#5 — Ben Felix: A Deep Dive Into the World of Investing

Our guest this episode is Ben Felix—Chief Investment Officer at PWL Capital and co-host of “The Rational Reminder” podcast. You might also know him from his popular YouTube channel where he creates meticulously researched videos on investing, financial decision-making and living a good life (although you may not recognize his stunning new hairstyle!).

In this episode Dave and Ben dive deeply into the world of investing. They cover everything from active versus passive styles to why CPP is a one-of-a-kind asset to why people underperform so badly in mutual funds and much, much more.

This is a must-listen episode featuring two of Canada’s top financial educators.

Show Notes:

00:00:00 – Intro & Disclaimer

00:00:55 – Intro to Ben Felix

00:04:25 – Ben’s New Hair

00:05:50 – Why Is It So Difficult to Beat the Market?

00:08:02 – Why It's Hard for Active Managers to Consistently Outperform

00:11:42 – “Buy the Haystack” (Passive Investing)

00:13:55 – The Market is Forward Looking

00:17:45 – Why Dave & Ben Don't Listen to Market Forecasts

00:21:46 – Dave's Only Market-Timing Story (Gone Wrong)

00:25:22 – Performance Gaps for Individual vs. Fund Performance

00:29:55 – Lump Sum vs. Dollar-Cost Averaging

00:35:18 – Everyone's Risk Tolerance is Different

00:36:56 – Countries With High Economic Growth ≠ High Stock Returns

00:41:35 – Beware of High Growth Industries & Thematic ETFs

00:46:00 – The Difference Between Investment Planning & Financial Planning

00:51:20 – How Can Everyday Canadians Get Good Financial Advice?

00:55:44 – Trust is Key in Financial Planning

00:57:26 – Why a 2% Mutual Fund Fee Is So Costly

00:59:11 – Canadian Banks

01:01:19 – Keep it Simple! Complexity Underperforms

01:04:09 – Venture Capital

01:05:42 – Can the US Market Continue to Outperform?

01:13:36 – Robo-Advisors

01:17:44 – Would Ben Ever Be a Landlord?

01:20:00 – CPP – Four Reasons Why You Should Wait to Take It

01:26:11 – Conclusion