Any investor can ignore your best advice and be wildly successful in achieving all of their personal goals including the ultimate one of total financial freedom.
I don’t care if you’re a professional with decades of experience, an amateur with an unworldly track-record or if you believe you’ve got the most sophisticated portfolio ever invented.
Somebody else can totally ignore what it is you’re doing and/or just flat out reject what you consider to be your bread and butter skillset, and be successful by doing the exact opposite.
Ouch.
That’s gotta sting a little.
But before you think of all of the reasons why I might be wrong consider the following few examples.
For every investor out there that has achieved financial freedom with a 60/40 portfolio there is somebody else that has done so with just a handful of “blue chip” stocks that have been patiently held and compounding for generations.
For those who suggest you’ve got to spread out and diversify globally you’ll find somebody who has achieved financial freedom by succumbing exclusively to home country bias.
And I’m not just referring to US based investors buying only US listed ETFs/stocks.
I’m talking about Swedish investors who own only Swedish stocks or Canadian investors buying exclusively Canadian equities.
Now at this point you’re likely chomping at the bit to tell me why that’s risky, doltish or flat out an inferior way to compound.
Look.
I hear you.
And you’re probably right.
There likely are better ways to compound from a risk meets returns standpoint.
Heck, even from a sequence of returns point of view.
Surely, some of these “strange portfolios” could be enhanced or improved by doing a little bit (or a whole lot) of this and that.
Yet, if you’re going down that route you’re missing the point I’m trying to make.
Despite all of that you’ll find folks who have done something that you find utterly cretinous yet it’s allowed them to reach all of their financial goals whatever they may be.
About the Author & Disclosure
Picture Perfect Portfolios is the quantitative research arm of Samuel Jeffery, co-founder of the Samuel & Audrey Media Network. With over 15 years of global business experience and two World Travel Awards (Europe’s Leading Marketing Campaign 2017 & 2018), Samuel brings a unique global macro perspective to asset allocation.
Note: This content is strictly for educational purposes and reflects personal opinions, not professional financial advice. All strategies discussed involve risk; please consult a qualified advisor before investing.
These asset allocation ideas and model portfolios presented herein are purely for entertainment purposes only. This is NOT investment advice. These models are hypothetical and are intended to provide general information about potential ways to organize a portfolio based on theoretical scenarios and assumptions. They do not take into account the investment objectives, financial situation/goals, risk tolerance and/or specific needs of any particular individual.
Examples From My Career As A Travel Media Specialist
When I first started my travel media network in the early 2010s I wasn’t quite an OG but the industry as a whole was certainly very much in its infancy.
Those with more experience were trotting out advice like it was the Kentucky Derby.
“Content is King.”
If it’s not informative people won’t read it.
“Publish X amount of times per week and be as active as possible on platform A, B and C.”
Indeed, some of the advice being shared allowed certain travel professionals to grow from amateurs to professionals.
Yet, I also noticed that there were those who ignored almost all of the general consensus wisdom of best practices while achieving wild success.
Some had contrarian personalities and covered niches that had yet to be written about where they built a loyal audience.
When I switched over to creating YouTube videos I noticed this more and more.
The most popular genre at the time was daily vlogging and almost everybody was hopping on that gravy train for a while.
Fast forward a few years later and most of the daily vloggers had either quit, burnt out or alienated their fanbase.
Although some found success making this style of video, many other creators went in a completely different direction creating pillar content that required multiple days of filming and editing to polish things off.
Instead of putting out content daily they’d release a video once a week, once every two weeks or even once a month.
“You’ve got to let your personality shine through in order to attract an audience.”
Most believe this and yet I can think of numerous examples where a channel has blown up by releasing videos where it is b-roll only with no speaking at all.
“Spread out and don’t put your eggs all in one basket.”
That advice has resonated with certain channels and yet others have become highly specialized niche experts going deep on only one particular subject.
You need to have punchy saturated colours, quick transitions and b-roll clips not extending beyond 3 seconds and yet some creators eschew this counsel by merely pointing the camera at their face and doing an entire monologue in just one clip.
In other words, there are many ways to become successful as a travel media specialist just as there are numerous paths to becoming a prosperous investor.
My Best Advice: Expand the Canvas and Maximally Diversify
If I had to boil down what I feel is my “best advice” to pass on to fellow investors it would be to expand the canvas of your portfolio and diversify maximally beyond merely various stock/bond combinations.
I’d suggest adding capital efficient products such as $UPAR, $GDE, $BLNDX and $NFDIX and using the “extra space” that these funds create in your portfolios to further diversify into strategies such as global systematic managed futures, trend-following, long volatility options, long-short equity, market-neutral, merger-arbitrage, absolute return fixed income, real assets, gold, bitcoin and others.
