The TRUTH about the economy and investing

[James Barry]

Its awkward, but it needs to be said....

The FACTS about our economy (GDP, unemployment, workforce participation, etc...) have no bearing on asset prices! 

I'm not an economist, I'm just a curious young man. There will always be money to be made in the world and I placed a premium on understanding our world if I am going to invest my money in it. It seems intimidating to learn new things for some of us, I found it is much easier to learn by listening and reading people smarter than me. 

Here is a list of influential books & people that have shaped my education. I would love to hear about yours, be safe out there!

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Jim Rickards- (The Road to Ruin, Aftermath)

Jim Bianco- (Bianco Research) 

Danielle DeMartino Booth- (Fed Up, Quill Intelligence)

The Zero Interest Trap   

Daniel Kahneman- (Thinking Fast and Slow) 

Jason Burack- (Wallstreet for Mainstreet)

George Gammon- (The Rebel Capitalist Show)

Krassimir Petrov

Macrovoices- (Erik Townsend)

Eurodollar University- (Jeff Snider)

Peter Schiff

Brent Johnson- (Santiago Capital)

Robert Kiyosaki!

[Erik W.]

@James Barry, hi and welcome to BP!

I'm going to take another view on your first assertion.  I think those factors absolutely DO have a huge bearing on asset prices.  The fact that you don't see or understand the impact yet doesn't prove your statement true.  It simply means you haven't seen or understood the impact yet.  And when I say "you", I mean "we".  NO ONE knows the full impact of the current state of affairs, and no one probably will know for at least 5 years.

Economics is a bit like history: the winners write (and sell) the books, and even then the winners disagree.  Please find me two economists that agree on much of anything, except that rent control is generally bad.  Even Paul Krugman, champion of progressive policy, agrees with that.

That's a nice reading list you've got.  A few I recognize, but most I don't.  Maybe I'll pick up a few since I have some time these days.

A word of caution: I know his name is almost like a deity on Bigger Pockets, but I simply cannot take Robert Kyosaki seriously.  Yes, I've heard 1,000 people say how he "changed their thinking" about money.  Okay, fine.  So what?  His stories are mostly fiction, his advice is mostly fluff, and his financial achievements are mostly figuring out how to sell the same finance fiction repackaged over a decade into several different books.  Some of his advice is very risky and/or illegal, like taking your family on a vacation to an exotic tropic location and writing it off as a business expense because you look at a few properties.  If you want a straight, no holds barred analysis of Kyosaki, try this.  I'm not saying Reed has the final word, but you would be wise to look at and consider his word in light of what you've read in Kyosaki's material, then judge for yourself.

https://johntreed.com/blogs/john-t-reed-s-real-estate-investment-blog/61651011-john-t-reeds-analysis-of-robert-t-kiyosakis-book-rich-dad-poor-dad-part-1

So....now you probably think I don't know what I'm talking about, and that's fine if you do.  I think you'll get far more practical, real world advice from a local CPA, real estate attorney, and investor who has actually done deals successfully for the past 20 years.  Spend your money there before reaching for high priced guru books and courses.   It will sharpen your BS detector so you will avoid paying big money to learn common sense 101 "strategies" and "secrets" packaged with a lot of hype.

Anyway, that's all I've got for now.  Good luck learning and keep reading!  But also, find some wise local investors and talk to them.  They will be valuable guides.