Rob Cultraro shows that individuals can use large-scale institutional investment principles
The more I look at Rob Cultraro’s book Wealthy You: how billion-dollar investors succeed and how you can too, the more I like it. And I’ve looked at it many times, so I like it very much.
Rob started out as a financial advisor. But he discovered lots that he didn’t like, hidden behind fees and complexity and potential conflicts of interest. He moved to an investment position in institutional investing, meaning the investment of large pools of capital. And he realized that the institutional investment principles that he employed successfully would work just as well for individuals. And now, after all those years of experience, he has written this book for individuals.
He sent me an early draft, to comment on. Initially it bothered me – not the content, but the style. I got distracted by the fact that it’s written, not as a piece of elegant prose, but essentially as a list of bullet points; in fact, almost a bullet list of bullet lists. In no time at all, the content won me over, and I got into it and loved it. And then I also realized that I loved the bullet point approach! It meant that I could go back and remind myself very easily about the points Rob was making. I don’t mean to say that this isn’t a well-written book, because it is. I just mean that the book is divided into parts, the parts into chapters, the chapters into sections, and the sections into portions under headings, and some of the text is actually bullet points. In fact this is the most logical layout I’ve ever come across. Nicely done, Rob!
When I responded to receiving the draft, in addition to comments on the details of what Rob wrote, I added comments overall. The overall comments were, of course, enthusiastic, as Rob’s draft deserved. My comments were typically at a level of detail. And, being the dedicated person that he is, Rob took every comment seriously and responded to me, in writing, showing what changes he made after absorbing them. I’ve never experienced that level of diligence before. And then he thanks me in his Acknowledgements section! It should be the other way round: thank you, Rob!
Yes, this book is intensely practical, and it’s very easy to read. It’s also pitched at an excellent level: the reader is intelligent but not knowledgeable about the subject, and wants to be fed useful stuff – and Rob provides it.
He spends a huge amount of time on the emotional aspects of investing. This is terrific. My guess is that it’s the biggest single enemy of success.
In fact, Rob starts by saying that there are three fundamental aspects: fees matter, a lot; it’s very tough to outperform a low-cost market index; and the goal is not to beat the market, it’s to make winning (that is, successful investing) inevitable. Then he focuses on the behavioral discipline required. Yes, that is what’s required.
Along the way, Rob has lots of great quotes, from wise investors, in simple language, to help the reader understand. He has a short Let’s Get Personal piece at the start of every chapter, based on his own experience. It’s superb.
It occurs to me that I haven’t explicitly said what’s the content. Perhaps Rob won’t mind if I list the chapter headings. Ch 1: The power of saving – where every wealth journey begins. (My observation: Remember Jonathan Clements, last time?) Ch 2: The cost of bad investing and how to avoid it. Ch 3: The only three things that matter in investing. (Me: Yes, we’ve covered that, above.) Ch 4: The smartest, easiest investment strategy for individuals. (Me: He means: simple, diversified, low-cost, disciplined.) Ch 5: Asset allocation made simple. Ch 7: The simple path to lifelong wealth. Ch 8: The fee trap – and how to escape it. Ch 9: Taxes, inflation, and other hidden risks. Ch 10: Your 60-minute portfolio setup. And then appendices that include links to templates on Rob’s website.
By coincidence this blog post appears as we approach the holiday season. Quite unprompted by Rob, I wonder if some of you might consider this book an appropriate holiday gift.
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Takeaway
Rob’s book is straightforward and useful, with the most logical layout I’ve ever come across.
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I have written about retirement planning before and some of that material also relates to topics or issues that are being discussed here. Where relevant I draw on material from three sources: The Retirement Plan Solution (co-authored with Bob Collie and Matt Smith, published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2009), my foreword to Someday Rich (by Timothy Noonan and Matt Smith, also published by Wiley, 2012), and my occasional column The Art of Investment in the FT Money supplement of The Financial Times, published in the UK. I am grateful to the other authors and to The Financial Times for permission to use the material here.