There is one thing more contagious than the coronavirus; that is FEAR. Not only does fear and anxiety weaken our immune system (we physically become more susceptible to illness), it also wreaks havoc on our decision making. We all want to make thoughtful and deliberate decisions, but when we allow fear in, it takes over and may influence us to make decisions that feel right at the moment, but end up being detrimental over time.

We are bombarded by information from all sources. Scientists estimate the brain can handle three terabytes (3TB) of data. That sounds like a lot, but IBM estimates that is only 1/1,000,000 (one millionth) of the data produced daily. We can’t possibly process it all, which is why it is imperative we select what data to pay attention to.

Warren Buffett said, “Investing is simple, but not easy.” Sounds like a contradiction, but in real life simplicity has little to do with ease. Take losing weight. Very simple. Burn more calories than you take in. Not so easy!

We have our first surprise of the year: The Coronavirus. Our annual forecast always states that we will be surprised by something during the year. This is likely the first of several unexpected, unpredicted events we will experience in 2020, especially given that it is an election year.

The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act was signed into law by President Trump on December 20th, 2019. It was done with little fanfare and was probably missed by many due to the holiday season. It is the most extensive retirement act since the Pension Protection Act of 2006.

The media often refers to “Smart Money”. I don’t know why. The “Smart Money” make some pretty poor decisions. Their identification of “smart” is misleading. Intelligence has very little to do with investment success. In fact, Warren Buffett said that once you have an average IQ, what sets apart successful investors is their ability to control the urges that influence us to make bad financial decisions.