The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

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cfs
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The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

Today the Noise Makers are having a blast.

Miss Market is having a bad hair day, or so I heard. As far as reacting to market conditions, we know what a few forum members are doing (we have read their posts); however, nothing heard from a very quiet group. The quiet group is observing, taking notes, possibly making portfolio adjustments or not doing anything at all.

As of earlier this morning (8/24/2015) we had 44,632 registered members. Of those, a total of 27,340 had 5 or less posts, including 10,332 members with a total of "zero" posts--over 20 percent of forum members with zero posts, that's a lot of zeros.

Is this quiet group doing much better (portfolio-wise) than those actively engage in the forum? We may never know the answer, they are after all The Bogleheads' Silent Majority.

And now let's have a quiet day in the markets.
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jbmitt
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by jbmitt »

Thank you. Today is a slightly larger blip on a long investing horizon for me.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by livesoft »

It's funny, but markets have recovered enough that things are no longer in RBD territory.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Devil's Advocate »

I am in my late 30's with at least a decade before retirement. This "crash" will too pass. In the meantime I am DCA with my 401k. Stocks are on sale!
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Dantes
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Dantes »

I'm pretty silent.

I haven't done anything yet in response to events, but if the market stays negative this afternoon I'm going to take advantage of the down and exchange some investments in taxable from bonds and balanced funds into total stock market. When I was young and foolish (last year) I thought it was cool to get capital gains and dividends, but I like to think I have learned something from this forum (if I haven't I've wasted an enormous amount of time this past year!).
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

livesoft wrote:It's funny, but markets have recovered enough that things are no longer in RBD territory.
Miss Market provided a few good minutes to the HFT (high-frequency trading) gang.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

jbmitt wrote:Thank you. Today is a slightly larger blip on a long investing horizon for me.
Good thinking.
Dantes wrote:I'm pretty silent.

I haven't done anything yet in response to events, but if the market stays negative this afternoon I'm going to take advantage of the down and exchange some investments in taxable from bonds and balanced funds into total stock market. When I was young and foolish (last year) I thought it was cool to get capital gains and dividends, but I like to think I have learned something from this forum (if I haven't I've wasted an enormous amount of time this past year!).
Good luck with your moves.
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theunknowntech
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by theunknowntech »

You can talk about it all you want, because this is a very interesting environment and subject, just so long as you don't DO anything.

Please continue the conversation.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

theunknowntech wrote:. . . just so long as you don't DO anything . . .
Concur.
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MathWizard
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by MathWizard »

cfs wrote: ...
As of earlier this morning (8/24/2015) we had 44,632 registered members. Of those, a total of 27,340 had 5 or less posts, including 10,332 members with a total of "zero" posts--over 20 percent of forum members with zero posts, that's a lot of zeros.

Is this quiet group doing much better (portfolio-wise) than those actively engage in the forum? We may never know the answer, they are after all The Bogleheads' Silent Majority.
...
True they are silent, but I doubt that they are doing much better.

Those with few posts likely had one question, and either
got it answered and did not need anything else, or
got disgusted by there not being a "secret sauce".
The advice on this forum is not "get rich with this easy advice" but more like "Eat your vegetables, exercise, quit smoking, ..." .
Not everyone gets excited by the latter advice.

Those with zero posts are likely dominated by people who registered just to take a poll.

I think that this forum offers much of value. Those who participate in an activity gain knowledge. If you stick your neck out
with a question or an answer, you may find out you are wrong, and get an incorrect perception corrected. I see the forum as something like a college class.

My experience both as a student and teacher was that the more engaged the student, the better
the understanding. I have on occasion not asked a question when I was unsure, due to not wanting to look stupid.
Instead I looked stupid on the exam. That quickly taught me a lesson.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by pytheas2.0 »

theunknowntech wrote:You can talk about it all you want, because this is a very interesting environment and subject, just so long as you don't DO anything. .
Today would be a great day for some to pull out the ol' IPS's that were created in level-headed times.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by spectec »

@ MathWIzard.
Great advice - learning when you are wrong is well worth any embarrassment that may potentially accompany the lesson. I can honestly say I've learned a little from my successes in life, but I have learned much from my mistakes and failures.

Off the top of my head I can recall about a dozen mistakes that produced major life-long lessons. But I would likely never have benefitted from them if someone had not pointed out where I was wrong. Sometime the person doing the educating wasn't particularly concerned about my feelings or even my welfare. They helped me even though they didn't intend to do so and were probably just massaging their own ego. No matter, the benefit was mine.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by goingup »

cfs wrote: As of earlier this morning (8/24/2015) we had 44,632 registered members. Of those, a total of 27,340 had 5 or less posts, including 10,332 members with a total of "zero" posts--over 20 percent of forum members with zero posts, that's a lot of zeros.

