There is an excellent conversation detailed on the Farnam Street website between Shane Parrish and Adam Robinson about stupidity; in particular, why we make decisions that seemingly lack intelligence,common sense or both. I was particularly taken with the definition used for stupidity:
“Stupidity is overlooking or dismissing conspicuously crucial information.”
Simon Ramo, a scientist and statistician, wrote a fascinating little book that few people have bothered to read: Extraordinary Tennis Ordinary Players.
The book isn’t fascinating because I love tennis. I don’t. However, in the book Ramo identifies the crucial difference between the Winner’s Game and a Loser’s Game. Ramo believed that tennis could be subdivided into two games: the professionals and the rest of us.
The investment landscape has never appeared more complex and daunting. New financial products are regularly pushed at investors such as yourself. Usually by salesmen with no regard for your personal circumstance.
Is your will drawn up? Do you have a power of attorney?
Aside from ensuring your investments are right for you, your financial advisor should have a healthy interest in ensuring a few other things in your life are addressed. Ensuring you’re prepared and taking the appropriate steps to tie up loose ends if you can’t make decisions, or aren’t around to make decisions, will be a key step.
If you’ve ever played video games, you might be aware of cheat codes. If you haven’t played video games, the term refers to the ability to hit a sequence of buttons on a controller or numbers and characters on a keyboard which change the way a game can be played.
The cheat code may offer the ability to jump forward in the game to a later level, or give a player extra strength, stamina, invincibility or unlimited weapons and ammunition or just find hidden items that can be used to make the game easier. The type of cheat depends on the type of game being played.
