This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday so I thought I would add my two bobs worth because I was so pissed of from the advice that was given to poor Anne which is guaranteed to lose here more money very very quickly !

Poor Anne who has already lost at least 40K in her super asks the bare fool investor for his advice on whether or not to sell her shares and cut her losses ? Guess what, all he could tell her was the losses sustained during the last few weeks of the global market collapse is better than losing it due to inflation over many years. Yeh right ! This bare fool investor dude has no idea about preservation of capital and/or risk management nor do many fund managers who just throw your hard earned money at the share market like it is a casino.

Any astute investor or trader would have set in place the proper risk management procedures and would have already exited the market with total losses not exceeding 2%-5% of total capital. After all why give years of prospective profits to someone else ?? But not one mention of this from the bare fool investor ! Instead he wants poor Anne to lose more money by keeping her exposed to the downside risk which he never told Anne to plan for !  Also not once have I ever heard the bare fool investor recommend to allocate part of a portfolio to physical precious metals which are doing very well during these tumultuous times !

This fool has made his pile of money from the books he has sold rather than the lame investment strategies in his book which only really work during a bull market run-up and when central banks are printing cheap money left right and center - and then only to lose the lot during a market correction or crash !

Let’s do the figures. He says he has sold over 1 million books and let’s say he makes between $1-2 per book for a book that sells for $29.95. You do the maths ! This is how to make money and not through his lame investment strategies which are guaranteed to lose money during adverse market conditions ! Everyone is a financial advisor during a bull market and free advice is worth exactly what you pay for it ! 
To me he is just another bull market shill taking advantage of peoples naivety  :(

Buy my book for $29.95 which is guranteed to lose you money !!

https://barefootinvestor.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/barefoot-book-doesn-work-for-us.jpg

Take his advice and you will be barefoot and homeless.

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16^th, 2020 at 3:22pm:

This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday

Don't forget that by last Saturday the market had already dived by about 20%. To sell up would have turned paper losses into real losses.

In a years time when the Coronavirus is behind us he may well turn out to be right.

The_Barnacle wrote on Mar 17^th, 2020 at 3:22pm:

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16th, 2020 at 3:22pm: This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday Don't forget that by last Saturday the market had already dived by about 20%. To sell up would have turned paper losses into real losses. In a years time when the Coronavirus is behind us he may well turn out to be right.

The point is she should have sold earlier and not later and realized those profits instead of giving years of prospective profits to somebody else. I bet you that is not in his million dollar book full of lame investment strategies ! Selling last week is still better than selling this week or the week after. It's a matter of preserving capital or what's left of it in this case which this doofus has no idea about. He likes throwing away other peoples money whilst profiting out of his stupid book and his only defense is inflationary losses. He should have stuck to using the "you're in it for the long run" excuse :(

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 17^th, 2020 at 4:17pm:

The_Barnacle wrote on Mar 17th, 2020 at 3:22pm: Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16th, 2020 at 3:22pm: This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday Don't forget that by last Saturday the market had already dived by about 20%. To sell up would have turned paper losses into real losses. In a years time when the Coronavirus is behind us he may well turn out to be right. The point is she should have sold earlier and not later and realized those profits instead of giving years of prospective profits to somebody else. I bet you that is not in his million dollar book full of lame investment strategies ! Selling last week is still better than selling this week or the week after. It's a matter of preserving capital or what's left of it in this case which this doofus has no idea about. He likes throwing away other peoples money whilst profiting out of his stupid book and his only defense is inflationary losses. He should have stuck to using the "you're in it for the long run" excuse :(

Well retrospective advice is pretty useless isn't it?  ;D

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16^th, 2020 at 3:22pm:

This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday so I thought I would add my two bobs worth because I was so pissed of from the advice that was given to poor Anne which is guaranteed to lose here more money very very quickly !

This is what Anne asked:

Subject: I’m Terrified!
Dear Scott,
I am in my late fifties and am terrified by the current coronavirus climate. I have my own super fund and it’s dropped $40,000 in the last fortnight, from $370,000 to $330,000. I know what you are going to say -- sit tight! -- but every fibre in my being is screaming ‘sell!’.
Anne




It's not clear from this whether she is already retired or not. There is a big difference.

