My name is Spencer Weaver
I’ve been fascinated by investing my whole life, and I believe we must do a better job at educating investors and staying disciplined.
Most of the tools that were supposed to help us be better investors have only distracted us. Today, it’s far too easy to loose sight of the basics of investing - buying quality assets and letting their growth compound.
I’ve set out to create a clear and concise guide for new investors, focusing on the concepts we need to rely on rather than the hunt for the day’s hot trade.
My first goal is to help you understand the language and fundamentals of investments in a plain-spoken guide so you can be empowered to have more conversations, further your own research, and have a better understanding of the opportunities in your financial life.
My second goal is to build a community of likeminded investors that can keep each other on track and help each other avoid the distractions we face every day.
Meet the Upcoming Investor
Millennials and Gen Zs have been called experiential generations – supposedly more interested in traveling, eating out, and advocating for social causes than growing their bank accounts. But that dismissal of the next generation hides a far more complex story about the modern quest to build financial security.
Today’s generations want to grow their wealth and establish financial independence just as much as any other cohort before them, but the environment is already proving to be much different. Student loans and an uncertain career trajectory plague many new graduates. Buying a house seems unattainable in many parts of the country even for established, mid-career professionals. The idea of retiring from a 30-year career at a single employer with a pension is unrealistic. But make no mistake – today’s investors still have ambitious financial goals and a path to achieve them.
In a world of stagnated wages and rising costs of living, many people realize the search to find financial security must go beyond a job and a steady paycheck. Social media has planted the idea of passive income – the concept of making money work for you rather than working for your money – to a wider audience than ever. But it has also bombarded investors with advice that is vague, difficult to validate, and often more concerned with selling a dream than clearly conveying basic financial principles that can inspire wealth-generating actions. The basic tenants of investing –researching prospective opportunities, owning a portfolio of a growing assets, and using time to your benefit by allowing returns to compound – do not generate the excitement necessary to keep views up on a social media channel. Trading – the act of capitalizing on shorter-term price movements while being less concerned about a company’s long-term trajectory – generates more excitement, but even fewer people achieve repeatable success. As a result, the lines between trading for excitement and investing for profit have blurred severely in the public’s eyes.
There is a knowledge gap and a communication gap between financial market veterans and this next generation of investors. This next generation is facing an investing world that provides both far more opportunities and far more pitfalls, yet shockingly little is being done to better educate and prepare this person.
This person wants to grow their knowledge of financial concepts, and begin their journey to fiscal independence earlier than their parents and grandparents. They want to avoid the pitfalls and learn from the mistakes of others. They want to start to allocate even a small amount of money to their future and build healthy habits. They may not have massive financial resources today, but will work diligently to reach their goals. They understand that armed with a bit of knowledge, they can take advantage of the biggest advantage they have – time.
I call this person the Upcoming Investor, and this book is for them.