A number of posts ago, looking at your routines was given as a clue to what you can invest in. A prime example is General Mills reported their results – the makers of Cheerios and Hamburger Helper and many other foods, increased its dividend by 8% and noted it has been paying a dividend for 113 years. If you owned General Mills you would have very few worries about the payments and would not have to be too cynical.

The investing world is interesting because one of the biggest aspects to it is trust. Trust the money you invest, will be used properly and you will make a return on it.
Trust is easily broken, and many of the best things about investing can be used for fraud. Therefore ensuring your money is safe, can be easily verified is a really good reason to look at dividend paying stocks.

There are many books about Financial Fraud and a good one is called How to Smell a Rat by Ken Fisher.

The 5 signs are:
1. Your advisor also has custody of your assets, the number one biggest reddest flag. Need separation of duties.
2. Returns are consistently great, Almost too good to be true. Returns go up and down, never flatlined, flatline means your are dead.
3. The investing strategy is not understandable The basic strategy should be simple – ie supply and demand of ….
4. Your advisor promotes benefits like exclusivity which has no bearing on results. Exlusivity does not generate returns
5. You did not do your due diligence. Questioning is very good. Being cyncial is good.

All of the above depends on the industry doing the job they should be doing. The mortgage back securities defaults was a lot of people not doing their jobs.

There are always more questions than answers, till next time – to raising questions