Investing is starting to get boring

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InvestorNewb
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Investing is starting to get boring

Post by InvestorNewb »

I get a little excited when dividends are paid out in cash, but I am now starting to get bored of investing. It was fun in the beginning asking questions, dreaming about the future, and exploring/proposing different plans - even though some of them were unorthodox.

How does one keep the passion alive for investing? OR is investing in index funds supposed to be boring.
My Portfolio: VTI [US], VXUS [Int'l], VNQ [REIT], VCN [Canada] (largest to smallest)
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kellyfj
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by kellyfj »

I guess in the end - the Boglehead way is boring - simple and it works - but it can be boring. But who cares if it gives you power and some sense of control over your life and your future.

I always try to add zest by finding ways to cut costs so I can save more for college or prepay the mortgage.
If you can find ways to make it a "game" for yourself that's good.

If that's not good enough - wait a few years - the market will tank and you'll have all the excitement you want! :-)

Alternatively watch "The Walking Dead" and figure out if investing really is saving for the future or are we just biding time before some apocalypse :-)

-Frank
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Twins Fan »

Sounds like you're doing it correctly then.
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JDaniels
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by JDaniels »

Congratulations! You're right where you should be. Now set your investments on auto pilot and go spend your time on something you enjoy.
"The poor long for riches. The rich long for heaven. But the wise desire tranquility."
sscritic
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by sscritic »

InvestorNewb wrote: How does one keep the passion alive for investing?
Answer investing questions on this board. It's not investing per se, but it keeps you involved.
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by RadAudit »

Paul Samuelson: Investing should be more like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. If you want excitement, take $800 and go to Las Vegas.
Looks as if you might be on the right track.
FI is the best revenge. LBYM. Invest the rest. Stay the course. Die anyway. - PS: The cavalry isn't coming, kids. You are on your own.
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bottlecap
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by bottlecap »

It should be boring. If we all dreamt about our portfolios all day for the rest of our lives, we'd be less inclined to work and/or follow our other passions.

JT
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DaleMaley
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by DaleMaley »

It did not really click in my brain, until I read something written by William Bernstein, there is not that much to investing, compared to other fields like engineering, computer science, or medicine.

After reading over 200 books on investing and writing 50+ short stories on investing, I have come to conclude that Bernstein is right.

The major findings or theories that are of significance in investing form a pretty short list:

-You must live below your means in order to have money to invest and grow your wealth.
-Most of the return from investing comes from asset allocation, not market timing.
-Staying-the-course will improve the odds of growing wealth versus trying to time the market.
-Low cost index funds (pioneered by Jack Bogle) offer the best probability of growing your investments.
-The long-term withdrawal rate from a retirement portfolio is more like 4% versus the 10% return of the stock market.
-Annual re-balancing forces you to sell high and buy low.......versus human tendency to follow-the-herd.

Once you implement these basic theories, you can quit worrying about investing and enjoy life :D
Most investors, both institutional and individual, will find that the best way to own common stocks is through an index fund that charges minimal fees. – Warren Buffett
sambb
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by sambb »

when we have a large market decline, I may look fondly on the more boring years of long bull markets.
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vitaflo
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by vitaflo »

Looks like it's time to change your username InvestorNewb. :D
bondsr4me
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by bondsr4me »

InvestorNewb wrote:I get a little excited when dividends are paid out in cash, but I am now starting to get bored of investing. It was fun in the beginning asking questions, dreaming about the future, and exploring/proposing different plans - even though some of them were unorthodox.

How does one keep the passion alive for investing? OR is investing in index funds supposed to be boring.
I don't get bored because I stay actively involved with investing. I really enjoy reading the WSJ and Investors Business Daily.
It is something I really enjoy, almost a hobby, works well for me. Set it and forget it is not my style, although it seems to suit others, and that's OK. Everyone has an investing personality/profile. You just need to find yours. Don't try to compare yourself to others, just be yourself.
Wishing much success and Happy Investing,
Don
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by nisiprius »

InvestorNewb wrote:I get a little excited when dividends are paid out in cash, but I am now starting to get bored of investing. It was fun in the beginning asking questions, dreaming about the future, and exploring/proposing different plans - even though some of them were unorthodox.

