It’s that time of year. No, not the holidays. It’s the time that every analyst, economist, and strategist will declare their forecasts for 2023. These forecasts come from well-educated, intelligent individuals – with many years of experience. Some of the forecasts will be made with much confidence. No matter. You shouldn’t heed them.

Folly of Forecasts

Historically, the accuracy of financial expert predictions is less than 50%.1 Why is that? It’s not that the experts aren’t intelligent or have bad information. It’s because the markets and economies are unpredictable. They always have been. The proof lies in the fact that no one has ever been able to consistently predict future market or economic outcomes.

Last month two highly experienced, well-known, and respected economists provided forecasts along with compelling evidence and arguments to support their forecast. Want to know what they said? The complete opposite of each other! One predicted market fragility and more frequent and violent economic shocks.2 The other said the inflation surge is over and expects the market to rally in December and continue into next year.3 Contradictory financial forecasts are commonplace because no one knows exactly how things will play out, despite relying on the same information.

Appeasing Uncertainty

Even when we understand that markets are unpredictable, we still want to read what the experts have to say. This is because our brain, while consisting of a lot of gray matter, hates gray areas. Not knowing can sometimes be worse than receiving bad news because the brain doesn’t know what decision to make today for a better future tomorrow.

Uncertainty is an inherent element of the markets. Rather than pretend some financial guru knows what will happen, it is best to understand the limits of our knowledge – and that of others. We should spend our time and attention on those things that are knowable (investment truths) and investment situations we control.

Having a durable investment strategy is essential. When we have a good plan we don’t need to worry about what will happen in the short term. We can allow our plan to guide our thoughts, perceptions, and actions. Do we invest based on the market movement, headline, or prediction of the day? Or do we invest according to a plan that follows enduring investment principles and is customized to our personal situation? I recommend the latter.

1. CXO Advisory. Guru Grades
2. https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/top-economist-mohamed-el-erian-recession-global-economy-federal-reserve-2022-11
3. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/21/stocks-could-rally-as-much-as-20percent-in-2023-whartons-jeremy-siegel-says.html

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network

When stocks and bonds experience negative performance, as they have this year, many investors become interested in cash. Indeed, some will repeat the mantra, “cash is king.” This has certainly been the case this year as nominal yields have been increasing to levels we haven’t seen in years. But, as with any financial decision, it is important to understand the benefits and dangers of any change in strategy before we act.

The Benefits of Cash

The greatest benefit of cash comes when we view and utilize it for short-term needs such as paying monthly expenses, buying a car, or funding an upcoming vacation. Whether the cash is set aside in our checking account or an emergency savings account, it’s not about the yield but the accessibility and dependability of the US dollar.

An allocation to cash for upcoming (or unexpected) expenses reduces the risk of having to sell stocks or bonds that are down in value to pay your bills. Cash is of greatest benefit when it is used to pay for upcoming expenses, saved in an emergency fund for unexpected expenses, and as part of an investment strategy with stocks, bonds, and other investment assets.

The Dangers of Cash

The greatest dangers of cash are when we utilize it as an investment (or parking spot) within a long-term investment portfolio. While cash offers a positive nominal yield, it almost always produces a negative real return (interest rate less inflation rate). Due to its negative real return, cash is not a sustainable long-term investment strategy.

Some investors are tempted to use cash as a “parking spot” when experiencing losses in their investments. While moving to cash will remove the immediate risk of short-term loss, and likely provide instant emotional relief, it introduces significantly more risk to future returns. Since cash is not a sustainable long-term investment strategy, the investor must guess when to get back in.

Let’s say the market goes up 15% from the bottom. Is it now “safe” to get back in? What about 20%, or 30%? What if the market goes up, the investor re-enters the market, and it goes down again? Does the investor move back to cash? And at what point would the investor realize the train has left the station (bull market) and the investor is not on board?

You get the point. Going to cash in an investment portfolio provides temporary emotional relief and stops the short-term bleeding, but introduces significantly more risk as the investor has become a speculator – trying to figure out when to get back in and how long to stay.

_{©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network}

Last year we were told that inflation was transitory. This year we learn that it is more persistent. And now investors have entered a bear market. Investors may be wondering how transitory or persistent this bear market may be. I wish we knew, but those kinds of things are only known after the fact. But recalling historical events can help us put today’s circumstances in correct perspective.

Big Historical Events Were Transitory

The Great Depression was transitory. So was the Civil War and every war mankind has engaged in. The Great Financial Crisis was transitory. Basically, anything that happens in life, no matter how long it lasts, is transitory so long as it has an end…eventually.

The definition of transitory is “of brief duration, not persistent.” But therein lies the ambiguity. How long is brief? How we define “brief” is subjective. It is based on the individual, the time horizon, and the activity undertaken. Is 30 minutes brief? Not if you are holding your breath. What if you are an investor? 30 minutes shouldn’t even register.