It would be paramount to insist upon a globally diversified portfolio spread out between US equities, International Developed and Emerging Markets.
Furthermore, I’d want to find out your financial goals, risk tolerance and stage in your life/investing cycle to ensure that the portfolio is constructed in an optimal manner that manages risk first while offering potentially great returns second.
For example, if you’ve achieved financial freedom, have a bit of a weak chin and a reasonable burn-rate it might make sense to skew the portfolio more towards defensive assets and strategies such as managed futures, tail-risk options puts, absolute return fixed income and market-neutral equities.
Irregardless, what is eventually your customized portfolio needs to have an IPS (Investment Statement Policy) with a zoom-out, chill-out and let it be clause clearly stated.
There you have it.
That’s my best advice.
Now go ahead and literally ignore all of it and you can still find ways to succeed as an investor.
What would be the exact opposite of my approach?
Eschewing diversification.
Rejecting going global.
Only focusing on one asset class and strategy.
Trading and making portfolio moves without any rules based decisions.
Not rebalancing.
Market-cap weighting over research supported factor strategies.
Ignoring trend and being entirely static.
Discretionary over systematic.
Yep.
I’d want to puke.
Yet this might be what is best for you.
This might be what allows you to stay the course and achieve your wildest dreams.
And who am I (or anybody else) to get in the way of that.
All Of The Potential Portfolios Out There
When you think about it there are all kinds of mainstream and oddball ways to compound wealth out there.
Here are some that come to mind.
Stocks For The Long Run (equity only investing strategies whether they be Index or Factor ETFs or individual stocks)
Ferocious Fixed Income (a portfolio composed entirely of fixed income instruments)
Equity/Bond Mix and Matchers (a portfolio with 80/20, 60/40, 40/60 or 20/80 combinations of stocks and fixed income that tickles your risk tolerance fancy)
Long-only Risk Parity, Harry Browne Permanent Portfolio or Ray Dalio All-Weather (portfolios that add an “alternative sleeve” to the mix and also cap equity exposure)
Gregarious Gold Bugs (for those who just can’t get enough gold in their portfolio to the point of outshining other asset classes)
Adaptive Asset Allocators (the types of portfolios that have the ability to adapt by going long/short/flat any asset class they choose via a myriad of different futures strategies)
Hedgehog Defenders (a portfolio that is hedged by absolute return strategies across all asset classes that often features portfolio insurance as part of the equation)
Laser Eyed Crypto Comrades (for those pursuing exclusively digital assets while rejecting everything else as being old school)
Twitchy Finger Traders (discretionary managers who trade stocks, bonds, futures, options based upon macro opinions they’ve formed)
Observant Options Operators (specialists who trade options in a variety of different ways)
Of course I could go on and on and on but this offers a general mix of what most investors may be pursing out there.
Examining Stocks For The Long Run
I think one of the most interesting “single strategies” that we could unpack is a stocks for the long run approach where you’re 100% invested in equities only.
Isn’t that risky?
Sure.
Your portfolio can be sliced in half (or more) under the right scenario when a bear market rears its ugly head.
For individual stock selectors you have the additional risk of the security you’ve invested in going belly up as a business with the consequences of losing it all.
Yet, if you do your homework and pick wide moat companies you’re likely going to be holding something more stable than fringe companies that pop in and out of indexes.
If you’re committed to the strategy for decades on end it’ll likely work out just fine.
Maybe you’ve over-saved, have a low burn-rate or an emergency fund that covers you during times of market turmoil.
There is someone out there that owns only McDonald’s stock that is wealthy beyond your wildest imagination and living financially independent from dividends only.
There is another person who invests only in the S&P 500 and chills out whereas some savvy individual is trading only micro-cap stocks.
You’ve got globally diversified factor investors, value vultures, low volatility linchpins and mid-cap mavens all compounding their way to financial self-reliance.
Your best advice might be to avoid all high P/E stocks at all cost and yet there are growth investors who gobble those up.
Diversify globally and do no succumb to home country bias and yet we’ve got investors out there with less stocks than you can count on your fingers fully invested in home country equities only thriving with that particular strategy.
Although I haven’t met them yet there is somebody out there that only invests broadly in Emerging Markets or in specific regions such as Latin America only.
You’ll find somebody using top-down strategies and analysis whereas others build their portfolios from a bottoms up approach.
Technical analysis versus fundamental analysis.
One investor is an expert at one while eschewing the other whereas some investors combine both.
Multi-factor versus single factor.
Barbell strategies versus high conviction singular approaches.
Minimum volatility over momentum.
You name it and someone out there is pursuing it profitably.