Is this quiet group doing much better (portfolio-wise) than those actively engage in the forum? We may never know the answer, they are after all The Bogleheads' Silent Majority.
cfs-
Thanks for the thoughtful post. It'd be great if all 44,632 popped in to say, "Here. Present and accounted for and staying the course!".

I'd also add that despite all the chatter on this board about tax loss harvesting and rebalancing, it's also an fine option to do nothing. As Jack Bogle has said, "Don't just do something. Stand there.".
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

MathWizard wrote: . . . My experience both as a student and teacher was that the more engaged the student, the better
the understanding . . .
And as a student and teacher I concur with this statement.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

goingup wrote: . . . As Jack Bogle has said, "Don't just do something. Stand there.".
Thank you, Imho this is what "the large majority" of The Bogleheads' Silent Majority is doing.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

spectec wrote:. . . learning when you are wrong is well worth any embarrassment that may potentially accompany the lesson . . .
Good, thank you.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by BolderBoy »

Good topic. I just noticed down at the bottom, the "Users browsing this forum:" is quite a large number, including the 330 guests. Bigger than I've seen in a long time, so there are worried folks out there I think, and they are checking in with the BHs to see what we think and are not doing.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by niceguy7376 »

I have around 4k left to contribute to in this year in my solo 401k. I am thinking of putting 2 to 3k into this month end payroll to go to 401k. I am also contributing to the 529 plan for my two kids this week so that I can start putting them to work instead of my dec time that i normally do.

I am not a big earner (medium 5 digits) but want to take advantage of blood on the street (warren buffets statement) to buy some more. I might also do partial employer contributions to solo 401k.

So, I am NOT selling, but preparing to BUY.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Billcarpenter »

Yep just here for the polls :) actually am a daily reader. I find it interesting to see different people's perspectives. Still very young so I don't have muh advice or wisdom to share.
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Post by Marmot »

Not doing a thing financially today. We are west coast so I was sleeping during the "big drop", oh well.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Gary Guss »

I put all my money into Gold Ameros this morning... Oh wait no I didn't!
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by SteadyAsSheGoes »

I'm largely silent. I've been reading these forums weekly for years; I recently created an account to ask a question or two. By and large I stay silent because there are others who are more eloquent and, frequently, knowledgeable than I am.

And yes, on days of decline, like Friday and today, I stay the course and, being early in my earning years, I look forward to my next 401k and Roth IRA automated purchases at (hopefully, but not necessarily) discounted prices. :happy
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Ignatious P. Daily »

In january I liquidated 1/2 of my portfolio to buy a house for cash. I had been 75/25. With the remaining 1/2 I have been 80/20 since January. I have taken this opportunity to go 100/0 (end of business today). I have a monthly free cash flow (after all expenses) of $11,000. So the plan right now is to take this opportunity to get my equity position back where it was, then build the bond position and get to 75/25 again by the time I am 40. I am currently 36.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by nervousnovice »

i am mostly silent, but read the forum often. on bad market days, i come here and the calculated risk blog for solace. and i stay the course.

i wanted to buy on friday, but we have been accumulating cash for a large purchase. so we stick to the plan. thanks to all the great advice on this forum. :D
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Miriam2 »

spectec wrote:Great advice - learning when you are wrong is well worth any embarrassment that may potentially accompany the lesson. I can honestly say I've learned a little from my successes in life, but I have learned much from my mistakes and failures.
Off the top of my head I can recall about a dozen mistakes that produced major life-long lessons. But I would likely never have benefitted from them if someone had not pointed out where I was wrong. Sometime the person doing the educating wasn't particularly concerned about my feelings or even my welfare. They helped me even though they didn't intend to do so and were probably just massaging their own ego. No matter, the benefit was mine.
MathWizard wrote:I think that this forum offers much of value. Those who participate in an activity gain knowledge. If you stick your neck out
with a question or an answer, you may find out you are wrong, and get an incorrect perception corrected. I see the forum as something like a college class.
My experience both as a student and teacher was that the more engaged the student, the better the understanding. I have on occasion not asked a question when I was unsure, due to not wanting to look stupid. Instead I looked stupid on the exam. That quickly taught me a lesson.
These two quotes epitomize one of the greatest values of this forum - sincere education of those who want financial help, and education includes both constructive corrections and encouragement.

