Investing won't make you rich.

Warren Buffet had "retired" even before he started Berkshire Hathaway.

Hear me out: Sam Parr said this on David Perell's podcast last week:

"You should look at the habits of successful people before they got big.

A 13 year old basketball player should look at 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗻 𝗝𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘁 𝟭𝟯, not what he’s doing today."

I agree.

The American Dream is dying.

In 2021, 60% of Americans couldn't afford a home. In just a year, it went up to 80%.

Now, the average American can't afford a house in 99% of the country.

Here's why it's getting harder to own a house: LendingTree surveyed 2,000 US consumers about home ownership:

91% of people said owning a house was part of the American dream.

But 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗳 thought they would never own one.

GPT-4 is here.

Its abilities are mind-blowing – and can make you money: 🧵 GPT-4 has a capacity of 25,000 words for input and output, and can even take images as input.

Microsoft's Bing is running on GPT-4. It's now available without a waitlist.

FDIC insures bank deposits up to $250,000.

But what happens to your stocks if your brokerage fails? 🧵 Meet the SIPC.

The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) insures up to $500,000 worth of stocks per brokerage account, per consumer.

Stocks have higher coverage than even bank deposits.

1 day after Silicon Valley Bank's collapse.

These are the companies – and countries – that have been hit, and how they are reacting:🧵 Roku had one of the biggest deposits in SVB of $487 Million.

This was 26% of its cash and cash equivalents. After declaring its exposure, its stock dropped by 3%.

One of the largest banks in the US completely shut down in the last 36 hours.

Here's what went wrong at Silicon Valley Bank and why it affects your money: 🧵 SVB isn't an ordinary bank – It was the go-to bank for Venture Capital and tech.

It became the "Startups bank".

From the beginning, they made concentrated bets. This is important to know...

I asked "What are the best finance and investing podcasts?"

I received 140+ replies.

Here are the top 15 picks: 1. Invest like the best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy.

One-on-one interviews with the best investors and minds in finance. One of the best educational podcasts!
open.spotify.com/show/22fi0Rqfo…

Your net worth is one way to keep track of your financial goals.

But if you're comparing yourself against the wrong numbers, you're going to win the wrong game.

Here are the goals you should be setting for each age – and how to hit them if you're falling behind🧵: Your net worth is simply the difference between your assets and your liabilities.

Anything that you own is an asset.
Anything that you owe is a liability.

But when the data talks about "average" net worth for a group, it can be misleading. Here's why:

In my early 20s, I hit a ceiling. I couldn't move ahead no matter how much effort I put in.

I had to change my beliefs to get unstuck.

Here are 7 things I wish I knew in my 20s: #1 You're the one who has to decide what you want and pursue it.

Till 18, you are rewarded for showing up, but once you start working, it's up to you to take the initiative.

Not knowing what you want isn't an excuse – Try different things till you hit upon something you like.

A good credit score is a superpower.

With a credit score of 620, you pay 7.87% on a mortgage.

If your score is 760+, you pay 6.29%. On a 30 year loan of $300k, you save $116k in interest!

Here are the top 5 things that go into your credit score:🧵 1. Payment history is the largest factor contributing to your credit score (35%). Missing a payment can stain your record for ~ 7 years!

I always recommend setting up an autopay for the minimum balance so that you don't end up accidentally missing a payment.

In 2020, late fees on credit cards pulled in $12 Billion – this was 10% of all fees and interest.

But the income in late fees for card companies was 5x their cost to collect.

Is this fair? Late fees are hurting you – and American credit card users are being pushed into debt: 🧵 The interest on late payments is hard – on top of that, there are late fees.

On your first late payment, you could pay up to a $29 fee. And up to $40 on every following late payment.

This could blow up $600 in dues to $1000 before you know it!

The Psychology of Money is one of the best books to get started with investing.

Here are 10 thoughts from the book that will change how you think about money: 1. Doing well with money has little to do with intelligence and a lot to do with behavior.

It all starts with paying attention to your habits – where you spend, how you spend, and how you plan for the future.

Warren Buffett had bought 400M shares of Coca-Cola for $1.3 Billion by 1994.

This investment has grown to $25 Billion – and netted Berkshire $10.2 Billion in dividends over 35 years!

How is Coca-Cola a multi-billion dollar product 140 years after it started? Here's how: 🧵 1. A strong brand: A generic drink is only going to go so far but Coca-Cola has a legally protected trademark that sets it apart from other drinks.

By not teaching children how to manage money, we are setting them up for failure.

Here are 5 ways to give them a head start: 1. Autonomy

If your child wants an expensive item, don't reject the idea. Don't buy it for them either.

Give them an allowance and let them save up for it – this will teach them how to manage their own money.

Household debt in the US is nearly $17 TRILLION – The highest level since 2008.

Debt is a huge burden on your life and mind.

Here is a sure-fire solution to get rid of debt in 6 steps: 🧵 Step 1: Know your Debt.

Most people don't know the types of debt they have, how much they owe, and what interest rate they are paying.

Make a list of all debts you have, and their interest rates.

More people were laid off in the last few months than in the entire 2020 pandemic.

The Fed isn't done yet – and things might get worse.

Here's what the layoff situation really looks like and how you can stay safe: 🧵 More than 100,000 people lost their jobs in January alone, the most since Sep 2020.

This is the biggest Jan firing since 2009 – and it's not restricted to tech. Retail and housing had huge cuts too.

BofA warns that the US will begin losing 175,000 jobs per month, starting now.

The book Warren Buffett has recommended the most is "The Intelligent Investor" by Ben Graham.

Here are 10 timeless principles from the book that you can use to invest better: #1 There is a difference between an investor and a speculator.

A speculator looks at prices.

An investor understands that a business is a living, breathing entity and not just a number.

Most games favor the pros. But investing is like amateur tennis.

To win, you don't need to be an expert – you just need to avoid "unforced errors" and let time do its thing.

Here are the top 5 mistakes you can avoid to boost your investing returns: #1 DON'T go all in on one stock.

28,853 companies have traded on US markets since 1950.
78% of them have died out.
Only 4% of stocks were responsible for all gains since 1926.

90% of actively managed funds lag the market over a 15-year period!

I started writing on @SubstackInc in 2022 to dive deeper into investing and finance concepts.

10 months in, we just crossed 30,000 readers! 🥳🎉

Here are the top 10 articles from my newsletter that will make you a smarter investor in 2023 🧵 @SubstackInc #1 – Storm on the Horizon

America depends on China for manufacturing 20% of its day-to-day products.

Few of us are paying attention to the crisis brewing in the East. Here's everything you need to know:

grahamstephan.substack.com/p/storm-china

Let's start with a thought experiment.

How much do you think you need to retire right now? Now read one of my favorite stories.

5 charts showing the current state of housing market: Mortgages now cost almost half of the household income.