ON MIKE’S MIND
Scuba diving with a pro divemaster = risk smart.
Russian Roulette = risk stupid.
Investing in a company with an upward growth curve and top management = risk smart.
Investing in NFTs with purple monkeys on them…
Well, I dont’ reallly have to tell you the answer to that one, do I?
***
So…
How much risk should you take as an investor?
It’s the classic question.
I’ll give you a simple answer in two parts:
Part 1: Take more risk when you’re young so you can recover if things go South. Reduce your high risk investments as you grow older.
Part 2: Good ol’ Charlie Munger had a 3 rule breakdown for success in general:
Don't Sell What You Wouldn't Buy
Work For Those You Admire
Partner With People You Enjoy
At the Co/investor Club, we ONLY invest with people/leaders we not only enjoy and admire — but also that we TRUST.
Trust based on a proven track record.
***
Our good friend Jimmy Frischling at Branded Hospitality is a great example of someone we like, admire AND trust.
He’s the one who brought us the Shaq investment in December and those of you who got it are ALREADY seeing a significant uptick in value.
[See the Interview at the Club with Jimmy below!]
That’s the Co/Investor Club at work — doing our homework, tapping our network, bringing you - Club members - ONLY the investments that we firmly believe put the odds in your favor.
There will be more - so get ready. We are preparing several opportunities the general public will never see — until valuation is much higher.
To prepare yourself, remember this:
The Co/Investor Club puts the odds in your favor.
Premium members will always have first dibs - and usually the only dibs on these opportunities.
So if you' haven’t registered for Premium Membership, do so now here before the rate rises.
After you do that, read this little ditty I found that speaks some big truth:
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PRAYER FOR TAKING RISKS
To live is to risk dying.
To hope is to risk despair
To try is to risk failure
But risks must be taken
because the greatest hazard
is to risk nothing.
Those who risk nothing
Do nothing.
have nothing...
Chained by their own fears
They are slaves:
they have forfeited freedom.
Only a person who risks is free
Amen
*********
Amen, indeed.
I would add this: that only a person who takes smart risks WITH THE ODDS IN HIS FAVOR is free… and also wealthy.
Putting the Odds in Your Favor,
Mike
**********
THE MARKETS
Markets had a choppy week due to, pulls a tariff out of a hat, auto-tariffs before a slip this Friday from a worse-than-expected inflation data
S&P 500: -2.63%, DJI: -1.94%, NASDAQ Composite: -3.96%
Yields were generally rising throughout the week before falling on Friday
The 10-year yield remained flat at 4.25, while the 2-year yield also fell 3 basis points to 3.92
We almost finished a week without the Fear and Greed Index ending on Extreme Fear. Marking a full month of the index being so depressed
Crypto was on the rise this week before crashing down just like everything else
BTC: -0.48%, ETH: -4.78%, XRP: -9.77%
An Investor We Work With … Closely
»»»» The Coinvestor Club Interview with Jimmy Frischling
He brought us Shaq. He owns 17 restaurants owned in NY. He has a stake in over 50 hospitality enterprises and hosts one of the leading podcasts for restauranteurs. Plus - and this is the best part…
.. he’s a great friend of The Co/Investor Club.
We interviewed Jimmy on his investment philosophy - what are the BIG trends in the market? What red flags veer him away from investing. What are the biggest green flags? What makes him and Branded so successful?
It’s a masterclass in investing intelligence.
We hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed talking to him.
»»»»» Watch the Video Interview here ««««
To hear more of Jimmy, you might enjoy his podcast, The Hospitality Hangout.
And his excellent newsletter on innovations in the hospitality industry can be found here.
WISE WORDS
"Take a simple idea and take it seriously. Most people don't grab the right ideas or don't know what to do with them when they get them. The ability to destroy your ideas before they destroy you is a hallmark of wisdom." - Charlie Munger
"One can resist the invasion of armies, but not the invasion of ideas." - Victor Hugo, French Poet
Reflections on the Week…
When Fortunes Flip:
Last week, I listened to a great story on the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management on The Investor’s Podcast.
I’m sure many of you already know the story, but if you don’t, here’s the gist: a bunch of REALLY smart people, including Nobel Prize-winning economists, had a brilliant idea, so clever that everyone else agreed to go along.
It turned out to not be so brilliant.
And, as Buffett said, “when the tide goes out you discover who’s swimming naked”.
I’ll leave the story here for you to listen if you like, but it got me thinking…
Some of the best ideas can turn into terrible ones, and horrible ideas can become great ones.
Take the drama of 23andMe this past week. If felt like a novelty, and my own family played and discovered some long-lost Norwegian heritage. Great. We’re Vikings. Fun.
But this genetic testing company “novelty,” built a whopping $5.8 billion at its peak. Until the financial Viking ships showed up. The descent has been frightening. And not so fun.
Whimpering sales and a data breach in 2023 caused the health testing giant to collapse, and now it’s looking to sell your genetic data.
Genetic testing sounded like a good idea - it could alert you to suscepitibility to certain diseases for instance. But now - bad idea - your private genetic data may end up unknown hands, maybe even end up on the blockchain.
Good idea becomes a frightenting bad idea.
It goes the other way as well. Awful sounding ideas could turn out terrific.
Then again, there are also terrible-sounding ideas that end up being terrific.
In 2017, Argentina issued 100-year bonds, which investors thought was pure insanity. Argentina, a country with a track record of defaulting on its debt, was asking people to lend them money for an entire century—what could possibly go wrong?
Well… a lot.
Argentina did, in fact, default just three years later. To be fair, COVID happened, but it still proved critics right. But here’s the twist—those who stuck with these so-called “dumbest bonds in the world” ended up making a killing. Thanks to Argentina’s economic rebound and the high yields, these bonds outperformed, giving nearly a 100% return!
The jury is still out on whether Musk’s xAI buying Musks’s X is folly, a shell game or a brilliant tax avoidance technique.
Only time will tell, but if history is any guide, the line between genius and disaster is much thinner than we think.
The Savvy Investor…
First Buffett, Now an Ex-Goldman Analyst - More Investments in Japan
”I call it re-Hooterization” - Founders Plan for bringing Women to Hooters
Looks like MBAs are Back on the Menu - Business School Applications Rise
Do Hedge Funds Deserve Bail Outs Too?
Cowgirl Beyonce is driving Airbnb prices to the Moon!
Publisher’s Note:
Today, listen to Jimmy in the video above.
It’s a masterclass on how a savvy investor who knows his sector thinks.
I hope you got in on the Shaq Big Chicken deal he brought us.
It had all the elements of a winner — and it’s already winning, just two months later.
It pays to belong to the club.
Me? I’m heading down to a combo street party/demonstration in my Canyon here in Cali. We’re trying to whip up some attention to get our road opened to the coast. The fires and mudslides wiped out our only road down.
Those of us whose houses were saved are grateful to the firefighters, for sure.
Now go get the state moving faster.
Have a great week,
Adam
If you have not already upgraded your membership…
Chat with Mike
Whether you’re an executive with investment opportunities or a college student looking to network, we would love to chat with you! Email our Founder, Mike Pruitt, at mp@coinvestorclub.com with questions and ideas or schedule a meeting.
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