What’s the single greatest secret in investing?
People will give all kinds of complicated answers to this question.
But really, it boils down to one simple thing.
Doing this thing can put millions of extra dollars in your retirement account, starting today. No exaggeration.
The data says folks who do this thing are seven times more likely to be rich than someone who does the opposite.
And you can implement this thing the moment you’re done reading this email.
Let’s see what it is.
- I wish I had coined the phrase: “Pessimists sound smart. Optimists make money.”
American tech entrepreneur Nat Friedman beat me to it.
When you study great investors, you’ll realize 99% of them agree with Nat. Here’s Stan Druckenmiller, a billionaire and arguably the greatest trader ever:
Bulls make more than bears, so if anything, being an optimist about life and about things in general is a great attribute as an investor. You just can’t be starry-eyed and naive.
Investing legend Jim O’Shaughnessy calls optimism an “asymmetric edge” in long-term investing.
Warren Buffett, J.P. Morgan, Elon Musk… all big-time optimists.
Cynics will say: “Of course they’re optimistic. They’re billionaires! Life worked out great for them.”
But study after study shows optimists make better investors.
Researchers at the University of Miami recently found “optimists are seven times more likely to experience ‘exceptional financial well-being’ than pessimists.”
And here's the part most people don’t get: You can choose to be an optimist, even if you have a negative tilt. I'm living proof.
- I used to be a “glass half empty” guy…
My college professor, who got me into investing, was convinced the next market crash was always around the corner.
He showed off his silver bars like they were winning lottery tickets.
After a few years of seeing my portfolio stagnate, I figured out betting on doomsday is a losing strategy. I started investing in the stock market.
Reading Matt Ridley’s The Rational Optimist was a real eye-opener for me. It’s a book about the triumph of the optimists.
The Rational Optimist taught me to stop obsessing about what might go wrong and instead look at the facts. And the facts show markets reward optimistic investors.
I’m not just talking about the fact that US stocks go up most of the time, although that’s true.
- I’m talking about believing that great people can form great companies and make great things happen.
It happens all the time in America!
Could a DVD-by-mail company topple America’s mighty oligopoly of cable companies? To a cynic, that was laughable 20 years ago.
But Netflix (NFLX) did it. It has more subscribers than all cable networks combined, and its stock handed investors 10,000%+ gains over the past 15 years.
In 1999, the idea of "a couple of geeks with some software" taking down giants like Sears was literally laughed at on national television.
But investors optimistic enough to take a chance on Amazon (AMZN) in '99 laughed to the bank with 9,000%+ returns.
Lesson: Buying the best stocks in history required you to have vision to see a bright future.
I’m not saying optimists always make money. You of course must do your research, manage risk, and all that. Invest like an optimist; manage risk like a pessimist.
But pessimists have no chance of bagging these winners. They’ll watch from the sidelines making a list of 10 reasons things won’t work. Being willing to take chances on potentially world-changing businesses is a virtue.
The story of the US stock market over the past century isn’t one about pessimists. It’s about optimists and new record high after new record high.
America is built on optimism!
- Will you lead the rational optimist revolution with me?
I see so many incredible breakthroughs as Chief Analyst at RiskHedge.
Innovators are restoring hearing in deaf children and eyesight in blind children. They’re building planes that go twice as fast as what we use today. They’re launching reusable rockets into space… building machines that “think”… and getting closer every day to producing clean, cheap, abundant energy.
They're pushing humanity forward and creating vast sums of wealth while doing it.
But the corporate media sweeps these stories of progress under the rug while serving up negative slop.
The news is like junk food for your brain. Satiating in the moment, but terrible for your health (and wealth).
The corporate media is poisoning your mind and your portfolio. And I’m building a tribe of rational optimists to fight back.
- Introducing The Rational Optimist Society.
Remember, optimism is a choice.
You can make that choice right now by joining our new tribe, The Rational Optimist Society (ROS) today.
I routinely learn of incredible technologies that are either too early stage or not yet investible for most people. The ROS is my new outlet to share these stories.
I’m not sharing this research just for the fun of it.
I believe you are what you read. If you consume the pessimist stew CNN and Fox News and social media serve up daily, you’d think the world is going to hell. And that leads to bad investing decisions.
Joining ROS helps you choose to be an optimist. You’ll learn about the entrepreneurs inventing the future and pushing humanity forward.
As a rational optimist, you’ll understand the frontier technologies years before they appear on the cover of Barron’s. ROS is a shot of optimism in your veins. The perfect antidote to cure you of corporate media poisoning.
And The Society is much bigger than me. I mentioned Matt Ridley, whose bestseller The Rational Optimist changed my life.
I’m thrilled that Matt is the Honorary Founder of ROS. Many more founders, innovators, and wealth-creators are also joining our budding community.
My contribution to ROS is a weekly Diary where I’ll share my work on incredible breakthroughs changing our world.
I’ll be writing about next-gen nuclear energy… artificial intelligence (AI) drones transforming war… the supersonic jet revival… how CRISPR and mRNA are curing disease… quantum internet… AI early warning systems for our health… and much more with ROS members.
Join me in the ROS here. Membership is free, because we want our new group of rational optimists to grow as fast as possible. I believe there are millions of “closeted” rational optimists out there. Help me awaken them!
Being a rational optimist isn’t about ignoring risk. It’s about recognizing long-term trends, believing in human ingenuity, and having the courage to bet on it.
This simple mindset shift will make you a better investor. But also a happier spouse, a more inspiring parent, and a friend everyone wants to hang out with. We have the data to prove it!
Become a founding member of The Rational Optimist Society with me here and join with the ranks of visionaries pushing humanity forward.
Stephen McBride
Chief Analyst, RiskHedge
