The Brian Blog

Stocks and The Great 2280

Today was a flat out gorgeous day for those living in the Midwest, at least in Oklahoma anyway.

The only complaint was the 40 mile an hour winds and a few fires that left some people without homes tonight; thoughts, prayers, positive vibes to them. 

(Photo source: http://kfor.com/2017/01/24/crews-respond-after-grass-fire-spreads-to-structures-in-logan-county/)

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With that said, the wind took to the sails of the major US indexes today, driving the S&P back to the top of its channel.

It looks like we'll be looking for either a bounce or a break very soon.
The charts and indicators certainly look promising for a breakthrough to the upside; we even saw a temporary move above the 2280 line today. Sadly, it didn't close above it.

There are certainly some catalysts out there, but I haven't seen a lot of analysts and pundits pushing them so far.

What am I doing? With the S&P 20 points from the 2300 line, and the Dow 80 points from 22,000, I'll wait to see which way the political winds blow before making any moves.

Remember, typical Republican Presidency's tend to run a lower market... With that said, President Trump is far from typical. With a strong focus on manufacturing and better paying jobs, I am inclined to think the markets would keep growing.

Only time will tell. Stay positive 👍

The Brian Blog

#YoureHired: The Transition of Power & the Markets Jan 2017

The transition came, the power was transferred, and the Stock Market? Well, it kind of just rolled sideways.

True, it ended on a slightly higher note, and had some spikes throughout the day, but no Brexit effect like many had predicted; at least yet anyway.

The Trader's Almanac, a book I highly recommend to traders, predicted that the day would most likely be a bearish day. A rare miss, but altogether not a bad thing either.

So, are we out of the woods yet? Is there a bear in the woods? Perhaps... Or perhaps we'll have to wait and see what #POTUS Trump's first month in office looks like.

Of course, we can likely expect the main stream media to sling as much dirt towards Trump as they can muster up, given their track record. And Trump will likely fire back, given his track record. Interestingly enough, there seems to be a break in trust with the mainstream media, leading many to seek out additional news sources.

But really, can you blame them? I can't remember how many times I flipped from station to station hearing the same shpill about Trump saying this or doing that and then digging deeper to find it was blown out of proportion. And how many times did I hear Trump had no chance? Or that Trump was finished? The main stream media underestimated him at every turn, and that means they underestimated the voting public at every turn.

Only time will tell if these trends surrounding President #Trump will hold or not. Me? I'm going to keep a close eye on the markets over the next month. President Trump has potential, and a lot of it, to bring prosperity to the Country. Let's hope and pray he succeeds and proves the mainstream media wrong once again. After all, we all want a better place to live and grow.

The Brian Blog

Today's Topic: 

The #TrumpInauguration & the Stock Market

Want more money in your stock account?
Of course you do!

You're probably asking yourself the same question a lot of other people are asking: is the market going to react to Trump's inauguration?

Yesterday I had yet another friend ask me about this very thing, wondering if the market was due for a pullback like before the election. We mauled it over and found that nearly everyone in the office he works in was hedging for a pullback. Many of them had put their retirement funds in safe haven funds that won't move much if it does pull back.

He then asked me for my opinion. Now, this is nothing more than my opinion.

I studied the few charts and noticed that the trading volume has pulled WAY back over the last week of trading, which tells me something very well may happen, as so many are anticipating.

As for a crash or pullback? It doesn't exactly make sense to me because a lot hasn't changed since Trump won the election. And from what I can tell, Trump winning the election had an amazing impact on the stock market. Sadly, a lot of this growth has been pricing in some emotional expectations for what they believe Trump will do.

Considering Trump hasn't even been President for a day, and nearly 200 points of emotional trading has been priced into the market, I do believe we are likely due for a correction, though I don't believe it'll be the end of the world or any type of 2008 crash.

Bush's inauguration did have a small back following, and Obama's was during the end of the 2008 crash, but neither one shows a good indication of what is to come, especially since Trump has been such a uniquely treated candidate by the media.

