Spring is the season where people get outdoors to do things, which is good for the health. One of the activities the author does is swimming at a local pool. Swimming is a good exercise and sometimes in the water your arms and legs can move more than on dry land. Most of the time swimming is going up the lane and then coming back, but occasionally it is possible to observe the others in the pool. Their swimming styles, strokes, socialization and turning when they come to the wall.

If you watch the best in the world, when they exploded off the wall their legs would have been in a crouched position, their feet not too deep from the water and they would resurface 10 or 15 feet from the wall. During one swim a couple of weeks ago, one person was doing a turn but he was only to push off 2 or 3 feet which is a lot of wasted effort. If the person had come a little closer the turn could be an advantage to his swimming, however every turn he was too far away. Other swimmers barely pushed off the wall and perhaps their concern was the activity not the efficiency. It could be in a general swim what they are doing is the correct thing to do for them for they are swimming.

Linking to dividend paying stocks, with the best companies you are expecting them to perform to the highest potential, not doing whatever. The expectation is the important element, as long as the company is profitable and pays in dividend, you are reasonably happy or at least content to hold. The expectation is the company will do what is necessary to continue to improve and prosper, the standard of expectation is not whatever happens is good enough. Expectations play a role in the stock price – expectations of earnings, growth prospects, management and the expectations of the shareholder.

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