The only certainty is …
… that there is no certainty (ok, I admit death is the only thing we can know with any certainty, but my intention is not to write about the end here, I have done that before and it didn’t end…
Category: Biases The factory default settings of the human brain were essential in the past to secure our survival.
In modern times, however, that inner con man plays tricks on us that can end quite costly.
100 Biases and Bias Bias
einhundert – 100 – one hundred The other day I have shared with you this gigantic Cognitive Bias Codex. It contains 189 different biases. So far I have written about 100 biases that make you do dumb things with your…
Familiarity Bias vs. Ambiguity Effect
Or otherwise known as reliance on old-fashioned financial institutions and outdated economic structures. Partly, it is due to habit; partly, because of our concerns about liquidity; and partly, because we think that it is always risky to experiment with new things where we might lack…
Fading Affect Bias
Among the many quirks our brains have is something called the “fading affect bias.” Basically, we aren’t very good at remembering negative emotions. Our brains shrink the memories of bad times, painful experiences and anything generally unpleasant. That is generally…
Cognitive-Biases-Life-Hack
Emotions are the main cause and driving force in the stock markets. Last week I shared some thoughts why understanding our mind as a tool that tries to live in an uncertain world is an important challenge. Because the brain…
Are you investing/trading like a scientist or like a lawyer?
Before you read on, take a minute and think about this question for a while. Look back at your recent transactions. How did you arrive at those decisions? Are you happy with your past decisions? Any regrets? C’mon. If you’ve…
A trip to Lake Wobegone
This trip is for the stock traders among you. What kind of annual return are you aiming for? 30% or 20% or 10%? What’s your number? Humans, and especially those of the male persuasion, have a bias called The Lake…
Not-Invented-Here-Bias
Last week I wrote about expensive Mutual Funds / Unit Trusts and their cheaper (and better) alternatives called Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). You still don’t buy it. Ok, that might be my fault because I am simply not convincing enough…
The stuff that could make all the difference in your Mutual Funds
Fees and Expenses. Investors in mutual funds incur two primary kinds of expenses and fees: Fund expenses and loads. Whereas fund expenses are paid indirectly from fund assets throughout the year, sales loads are one-time fees that investors pay either at the time…
Can you afford to ignore the long-term importance of money?
“Oh, money, I’m actually not interested in money.” So many people say that. Yet they’ll work at a job for eight hours or more (that they don’t even like) just to be able to buy stuff to impress their neighbours, the Tans and Lees (who they don’t really like…
The factory default settings of the human brain were essential in the past to secure our survival.
In modern times, however, that inner con man plays tricks on us that can end quite costly.
100 Biases and Bias Bias
einhundert – 100 – one hundred The other day I have shared with you this gigantic Cognitive Bias Codex. It contains 189 different biases. So far I have written about 100 biases that make you do dumb things with your…
Familiarity Bias vs. Ambiguity Effect
Or otherwise known as reliance on old-fashioned financial institutions and outdated economic structures. Partly, it is due to habit; partly, because of our concerns about liquidity; and partly, because we think that it is always risky to experiment with new things where we might lack…
Fading Affect Bias
Among the many quirks our brains have is something called the “fading affect bias.” Basically, we aren’t very good at remembering negative emotions. Our brains shrink the memories of bad times, painful experiences and anything generally unpleasant. That is generally…
Cognitive-Biases-Life-Hack
Emotions are the main cause and driving force in the stock markets. Last week I shared some thoughts why understanding our mind as a tool that tries to live in an uncertain world is an important challenge. Because the brain…
Are you investing/trading like a scientist or like a lawyer?
Before you read on, take a minute and think about this question for a while. Look back at your recent transactions. How did you arrive at those decisions? Are you happy with your past decisions? Any regrets? C’mon. If you’ve…
A trip to Lake Wobegone
This trip is for the stock traders among you. What kind of annual return are you aiming for? 30% or 20% or 10%? What’s your number? Humans, and especially those of the male persuasion, have a bias called The Lake…
Not-Invented-Here-Bias
Last week I wrote about expensive Mutual Funds / Unit Trusts and their cheaper (and better) alternatives called Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). You still don’t buy it. Ok, that might be my fault because I am simply not convincing enough…
The stuff that could make all the difference in your Mutual Funds
Fees and Expenses. Investors in mutual funds incur two primary kinds of expenses and fees: Fund expenses and loads. Whereas fund expenses are paid indirectly from fund assets throughout the year, sales loads are one-time fees that investors pay either at the time…
Can you afford to ignore the long-term importance of money?
“Oh, money, I’m actually not interested in money.” So many people say that. Yet they’ll work at a job for eight hours or more (that they don’t even like) just to be able to buy stuff to impress their neighbours, the Tans and Lees (who they don’t really like…