The 3 P’s of Retirement Investing, May 2017

James Pope | May 22, 2017

The 3 P’s of Retirement Investing, May 2017

”Plans are of little importance, but planning is essential”.
~Winston Churchill

The world runs on oil. As a veteran energy industry employee, you understand this fact. You also probably realize that while people use oil every day, they rarely think about where it comes from or how it gets into their vehicles. To them, it’s just there when they need it. You, on the other hand, know that drilling for oil is a long, arduous, delicate process that must be watched constantly. You don’t take this important element for granted because you know just how much work and planning went into pulling it from the earth. And the rest of the world depends on your expertise.

Your retirement is no different.

Much like gasoline does not magically make its way to gas stations across the globe, you don't dump a lifetime of retirement savings in the lowest cost operation and hope for a good retirement. Preparing for (and planning during) retirement is a detailed, ever-changing art. What worked for you a decade ago – or even a year ago – may not continue working for you today, tomorrow, or next year.

But don’t worry. Your team at Advisor.Investments manages your portfolio with this experience in mind, making changes when necessary, and striving to maintain flexibility for your future. In our office, we follow the three P’s: people, philosophy, and process. Surprisingly, there are more than a few parallels between our mantra and your work with oil.

1. People

Both of our jobs require routine maintenance in order to run smoothly. Both industries need many people with specific skills to make sure that the job gets done and continues to flow well into the future. That’s something you don’t have to worry about with us. We are a team of seven real people working hard for our retirees.

Beyond our two founding members who have worked with ExxonMobil and other energy company retirees since the late 1990s, we have an EA (enrolled agent) on staff for tax planning, consultation and representation with the IRS. Furthermore, we have CFA Charter Holder as part of the investment management process. These are designations that come with dedication, integrity, and talent. Collectively, we have four investment advisor representatives as part of our team solving client problems and marching through time with our retirees.

2. Philosophy

A successful offshore drilling process has a lot of moving parts: Platform, conductor, drill bits, guide shoe, float collar, cement, steel casing, well head, blowout preventer, a riser and so much more. It’s the same with your retirement investment portfolio. To account for the many factors that affect your retirement investment over the coming decades, we believe in a personalized approach with multiple investment strategies broken down by time horizon and objective. This is the basis for the level of risk management required in retirement investing and to manage any upcoming changes that will shape your future.

Many people talk about diversifying their investments, but when the going gets tough, they quickly fall back to a single option. In your work, a producing well that blows out quickly causes unimaginable cost and damage. The same can happen with the wrong philosophy and a retiree who does not adequately diversify their risk factors. As you would carefully monitor an oil well, we monitor your portfolio and manage the risk within. We have adopted what we call a “contrarian mindset,” which means rather than going toward easily sold popular investments that often come with fat upfront commission, we focus on the valuation of individual securities and low cost index funds trying to avoid the blowups thus keeping our eye on the tenets of long-term investing success.

3. Process

You’re the specialist on and off the rig, and we’re the specialist on your retirement. However, we want you to be well-versed in what goes into your investments so you feel knowledgeable and informed. After initial meetings to discuss your expectations and needs, we set to work researching and building your portfolio. This is the important part: no two clients are alike, so no two portfolios are done exactly alike! We have no “cookie cutter” plans or shortcuts – only a drive to make the best choices for your needs.

Along the way, we’ll keep you in the loop so you know exactly how your investment is doing. Through our process of performance reviews, allocation adjustments, tax planning, portfolio discussions, and more, you get to see your progress from start to finish. In other words, you get to see our “oil” from the rig to the pump.

Let’s Get to Work

You don't drill a hole, walk away, and simply wait for oil to spew from the well, maintenance free. In the same way, investing for retirement is not a one-time decision you casually make with the cheapest index fund provider or an expensive 60/40 pie chart allocation. On the contrary, your retirement will be a process that requires work year after year throughout your lifetime which is why we offer retirees the 3P’s and why our slogan reads at Advisor.Investments we’re focused on your retirement, so you can focus on life.

In the meantime, we will be waiting for you and encourage you to get started with your own Personal Financial Analysis years before your retirement. So when you’re ready to fuel up, so to speak, your retirement will be ready and waiting, and we will be waiting for you.

Be Well,

Shane Haag

Please remember to contact Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC dba Advisor.Investments, in writing, if there are any changes in your personal/financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing/evaluating/revising our previous recommendations and/or services, or if you want to impose, add, to modify any reasonable restrictions to our investment advisory services, or if you wish to direct that Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC DBA Advisor.Investments to effect any specific transactions for your account. A copy of our current written disclosure statement discussing our advisory services and fees continues to remain available upon request.

Please remember that past performance may not be indicative of future results. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that the future performance of any specific investment, investment strategy, or product (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or undertaken by Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC dba Advisor.Investments), or any non-investment related content, made reference to directly or indirectly in this newsletter will be profitable, equal any corresponding indicated historical performance level(s), be suitable for your portfolio or individual situation, or prove successful. Due to various factors, including changing market conditions and/or applicable laws, the content may no longer be reflective of current opinions or positions. Moreover, you should not assume that any discussion or information contained in this newsletter serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC dba Advisor.Investments. To the extent that a reader has any questions regarding the applicability of any specific issue discussed above to his/her individual situation, he/she is encouraged to consult with the professional advisor of his/her choosing. Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC DBA Advisor.Investments is neither a law firm nor a certified public accounting firm and no portion of the newsletter content should be construed as legal or accounting advice. If you are a Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC dba Advisor. Investments client, please remember to contact Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC dba Advisor.Investments, in writing, if there are any changes in your personal/financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing/evaluating/revising our previous recommendations and/or services. A copy of the Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC dba Advisor.Investments current written disclosure statement discussing our advisory services and fees is available upon request.

Advisory Services through Advisor.Investments • A doing business as name of Diversified Investment Strategies, LLC, an SEC Registered Investment Advisor • Insurance Services through Advisor.Investments

Main Office and Mailing Address: 11939 Bricksome Avenue, Baton Rouge, LA 70816

Voice: (225) 292-0687 ~ Fax: (225)292-0006 ~ Toll Free: (866) 748-0687

Please remember to contact Advisor.Investments in writing, if there are any changes in your personal/financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing/evaluating/revising our previous recommendations and/or services, or if you want to impose, add, to modify any reasonable restrictions to our investment advisory services, or if you wish to direct Advisor.Investments to effect any specific transactions for your account. A copy of our current written disclosure statement discussing our advisory services and fees continues to remain available for your review upon request.

Main Office and Mailing Address: 11939 Bricksome Avenue, Baton Rouge, LA 70816

Voice: (225) 292-0687 ~ Fax: (225)292-0006 ~ Toll Free: (866) 748-0687