It's 2012, a new year with new challenges, and more importantly, new opportunities. JustOneLap is already putting out new content and we have a wealth of videos from last year, so if one of your new year's resolutions is to know your money - grow your money, you're in the right place. I am typically not a fan of late night resolutions to improve oneself, but I do like the idea of reflection, adjustment and improvement. On the top of my list is to write my book on investing that I have been promising the publisher for four years now.

One question I do ask traders and investors every new year is, "what will you be doing differently this year?" With traders this is especially relevant as we're always growing and improving and can never afford to sit back and relax with a smug smile, as that's just when we'll get blindsided by either the market or our over confidence (most likely both). But even for an investor, is there anything that you feel you could do better (or differently) that would help you on the journey to wealth creation?

We have two new videos on the website: the JOL Momentum portfolio update for 2011 and 2012, and the High Dividend Yield Portfolio for 2012.

The JOL Momentum portfolio did 21.5% for the year compared to the benchmark (the Top40 Index), which was flat - a great outperformance. We have also selected the five stocks for the 2012 edition of the JOL Momentum Portfolio.

We've updated the High Dividend Yield portfolio for 2012, which is a simple portfolio designed for those looking for income from the stock market. It performed as required in 2011 and we're revisiting it to see if it needs any tweaks and are also setting out a new list of stocks for 2012.

On Wednesday at 20h00 our fundamental guru, Keith Mclachlan, is back with a webinar on Valuations: Price-to-Book Model. He is working his way through the different valuation methods (he started with PE ratios last year) and as always, this webinar will be followed up with a practical example of the concept.
 

Coming up
 

Wednesday 18th 8pm - Valuations: Price-to-Book Model

Wednesday 25th at 1pm - Surviving volatile markets

Tuesday 31st at 1pm - Single Stock Futures - SSF's

Week that was

JOL Momentum portfolio update for 2011 and 2012
 

High Dividend Yield portfolio for 2012
 

Investing during a recession

Money Tip

The festive season nearly always leaves your bank accounts looking very grim. A far from ideal way to start a new year, so why not use this sorry state of affairs to get rid of the store cards? Cut them up and throw them away, then when they are paid off in a couple of months time their debt won't reappear and you can start next year with less debt.

All the best
 

Follow us on Twitter or Facebook
 

Fees. They are most often ignored by investors and traders, or even worse, subtly hidden by providers; but they eat into your money and have a real impact. We all understand the power of compounding: fees are essentially being compounded out of our future. An extra 1% paid now and every year going forward could have grown to a significant amount in a decade or two. Sure, we need to pay for the services we receive - no free lunches - but make sure you know exactly what you're paying, work out the impact on your finances and then see if it is possible to reduce the fee. Contact your provider and haggle with them or shop around and see if you can get the same (or better) service for less. Whatever you do - don't ignore fees.
 
The week ahead sees a first webinar by Daniel Kraus on Wednesday at 13h00, titled Surviving volatile markets. Volatility seems here to stay for now and we need to respond accordingly; Daniel's presentation will help traders manage the volatility and even show us ways to use it to our advantage.
 
In the past week Keith Mclachlan continued on the valuation journey as he explained Valuations: Price-to-Book Model. It is a simple yet very useful tool to help build a case study for investment in a company. Keith's next webinar will be a practical one using the Price-to-Book model and he's asked for suggestions as to which stock he should use for the example. You'll find his contact details here.
 
We also uploaded a new 100 Second Tip to JustOneLap - What price do you want to pay? No, we're not talking haggling; we're talking credit vs. cash. The difference in price is staggering and we do have a choice.

Coming up

Wednesday 25th at 1pm - Surviving volatile markets

Tuesday 31st at 1pm - Single Stock Futures - SSF's

Week that was

100 Second Tip - What price do you want to pay?

Valuations: Price-to-Book Model

Money Tip

Typically banks deduct your bond repayment on the first of every month. Rather move the date forward to the same day you get paid. Paying a couple of days early every month for the duration of the bond will result in paying the bond off a number of months  sooner and a decent savings for you at no cost.

All the best

Follow us on Twitter or Facebook

FinWeek ran a cover article on the cost of educating your children and the numbers are staggering. Raising a child in South Africa today will cost somewhere between R4 million - R7 million per child from birth to leaving university! Whichever end of the scale your children fit - you need to plan, save and invest, and not just for your children but also for your retirement (because your children are not a retirement plan, even if they seem to cost as much).

WThis week we'll be adding a new page "starting in investing", it'll cover the options from simple ETFs to DIY investing and we break it all down with links to videos on JustOneLap so that your children can have a great childhood and you can have a great retirement.
 
This past week we had Daniel Kraus do his first webinar for us on Surviving volatile markets. Since the crisis of 2008 markets have been volatile, with 2011 being volatile and sideways, making it especially tough for traders. Daniel offers some general trading advice as well as specific ideas on dealing with the increased volatility.
 
In the week ahead we're doing another webinar in the series, brought to you by JSE Equity Derivatives. On Tuesday at 13h00 we'll be covering Single Stock Futures - SSF's - they're a great product for traders, and like all products, before you jump in you need to know everything about them. This webinar will bring you 100% up to speed.

Coming up

Tuesday 31st at 1pm - Single Stock Futures - SSF's

Wednesday 8th at 8pm - Valuations: Price-to-Book Model (practical)

Week that was

Surviving volatile markets

100 Second Tip - What price do you want to pay?

Valuations: Price-to-Book Model

Money Tip

Most children get pocket money - but do they earn it? Surely we want to teach our kids the value of money and what better way than to make them earn their pocket money. No I don't mean putting them to work in a sweatshop; but what about linking pocket money to chores around the house or homework (less about the results - more about doing it on time). Sit down with them and put together a plan that everybody buys in to and benefits from.

All the best

Follow us on Twitter or Facebook