How does one keep the passion alive for investing? OR is investing in index funds supposed to be boring.
It is my opinion that investing should be boring and that "passion" is the last thing you need to have. If you actually intend to pursue a career in the investing industry, perhaps it is good to be passionate. But, in your own investing, why do you see "passion" as a Good Thing?

It was a little exciting when I switched from a 2-blade razor to a 3-blade razor, but now I am starting to get bored with shaving. How do I keep my passion for shaving alive? Answer: I don't. For me, shaving is a chore, not a hobby.
Last edited by nisiprius on Sun Jul 13, 2014 1:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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pennstater2005
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by pennstater2005 »

Instead of asking questions now you may be able to answer some of them :happy
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by DSInvestor »

pennstater2005 wrote:Instead of asking questions now you may be able to answer some of them :happy
Yep, you may find that you'll learn even more when you start answering questions. There's always more to learn.
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Call_Me_Op »

If you're like me, the learning process never ends. But excitement should be found elsewhere.
Best regards, -Op | | "In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." Einstein
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Leif
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Leif »

Good.
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by sleepysurf »

IMHO, the older you get, the more you'll appreciate "boring!"

That applies to lots of other stuff in life, too!
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John3754
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by John3754 »

You've mentioned here that your portfolio is 100% stock, so rest assured that eventually things will indeed get "exciting" for you, nobody knows when though.
placeholder
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by placeholder »

For the most part my portfolio is pretty automatic so I update it about once a month and see if the built in rules tell me to do anything (usually not except perhaps cash in the accounts to invest to plan) although at intervals I investigate bonus chasing opportunities.
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Toons
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Toons »

Upon reading the title of you post ,2 quick lines I heard decades ago came to mind

1.Investing in Index funds is like watching paint dry. :happy
2.For excitement go to the amusement park or Vegas :happy
"One does not accumulate but eliminate. It is not daily increase but daily decrease. The height of cultivation always runs to simplicity" –Bruce Lee
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GerryL
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by GerryL »

Although there are a lot of people in the media who are paid big bucks to get you excited about investments, emotion (e.g., passion) + investing is a bad mix. Boring is good. Don't just do something; stand there.
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Toons »

The "exciting" part,if you want to call it that ,arrives decades later when that mutual fund you have been steadfastly investing and reinvesting in along the way consistently for all those years can put you in a financial place where you can choose to do with YOUR time what you want to do. :happy
"One does not accumulate but eliminate. It is not daily increase but daily decrease. The height of cultivation always runs to simplicity" –Bruce Lee
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by mwm158 »

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livesoft
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by livesoft »

Although my personal investing is boring, I get to invest for other people by making suggestions on this forum. Their situations are mostly quite different from mine, so it is exciting to spend their money if only virtually. I think a lot of people agree with me: http://bit.ly/1oTuP3Q :) :) That agreement keeps the passion alive and gives me a huge dose of overconfidence which is important to my testosterone-fueled investing style.
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LAlearning
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by LAlearning »

Ha that link is amazing.

Why don't you increase your REIT holdings? Add some spice back to your life...
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by pkcrafter »

InvestorNewb, congratulations, you will now receive your diploma--and of course you will have to change your name. :happy
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by ruralavalon »

InvestorNewb wrote:I get a little excited when dividends are paid out in cash, but I am now starting to get bored of investing. It was fun in the beginning asking questions, dreaming about the future, and exploring/proposing different plans - even though some of them were unorthodox.

How does one keep the passion alive for investing? OR is investing in index funds supposed to be boring.
Yes its supposed to be boring.

You could always go back to working your day job, read a good book, or take up an interesting hobby. Or take a vacation at someplace fun and exciting :D .
"Everything should be as simple as it is, but not simpler." - Albert Einstein | Wiki article link: Bogleheads® investment philosophy
rayout
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by rayout »

Boring it is. Read this forum daily once I got the bug. Automated my investments and now only stop by every few months or so.

Probably when the next "crash" hits there will be some more activity...
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by VictoriaF »

The exciting part is not investing but deciding how to spend the money accumulated while investing.

