David Fabian
July 18, 2016
David Fabian @ FMD Capital Management

Why Writing Makes Me A Better Investor

I love to write.  It’s one of the most pleasurable things that I get to do on any given day.  The freedom of opening up a blank page and pouring out my thoughts on ETFs, investing, and life is a liberating experience.  I consider myself lucky to have the time and skill to commit to this endeavor. 

I started this blog with my brother a little over three years ago when we launched our independent investment advisory firm.  Originally, it was a great way for us to express our investment philosophy and create educational content.  This selfishly helps us build our business and cultivate a sphere of influence with like-minded investors.

I’m still blown away at how many people follow our blog on a weekly basis, interact with me on social media and ultimately become clients.  The truly unintended consequence is that it also makes me a better investor .

Let me explain what I mean by that.

I don’t answer to anyone when I write.  We don’t have any sponsors or advertisers.  I don’t accept pitches from influential PR mavens.  It’s just me and whatever I have an inclination to talk about.  That allows me to focus on the areas of the market that are most closely aligned with my skill set and investment philosophy.

Writing allows me to research potential investment ideas , uncover fresh themes, and clarify my thoughts.  I can’t tell you how many times I have been digging into a corner of the ETF universe, only to uncover a fund that I didn’t even know existed.  Furthermore, each article that I write goes through at least a few editing cycles so that I really think about what I am saying and how I am saying it.

It’s extremely important to me that I’m providing readers with my opinion in a way that adds value to their investment endeavors.  They are generous enough to give me a small sliver of their time.  I want that to be a meaningful experience, where they walk away feeling like they gained a worthwhile insight they hadn’t considered or challenge a long-held assumption.

Writing my investment thoughts down also helps keep me accountable.  Everyone makes mistakes in their investment career.  Writing down the hits and misses allows me to go back and review what worked and what didn’t .  This can also be a meaningful reminder of why I am following a certain path or where the edge is in the current market.

My Advice

Start an investment journal.  It doesn’t matter if you are an expert day trader or a buy-and-hold index fanatic.  There is so much to be learned in the process.

The act of logging your trades, creating a watch list, noting questions to be answered, or simply charting your progress is very influential.  It will help keep you accountable to your own goals and allow you the flexibility to revisit things years down the road that you may otherwise forget.

You don’t have to start a public blog or become Shakespeare on day one.  Just simply start noting the things that you do or that you are considering doing with your investment accounts.  I can guarantee that you will find the process to be advantageous as you make it a regular habit.

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The post Why Writing Makes Me A Better Investor appeared first on FMD Capital Management .

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