billy garver

Sometimes the Right Move Is to Stop and Breathe 

by Billy Garver, Chief Compliance Officer

More content from Billy

I took a walk one weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska—I walk a lot and enjoy exploring. I like to pick one of our many trails in town, park next to the closest coffee shop, and walk in one direction for a few miles, then turn around. But this particular weekend, I picked a new trail, one that led outside of the city. This time I wanted a little more time to think, and I ended up a little farther out than normal.

When I checked my map, I saw that if I went about a mile more, I would find myself in Walton, Nebraska.

Why not? I’d never been to Walton. But my choice to go to Walton turned my typical one-hour walk into a two-hour walk.

Still two miles from the car, my legs started to get wobbly, and my face flushed. Had I pushed it too far? Anxiety started to gnaw at my confidence. “I’ll be stranded out here,” I thought. “If I pass out, who will find me?”

At this point, I just needed to stop and assess the situation. I found a place to sit for a few minutes, had a gulp of water, and took some focused breaths. After five minutes, I was ready to restart my journey, one step at a time.

Turns out, I wasn’t in danger. I just needed to take a break, reassess, and breathe.

This happens in the shop sometimes, too. For example, when we see portfolios decline, the first reaction can be just like the scary one I had on the trail. But the next step isn’t to assemble the research team to sell out: the next step is to pause and assess the situation. What’s in the companies’ filings that might have caused the markets’ reaction? We need to form our own understanding of the situation.

Covering new ground can make it feel like we’re too far from safety. But there’s a big difference between real danger and perceived danger.

The next time you find yourself in one of these spots, it’s okay to pause and reassess. Is what I’m thinking and feeling real? Or is it just a perception that needs another look?

And know that the team here at 228Main.com will be doing the same.

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Play the audio version of this post below:

Buying, Selling, and the Third Thing: Rebalancing – 228Main.com Presents: The Best of Leibman Financial Services

This text is available at https://www.228Main.com/.

Changing the Recipe

There are many ways to get the job done. Whether the job is getting dinner on the table or investing for retirement, rarely does it ever come down to an ultimatum, something like, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.”

What if you just need a different recipe?

Join Billy for a walk, as he shares his thoughts about how to switch things up in this week’s message.

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Embracing the Loops, Swoops, and Squiggles

Sometimes life’s big milestones arrive in a neat, straight line. And sometimes that’s just not what happens—or what we want to happen. How do we plan for a swoopy life?

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A Team with a Certain Set of Skills

It takes all kinds. Really, literally. A versatile team is made from a variety of strengths. Here’s a little glimpse at some of the players we like to see in a balanced portfolio.

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The Last 30 Years and the Next 30 Years 
By Greg Leibman, Billy Garver, and Caitie Leibman

Friends, a lot of things can happen in three decades. In December 2024, our President Mark Leibman celebrated 30 years of affiliation with LPL Financial. There is a lot of work a person can do in that amount of time, and Mark has chosen to spend a lot of it with you and on this enterprise we now share.

He still intends to work until age 92, and he is energized by the work. Mark’s the founder and he’s still in it for the long haul.

So what’s our story, we “next generation” advisors? All three of us may very well have more years in this industry left ahead of us than there are behind us. It behooves us to remember the importance of the long view.

Thirty years. Something about it just sounded so lovely, it got stuck in our brains.

Back in December, we also celebrated our system of longevity discounts. This is one of the ways that we at 228 Main try to walk the walk: we reward the commitment it takes to become an effective investor, so the program includes fee reductions at certain milestones.

Clients get a fee reduction after 5 continuous years with us and then again at 15 continuous years. Beneficiaries or descendants who come on board with us may also take advantage of their forebears’ start date. In this sense, the longevity discount becomes a “legacy” discount.

But this stuff is all contagious, so we couldn’t help ourselves. We told Mark that we needed to add another level: why not include a 30-year discount? Can you imagine the joy of getting to tell a client of 30 years that you would like them to start paying you less? We could. We’re hungry for it.

And we wanted to give Mark this chance. Another excuse to celebrate some of his oldest friends? Yes, please. Why not?

This is what it’s all about. Growing the buckets. For the long haul. As a team. We’re trying to put our money where our mouth is—which is to say, we’re trying to put our policies where our values are.