Investing Style That Matches Your Personality
Finding an investing style/strategy that matches you personality is crucial.
If you’re the type of person that likes to tinker, you’re going to struggle with a buy and hold approach while potentially flourishing as a tactical manager.
If you’re someone who can sit through a bear market and not obsessively check your portfolio you’ll likely thrive with a portfolio that involves permanent allocations.
Some investors prefer simplicity whereas others enjoy complexity.
The one-size-fits-all approach just doesn’t work and I’ve noticed the daily interactions between certain militant camps of investors that feel as though they’re going to finally convince the other side to see the light and vice versa.
For some it is Groundhog Day on Twitter 24/7.
The best investors out there are likely the most self-aware.
They do what makes sense for them and have an uncanny ability to ignore the constant noise and distractions.
There are numerous roads to Rome and we don’t all have to be on the same path.
Any Investor Can Ignore Your Best Advice And Be Wildly Successful — 12-Question FAQ
What is the core argument of this article?
That many different investing paths can lead to financial freedom, even when they contradict each other or ignore widely held “best practices.”
Does ignoring expert advice guarantee success?
No. It simply means success is possible via multiple approaches; discipline, time horizon, and fit with your personality still matter most.
How can opposite strategies both work?
Markets reward different behaviors across cycles. If a strategy matches the investor’s temperament and they stick with it, compounding can still do the heavy lifting.
What are examples of opposite approaches succeeding?
A classic 60/40, a handful of blue chips, home-country-only stocks, or even all-equity portfolios can each reach goals if the investor stays the course.
What is the author’s “best advice” in brief?
Expand the canvas: diversify globally, add alternatives and capital-efficient building blocks, and anchor decisions in a written Investment Policy Statement.
Who might benefit from doing the opposite of that advice?
Investors who can only stick with an ultra-simple, high-conviction approach may be better off concentrating rather than adopting a complex allocation they won’t follow.
What are the risks of concentration or home country bias?
Greater drawdown risk, sector or policy shocks, and missed global opportunities; these can be acceptable only if the investor understands and accepts them.
How should an investor pick a style that fits their personality?
Match strategy to behavior: tinkerers may prefer tactical rules, while patient holders may favor permanent allocations; self-awareness reduces bailout risk.
Is diversification still useful if many paths work?
Yes. Diversification lowers reliance on any single outcome and can smooth the ride, but it is not mandatory for every successful investor.
How should investors define success?
By personal goals: adequate savings rate, staying invested through cycles, meeting spending needs, and reaching financial independence on a chosen timeline.
What are common pitfalls when copying someone else’s portfolio?
Mismatch of risk tolerance and time horizon, quitting during drawdowns, and adopting complexity without conviction or process.
What tool helps any approach succeed?
A clear IPS with rules for contributions, rebalancing, risk limits, and a “zoom-out, chill-out, let-it-be” clause to prevent emotional decisions.
Nomadic Samuel Final Thoughts
There are few pursuits in life that offer as many different potential pathways as investing.
Whatever I or anyone else believes can be totally ignored and you can still reach all of your financial goals by sticking with something that makes sense for you personally.
That’s not just true in investing but in most other pursuits in life.
source: Financial Wisdom on YouTube (The investment performance results presented here are based on historical backtesting and are hypothetical. Past performance, whether actual or indicated by historical tests of strategies, is not indicative of future results. The results obtained through backtesting are only theoretical and are provided for informational purposes to illustrate investment strategies under certain conditions and scenarios.)
I’m currently reading the Little Book Of Market Wizards by Jack D. Schwager and I’m mesmerized by how investors from all walks of life pursuing radically different investing strategies have all achieved success by following their bliss and ignoring everything else.
That to me is inspiring and where I’d like to wrap things up today.
That’s all I’ve got for now.
Ciao.
Impo
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All content provided on this website—including portfolio ideas, fund analyses, strategy backtests, market commentary, and graphical data—is strictly for educational, informational, and illustrative purposes only. The information does not constitute financial, investment, tax, accounting, or legal advice. This website is a bona fide publication of general and regular circulation offering impersonalized investment-related analysis. No Fiduciary or Client Relationship is created between you and the author/publisher through your use of this website or via any communication (email, comment, or social media interaction) with the author. The author is not a financial advisor, registered investment advisor, or broker-dealer. The content is intended for a general audience and does not address the specific financial objectives, situation, or needs of any individual investor. NO SOLICITATION: Nothing on this website shall be construed as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, derivatives, or financial instruments.
