A Decade of Delusions

In the current volatile and irrational financial climate, intelligent investors are looking for sound advice and proven strategies to protect their money and grow it safely. Drawn from annual reports and other communiqués with investors during the most turbulent period of U.S. economic history since the 1930s, A Decade of Delusions: From Speculative Contagion to the Great Recession offers a glimpse into the real-time thought process of a successful investment manager. Incorporating the wisdom of philosophers, psychologists, economists, and financial managers past and present, the book offers thoughtful and thorough essays on how to assess what may lie ahead for investors-and how to best prepare for it. Accessible and comprehensive, A Decade of Delusions is a true insider's account, accented with the genuine suspense that only the weighty responsibility of real-life money management can provide. Writing in a colloquial, conversational style, Frank Martin, founder of Martin Capital Management, in Elkhart, Indiana, offers a rare opportunity to peer inside the mind of an investment manager who saw trouble ahead when others could not: the tech stocks bubble and the sub-prime mortgage bust, to name a couple. This is the documented account of how Frank Martin navigated his clients through a torrent of near catastrophes in the Lost Decade. In the process, he provides invaluable perspective, helping the average investor steer clear of danger in these difficult waters. A practical how-to guide, it is also a comprehensive history of some of the world's most brilliant economic thinkers through the ages. Outlining strategies to remain fiercely independent of the delusional madness that often grips the markets, describing in detail the epidemic speculation that can topple financial systems, and explaining how investors can spare themselves the devastation of major and permanent financial loss, A Decade of Delusions is an essential reference for all those looking to protect and maximize the potential of their investment capital.