The "embarrassment" factor is interesting, especially since we are all anonymous (except Sheepdog, who is a beautiful computer literate Sheepdog, as you can see from his avatar :happy )

I began reading this forum when it was Morningstar Diehards about 2002, but never posted a Q because I felt, for some silly reason, too financially uneducated. Of course, it was ridiculous - I would have received wonderful help. Instead I was the "silent majority" and stayed up until 3:00 am searching posts for the information I wanted.

What has always struck me is how decent and warm and detailed-helpful everyone is, even when I'm asking elementary Qs.
And I'm grateful to the moderators for keeping the forum civil and on-target. :D
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by TheTimeLord »

TLH a CEF which was one of my few remaining non-Index holdings and bought VTI with the proceeds. So just some overdue portfolio cleanup.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by tyler_cracker »

goingup wrote:It'd be great if all 44,632 popped in to say, "Here. Present and accounted for and staying the course!"
here. present and accounted for and staying the course!
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Boglegrappler »

Here is a rather long, relevant section from Buffett's 2014 investors letter. I've bolded the points that I thought were most relevant. I post it because it is a summary of the very important basic points which, if followed, will most likely lead to investment success. His observation of the risks of "staying safe" is, imo, very important for young, long-term investors. He also properly caveats things by noting that if you actually need the money in the next few years for something specifically important, that's different. I think that last point is quite important in establishing your quotational risk parameters and in understanding what you're doing overall.
Our investment results have been helped by a terrific tailwind. During the 1964-2014 period, the S&P 500
rose from 84 to 2,059, which, with reinvested dividends, generated the overall return of 11,196% shown on page 2. Concurrently, the purchasing power of the dollar declined a staggering 87%. That decrease means that it now takes $1 to buy what could be bought for 13¢ in 1965 (as measured by the Consumer Price Index).

There is an important message for investors in that disparate performance between stocks and dollars. Think back to our 2011 annual report, in which we defined investing as “the transfer to others of purchasing power now with the reasoned expectation of receiving more purchasing power – after taxes have been paid on nominal gains – in the future.”

The unconventional, but inescapable, conclusion to be drawn from the past fifty years is that it has been far safer to invest in a diversified collection of American businesses than to invest in securities – Treasuries, for example – whose values have been tied to American currency. That was also true in the preceding half-century, a period including the Great Depression and two world wars. Investors should heed this history. To one degree or another it is almost certain to be repeated during the next century.

Stock prices will always be far more volatile than cash-equivalent holdings. Over the long term, however, currency-denominated instruments are riskier investments – far riskier investments – than widely-diversified stock portfolios that are bought over time and that are owned in a manner invoking only token fees and commissions. That lesson has not customarily been taught in business schools, where volatility is almost universally used as a proxy for risk. Though this pedagogic assumption makes for easy teaching, it is dead wrong: Volatility is far from synonymous with risk. Popular formulas that equate the two terms lead students, investors and CEOs astray.

It is true, of course, that owning equities for a day or a week or a year is far riskier (in both nominal and purchasing-power terms) than leaving funds in cash-equivalents. That is relevant to certain investors – say, investment banks – whose viability can be threatened by declines in asset prices and which might be forced to sell securities during depressed markets. Additionally, any party that might have meaningful near-term needs for funds should keep appropriate sums in Treasuries or insured bank deposits.

For the great majority of investors, however, who can – and should – invest with a multi-decade horizon, quotational declines are unimportant. Their focus should remain fixed on attaining significant gains in purchasing power over their investing lifetime. For them, a diversified equity portfolio, bought over time, will prove far less risky than dollar-based securities.If the investor, instead, fears price volatility, erroneously viewing it as a measure of risk, he may, ironically, end up doing some very risky things. Recall, if you will, the pundits who six years ago bemoaned falling stock prices and advised investing in “safe” Treasury bills or bank certificates of deposit. People who heeded this sermon are now earning a pittance on sums they had previously expected would finance a pleasant retirement. (The S&P 500 was then below 700; now it is about 2,100.) If not for their fear of meaningless price volatility, these investors could have assured themselves of a good income for life by simply buying a very low-cost index fund whose dividends would trend upward over the years and whose principal would grow as well (with many ups and downs, to be sure).

