2011Dec20 The Millennials!

Strategy:

From Systematic Relative Strength

Mike Moody; Senior Portfolio Manager, Dorsey Wright Money Management

It turns out that one of the best predictors of future success is the ability to manage "hot" emotional states and to learn self-control.  Stanford psychologist Walter Mischel concocted an experiment involving 4-year olds and marshmallows to test self-control back in the 1960s, and only understood its significance much later.  (The experiment has been repeated more recently by others.  Here, for example, is a video of Columbian psychologist Joachim de Posada replicating the results.  Watch only if your tolerance for adorable 4-year olds trying to resist a marshmallow is extremely high!)  As Jonah Lehrer writes in The New Yorker: 

For decades, psychologists have focused on raw intelligence as the most important variable when it comes to predicting success in life. Mischel argues that intelligence is largely at the mercy of self-control: even the smartest kids still need to do their homework.

This is very true in financial markets.  Temperament trumps brains when it comes to making money over the long run.  You can have a great plan, but if you do not have the discipline to execute it, the plan is useless.

News flow in financial markets-much of it alarming, since scary new always gets better ratings-gives investors a multitude of opportunities to behave badly.  The best strategy?  Distract yourself.

At the time, psychologists assumed that children's ability to wait depended on how badly they wanted the marshmallow. But it soon became obvious that every child craved the extra treat. What, then, determined self-control?

 Mischel's conclusion, based on hundreds of hours of observation, was that the crucial skill was the "strategic allocation of attention." Instead of getting obsessed with the marshmallow-the "hot stimulus"-the patient children distracted themselves by covering their eyes, pretending to play hide-and-seek underneath the desk, or singing songs from "Sesame Street." Their desire wasn't defeated-it was merely forgotten. "If you're thinking about the marshmallow and how delicious it is, then you're going to eat it," Mischel says. "The key is to avoid thinking about it in the first place."

According to Mischel, this view of will power also helps explain why the marshmallow task is such a powerfully predictive test. "If you can deal with hot emotions, then you can study for the S.A.T. instead of watching television," Mischel says. "And you can save more money for retirement. It's not just about marshmallows."

As Mr. Mischel points out, it's not just about marshmallows.  When clients ask me what to do in volatile markets, I only half-jokingly suggest that they read the sports pages.  Focusing on the business news is just going to make you more likely to react.  The more impulsive you are, the more likely you are to make a poor decision.

Self-control is very important when using return factors, none of which offer smooth sailing.  Whether you are implementing relative strength or deep value or whatever, the market is going to gyrate and test you-basically do everything possible to get you to abandon your plan.  A systematic, rules-based approach can be very helpful in this regard.  If you have chosen a successful long-term strategy, more than anything else, your results are going to be dictated by how well you can follow it over the long run.

Year End:

 Let's face it.. Most of us put off tax chores from time to time-not as chronically or recklessly as Congress, but often enough that it can end up costing us.  So as a service to the frazzled, here are 10 money saving moves that must be made before Dec. 31st.

BY DEC. 31:

1. Grab expiring tax breaks. 

2. Check the terms of your medical FSA.

3. Get charitable checks in the mail or donate online. 

4. Accelerate other deductions into 2011.

5. Harvest capital losses if you have them..

6. Make annual gifts to family and friends..

7. Contribute to a 529 state college savings plan.

8. If you're self-employed, set up a one-person 401(k).

9. If you're an employee, max out your 401(k).

Merry Christmas !!!