For those that don’t know, in addition to being the Chief Strategist behind StreetAuthority’s Stock of the Month newsletter, I’m also an avid poker player. I first picked up poker more than a decade ago, well before it was all over television. But I wasn’t after the big jackpot like most of the people who’ve taken up the game. I simply thought poker could make me a better investor. Poker has a lot in common with investing — and no, I’m not talking about luck. In poker, you don’t get the luxury of making your moves in a vacuum or… Read More

For those that don’t know, in addition to being the Chief Strategist behind StreetAuthority’s Stock of the Month newsletter, I’m also an avid poker player. I first picked up poker more than a decade ago, well before it was all over television. But I wasn’t after the big jackpot like most of the people who’ve taken up the game. I simply thought poker could make me a better investor. Poker has a lot in common with investing — and no, I’m not talking about luck. In poker, you don’t get the luxury of making your moves in a vacuum or without consideration for the dynamics other players bring to the game. It also takes patience and foresight to win consistently. And sometimes, it’s not about winning, but simply knowing when to cut your losses. #-ad_banner-#When put in those terms, it’s easy to see how playing poker can make you a better investor. It’s easy to spot an inexperienced player at a poker table. He’ll be the guy who plays nearly every hand. He’s probably grown up watching televised poker, where folded hands are edited out to highlight the relatively few contested hands. In his limited view, he believes by playing… Read More

Working for StreetAuthority, I do a lot of different things. In the course of a day, I may be writing an article… discussing potential picks with our staff… researching the next investing hotspot… even going over Stock of the Month ideas with my colleagues. And with so much going on, I actually find myself a little frazzled as the day goes on. To combat this, I try to get to work about an hour earlier than the rest of the staff. Sometimes I simply work from home before I get into the office.  I don’t do this to show off. I’ve simply found… Read More

Working for StreetAuthority, I do a lot of different things. In the course of a day, I may be writing an article… discussing potential picks with our staff… researching the next investing hotspot… even going over Stock of the Month ideas with my colleagues. And with so much going on, I actually find myself a little frazzled as the day goes on. To combat this, I try to get to work about an hour earlier than the rest of the staff. Sometimes I simply work from home before I get into the office.  I don’t do this to show off. I’ve simply found I can do more in that one hour (when I can simply focus on one task without distraction) than I can in two hours when the rest of the staff has the office buzzing. Turning off the background noise allows me to simplify things — and get better results. #-ad_banner-#What does this have to do with investing? A ton. Why Diversification Is Like Drinking From a Fire Hose Sometimes the investing waters are as clear as mud to retail investors. After all, there are literally thousands of potential plays out there. You could try to play a rebound in… Read More

“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing you can do is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” — attributed to Theodore Roosevelt Investing for your retirement is easier if you start when you’re young. There’s no denying it. There is no greater friend than time. But I think investment professionals emphasize the time factor so much that older folks feel like they missed the boat — that if they didn’t start investing in their twenties, there is no point starting now. Read More

“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing you can do is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” — attributed to Theodore Roosevelt Investing for your retirement is easier if you start when you’re young. There’s no denying it. There is no greater friend than time. But I think investment professionals emphasize the time factor so much that older folks feel like they missed the boat — that if they didn’t start investing in their twenties, there is no point starting now. I can’t tell you how many of my peers have all but given up the hope of retiring. That’s just one reason why I like the story of Anne Scheiber. #-ad_banner-#Anne was in her 50s when she retired from the IRS as an auditor. She had never been promoted the entire time she worked there. Anne’s pension was $3,100 a year. She had also managed to squirrel away $5,000 in savings. It wasn’t until after she retired in the mid-1940s that Anne started a dividend reinvestment portfolio. When she died in 1995, Anne had turned her $5,000 into $22 million. Read More

I want to share an update with you. I’ll provide a couple of income ideas, but I hope more than anything that it’s something you’ll pass along to show more investors the light of a unique income investing niche. For those unaware, I’m the Chief Strategist of The Daily Paycheck. My goal is simple: Using funds from my original $200,000 real-money portfolio (yes, I invest alongside subscribers using real cash), I’m building a portfolio that delivers a dividend check for every day of the month. Imagine if you had a goose that laid a golden egg every day — that’s… Read More

I want to share an update with you. I’ll provide a couple of income ideas, but I hope more than anything that it’s something you’ll pass along to show more investors the light of a unique income investing niche. For those unaware, I’m the Chief Strategist of The Daily Paycheck. My goal is simple: Using funds from my original $200,000 real-money portfolio (yes, I invest alongside subscribers using real cash), I’m building a portfolio that delivers a dividend check for every day of the month. Imagine if you had a goose that laid a golden egg every day — that’s what I’m trying to recreate. Think of how secure you’d feel with having a dividend check every day of the week. It sounds dreamy, but I promise you — it’s closer than you realize. #-ad_banner-#In April, for example, I raked in $1,416.78 thanks to roughly 30 different dividend payments. I expect to earn a similar amount this month. I started The Daily Paycheck in December 2009. So far the results have been phenomenal. The chart below shows my monthly dividend income over the past few months… In addition to last month’s $1,416.78 in dividends, I earned $1,344.72 in… Read More

Recently, I investigated installing solar panels on my roof to reduce my monthly energy bills.   The financial calculations are fairly involved. There is the cost of the panels, the additional cost to my homeowners insurance, a utility company rebate, a federal tax break, the cost of the energy I use and the cost of the energy I produce that I could sell back to the utility company. It was just about the time that I was inundated with estimates when I received this email from a reader of my premium dividend advisory, The Daily Paycheck: “Your newsletter… Read More

Recently, I investigated installing solar panels on my roof to reduce my monthly energy bills.   The financial calculations are fairly involved. There is the cost of the panels, the additional cost to my homeowners insurance, a utility company rebate, a federal tax break, the cost of the energy I use and the cost of the energy I produce that I could sell back to the utility company. It was just about the time that I was inundated with estimates when I received this email from a reader of my premium dividend advisory, The Daily Paycheck: “Your newsletter is my favorite of all I receive. I have been concentrating on a portfolio of monthly dividend payers only to maximize monthly income. I have concentrated with those funds that pay a minimum of 7% or better. What are the pro and cons of this and what can I do to improve the strategy? (I’m addicted to monthly paychecks!)” — Thanks, Dave E., Escondido, Calif. #-ad_banner-#Dave’s email reminded me that one of the best ways to tackle monthly bills — is with monthly dividends. Why Dividend Frequency Matters When considering a new security, income investors search out its… Read More