AI

Overhead shot of runners on a clay track

Being a Financial Athlete: Applying an Olympic Mindset to Help Reach Your Financial Goals

The Olympic Games gathers attention from around the world and billions of eyes turn their attention to one stage where the top athletes compete for the title of being the best. These athletes are committed to improving every part of themselves and their routine to ensure victory. But not everyone can be the greatest athlete of all time, some of us just need to find a way to save for the next vacation or pay off student loans. Many people feel anxiety about their financial situation but there might be something to learn from these athletes who rise to the top. Their mindset shapes how they live and compete. They have clear goals, are disciplined in their approach, are open to learning, are ready to overcome setbacks, and know how to reward themselves for victory. Just as Olympians train for years to compete at the highest level, you too must prepare and make a holistic plan with the hope of achieving financial success because each pillar of an athlete’s mindset can also be applied to your financial strategy.  

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pink rotary telephone

3 Financial Scams to Watch Out for in 2024: AI, Grandparents, and Romance Scams 

Have you been receiving phone calls from numbers you don’t recognize? Has your email inbox been filling up with scams? As a college student with an active life in my community, I am constantly being bombarded by scammers every day. These scams are disguised through false marketing campaigns, illegitimate school or work emails, or some other entity that is personalized to me, such as my doctor’s office or friends and family.

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Dove and Hawk with fed building and chart of interest rate increases

The Fed and Interest Rates: A Tale of Two Birds

Is it the best of times or the worst of times in the economy? It seems to depend on what data you review. On the negative side of the scale, the Conference Board’s Leading Economic Index is deeply negative, and the US Treasury yield curve is deeply inverted. We have not seen such stark indicators without a resulting recession in the last 50 years. On the other side of the scale, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices are up double digits year-to-date while the unemployment rate is still historically low and inflation, as measured by the year-over-year Consumer Price Index (CPI), is falling and has been for a year since peaking in June 2022. In fact, due to falling inflation, the year-over-year measure of US real (inflation-adjusted) average hourly earnings is positive after two years in the negative. Is it possible that the negative indicators are wrong this time?

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AI Investing

Let’s Talk About AI 

So just what is going on with new developments in AI and how should we be thinking about it?  This is a sprawling subject, and I am not an expert in artificial intelligence.  My apologies in advance to any AI engineers who disagree with my understanding of the subject.  By no means do I expect to cover everything in this newsletter, but today I would like to discuss what AI is, what the new developments are, and give some perspective on how investors might think about AI.  Let’s dig in. 

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