Scott Pape's response:
Okay, so a few things you need to know before I answer Anne’s question:
I’ve changed her name.
And it’s a few weeks old, so her super would presumably be down much more than $40,000 by now.
Finally — and most importantly — I’m not going to be an investment jerk and just cut-and-paste some Warren Buffett quote about ‘focusing on the long term’ (from an 89-year-old, no less).
After all, it’s one thing to point to a chart … and totally next level to see $40,000 (and counting) disintegrate before your very eyes.
The fear people are feeling right now is real, and very raw.
So to Anne’s question:
Anne,
You’re facing some tough decisions, so I want you to take a few deep breaths and walk through them with me.
Make no mistake, the past three weeks have been emotionally harrowing, especially for older people.
The thing is, you’ve framed your question as ‘either/or’: either sell and stop the losses, or hang on and hope it gets better.
Yet it’s more complicated than that …
Let’s say you make your investment decisions like a mad shopper in Coles, hurtling down the aisle and hip-and-shouldering a five-year-old girl out of the way to claim that last pack of sweet-ass Sorbent.
In other words, you’re so panicked by the ‘global recession’ headlines that you sell your super investments and move all your money to the ‘safety’ of cash.
Job done, right?
Well, no.
Here’s what happens next:
By selling out, you’ve ‘locked in’ your losses — at a time where the share market is down 25% in three weeks.In other words, you’ll miss out on the massive upswings that history tells us occur, eventually, after every crash.
You’ll have effectively switched the compound interest machine to ‘off’.
But it gets worse ...The tax man will come knocking on your already wounded portfolio.
In other words, you’ll have to pay capital gains tax (CGT) of 10% if you hold your investments longer than 12 months, but 15% if held for less than 12 months.
And worse still ...
Your super will now be parked in cash, and it’ll therefore be guaranteed to lose you money each year.
Why?
Because prices rise faster than your money earns in interest (otherwise known as ‘inflation’).
Think of it as the financial equivalent of standing in quicksand: each year you sink a little lower.
Here’s you:
“Well at least I won’t be watching my money go down the toilet before my eyes!”
Here’s me:
“I completely understand where you’re coming from, and I’ve heard it all before.”
Specifically, back in 2009, in the depths of the GFC, I had retirees writing to me saying the exact same thing.
Quite a few of them sold their shares, deciding to wait till the coast was clear before they got back into the market.
You know what?
They’re STILL waiting for the coast to be clear …
And here’s the thing: I can tell you after 20 years of being in the investment game that the coast is never clear.
Truth be told, the thing that makes the stock market so scary is that you can’t control it ... as we’ve seen this week — it’s driven by the same people who hoard Sorbent and rice for a 14-day cleanse.
So, Anne, let’s instead focus on some things you can control:
One, make sure you’re in a low-cost fund with the right asset allocation for your age (if you’re unsure, it’s a good idea to sit down with a fee for service financial advisor and check).
Second, once you’ve done that, just STOP LOOKING AT YOUR SUPER. Granted, it sounds simple, but it works.
(It’s a bit like watching Married at First Sight — instead of getting all riled up at the antics of badly behaving bogans, just switch off the telly.)
Third, you can put your investment decisions on autopilot: you can actually take advantage of these market falls while you’re still working by automatically saving MORE money into your super while shares are cheaper (talk to your fund).
And finally, in the years before you’re about to retire, begin building up a cash buffer of around three years of living expenses (less any pension payments), so you can ride out any market bumps — like this one — without having to sell.
Anne, I can’t guarantee where the share market will be in a year or two. No one can. Yet what I can tell you is that the biggest risk you face is not the short-term movement of the share market — it’s having your super eaten away by inflation.
Don’t flush your retirement down the toilet!
Tread Your Own Path!

Frank wrote on Mar 20^th, 2020 at 5:43pm:

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16th, 2020 at 3:22pm: This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday so I thought I would add my two bobs worth because I was so pissed of from the advice that was given to poor Anne which is guaranteed to lose here more money very very quickly ! This is what Anne asked: Subject: I’m Terrified! Dear Scott, I am in my late fifties and am terrified by the current coronavirus climate. I have my own super fund and it’s dropped $40,000 in the last fortnight, from $370,000 to $330,000. I know what you are going to say -- sit tight! -- but every fibre in my being is screaming ‘sell!’. Anne It's not clear from this whether she is already retired or not. There is a big difference.

It doesn't matter whether she is retired or not - even worse if she is !! Why does the bare fool investor advocate losing years of prospective profits in a matter of weeks or days ?? How much more has she lost since I started this thread ?? ASX down another 7% today !!

Like I said buy my book for $29.95 and do what I say not what I do is this dudes real ulterior motive :(

Just heard another sorry case of someone who left their life savings in the hands of one of these bull market shills and has lost tens of millions since the end of last year !!

