Transparent Investing: How to Play the Stock Market without Getting Played Paperback – January 25, 2022

I generally don’t write reviews, but I do read and value them. My transparency is that I received a free, advanced, downloaded copy of this book in return for an honest review. So, here it is.The information in this book comes from the author’s background in academia where after achieving an MBA from the University of Chicago, he taught finance for many years at UC Berkeley Extension, along with his decades-long career in the finance industry where he served as Morningstar’s first Research Director and CFO; and managed assets in the firm that he cofounded, Aperio Group. His stated objectives (paraphrased) are to 1) to empower consumers with accurate information while navigating the financial arena, and 2) to reveal the self-serving nature of the industry in an attempt to enact change.There are three parts of this book. Part 1 focuses on how your mind works with regard to investing. Patrick delves into the neuroscience behind the psychology of our decisions and how that affects our investing. In Part 2 he provides published research that reveals the difficulty (or impossibility) of market timing and results of active management. In Part 3 he provides practical investment choices, specifically discussing the benefits of indexing, or passive investing, and details as to how to go about doing it. He discusses the choice of whether to hire a wealth advisor or self-manage your portfolio.As a DIY investor currently, I still wonder whether it is best to hire for advice in certain areas. The completed self-assessment scorecard helped to confirm my decision. One chart that I found most beneficial is ‘Categorize Investments by Asset Class and Tax Status’. This completed chart gave a very clear overall visual of the types of risky vs. safe investment assets held in the different accounts by tax status.The book is written for lay persons and is easily readable, yet filled with concise wisdom. Patrick’s writing has the ability to draw in a reader and make complex issues easy to understand. I think that is part of the transparency he is trying to reveal – it’s not that complicated. His passion for the industry and his objective to share and reveal this information are evident throughout the book, all the while hinting to his self-servicing need to ‘give back’. He acknowledges how the industry has been good to him, but he has been morally/ethically bothered by the underlying, dishonest, self-serving nature of it. In his words, “Transparent Investing, the philosophy, and Transparent Investing, the book, both evolved out of a weird mix of professional experience, rebelliousness, irritatingly high-minded moral outrage, and a lot of study.” By the way, proceeds of this book are being donated to a non-profit for the advancement of financial education.I have read many investing/finance books, and listen to a lot of investing/finance podcasts, and this book hit the mark on many levels – its thoroughness, conciseness, and overall quality of content. I found it valuable for me as a recent retiree, but I think it would be MOST beneficial for someone just starting out with investing, to give them a clear plan and to help minimize mistakes.

The real deal, and it teaches us how to separate what we probably already know is good for us, ie: index investing (which the author likens to eating Broccoli), vs. the fun, tasty "junk food" of the latest hot stock tip (aka: Chocolate Cake). It also reminds us to essentially "look behind the curtain" and check the motivations of those who present themselves as investment advisors: where are they making money, and what can we do to hang onto more of it for ourselves. It even dares to raise the question of whether we need outside advice at all (and covers a methodology for deciding for ourselves if we would benefit from outside investing advice). If you are even remotely familiar with the advice and strategy laid out by John Bogle (of Vanguard fame) in "The Little Book of Common Sense Investing", I think it is fair to say that this has distinct echoes of that work, as they share a common overall approach to investing.All of this is presented in an easy to follow, and occasionally quite humorous format that makes for a genuinely interesting read: this will not be the drudgery or slog (let's face it, like "homework"), that some investing books come across as. Highly recommended, and I have already bought an additional copy for other family members to read (I don't want my copy to mysteriously disappear).

Interesting, clearly written, very easy to understand the basic concepts, and fairly easy to follow the possible recommendations, well done

A cogent and well-written argument for increasing one’s focus on indexing and passive investing as opposed to active investment management and trying to time the market. The author stresses the importance of fees as a major reason that active management does, and must, result in lower returns on average over time than a completely passive approach. While not going as far as to say that active management has no place in a portfolio, Geddes points out its pitfalls and hidden costs so that an investor may make an informed decision about its use.

As described.

I've read a lot of very helpful books on personal finance and investing. Patrick's book stands out in its ability to help each of us understand the psychological principles that cause us to make poor choice. By helping us understand these principles, Patrick arms us with the tools we need to ensure we're working in our own best interests.I also appreciate that Patrick states his facts calmly, without 'yelling' at the reader. His gentle tone gives us the chance to reflect on our own behavior, without making us wrong.This is not the only book you'll need to build out your financial skills. In addition to this book, I recommend books on how to develop and manage your budget along with insights into how to spend the money that you've earned in ways that bring you and others joy. That being said, I love this book for its super clear, super easy to follow investment advice.

This financial book is written in a way that's easy to understand and by someone you feel is trustworthy. Not someone trying to sell you an investment strategy to 'beat the market.' He is the “Toto” of in the investment industry, unveiling the so-called Wizards behind the curtain, and shows us their true value as advisors. It’s a great read for DIYs, explaining the simplicity of index funds as the nearly perfect investment choice for long term investors. The author also covers asset allocation, rebalancing and what you should do when the market is bullish, bearish or just the daily craziness. During these times of market uncertainty, this book came at perfect time to help remind me to stay the course.