the days....I was reading one of my fave authors who also happens to really tick me off on a regular basis....But as I said in a previous blog post, I usually figure out I've found a great author when they peeve me.

So, let me keep it short and sweet. Robert Kiyosaki said in his book "Unfair Advantage"
that "Savers are losers"....and of course that irked me somewhat. So why would he say that?
Why would a habit that has been forged and tried and true for centuries now suddenly NOT make financial sense any more? Well, Robert's explanation of this state of affairs includes his summary of how money is not really money anymore.....it's actually just debt.  The U.S. dollar was taken off the gold standard in the 70's and ever since then, the governments have used a dozen different ways to excuse the practice of simply printing money out of thin air. All this money does not represent real wealth....rather it represents more debt.

Therefore, Robert made the bold statement that it doesn't actually make any financial sense to "save" money like how we used to stuff our mattresses with it.....because money is no longer real money anymore.

Then, lo and behold I came across an article in the Globe and Mail for Feb 21, 2015 written by John Heinzl  entitled "Who would buy a bond with a negative yield?" in which he explains that literally Robert was SOOOOOOOO right ! Right now there are government bonds being sold in the Eurozone countries of
Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Sweden with up to five year terms, that actually have a NEGATIVE YIELD!. Therefore, one who attempts to save their money with one of their government bonds would actually LOSE money and owe money to the institution that issued the bond!
Sounds outrageous doesn't it? Boy, Robert really saw that one coming! Apparently, John Heinzle writes, fears of deflation along with stagnant economic growth has forced the creation of these negative yeild bonds.
What is perhaps entirely more shocking is that people are still buying them!!!

Thank you Robert.....my irked response to your books, is well worth it....you've proved your point.

Carla

Choosing a MUST READ Author

Have you ever noticed that sometimes it's the authors that really tick you off, that you learn the most from?

I get that feeling every time I spent a good chunk of time reading Robert Kiyosaki's books. He has a lot to say about the state of the economy in North America, and what can fix or flaunt it's folly. He's not the most gentle teacher, but he really doesn't hold back in showing one what he has learned after
building several businesses, some successfully and some not so successfully. He's also taken a company public which gives him yet another perspective on investing. He gives you his uncut opinion on holding paper assets vs. real estate.

Robert's biggest kick is out of encouraging folks to get into business. However, I don't think he realized when he originally published "Rich Dad Poor Dad", that so many folks would take his advice quite literally and go and open businesses that they were completely unprepared to build and maintain. So many public speakers don't realize how much influence they ultimately hold over their audiences.....who might just actually DO precisely what they suggest.

Robert is a tried and true competitive business man. He shows, through a variety of educational books, and finance based board games, how we need to educate ourselves continuously to stay ahead of the game .

Do you have an author that has the same effect on you? Kinda totally gets under your skin and then afterward, when all is said and done, you realize he/she taught you more in a very short time frame than a hundred of the "other" authors who pretty things up and keep their books/speeches so nicey nice.

When push comes to shove, I 'd rather read an author who is NOT politically correct and tells his/her unedited truth than some writer who may be better educated, uber-polite and willing to flatter our egos just to sell more books. Who is an author, financial or otherwise, who really got your goat lately? What was the most powerful thing you learned?

Productively peaceful.
Carla





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Let's Chat About Mutual Funds

In Robert Kiyosaki's book entitled "Unfair Advantage--The Power of Financial Education", the author and some of his advisors discuss the pros and cons of buying/selling mutual funds versus other paper assets.

To be frank, Robert is pretty brutal in his analysis of the weaknesses inherent in owning mutual funds.

The common local Canadian-ish thinking in favor of mutual funds is, in essence somewhat patronizing because many folks invest in mutual funds simply because they don't trust themselves to pick their own stocks, bonds or other paper assets.
The idea behind giving your hard earned money into a mutual fund manager's control is because the investor "hopes"  that the fund manager understands the stock market better than the average Jane/Joe ........thus minimizing risk and hopefully steering your money into a nice blend of "safety and growth."

One alarming paragraph that I am going to quote directly from his book "Unfair Advantage--The Power of Financial Education" is from page 134, third paragraph from the bottom of the page:
"Today, there are more mutual-fund companies than there are publicly traded companies. This is how insane diversification has become."

That sentence above speaks volumes as to the state of affairs in the mutual fund industry. Perhaps it is EASIER to set up a mutual fund company than to set up an actual "profitable" publicly traded business. Or is it that mutual funds are just so much easier to SELL to the fearful and "ignorant" public than REAL products and services???

And yes, Robert, I do get the point. I do appreciate Robert's honesty. There is perhaps more potential in gains for those who control the mutual fund companies, than for those who actually invest in the mutual fund companies by purchasing mutual funds units. The fund managers are paid well through fees collected internally from within the fund and these fees are known as the "Management Expense Ratio" or "MER" for short. So even if the mutual fund, as a whole, loses money, the managers may still walk away with millions of dollars gleaned in fees.

Another frightening aspect which Robert's advisor Tom Wheelwright mentions in the same book at the top of page 130 , is that mutual funds are taxed twice. I am hoping this refers just to American investors, but I will have to do some more research as it applies to us Canadians. Robert says that mutual fund investors are taxed when they sell their mutual fund unit due to capital gains tax, BUT he also said that mutual fund investors are ALSO taxed whenever the fund managers generate capital gains within the fund even if it doesn't reflect in a price increase in the value of your mutual fund units. So, theoretically, Robert exclaims, it's possible to pay capital gains tax based on what your mutual fund manager decides to sell from within the fund, even if your actual mutual fund units have LOST value after the date you purchased them. I might also add, that we would also be taxed for any distributions that the mutual fund pays out to the owners.....so that would potentially be a third form of taxation. I wonder if there are any safeguards in that taxation dilemma?And again, just how does this apply to Canadian mutual funds??? 

It seems to me that fear and a lack of confidence play a big part in the investments many folks decide to ultimately choose. Robert is certainly right on this one point....namely that"ignorance is NOT bliss" when it comes to financial knowledge, and that the time and effort it takes to educate ourselves financially is time WELL SPENT.

If you are a financial guru, accountant, financial planner, or just like to pretend you're a financial/investment expert, I welcome your comments to my blog. Let's have a lively discussion on the good, bad and the ugly/pretty side of mutual funds....and Yes, you mutual fund managers are permitted to have your say too ")

Peaceful productivity.

Carla


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