Transitory Events Can Cause Permanent Damage

We may amuse ourselves debating how transitory the bear market will be, but what really matters is that a bear market can cause great damage regardless of how transitory it is.

Millions have died in “transitory” wars. Many people suffer throughout their lives due some “transitory” abuse they experienced. Many investors had to significantly adjust their lifestyle from the transitory Great Financial Crisis because they sold during a transitory bear market and made their loss permanent. 

Historically, the markets have never not recovered from a significant downturn. The adage, “this too shall pass” is embraced by some of the most successful investors. Investors that construct an investment portfolio in line with their situation, needs, goals, and risk preference may be able to better withstand the transitory bear markets.

How Do You Define Transitory?

Most investors have a long-term strategy and plan. But we may still be influenced to make financial decisions based on transitory headlines and market movements. One of the best things you can do during a difficult time in the market is ask yourself: Is this situation transitory? You will find that crises, while they may last a while, tend to be transitory as businesses and consumers adapt and adjust. Such perspective will help you stay the course during this bear market, and even be able to take advantage of others’ shortsightedness.

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network

A favorite (and costly) pastime of investors is to invest in assets that have recently done well. This happens in good times as investors seek better returns, and they happen in bad times as low-yielding investments such as cash are more attractive than money-losing stocks. In other words, investors chase returns.

By investing in what just did well, investors are systematically buying after they witness gains elsewhere and selling after their assets experience loss. Chasing returns can feel very good at the time but comes with a real financial cost. Dalbar, Inc. estimates that equity investors underperformed the S&P 500 by roughly 6% per year over the last 20 years¹ due to the timing of buying and selling.

Why We Chase Returns

There are two primary reasons it feels right to buy after we witness gains and sell after experiencing losses:

1. We are greatly influenced by what just happened. Whenever we try to project the future, our brains are significantly influenced by what just happened. Good outcomes today implies that things will be good going forward, and vice versa.

• This is exacerbated by the narrative of the day. Our brains love a good story. We seek information to understand. When the market goes up, the narrative is often positive, leading us to feel good about the future. When the market goes down, the narrative is almost always negative, reinforcing a negative outlook.

Normal, But Not Beneficial

It is completely normal to invest in things we expect to go up and avoid assets we expect will go down. In fact, any rational person would do that as part of their investment strategy. But the problem is that markets move quickly and often surprisingly. Narratives are wonderful and can be quite accurate in hindsight. They can even increase our confidence in a certain viewpoint, but narratives offer no predictive ability in future outcomes.

This is why we advise you to remain disciplined to your plan and stay the course. We recognize this is not easy; temptations abound that are pleasing to our mind and feelings. But that is why you have us. Together, we can be aware of common investment pitfalls and ensure that all investment decisions are well-thought and in line with your stated objectives.

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network

1. JP Morgan Guide to the Markets. July 2022 edition. Slide 63.

For centuries mankind has been searching for happiness. Regardless of culture, social status, or beliefs it seems that we are all connected by our desire to be happy. What makes someone happy and how much happiness we feel may be subjective. But there are a few fundamental principles that tend to detract and add to an individual’s happiness.

In difficult or uncertain financial times, it can be helpful to take a step back and assess what makes us happy and what doesn’t. The good news is that everything that leads to lasting happiness is in our control.

 What Doesn’t Bring Happiness

Money, power, and prestige don’t bring happiness. Yes, they can provide certain opportunities that people may value, but they can also cause misery. The evidence is all around us. Money, power, and prestige can have insatiable appetites. Rather than feeling satisfied and content, we may feel urges to pursue more of it. This hedonic treadmill continues as we amass more, while never becoming satisfied.

The incessant pursuit of “more” often brings about negative feelings and behavior such as selfishness, backbiting, and egotism. Those are not the fruits of someone who is happy. But those are the qualities we see among many of the rich, famous, and powerful.

Three Drivers of Lasting Happiness

1. Altruism/Selflessness. It is human nature to be selfish; us before them. Yet those that can rise above that instinct and sacrifice their own time, pleasure, and/or possessions for others find a huge return on investment. A return that is better than money.
2. Positivity. There is so much negativity out there. In the daily news and even in comedy. Many seek laughs by putting other people down. It may provide a moment of thrill or happiness, but it is fleeting. We can find more enduring happiness by talking well about others and choosing to see the good in other people, even those we disagree with.
3. Gratitude. People that demonstrate gratitude, especially for the little things, exude happiness. Gratitude helps us be less selfish, think highly of others, and keep our ego in check. Maybe we could say it’s the antithesis of unhappiness.