Anyone notice the bare fool investor was missing in action in last Saurday's Herald Sun ?? Funny about that !! Don't worry it will probably return when the market becomes bullish again in a few years time. These dudes are like crabs where they come in with the tide, dry up in the sun and die and then get swept back out into the ocean when the tide comes back in :D LOL

Buy my book for $29.95 and make me rich. Beats throwing pennies into a mojo bucket for the next 50 years :D LOL

https://406nlf3j5um32svbbx303q0p-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/barefoot-investor-mojo-account.jpg

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 23^rd, 2020 at 10:35am:

Frank wrote on Mar 20th, 2020 at 5:43pm: Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16th, 2020 at 3:22pm: This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday so I thought I would add my two bobs worth because I was so pissed of from the advice that was given to poor Anne which is guaranteed to lose here more money very very quickly ! This is what Anne asked: Subject: I’m Terrified! Dear Scott, I am in my late fifties and am terrified by the current coronavirus climate. I have my own super fund and it’s dropped $40,000 in the last fortnight, from $370,000 to $330,000. I know what you are going to say -- sit tight! -- but every fibre in my being is screaming ‘sell!’. Anne It's not clear from this whether she is already retired or not. There is a big difference. It doesn't matter whether she is retired or not - even worse if she is !! Why does the bare fool investor advocate losing years of prospective profits in a matter of weeks or days ?? How much more has she lost since I started this thread ?? ASX down another 7% today !! Like I said buy my book for $29.95 and do what I say not what I do is this dudes real ulterior motive :(

It does matter because if she is below the preservation age she can't access her super.  She can always choose her investment profile, whether retired or not. She can switch the lot to cash if she is completely in an accumulation fund. It will not generate any income but will only be depleted as the dollar goes down.  She can keep it invested and wait for the upswing. Will she miss the first few increases? yes.

It also matters whether some of your super is still in the Defined benefit scheme (only available if you are still working) which is completely shielded from the stock market. Luckily two thirds of mine is DB. The fluctuation would be confined to any Accumulated component in your super. My Accumulated component was invested in high return shares and the yield was over 20% last year. All that gain is now gone, value of that component is back to where it was this time last year. So in effect I lost only the gains of last year in the accumulated fund.
I have also stopped making additional contribution for now. All that was going into the accumulated component and down the gurgler. So that had to stop.

But everyone's situation is different. I do think Pape gives good advice but as with all advice, you have to consider your own circumstances.

Frank wrote on Mar 24^th, 2020 at 2:33pm:

Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 23rd, 2020 at 10:35am: Frank wrote on Mar 20th, 2020 at 5:43pm: Sir lastnail wrote on Mar 16th, 2020 at 3:22pm: This story I read about in the Herald Sun last Saturday so I thought I would add my two bobs worth because I was so pissed of from the advice that was given to poor Anne which is guaranteed to lose here more money very very quickly ! This is what Anne asked: Subject: I’m Terrified! Dear Scott, I am in my late fifties and am terrified by the current coronavirus climate. I have my own super fund and it’s dropped $40,000 in the last fortnight, from $370,000 to $330,000. I know what you are going to say -- sit tight! -- but every fibre in my being is screaming ‘sell!’. Anne It's not clear from this whether she is already retired or not. There is a big difference. It doesn't matter whether she is retired or not - even worse if she is !! Why does the bare fool investor advocate losing years of prospective profits in a matter of weeks or days ?? How much more has she lost since I started this thread ?? ASX down another 7% today !! Like I said buy my book for $29.95 and do what I say not what I do is this dudes real ulterior motive :( It does matter because if she is below the preservation age she can't access her super.  She can always choose her investment profile, whether retired or not. She can switch the lot to cash if she is completely in an accumulation fund. It will not generate any income but will only be depleted as the dollar goes down.  She can keep it invested and wait for the upswing. Will she miss the first few increases? yes. It also matters whether some of your super is still in the Defined benefit scheme (only available if you are still working) which is completely shielded from the stock market. Luckily two thirds of mine is DB. The fluctuation would be confined to any Accumulated component in your super. My Accumulated component was invested in high return shares and the yield was over 20% last year. All that gain is now gone, value of that component is back to where it was this time last year. So in effect I lost only the gains of last year in the accumulated fund. I have also stopped making additional contribution for now. All that was going into the accumulated component and down the gurgler. So that had to stop. But everyone's situation is different. I do think Pape gives good advice but as with all advice, you have to consider your own circumstances.

There in lies the rub. Their lame investment strategies designed to only work in a bull market ignores the downside risk when the market turns bearish. Why give years of prospective profits to somebody else and wait to do it all again when the market turns bullish ?? Seems to be the definition of insanity doing the same thing again and again and then expecting a different result ! Not only that, to add insult  to injury, these parasites who call themselves financial advisors are allowed to profit from impoverishing others just because ASIC issues them with a financial advisors license which is not worth the paper it is written on. If joe blow off the street doled out such bad advice the law would come down heavily on him but financial advisors do this everyday and get away with it :(

Have you ever wondered why the pollies don't use aussie super etc for their retirement funds instead they steal theirs directly from the tax payer. It's the only way they can get paid what they do when they leave politics :(