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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by DSInvestor »

Maybe you can help other Canadian investors avoid the typically horrendous MERs in Canadian mutual funds. It may not be exciting but you may get some pleasure in paying it forward and learn more in the process.

Have you seen our Canadian sister site, Financial Wisdom Forum?
http://www.financialwisdomforum.org/

Putting aside the high MERs of Canadian mutual funds, you guys have it really good with RRSP and TFSA. Don't like the RRSP at work, no problem just open your own and have exactly the same tax deductible contribution space as the employer plan. It's like having Traditional IRA with 17.5K limit to replace all 401k, 403b, 457b plans.

Didn't max out RRSP in prior years? Make up for it in future years and get full tax deduction. The US system has a use it or lose it system.

TFSA is incredible like Roth IRA but with far fewer restrictions. No tax deduction, Tax free growth, tax free withdrawal just like Roth IRA. No earned income requirement. Ability to redeposit withdrawals without consuming contribution space. Make up for unused contribution space in future years. How do we get something like this in the US?
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by tadamsmar »

For some excitement, trade on this play money future exchange:

http://www.ideosphere.com/

Or find a tread where gold, tilts, or dollar-cost averaging vs lump sum investing of a windfall is being hotly debated :twisted:
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by cheese_breath »

Boring can be exciting because it means everything's going as it should.
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nedsaid
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by nedsaid »

Investing is supposed to be boring. One of Nedsaid's rules of investing is "Boring is good, boring that pays a dividend is even better." It is rule number 2.

If you are looking for excitement, there are better places to get a thrill than from your investments. Investing should be as exciting as watching paint dry or tumbleweeds tumble.

Investors get in trouble when they change investment strategies and overhaul their portfolios because they get bored. It is another way of saying that you want to chase performance. This is a prescription for underperformance.

Get a good War movie and watch in on your DVD player. That should meet your need for excitement.
A fool and his money are good for business.
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torius71
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by torius71 »

I agree with livesoft
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by asc8u »

InvestorNewb wrote:I get a little excited when dividends are paid out in cash, but I am now starting to get bored of investing. It was fun in the beginning asking questions, dreaming about the future, and exploring/proposing different plans - even though some of them were unorthodox.

How does one keep the passion alive for investing? OR is investing in index funds supposed to be boring.
I was having this same thought this week!

I've been all gung ho the past year trimming my budget, making sure i'm saving enough, and setting my asset allocation.
It seems sorta a letdown that all that's left for the next 15 years until i get closer to retirement is to rebalance my accounts
once a year.

It seems counterintuitive that the best thing I can probably do at this point is to avoid all the financial news and basically
try to "forget" about the accounts for the next 15 yrs so that I don't try to time the market or do something similarly foolish.

Sure sounds boring to me!
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by ofcmetz »

I prefer investing to be boring, because when it's not that means the market is crashing. I think it is wise to get excitement from other areas of life besides investing.
Never underestimate the power of the force of low cost index funds.
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Ged
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Ged »

The next time the market really drops you won't be bored. Meanwhile chill.
axxs
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by axxs »

its time u start learning how to invest like warren buffet or take up options trading like anton kriel or take investing to the next level by watching shark tank or dragons den!!!
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

InvestorNewb wrote:I get a little excited when dividends are paid out in cash, but I am now starting to get bored of investing. It was fun in the beginning asking questions, dreaming about the future, and exploring/proposing different plans - even though some of them were unorthodox.

How does one keep the passion alive for investing? OR is investing in index funds supposed to be boring.

Perfect! It should be as interesting as watching paint dry on walls.
If you want, you should further your investment education - read up on the mechanics of fixed income investing, read up on behavioral economics or instead of that, go catch a baseball game on television or at the ballpark. :)
"One should invest based on their need, ability and willingness to take risk - Larry Swedroe" Asking Portfolio Questions
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Leif
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Re: Investing is starting to get boring

Post by Leif »

axxs wrote:its time u start learning how to invest like warren buffet or take up options trading like anton kriel or take investing to the next level by watching shark tank or dragons den!!!
That would mean investing with a value tilt. However, we cannot invest like him short of buying Berkshire Hathaway. He improves the companies he buys through his knowledge. We cannot do that.
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