Craig's Corner - What's Most Important

Craig Robson, CFP®, CIMA®, CDFA®, Founding Principal and Managing Director

During a recent conversation with one of my teenage boys while driving him to school, he commented that he felt I was a risk-taker compared to his friends’ fathers. I was somewhat caught off guard with this unexpected comment so I asked him to elaborate. To paraphrase, he responded, for example: 1) you were building your new business during the pandemic, 2) you and Mom are building a new home during a time of economic uncertainty, and 3) you continue to play competitive ice hockey even after you tore your ACL two years ago and went through surgery and 10 months of PT. I smiled and responded that he may be correct! After a healthy dialogue, I told him that I choose to take strategic risks in life because, in my view, the benefits over the long term are greater than the pain points I may have to experience in the short term. One could make the same case for investing.

As of March 3, 2023 the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 were up 5.69% and 12.54% respectively YTD, while over the past 12 months those same two indices declined by 5.72% and 11.80% respectively [1]. Investing one’s hard-earned savings in the capital markets is best suited for longer-term goals as we must accept, and may experience, volatility (i.e. pain points) in the shorter-term. And while it’s important to track the overall performance of your investments, in my view what’s more important is the future goals which one will have more confidence in achieving (i.e., buying a 2nd home, having the resources to pay for educational costs, living a comfortable retirement lifestyle, traveling, etc.) due to taking appropriate levels of risk with your capital.

Back to my conversation with my teenage son. During that exchange I had also mentioned to him that by choosing to embark on the risks which he referenced, not only was I fortunate to achieve the previously stated outcomes, I also realized additional benefits which I had not counted on. Some examples include having deeper/stronger relationships with my team members who joined me in starting Regent Peak, selecting our builder for our new home who is now a great friend, and the continued laughter and camaraderie I experience in both the locker room and parking lot after hockey games with my teammates. I recently came across a quote from Albert Einstein which I feel summarizes this thought best, “Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted”.

[1] Bespoke Report, March 3, 2023