"Trend Following, Market Volatility, and Portfolio Strategy: Meb Faber's Guide for Financial Advisors"

In this episode, Adam sits down with Cambria CIO and renowned researcher Meb Faber for a candid, high-impact conversation on what advisors consistently misunderstand about markets. They dig into trend following, global diversification, performance chasing, drawdowns, investor behavior, and the uncomfortable truths that shape real-world outcomes for clients. Whether you're building portfolios, coaching clients through volatility, or refining your own advisory process, this episode will sharpen how you think about risk, return, and discipline in an industry full of noise. Episode Timestamps 00:00 – Intro & welcome 01:00 – Meb's path to quant investing 03:30 – Lessons from bubbles & early losses 06:00 – Challenging widely accepted beliefs 09:00 – Trend following & the 10-month rule 12:00 – Power laws and outlier returns 15:30 – Generational investing biases 18:00 – Buffett, Bogle & misunderstood market quotes 21:00 – The "worst days" myth 24:00 – Performance chasing in advisors 27:00 – Cambria's rules-based approach 30:00 – Concentration, diversification & recency bias 34:00 – Global value investing & patience 38:00 – Dividend misunderstandings 42:00 – Bonds, regimes & yield spreads 46:00 – Gold's role in portfolios 50:00 – Trend following vs prediction 53:00 – Biggest mistakes advisors make 57:00 – Buy & hold limitations 01:00:00 – Behavior traps & panic selling 01:10:00 – Closing thoughts (end of Part 1) Key Takeaways 💡 Trend following is about discipline, not prediction. Price reflects reality, and ignoring drawdowns is what leads clients to panic. 💡 Time horizon misunderstandings are one of advisors' biggest blind spots. Strategies can take decades — not quarters — to demonstrate edge. 💡 Performance chasing destroys more wealth than bad strategies. Most investors buy after periods of strength and sell after weakness. 💡 Dividends, bonds, and gold are misunderstood. Advisors must reframe expectations and explain trade-offs. 💡 Clients only want two things in a downturn: Am I going to be okay? Do you have a plan? If you can answer yes to both, retention skyrockets. Key Quotes 🗣 "Every trade makes you richer or wiser — but never both." — Meb Faber 🗣 "People anchor to the all-time high. It's one thing to know a portfolio could fall 40%… it's another thing to live through it." — Meb Faber 🗣 "If you sell without a re-entry plan, it becomes permanent." — Meb Faber 🗣 "Clients want to know two things: Am I going to be okay? And do you have a plan?" — Adam Koós Connect With Meb Faber: Website:https://www.cambriainvestments.com/ https://mebfaber.com/ https://www.themebfabershow.com/ LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/mebanefaber/ X (Twitter):https://x.com/MebFaber YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKvWzzrVUA_DSCoKXL6GU2w?sub_confirmation=1   Follow Adrenaline Advisor Facebook: https://facebook.com/adrenalineadvisorconsulting Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adrenaline.advisor Threads: https://www.threads.com/@adrenaline.advisor LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/adrenaline-advisor-consulting/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@adrenalineadvisor email: [email protected] Website: www.adrenalineadvisor.com Connect with Adam Koós: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamkoos Website: https://www.adrenalineadvisor.com