Why Investors Use Financial Planners

Do you have a financial planner? Does one ofyour friends have a financial planner? Maybe youtake your advice from your broker. As I havesaid countless times before a broker will makeyou broker. And a financial planner won't do anybetter. I know. You thought they would.

Let's look at the real reason investors chooseto take advice from these so called "experts".Once they get you into their office or sittingwith you at the dining room table or kitchentable you are doomed. Mr. F.P. has come preparedwith beautiful slick color brochures and willhave a presentation that will utterly confuse,bedazzle and befuddle. You will sit there and beafraid to ask a question because you know it isso dumb. You can't say 'no' or you will beadmitting how dumb you are. And he knows that.

It is not that he is a liar. (I hope.) It isthat all financial planners and brokers aretaught the Wall Street method of "making money".Unfortunately it doesn't work.

The basic things that have been pounded intotheir heads are false. Let's look at the bigthree: Do Research, Dollar Cost Average and Buyand Hold. There are others, but these you willhear from every broker and financial plannerbecause that is what the big brokerage companiesand mutual fund families want. They want yourmoney and they want to keep it even when thestocks or funds you own go down. In fact, buysome more.

Research is like blowing in the wind. You willbe inundated with green sheets, blue sheets, redsheets, slick full color glossies, videos, etc.,etc. Think about this. If you can obtain thisinformation then so can everyone else.Everything that is known about a particularstock is reflected in the last price.Morningstar will sell you a beautiful packageabout a company, but it is worthless. What youreally want to know is will it go up after I buyit?

Of course, if it goes down you will beencouraged to buy more to average out your priceso that when it heads up again you will make afortune. Yes, and pigs can fly.

If it does go down your advisor may say to holdon as the market always comes back. He doesn'ttell you it may take 20 years or that thecompany might go out of business. Buy and Holdis the greatest myth of Wall Street. No one evertells you to sell. Have you been told you don'thave a loss until you take it? Please!

You got that advisor because you have notadmitted to your self that you cannot pull thetrigger. When you have a stock or fund that isfalling you don't want to sell. You have to takecharge of your money. Just you.

When you look back at the performance of mostfinancial planners from 2000 to 2003 you knowyou can do a better job. Always ask to see whatthey did then. If they lost money you don't wantthem. Don't let them compare their performanceto the S&P500. That's smoke and mirrors.

You can do better. Just do it.

Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't BuyIt!" has helped thousands of people make moneyand keep their profits with his simple 2-stepmethod. Read the first chapter athttp://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Streetdoes not want you to know.

Copyright 2005