Michael's Client Newsletter #165, December. "Does Your Garden Die in the Winter?" + much more...

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Issue: #165 | December 2025

“All of us would be better investors if we just made fewer decisions.”

―Daniel Kahneman

Greetings,

Welcome to this month's client newsletter for the goal-focused, long-term, equity investor.

As the year turns, we focus on the many financial and behavioral blessings of rebalancing, the only known antidote to FOMO.

Speaking of the market, we currently find ourselves in a most welcome pullback, even as the full spectrum of earnings news continues to be borderline spectacular – as, remarkably, do profit margins. For those of us who’ve remained broadly diversified, and are thus keenly interested in the economy beyond seven companies, the most important earnings report of this past month wasn’t Nvidia’s. It was Walmart’s, and it deserves your close attention.

December 2025

2 pages

Does Your Garden Die in the Winter?

As winter descends, this month’s Client’s Corner offers a kind of seasonal take on the eternal issue of great companies versus “the stock market.”

Open the Client's Corner (PDF)

MICHAEL'S ARTICLE OF THE MONTH

Leasing vs Buying a Car

Click here to read my article

BOOK OF THE MONTH

In over three decades in the Retirement Planning business (and training dozens of Advisors), I can attest that this is the simplest and most common-sense investment book I’ve ever read.

I often tell prospects who I'm interviewing to read this book and if it resonates with them, then they'll enjoy working with me. If it doesn’t, they won’t.

Get the book here

How GE Aerospace CEO Larry Culp turns problems into progress

Youtube - 20 November 2025 - 29 minutes

Larry Culp, Chairman and CEO of GE Aerospace, became the first outsider to lead GE in its 126-year history. In this episode, he shares how a leadership approach rooted in humility and respect helped guide the company through transformation and build a culture focused on continuous improvement. Topics include:

Why employees must feel comfortable sharing bad news with senior leadership
Three lean leadership principles that support long-term financial health
What his unannounced visits to manufacturing facilities reveal about the company's growth

This episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at leadership, problem-solving, and the mindset that drives lasting results for clients and shareholders.

November 25, 2025

25 minutes

European industrials - innovation and tariff resilience explained

Far from the traditional image of industrials as an old economy, slow growth, low innovation sector, many of these companies have changed beyond recognition in recent years. Equity investment analyst Sebastian Siersted focuses on the European industrials space and outlines why he feels businesses in this part of the world have an innovation head start on peers around the world and are well insulated against any future tariff threat.

Listen to the podcast

QUIZ OF THE MONTH

What is a Roth/Traditional IRA Re-Characterization?

Converts one entire account type to the other.
Converts this year's contributions only from one type to the other.
Converts Roth/TIRA to different owner.
Converts Roth/TIRA to a 401k.
Converts Roth/TIRA to Non-Qualified account.
There is no such thing as a 'recharacterization'.

Answer = #2. Converts this year's contributions only from one type to the other.

MONEY MEMES AND A LITTLE HUMOR

I started my financial planning practice 36 years ago with the goal of serving a finite number of families with a focus on goal-focused, long-term, equity investing. I'm happy to tell you that this process is now well along. I can begin to see the day approaching when I will need to stop accepting new clients.

Between now and then, I would much prefer to establish relationships with colleagues and friends of my existing clients. I enjoy working with you and I'm sure I'd enjoy working with people whom you like and admire. If, and only if, I'm servicing you as you'd hoped I ask you to introduce us.