Investors, of course, can, by their own behavior, make stock ownership highly risky. And many do. Active trading, attempts to “time” market movements, inadequate diversification, the payment of high and unnecessary fees to managers and advisors, and the use of borrowed money can destroy the decent returns that a life-long owner of equities would otherwise enjoy. Indeed, borrowed money has no place in the investor’s tool kit: Anything can happen anytime in markets. And no advisor, economist, or TV commentator – and definitely not Charlie nor I – can tell you when chaos will occur. Market forecasters will fill your ear but will never fill your wallet.

The commission of the investment sins listed above is not limited to “the little guy.” Huge institutional investors, viewed as a group, have long underperformed the unsophisticated index-fund investor who simply sits tight for decades. A major reason has been fees: Many institutions pay substantial sums to consultants who, in turn, recommend high-fee managers. And that is a fool’s game.

There are a few investment managers, of course, who are very good – though in the short run, it’s difficult to determine whether a great record is due to luck or talent. Most advisors, however, are far better at generating high fees than they are at generating high returns. In truth, their core competence is salesmanship. Rather than listen to their siren songs, investors – large and small – should instead read Jack Bogle’s The Little Book of Common Sense Investing.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by englishgirl »

Even those of us who occasionally say things aren't necessarily doing anything. Today or on any other day...I might tinker with my portfolio once every few years but mostly it's on autopilot.

Hopefully when I get paid on Friday I'll get to buy some stocks cheap. And hopefully when I want to retire in over a decade's time, they'll have gone up. We'll see.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by staythecourse »

Miriam2 wrote:I began reading this forum when it was Morningstar Diehards about 2002, but never posted a Q because I felt, for some silly reason, too financially uneducated. Of course, it was ridiculous - I would have received wonderful help. Instead I was the "silent majority" and stayed up until 3:00 am searching posts for the information I wanted.
Reminds me when I was a senior resident and helping interns or junior residents. I often told them there is no stupid question as anything that can be done stupid has been done before and likely by me.

I really do hope all the folks out there are not "silent" because there is a hesitation in asking a question they feel is too basic. The greatest part of this forum is how the senior (experienced and not aged :wink: ) are willing to help others who are much more early on their investment knowledge.

I for one LOVE to debate others on here, but really do find myself learning stuff from the answers given to supposedly simple questions myself. I just read them and "pocket" them in the back of my mind if/ when I need to use that info. myself.

Good luck.
"The stock market [fluctuation], therefore, is noise. A giant distraction from the business of investing.” | -Jack Bogle
senhati
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by senhati »

I am a silent one. But read a lot.

I am trying to find more money to buy Index now. I am buying on every down days. I have 15+ yrs to retire.

May be I should take a second job :greedy
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by xjz »

I guess by the definition in this thread, I'm part of this "silent majority". I've been lurking Bogleheads for about half a year, and Reddit's personalfinance sub for close to 2 years, but I don't like to write much.

I woke up this morning and saw the news about the Shanghai composite 8.5% slide, and decided to tune in to a live feed that was covering the opening of the NYSE. Watched as the DJIA tanked over 1000 points, watched as NASDAQ tanked over 8%, and then watched as everything started bouncing right back. My wife was a little worried, since she works at a relatively early-stage start-up and a market crash might make investor funds harder to come by for the company.

Highlight of the morning was definitely stumbling across Damian McBride's Twitter advice for the crash:
Advice on the looming crash, No.1: get hard cash in a safe place now; don't assume banks & cashpoints will be open, or bank cards will work.
Crash advice No.2: do you have enough bottled water, tinned goods & other essentials at home to live a month indoors? If not, get shopping.
Crash advice No.3: agree a rally point with your loved ones in case transport and communication gets cut off; somewhere you can all head to.
Hoping the average member around here is a little more levelheaded than that. :happy

As for our investments? My wife and I are truly passive investors. Our retirement accounts are 100% invested in target date 2055 funds, and in response to this crisis, we are doing nothing. Our taxable account is 90% in VSMGX (60% stock, 40% bond LifeStrategy) (the other 10% is play money in a brokerage account), and in response to this crisis, we are doing nothing. We are not panic-selling, we are not tax-loss harvesting, we are not rebalancing, we are not leveraging to buy more. Maybe we'd do a bit better with more of an eye towards tax efficiency or something like that, but we're content as is. Psychologically, we've found it much easier when we just don't have to think about any of these things.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by FelixTheCat »

I came on the board today for the group sing-a-long of "Stay the course"
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by pinecone »

Staying the course with dollar cost averaging and looking forward to investments being "on sale" temporarily.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by Bungo »

If this continues for another week or two, I might have to check my rebalancing bands, if I get around to it.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by blindguardian »

I created this account just now to post on this thread and say hello. I've been coming to this site every afternoon for a few months now just to see what is being discussed.