With that said, if there is a pullback I would guess it to be somewhere around the 2200 line. Personally, I'm setting aside 10% of my retirement in the case of a pullback and plan to ride any bearish activity if it happens. 

With 90% exposure to the Dow and S&P I'm cheering for another election effect, even if only a smaller version.

A Warm Welcome!

☺
Welcome to The Brian Blog #1;

    A place for sharing expansive thoughts, ideas, innovations all (hopefully) in a simple and easy-to-understand manner.

•  The main goal of this page is to bring the reader valuable and enjoyable content on a wide variety of topics that hopefully will enhance their life.

•  Some content I plan to cover: reviews of products, books, financial/life goals and investing, home remedies, art, and how to increase positivity in your life (To name a few.)

Today's Topic: Goals

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    There's almost nothing like sitting on the porch of a cabin tucked deep in the woods; taking in the morning sun while drinking tea and listening to the songs of birds as they sit perched on the branch of a tall pine.

Those moments are even better when shared with someone special. Perhaps it's my love for nature and simplicity that drives me to retire early, however, there are many things I've learned on my journey, and I believe many of my lessons may add value to others who want to achieve financial independence.

If you share this goal with me, or have a similar one, I may have some advice for you:

1: Get Excited - Accomplish a Goal!

If you've never successfully completed a goal then you're missing out. Try setting some small ones that are within reach and savor the sweet taste of victory.

(I created the art for silly fun. Let me know what you think.)

An easy goal may be to try something along the lines of saving up a certain amount (even if it's small), perhaps just more than you've ever had in your bank account before, or building a budget, or changing your own oil using the help of a youtube video. These are well within most people's reach yet many people don't try achieve them. They go straight for the big fish.

Why go for small goals? Because accomplishing small goals triggers something in your brain that makes you want to accomplish even bigger goals. It may sound bizarre but try it. The effect it has can compound your confidence and build an even stronger drive to accomplish more. 

2: Hold your goals close to your heart.

There is actually some research on this, however, talking, though it can feel exciting and good while you do it, can greatly dissipate your enthusiasm and deplete energy you need for your goals. 

I recently read an article about how talking about your goals can actually trigger a success switch in your brain, making it feel like you've accomplished something when you haven't. This may not make sense to you at first but I can personally attest that this applies to me. Put it to the test if you must.

With that said, I don't recommend holding your goals back from people who will be achieving them with you, such as a spouse. In fact, what works best for me is when my Wife and I craft and work on our goals together. If you DO feel compelled to tell someone else, try to make sure that it's someone who is absolutely 100% going to drive you to accomplish those goals. I must say though, most people will let you down on this. They aren't driven to accomplish your life for you so rely on your own energy to drive you and not someone else.

3: Learn from Other's Mistakes

I see a lot of what society considers "successful people" nearly every day, as I'm sure a lot of you do. Many of these people started off goal-driven and with similar goals to what you have now, but they seem to have lost their way. Who knows? This may actually be you.

Do you recall the old adage that reminds us not to forget to "stop and smell the roses"? As cliche as it may sound, many people who start with big goals forget to do just that; they forget to enjoy the things in life that that first sparked the desire to do what eventually led them to do what they do now.

It starts off simple enough, perhaps a desire to retire early, or have a family and some land -- before long they were caught up in the competitive spirit of climbing the corporate ladder; so much so that it confused their original goals with overwork and eventually burnout.

I personally experienced this while running my own telecommunications business. After months of working several extremely long-hour days, I woke up one day and realized that I was miserable. I had worked so hard, I had forgotten why I was working at all. And worse off, I hadn't accomplished any of my goals!

The goals that had driven me to start what I was doing were so far removed from my mind that I no longer even thought of them. They became secondary to my new goals, not the fueling source for my new ones, and I got burned out. Had I kept my original goals in focus, I would have remembered to stop and smell the roses once in awhile.

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What are some of your goals?

Do you want to retire early?

Do you have any advice for the next generation?

How was this first Blog Post? Did it add value to your day?

Thank you for reading. I hope you have a blessed day.