Want to talk about this or anything else? Write or call, any time.

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Play the audio version of this post below

The Last 30 Years and the Next 30 – 228Main.com Presents: The Best of Leibman Financial Services

This text can be found at https://www.228Main.com/.

When Life’s Not a Straight Line

Sometimes life’s big milestones arrive in a neat, straight line. And sometimes that’s just not what happens—or what we want to happen. How do we plan for a swoopy life?

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The “Company” We Keep
A group of magnifying glass
by Billy Garver, Data Analyst

How many strangers do you know? This isn’t some Zen riddle, but this question is trickier than the gut answer of “zero.” At one point, wasn’t your best friend a stranger?

As we meet new people, we may decide to remove the “stranger” label in favor of “acquaintance.” We learn the basics of the person at that point—name, occupation, and so on. We may develop a closer relationship, learning more intimate details. How’d they get where they are? And how are things going now?

We take a similar approach when building portfolios. When an investment opportunity arises, we may or may not have any prior experience with the company. We start by getting to know the basics—what they do, why they do it, how long have they done it, and so on.

From there, we may opt to remove that “stranger” label and start going deeper. When getting to know a company, understanding the company’s management, cash flows, and debt loads gives us a clearer picture. Only then does a company have a chance to enter your portfolios—the real inner circle!

Our relationship with the company doesn’t end there. Quarterly, we review each holding—making sure their business hasn’t deviated too far from what we expected. We check whether our understanding of the fundamentals is playing out.

Why does all this matter? Well, especially in the bumpiest of economic times, you don’t want any strangers in your portfolio. A swift change at the macro level can completely upend a business model. One thing that helps us weather the storms is knowing how our crew might navigate their way through them.

Being friends with the companies you own—being familiar with the details of their operations—helps prevent some of those big surprises in the long run. (Of course, it never eliminates the possibility of a surprise; friends can change and friends can make mistakes).

But, in the long run, it may pay to be careful of the “company” you keep.

Investing involves risk including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss.

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Play the audio version of this post below:

The “Company” We Keep – 228Main.com Presents: The Best of Leibman Financial Services

This text can be found at https://www.228Main.com/.

When the Price Is Right

Who doesn’t love a bargain? A savvy searcher knows that there’s more than one type of opportunity. What does this mean for our portfolios? More in this week’s video.

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The Future Is Uncharted Territory

There’s no map for where we’re headed: doesn’t mean we need to fear the future! This is the business of building our own way.

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Here Be Dragons!
graphic shows a map of an island in a sea and a dragon in the water

It is hard to imagine embarking on a long trip these days without the use of technology. Hours spent studying an atlas have been replaced by seconds of typing in your destination. An additional quick search alerts you to nearby fueling stations, rest stops, lodging—all the known resources along the way! 

Long before GPS and atlases (and even truck stop chili dogs!), explorers had no choice but to set off toward destinations unknown. Cartographers would sketch the journey as they went, creating a compounding resource of information. 

If the destination proved fruitful, the voyagers would have a way to return with their bounty. If nothing of interest materialized, well, at least they knew to no longer waste their time in that direction. 

Looking over some of the earliest explorers’ maps, you’ll see intricate details of the paths traveled. You’ll also find, in some of the unmarked terrain, the words, “Here be dragons!” 

Two possibilities might explain the drama of such labels. There’s fear, and there’s greed. 

The fear: the harrowing journey brought such new and challenging experiences that they convinced themselves dragons are indeed real and are probably lurking in those unexplored pockets of the world. Thus, shouting ensues… “Here be dragons! Stay away!” 

The greed: there could still be interesting stuff out there, so it was worth trying to scare off those other explorers. 

Clients, we’re in the business of uncharted territory: the future isn’t mapped out for us. You can hear the shouts of other supposed explorers all day, every day. Dragons, treachery, treasure… It’s enough to throw anyone off course. 

But luckily for us, we have our guiding lights—our principles, our goals—to keep us on track. Dragons be darned! 

Clients, questions or concerns? Reach out anytime. It’s our pleasure to explore alongside you.

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Play the audio version of this post below:

Here Be Dragons! – 228Main.com Presents: The Best of Leibman Financial Services

This text is available at https://www.228Main.com/.