Dodging Bullets

We are all survivors. Think about it: From the day we were born until that very moment, we have been dodging both visible and invisible bullets, every single day. We know there are ways to avoid the most obvious bullets, though sometimes, the inevitable happens. You get hit. Like my wife who has been recently diagnosed with an early stage breast cancer. And it's one thing to be aware of the bullets, it's another thing to take one.
In the end, it's about addressing these flying bullets, prioritizing your time and most importantly, enjoying life.

Dodging Corrections

Of course, I can't help but draw a parallel with our investment approach which attempts to avoid downtrends while capturing uptrends. Were we hedged in January in case of aftershocks? Absolutely. Was it the right move? Yes, because although it didn't happen this time, we were prepared for the worst case scenario! But is it a bad thing that we have missed the rally? Not at all. Actually we should embrace all the trades, regardless of their outcomes. And yes, sometimes we get whipsawed. It's not the first time and it won't be the last time either.
It's important to remember that the golden rule of investing is not about riding every single rally. Nobody can, except Bernie. Instead, it's about recognizing risks and avoiding ruin. It's a survival game.

ETF Portfolios - Rebalancing

As the markets rallied since last December's sell-off, some of our ETF Portfolios will shift from lower-risk to higher-risk types of assets. After this rebalancing, our overall exposure will roughly be 50% fixed-income and the rest in REIT and historically more defensive equities.
Even though our returns do not match the massive January rally, they are still positive!

ETF Portfolios - Upgrades

The SPY4ALL portfolio will be retired and replaced by a new WorldEq portfolio, available both in CAD and USD. Why the change? Although SPY4ALL has performed pretty well since its inception, it covered the S&P500 only. WorldEq will not only cover the S&P500 but also other large equity indices such as developed and emerging markets. The difference with Global and Sectors? WorldEq deals with large equity indices only whereas Global and Sectors cover extra assets like commodities, REIT, bonds and US sectors.
All our portfolios will also be upgraded with a scale-in scale-out mechanism. The idea behind this add-on is to allow gradual exits/entries instead of an all-in all-out exits/entries.

Published Paper

My friends at AlphaArchitect were kind enough to publish my paper about the payday anomaly. Please have a look and let me know what you think!

Listen To Me!

You can hear me play the drums on this brand new album, available on iTunes and Spotify. I am in great company here.
Song #6, "Wanna Play", is my favourite. Hope it puts a smile on your face!

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