I realize this post is a little different and might quickly veer too far off topic, but I feel it’s important to respond to two comments made in earlier threads.
First from Retirementdough:
“As a side note. I wish more posters would post monthly portfolio performance updates. Not to hold the posters feet to the fire. I learn SO MUCH when others share what they are doing and why they are doing it.”
I wholeheartedly endorse this sentiment. While I’ve learned a lot about individual stocks since finding this board, believe it or not I feel I’ve learned even more about how to allocate and manage my portfolio even though it’s technically off topic. The main source for this education by far has been the monthly recaps others so willingly share. It took me quite a few months to get my portfolio to a place where I felt comfortable posting one myself, but I believe the process of recording my thoughts and then putting them out for public consumption has made me a significantly better investor.
And second from buynholdisdead:
“…I thought the idea was that people who posted their portfolio, was to get critique.”
I 100% endorse this one as well. I greatly respect the rules of this board and believe they are a major reason why it is so civil and productive. That being said, I’d prefer my rules for my portfolio posts are that nothing is off topic. I’m open to feedback on any aspect of my holdings – allocation, valuation, buy/sell decisions, cash amount, time horizon, amount of trading, really whatever you want. I don’t care if that feedback is online or offline. Frankly, I don’t post my portfolio so I can get more information about TTD or MDB. I post it to force myself to take the time to think and possibly get feedback on the bigger picture. We spend all month analyzing the individual pieces of the puzzle. I view these recaps as a chance to step back and view the puzzle as a whole. I can’t and won’t speak for others who show their work, but this is real money with real-life implications for my family. I personally welcome absolutely any feedback with no holds barred. In many cases we don’t know what we don’t know until someone else points it out to us. It’s then entirely up to me what I do with that information.
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The question is not whether portfolio reviews are valuable, it is whether or not any particular part of that review is on-topic for this board. The reviews and responses to reviews have contributed significantly to the volume of material on this board.
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MoneySlob, That is a personal attack and doesn’t belong on this board!
Saul
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”The reviews and responses to reviews have contributed significantly to the volume of material on this board.”
I don’t dispute they contribute to the volume of the board. In most cases I believe they also contribute to the quality of the board. Review comments aren’t usually the generic “Hey, XYZ sounds interesting! How much should I hold?” They tend instead to be more nuanced views of stocks we already discuss. Deep dives break down what the stock is. Reviews provide a glimpse into how those stocks fit in the bigger picture and why people hold them. I personally value all that information and think it fits within the spirit of the board.
Again, I don’t care if any feedback I get is online or offline. My point is the potential for feedback is part of the reason I post. As I said in my initial message I have no intention of starting a thread that veers off topic. I was only responding to a couple of earlier comments I found relevant as someone who has decided to post monthly reviews.
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Moneyslob,
That’s absolutely an attack on an individual and completely off topic. Reporting your post with the hopes that it gets deleted.
No place for that here.
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I would like to state that for me, the monthly portfolio reviews that people post are very helpful.
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Personally, I think the monthly portfolio reviews are the best part of the board. The reviews and the critiques of the reviews are where the “magic” happens for me. Please keep them coming. Saul, Bear, Stocknovice, Austin, and others - I look forward to your review threads every month.
Lots of learning to be done. I hope to work up the courage to begin posting my own reviews.
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To clarify, clearly when we started out and the only portfolio review was Saul’s, everyone was terribly interested because that gave us insight to the “master” (which term I use advisedly because it conveys the attitude of many followers, even though I am sure that it embarrasses Saul). A couple of others from other different people added to that. I am merely noticing that if this trend continues, we could have 100 or more people sharing their portfolios and that and the comments on them would dilute the commentary on the companies which people need to make decisions about for their own investing. To be sure, it is common for people to make comments in their portfolio posts about specific companies … maybe even significant ones, but at the bottom of a long portfolio post these are all too likely to be missed when they would not be if posted on a thread about the specific company.
So, to be clear:
- portfolio posts may well contain valuable content relative to this board;
- but portfolio strategy per se is considered off topic on this board; and
- this board does have an on-going issue of volume of posts.
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I think that we do not need more posts saying essentially “I like Portfolio Reviews”. Let’s drop it.
Portfolio Reviews with a review of the stocks, and what you did and why, are On-Topic. Portfolio Reviews with just a list of stocks and positions and gains, with no discussion of the stocks in question, are Off Topic, simple as that.
Saul
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