Our circumstances certainly play a role in how easy it is to feel happy, especially those moments when we experience a burst of intense happiness. But lasting happiness is more a function of how we think and act. While the world and markets may be uncertain and volatile, we can take comfort in knowing that much of our lasting happiness is within our control. 

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network

Memorial Day is a time of remembering, reflecting, and honoring those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms we enjoy today. The act of remembering often brings feelings of gratitude, love, and a desire to do good to others. It is positive and empowering.

While remembering can be very powerful with respect to certain holidays or important dates, such as anniversaries and birthdays, we don’t have to wait for a special day to unleash the power of remembering.

We can remember an individual, a circumstance, or any event in our life to get greater meaning and purpose from it. And, ironically enough, when we take time to remember and reflect on the past, we often develop better perspectives to tackle the future.

Remembering and Investing

As investors, we can also remember lessons we learned from the stock market and even through our own prior decisions. Every investor has made mistakes; the question is whether we remember those mistakes and have a plan to improve on it in the future.

For example, investors have a great ability to hold onto securities that have gone down in value. At least they can hold on to initial losses and/or for a certain period of time. But at some point, many investors get exhausted and impatient. They have a knack for selling near market bottoms. That is because it is darkest near the bottom and imagining any recovery may seem like nonsense. “This time is different” they say.

And perhaps one of the most important things to remember during a period of temporary losses, especially those that may be swift and severe, is how much you have made over the past five or ten years. Taking a longer view can help us put the current commotion in proper perspective.

And that is the power of remembering. Whether it is remembering where our freedoms came from, important people in our life, or how the markets work, remembering improves our perspective and, therefore, can improve our future decisions, in life or with respect to money.

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network

The ability to think clearly and draw correct conclusions is necessary in everyday life, especially when it comes to making important decisions. But thinking critically is not natural; it’s not the way our brains are hardwired. Instead, we are hardwired to follow the path of least resistance, which often results in hasty and suboptimal decisions. This is especially prevalent when uncertainty, anxiety, and emotions are high.

Assumptions: Necessary, But Unreliable

Because we seldom have full information, we must rely on assumptions to fill in the information gaps. These necessary, but often spurious assumptions can cause flaws in our thinking and judgement. If information seems plausible, especially if it is part of a good “story”, our brains will accept it as fact and move on.

As investors, we may assume that an “expert”, who has a lot of experience and is a frequent contributor on financial shows, knows what will happen and has our best interests at heart. We also unconsciously (and falsely) attribute one’s confidence with one’s ability to correctly predict the future. As much as we wish it were true, it’s not.

Even when we have full information, we still don’t know how others will respond – such as with the global shut down. Who would have thought the market would tread higher even as countries and economies shut down?

Critical Thinking is Critical for Investors

We are not born to be critical thinkers, just like we aren’t born to be great musicians. It takes effort, time, and practice. Critical thinking requires us to:

1. Seek all available information – not just the information at your fingertips
2. Play devil’s advocate – what if the opposite is true
3. Challenge pre-existing opinions/conclusions

Cognitively, critical thinking is hard; it is draining. Which is why our thinking often defaults to the path of least resistance. And this is why you have us. We will do the heavy lifting. Thinking critically about the economy, markets, and your options are essential to making wise decisions. It may not be natural nor easy to think critically, but together we can ensure your financial decisions are thoughtful and in line with your plan.

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network

Most investors would love to find the Holy Grail of investing – an investment that provides great returns with very little (or no) risk. Many investors consciously acknowledge that such an investment doesn’t exist. But we may still be attracted to that investment because of how badly we wish it would exist. And sometimes hope and desire, unconsciously, overrule logic and rationality.

A Recent Example

A few years ago, a mutual fund was created specifically for investors who were uncomfortable with volatility. The fund marketed itself as one that would “harness volatility” and “make volatility your asset.” It also claimed to be uncorrelated to traditional stocks and attempt to achieve both capital preservation and growth. Sounds like a real winner!

As you can imagine, money poured into this investment. It was marketed as the perfect investment for those concerned about volatility. It did well for a while, but just a single week of increased volatility blew the entire fund up. All the money was lost in less than one week! Ironically, volatility, the event the fund was going to “harness,” caused the fund to blow up.

Looking Forward

As investor concerns grow, we can expect that someone will create an investment product or strategy to “solve” the concern. Based on current headlines, we could see investments that claim to prosper during periods of inflation, stagflation, or “overextended” markets. No matter the concern of the day, we can reasonably assume the marketing will be very good – an emotional appeal to alleviate our concerns.

Our emotions and unconscious desires often inhibit skepticism and reasoning. Acting on emotions is the natural first response for many of us. It’s just the way we are hardwired. Thinking logically takes effort. That is why you have us. Together, we can ensure that your investment decisions are free from emotion, unconscious influences, and in line with your plan.

©2022 The Behavioral Finance Network. Used with permission.