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Past performance indicators, including historical data, backtesting results, and hypothetical scenarios, should never be viewed as guarantees or reliable predictions of future performance. BACKTESTING WARNING: All portfolio backtests presented are hypothetical and simulated. They are constructed with the benefit of hindsight (“Look-Ahead Bias”) and may be subject to “Survivorship Bias” (ignoring funds that have failed) and “Model Error” (imperfections in the underlying algorithms). Hypothetical performance results have many inherent limitations. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those shown. In fact, there are frequently sharp differences between hypothetical performance results and the actual results subsequently achieved by any particular trading program. “Picture Perfect Portfolios” does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information.
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rtant Information
Comprehensive Investment, Content, Legal Disclaimer & Terms of Use
1. Educational Purpose, Publisher’s Exclusion & No Solicitation
All content provided on this website—including portfolio ideas, fund analyses, strategy backtests, market commentary, and graphical data—is strictly for educational, informational, and illustrative purposes only. The information does not constitute financial, investment, tax, accounting, or legal advice. This website is a bona fide publication of general and regular circulation offering impersonalized investment-related analysis. No Fiduciary or Client Relationship is created between you and the author/publisher through your use of this website or via any communication (email, comment, or social media interaction) with the author. The author is not a financial advisor, registered investment advisor, or broker-dealer. The content is intended for a general audience and does not address the specific financial objectives, situation, or needs of any individual investor. NO SOLICITATION: Nothing on this website shall be construed as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, derivatives, or financial instruments.
2. Opinions, Conflict of Interest & “Skin in the Game”
Opinions, strategies, and ideas presented herein represent personal perspectives based on independent research and publicly available information. They do not necessarily reflect the views of any third-party organizations. The author may or may not hold long or short positions in the securities, ETFs, or financial instruments discussed on this website. These positions may change at any time without notice. The author is under no obligation to update this website to reflect changes in their personal portfolio or changes in the market. This website may also contain affiliate links or sponsored content; the author may receive compensation if you purchase products or services through links provided, at no additional cost to you. Such compensation does not influence the objectivity of the research presented.
3. Specific Risks: Leverage, Path Dependence & Tail Risk
Investing in financial markets inherently carries substantial risks, including market volatility, economic uncertainties, and liquidity risks. You must be fully aware that there is always the potential for partial or total loss of your principal investment. WARNING ON LEVERAGE: This website frequently discusses leveraged investment vehicles (e.g., 2x or 3x ETFs). The use of leverage significantly increases risk exposure. Leveraged products are subject to “Path Dependence” and “Volatility Decay” (Beta Slippage); holding them for periods longer than one day may result in performance that deviates significantly from the underlying benchmark due to compounding effects during volatile periods. WARNING ON ETNs & CREDIT RISK: If this website discusses Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs), be aware they carry Credit Risk of the issuing bank. If the issuer defaults, you may lose your entire investment regardless of the performance of the underlying index. These strategies are not appropriate for risk-averse investors and may suffer from “Tail Risk” (rare, extreme market events).
4. Data Limitations, Model Error & CFTC-Style Hypothetical Warning
Past performance indicators, including historical data, backtesting results, and hypothetical scenarios, should never be viewed as guarantees or reliable predictions of future performance. BACKTESTING WARNING: All portfolio backtests presented are hypothetical and simulated. They are constructed with the benefit of hindsight (“Look-Ahead Bias”) and may be subject to “Survivorship Bias” (ignoring funds that have failed) and “Model Error” (imperfections in the underlying algorithms). Hypothetical performance results have many inherent limitations. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those shown. In fact, there are frequently sharp differences between hypothetical performance results and the actual results subsequently achieved by any particular trading program. “Picture Perfect Portfolios” does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information.
5. Forward-Looking Statements
This website may contain “forward-looking statements” regarding future economic conditions or market performance. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated and expressed in these forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these predictive statements.
6. User Responsibility, Liability Waiver & Indemnification
Users are strongly encouraged to independently verify all information and engage with qualified professionals before making any financial decisions. The responsibility for making informed investment decisions rests entirely with the individual. “Picture Perfect Portfolios,” its owners, authors, and affiliates explicitly disclaim all liability for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, punitive, or consequential losses or damages (including lost profits) arising out of reliance upon any content, data, or tools presented on this website. INDEMNIFICATION: By using this website, you agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless “Picture Perfect Portfolios,” its authors, and affiliates from and against any and all claims, liabilities, damages, losses, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or in any way connected with your access to or use of this website.
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8. Governing Law, Arbitration & Severability BINDING ARBITRATION:
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By accessing, reading, and utilizing the content on this website, you expressly acknowledge, understand, accept, and agree to abide by these terms and conditions. Please consult the full and detailed disclaimer available elsewhere on this website for further clarification and additional important disclosures. Read the complete disclaimer here.
