#009: Killing ETFs

Let's start this week with a slow clap for Magnus Heystek. In a single article, he managed to troll an entire industry. Well done, sir. You got me. I'm a huge ETF nerd. I love thinking and writing about and investing in them. I love them, because I understand them. That is not something I can say for many financial products. I believe ETFs are the easiest, safest, cheapest way for me to grow my capital. Once I got over my initial outrage, however, I remembered the point is exactly to grow capital. If there's a chance that ETFs aren't the best way to do that, I want to know sooner rather than later. Stephen King advises writers to kill their babies. If your witticism doesn't fit anywhere, the only solution is to throw it out. That approach, I believe, is a very healthy (albeit uncomfortable) way to live. Am I holding on to an idea too tightly? Am I becoming inflexible and closed off to alternatives? I'm grateful to opposing points of view, because getting angry and uncomfortable is a good indication that I need to check my ego at the door and revisit the facts. In this episode, I try to kill ETFs. I have to keep reminding myself that I am not a crusader for a particular style of investing. If ETFs turn out not to be the best option, fuck 'em. I'm here to grow capital so I can retire early, move to a beach and dance the salsa all day. Whatever gets me there is what I'm going to do. Kristia