The Mindful Investor

The most recent market meltdown saw trillions of dollars disappear from the North American economy, and the financial markets drop more than 44% from their highs. Daily volatility was immense, with swings of up to 1,000 points in a single day. A vicious cycle of fear and greed caused panic and suffering for individual investors, investment advisors, and pension fund managers alike. The Mindful Investor shows you how to use a single tool-Mindfulness meditation-to achieve clarity, focus, and peace of mind with your finances. Oprah, Eckhart Tolle, Phil Jackson, and Tiger Woods have done much to bring meditation out of the mystic shadows and into the mainstream. Google even offers meditation classes to employees. In this book, you will learn how to use Mindfulness and how to combine it with sound financial planning principles-no chanting or patchouli required. Replace greed and desperation with calm and focus when considering your finances. Make money work for you, rather than being controlled by your money. Create your own definition of financial success. Stay focused on what matters, and be level-headed about what you can’t control. Learn the basics of Mindfulness meditation, including the five hindrances to success. Acquire simple Mindfulness techniques you can use anytime, anywhere to create calm and focus at will, see clearly under stressful conditions, and make better financial decisions.

Acknowledgments ix Preface xi The Authors xv Chapter 1: How We Got Here and How We’ll Get Out 1 Chapter 2: An Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation 10 Chapter 3: Mindfulness Techniques 27 Chapter 4: The Five Hindrances that Impede Success 55 Chapter 5: The Starting Point 66 Chapter 6: The Financial Plan 80 Chapter 7: Portfolio Construction 102 Chapter 8: Client/Advisor Relations 128 Chapter 9: When Things Go Wrong 144 Chapter 10: Estate Planning 159 Chapter 11: Final Thoughts 172 Appendix A: Making Decisions with Mindfulness 174 Appendix B: The Budget 182 Appendix C: Finding a Mindfulness Teacher 189 Endnotes 191 Bibliography 194 Index 196