Big Picture Investing
Investing means different things to different people. Ask a "value" investor and a "growth" investor about how they invest and you'll get different answers. If you were to ask me whether I'm a value or a growth investor, I'd have to come down on the value side.
But more and more I've been thinking that you need to understand "the big picture" to invest both successfully and safely - and investing safely is important to me.
With that in mind, I've been putting in even more than my customary time and effort into understanding the "big picture." And I think if you really want to see the big picture clearly, you need to study history and you need to develop your "geopolitical" chops.
I've always enjoyed history, but the "geopolitical" side takes some extra effort for me. The "Free Dictionary" online defines geopolitics as "The study of the relationship among politics and geography, demography, and economics, especially with respect to the foreign policy of a nation."
Okay, it sounds a bit complicated. Then again, I've always found that anything really worthwhile takes some effort - sometimes a lot of effort. Opera would be an example of something I find really worthwhile. It took me some amount of time and effort to learn to really appreciate this great art form. Of course, I have a background in music, so I had a bit of a head-start when I decided I wanted to dig deeper and learn to appreciate opera more. (And has it ever been worth the effort!)
Geopolitics, though, has been a bit more challenging. I suspect it would be for a lot of people today. Probably the hardest part for most people would be the "geography." I'm still shocked at how ignorant most of us are these days about the world's geography. Luckily, because I went to schools that expected you to know where, let's say, France was in relation to Belgium, the geography hasn't been all that tough for me. And with my interest in history and economics, it's really been a matter of learning how to put the parts together, rather than learning the individual parts.
Anyway, I'm becoming more and more convinced that you've really got to know your geopolitics these days if you want to invest successfully and safely. Of course, when you start learning more and more about the world, you find that a lot of it is a pretty scary place.
I'll be writing more on these sorts of subjects going forward.
Speaking of history, here's a piece I just published regarding America's big 235th birthday that we just celebrated this past July 4th. (You can get to it by clicking here.)
Among other things, it talks about why "liberty" should and will play an important role in our investing "big picture" going forward. Anyone who doesn't understand this won't be a successful investor in the long run. It's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to geopolitics, but I think it's good food for thought.
But more and more I've been thinking that you need to understand "the big picture" to invest both successfully and safely - and investing safely is important to me.
With that in mind, I've been putting in even more than my customary time and effort into understanding the "big picture." And I think if you really want to see the big picture clearly, you need to study history and you need to develop your "geopolitical" chops.
I've always enjoyed history, but the "geopolitical" side takes some extra effort for me. The "Free Dictionary" online defines geopolitics as "The study of the relationship among politics and geography, demography, and economics, especially with respect to the foreign policy of a nation."
Okay, it sounds a bit complicated. Then again, I've always found that anything really worthwhile takes some effort - sometimes a lot of effort. Opera would be an example of something I find really worthwhile. It took me some amount of time and effort to learn to really appreciate this great art form. Of course, I have a background in music, so I had a bit of a head-start when I decided I wanted to dig deeper and learn to appreciate opera more. (And has it ever been worth the effort!)
Geopolitics, though, has been a bit more challenging. I suspect it would be for a lot of people today. Probably the hardest part for most people would be the "geography." I'm still shocked at how ignorant most of us are these days about the world's geography. Luckily, because I went to schools that expected you to know where, let's say, France was in relation to Belgium, the geography hasn't been all that tough for me. And with my interest in history and economics, it's really been a matter of learning how to put the parts together, rather than learning the individual parts.
Anyway, I'm becoming more and more convinced that you've really got to know your geopolitics these days if you want to invest successfully and safely. Of course, when you start learning more and more about the world, you find that a lot of it is a pretty scary place.
I'll be writing more on these sorts of subjects going forward.
Speaking of history, here's a piece I just published regarding America's big 235th birthday that we just celebrated this past July 4th. (You can get to it by clicking here.)
Among other things, it talks about why "liberty" should and will play an important role in our investing "big picture" going forward. Anyone who doesn't understand this won't be a successful investor in the long run. It's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to geopolitics, but I think it's good food for thought.
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