I didn't know much about investing until early this year when I decided to educate myself. My plan is set and I am staying the course. The only time I check balances is the monthly statement. So therefore I do not react to financial news.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

BolderBoy wrote:. . . I think, and they are checking in with the BHs to see what we think and are not doing . . .
And hopefully the large majority is making the right moves--this includes doing nothing.
niceguy7376 wrote: . . . So, I am NOT selling, but preparing to BUY . . .
Could be a good time to buy if you have a long term horizon. On a personal note, our automatic investment happens every other Friday, the next one is this Friday 8/28/15.
Marmot wrote: . . . We are west coast so I was sleeping during the "big drop", oh well . . .
I was doing my daily sidewalk cleanup early in the morning when all the action was talking place in Wall Street.
Gary Guss wrote:. . . I put all my money into Gold Ameros this morning... Oh wait no I didn't!
Some investors are buying gold now, could be a good move, could be a bad move, Father Time will tell.
SteadyAsSheGoes wrote:. . .I look forward to my next 401k and Roth IRA automated purchases at (hopefully, but not necessarily) discounted prices . . .
The good thing is that Father Time is on your side. Good luck in your investment career.
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oc4boxer
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by oc4boxer »

The fact that I'm not freaking out over these losses tells me I've picked a very good asset allocation for myself (65/35).
joebh
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by joebh »

I view this as yet another opportunity for folks to reassess their risk tolerance.

If the past few weeks have caused you to lost sleep, perhaps you aren't as risk-tolerant as you had assumed. In that case, it might be a good time for you to consider what asset allocation would truly let you "set it and forget it".

For me, I reassessed and concluded that I am still just fine with my 70-30 allocation. As I did in past downturns, I'm going to continue to stay the course. I may need to rebalance a bit soon to bring my investments back to 70-30, but otherwise I'm good.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by pedsEDdoc »

I am one of those that lurks in the background and has only asked a few questions. What did I do today? I paid off my student loans--guaranteed 3% return on that last bit of money! great to be done with the hassle of loans!
ML 59
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by ML 59 »

Boringly (and Silently) Staying The Course...

This thread caused me to re-read my IPS.

All's good!
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by RYD »

I am recently retired and am doing nothing. I am comfortable with my AA. This is a good time to see how comfortable you are with your AA.

As to silent majority, I guess I am a member in good standing. Note that while I rarely post I do read BH regularly.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

Ignatious P. Daily wrote:. . .So the plan right now is to take this opportunity to get my equity position back where it was, then build the bond position and get to 75/25 again by the time I am 40. I am currently 36 . . .
Good luck, Father Time is on your side.
nervousnovice wrote: . . . i am mostly silent, but read the forum often . . .
Good, please keep checking the forum and good luck in your investment career.
Miriam2 wrote: . . . What has always struck me is how decent and warm and detailed-helpful everyone is, even when I'm asking elementary Qs. And I'm grateful to the moderators for keeping the forum civil and on-target . . .
Right on the money !!!
TheTimeLord wrote: . . .So just some overdue portfolio cleanup. Making my retirement "Legen" waiting for it "dary", Legendary!
Just the latest TheTimeLord's legendary entry !!!
tyler_cracker wrote: . . . here. present and accounted for and staying the course!
Thanks for checkin' in !!!
Boglegrappler wrote: . . . In truth, their core competence is salesmanship. Rather than listen to their siren songs, investors – large and small – should instead read Jack Bogle’s The Little Book of Common Sense Investing.
Thanks for the good message!
avatarenglishgirl wrote: . . . Even those of us who occasionally say things aren't necessarily doing anything. Today or on any other day...I might tinker with my portfolio once every few years but mostly it's on autopilot.
Sarah, good luck with your investments, buy cheap and hopefully a decade from now you will have a lot of money.
staythecourse wrote: . . . I really do hope all the folks out there are not "silent" because there is a hesitation in asking a question they feel is too basic . . .
Exactly, anyone with a question should come to the forum and just ask. I am yet to see anyone being ridiculed for asking a question (that type of behavior is NOT tolerated here).
senhati wrote: . . . I am a silent one. But read a lot. I am trying to find more money to buy Index now. I am buying on every down days. I have 15+ yrs to retire . . .
Good on you! Just keep investing whatever you can and good luck with your investments.
xjz wrote: . . . Psychologically, we've found it much easier when we just don't have to think about any of these things . . .
Exactly, just work on your SWAN or sleep well at night portfolio and let Miss Market do whatever she wants to do.
FelixTheCat wrote: . . . I came on the board today for the group sing-a-long of "Stay the course" . . .
It is a great song . . . isn't it?
pinecone wrote: . . . Staying the course with dollar cost averaging and looking forward to investments being "on sale" temporarily . . .
That's the way to do it.
Bungo wrote: . . . If this continues for another week or two, I might have to check my rebalancing bands, if I get around to it . . .
Good luck!
blindguardian wrote: . . . I created this account just now to post on this thread and say hello . . .
This is awesome! Checking your balances on a monthly basis is what most of our members do. You are doing the right thing by not reacting to financial news. Good luck in your investment career.
oc4boxer wrote: . . .The fact that I'm not freaking out over these losses tells me I've picked a very good asset allocation for myself (65/35).
Good on you! Good luck with your SWAN (sleep well at night) portfolio.
joebh wrote: . . . I view this as yet another opportunity for folks to reassess their risk tolerance.
Concur. Time to do The Pillow Test (if you can't sleep well at night thinking about your portfolio, then is time to make some adjustments).
pedsEDdoc wrote: . . . I am one of those that lurks in the background and has only asked a few questions. What did I do today? I paid off my student loans--guaranteed 3% return on that last bit of money! great to be done with the hassle of loans!
Perfect! Good move. Good luck taking care of your student loans, good luck in your investment career.
ML 59 wrote: . . . Boringly (and Silently) Staying The Course...This thread caused me to re-read my IPS. All's good!
Good. Thanks for dropping by to say hello.
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cfs
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

