Wealth in Words

Warren Buffett and Bill Gates have referred to this individual as the smartest man they know. He may be best known for his book of witty remarks and sage advice called “Poor Charlie’s Almanac.” Of course, I am alluding to Charlie Munger. Munger is the long-time business partner of Warren Buffett . Together, this team has grown their conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway, into one of the world’s most respected businesses. Below are some observations from “Charlie Munger: The Complete Investor” that should help you in your own financial , professional  and entrepreneurial journey . Solve Hard Problems by Using a Checklist Munger is a proponent for using checklists  to get your most important tasks done. He states that “I’m a great believer in solving hard problems by using a checklist. You need to get all the likely and unlikely answers before you; otherwise it’s easy to miss something important.” Similarly, Buffett has said that “if you haven’t written it down, you ...

In the world of investing Blue Chips are known as large, financially established companies with generally attractive stock prospects. Think of iconic American brands like Disney, Walmart, General Electric, Intel, or Visa. In fact, all thirty of the constituents of the Dow Jones Industrial Average can be considered good examples of Blue Chips. Given the financial well-being of Blue Chip companies, they often pay a tasty dividend that can be just as pleasing to your portfolio as those corn tortilla Blue Chips are to your palette. All joking aside, since Blue Chips are well-established financially they generate excess cash that can be returned to shareholders in the form of a dividend. In some cases, the dividend payment and persistent growth in payouts is the best reason for owning one of these stocks. Furthermore, dividend-rich companies can be used as an alternative to comparable fixed income products in a low interest rate environment. In addition to the stream of divid...

According to the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), an economic recession is a period when a significant decline in economic activity spreads across the economy and can last from a few months to more than a year. Generally speaking, recessions are recurring economic phenomena which are characterized by a slow-down in economic activity. Recessions occur routinely, but unpredictably, due to the cyclical nature of the world economy. The duration of a recession can only be identified in hindsight, but the experience of living through one is easily identifiable. The most recent recession in 2008-2009 was also the most severe in many decades. Not surprisingly, the impact from this contraction is still being felt throughout the global economy. Common events that accompany a recession include layoffs, a declining stock market, slowing economic activity, falling consumer confidence, and an interest rate lowering cycle used by the Federal Reserve to artificially stimulate economi...