Posts by shelby@shelbyart.com

Given that it is one of the newer vehicles available to investors it probably shouldn’t be surprizing that it is one of the most misunderstood. To understand why the confusion exists one must go back to overzealous banks, their promotion of a vehicle aimed at the masses and some understanding of how this impacts their…

Principles over Predictions Navigating the 21 st Century They say the 4 most dangerous words in investing are “this time it’s different.”  Maybe it truly is although I’ve yet to find any evidence of that after 15 plus years of searching.  Most of what one requires to be financially self-sufficient is a combination of good…

A test.  Did you predict the price of crude oil would plunge below $50 U.S. or that the Canadian dollar would make you reconsider your next travel destination?   Don’t beat yourself up-the “experts” didn’t get it right either. In the business of securities the more you know the more trouble you can find yourself in…

We are all targets of scams and the most vulnerable are likely those least in a position to afford it.  Factor in the dramatic increase in new technologies and it’s easy to take an off-ramp towards the wrong part of town. Quantity-wise, most approaches are likely to come through a telephone or via your computer. …

In the movie Robocop, a left-for-dead police officer undergoes an experimental procedure that leaves him part man but mostly machine.  With his new-found armour he goes on to be a one man wrecking crew fighting evil.  Enter, “Roboadvisors,” a catchy description for those firms offering investment services at a distance. The target market is stated…

Ten years ago it was a pretty simple answer.  Yes, absolutely.  Today, probably-but it’s more complicated.   A changing tax code, the introduction of the Tax Free Savings Account and the insatiable appetite of Canadian’s to borrow means it may not be your first priority. That sage of the Canadian investment industry Stephen Jarislowsky caused a…

If you run a household you should have a budget.  To prepare a budget you need to know what your expenses are.  Retrieving, estimating and analyzing that information can be a fair bit of work. Paper billing is going the way of the Dodo bird so get used to the electronic transaction.  There are some…

As one year ends and another begins it allows time for reflection.  There are those things that we did well.  They often bring a smile.  The things we did not do so well or could have done better.  And of course, the things we wished we had done but didn’t.  The latter brings the most…

Each Christmas I try and select one meaningful message to share.  For those who haven’t seen the following, I hope you enjoy. A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty pickle jar and proceeded to…

One of the most memorable retirement campaigns of the late 80’s was Freedom 55.  Today, a handful of entrepreneurs, savers extraordinaire or those on the receiving end of a large inheritance might manage it.  However, for the vast majority this has been out-of-reach for some time. Why?  Contributing factors include longevity, the evolving workforce, the…