036: Do We Really Need Stock Market Predictions

In most industries, you can generally rely on a legitimate professional’s opinion for guidance. But the investment industry — or more specifically, the investment PREDICTION industry — is an altogether different animal. That seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it? It sure feels like that trade would be filled with legitimate pros whose advice you could literally take to the bank. After all, we’re inundated with supposed experts each day on television, in podcasts, and in the newspapers, providing their takes on the financial road just ahead.

They must know something we don’t and are standing by, ready to alert us to the dangers — or financial renaissance — that may be just around the corner, right? Wrong!

Financial media is a BUSINESS. Those personalities on business-centric outlets like MSNBC or the Wall Street Journal aren’t plying their trade out of benevolence or a sense of service. They’re on the air to generate ratings — ratings that translate into advertising dollars.

There’s just one problem, and it’s a big one. These financial pundits are wrong much more often than you might think. In fact, there’s really no reliable evidence that anyone — regardless of their experience or education — can effectively predict the short-term direction of the stock markets. And, if you hitch your investment wagon to these predictions, it can do some serious harm to your financial future.

That sounds a little disconcerting, but it’s true. Want proof? We’ve got it in the newest episode of A Place of Possibility™.

We’ll be talking about:

• How the investment prediction industry uses sensationalistic headlines, accompanied by evocative imagery, to prey upon your intrinsic human need to want to avoid pain.
• One particular financial pundit — a household name — who is usually so off the mark with his predictions that evidence suggests you’d be better served doing the exact opposite of his recommendations.
• An ever-present faction of the investment prediction industry that’s always ready to stoke fear in our hearts and how they do it.
• The real key to successful investing that will prepare you for those tumultuous events that will always crop up to disrupt the financial markets in the short term.

And more!

We know, we know! It’s hard to turn off the tv and put the remote down, but we promise that once you do, your financial and mental health will be much better off! And if you know someone else who may be struggling with turning off the financial white noise, please share this episode with them.