RYD wrote:I am recently retired and am doing nothing. I am comfortable with my AA. This is a good time to see how comfortable you are with your AA.

As to silent majority, I guess I am a member in good standing. Note that while I rarely post I do read BH regularly.
RYD, thanks for dropping by to say hello, good to hear that a good number of members are actively checking things out and reading conversations taking place here.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by dpc »

I just retired a few months ago (well still doing a little part-time work) so I'm a little more interested in the market than I would have been a few years ago. A serious bear market immediately after retirement is about the worst possible timing. It's the one thing I've been concerned about financially. We should be OK, but I would have preferred the inevitable downturn occur a little further down the road. If this decline continues, it will just mean some spending reductions for us. I'm not doing anything other than mulling over whether or not to pay off our mortgage, now that our old house has closed and we have a lot of cash sitting in our MM account.
"Worrying is like paying interest on a debt that you might never owe" -- Will Rogers
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by dutchtulips »

I was fully invested prior to the latest market swoon, and remain so. Therefore, no "excess cash" to invest. However, as my IPS doesn't allow for it, I am not moving funds from other sources (e.g. reducing size of large EF, temporarily putting off other planned purchases) to "buy on the low". I'm merely staying the course/doing nothing.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

dpc wrote:I just retired a few months ago (well still doing a little part-time work) so I'm a little more interested in the market than I would have been a few years ago. A serious bear market immediately after retirement is about the worst possible timing. It's the one thing I've been concerned about financially. We should be OK, but I would have preferred the inevitable downturn occur a little further down the road. If this decline continues, it will just mean some spending reductions for us. I'm not doing anything other than mulling over whether or not to pay off our mortgage, now that our old house has closed and we have a lot of cash sitting in our MM account.
DPC, I retired 15 months ago and totally understand where you are coming from. I recommend you take a look at this "Classic" from our shipmate Taylor Larimore (check the original post, a good message on what to do during the withdrawal phase).

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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

dutchtulips wrote:. . . I'm merely staying the course/doing nothing . . .
In your situation doing nothing could be the best thing to do.
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by natertots »

goingup wrote: Thanks for the thoughtful post. It'd be great if all 44,632 popped in to say, "Here. Present and accounted for and staying the course!".
I'll bite. I still lurk once or twice a month, mostly because I got most of what I needed 2 years ago, which is a plan of action that let me spend no more than a few minutes a week dealing with my portfolio. I have stayed the course so far, and today isn't changing that. I'm paying extra attention to the markets this week, not because I'm looking for things to get upset about, but because, per that plan, I have been on the verge of having to trigger a rebalancing event (A portion of total bond exchanged for some of total stock and some of total international).

It's good to have this here!
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Re: The Bogleheads' Silent Majority

Post by cfs »

natertots wrote: . . . It's good to have this here! . . .
Good. You have a plan, and you are following your plan.
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