In merry old English pubs where ale was sold by the pint and quart, bartenders would often encourage rowdy customers to “mind your pints and quarts” – later shortened to “mind your p’s and q’s.” I’ve adopted a revised version of this ancient scolding to encourage members of the younger generations to do the same with their personal finances.

If the bear market of 2007-2009 or the flash crash of 2010 weren’t disturbing enough memories, this blog is meant to be a constant reminder of the unpredictability of the stock market. And it’s because of this unpredictability that I developed, over the years, my personal approach to investing – what I lovingly refer to as my PDQ Principles.

Short for “Patience”, “Diversification”, and “Quality”, these principles are most effective when employed as a package (more on this later).

Let me begin by elaborating a bit on each individual principle. These Tips from Pops posts are all about education, and my main goal here is to help take the mystery out of a subject that many find confusing. So, whenever I introduce a term you might not be familiar with, I’ll highlight that word (or words) in red. This lets you know that a definition will soon follow.

Ok – let’s get started!

Welcome back, my fellow Treehuggers! As promised in the last Tips from Pops post, we’re going to start taking a deeper dive into each of the three components that make up my personal investing approach — what I refer to as my PDQ Principles. Short, as you might recall, for Patience, Diversification, and Quality.

If you need a quick overview on the principles before we get started, take a read through my last post.

Welcome back, Treehuggers! Let’s just get cracking where we left off — about half way through an introduction to each of my PDQ Principles. Today, I’ll be tackling the “D” in “PDQ” — Diversification.

If you need a quick refresher on what we’ve discussed up to this point, you can check out an overview of my Introduction to Pops’ PDQ Principles and my deeper dive into the first principle — Patience. And remember, any words that appear in red below, will be followed by a brief definition.

It’s time to round out the introduction to my PDQ Principles for personal investing, with the last (but certainly not least) principle: Quality

If you need a quick refresher on what we’ve discussed up to this point, check out an overview of my Introduction to Pops’ PDQ Principles and my deeper dive into the first two principles — Patience and Diversification.

I’m interrupting my scheduled ‘Tips from Pops’ post to bring you (at the request of one VERY pushy daughter) some timely information. Recent catastrophic events – in our hometown of Houston, throughout the Texas Gulf Coast, and now in the whole of Florida – can (and will) have a devastating financial impact on the people and businesses affected. And because my brain just naturally goes there, I began to wonder how folks, especially those without insurance, will recover. Do they have the money or resources to get by?

Further back than I care to admit, my personal investment strategy began its slow evolution toward what would become a lifelong philosophy: one of daring to be average. It started out simple enough, mainly because I’m a simple man. And also because I was broke. But to this day, my approach remains the same. I just have a few more coins to play with. More coins, I would venture to guess, than had I dared to be aggressive. Let’s get to it.

Dare to be Average

The basic premise underlying my “dare to be average” investment philosophy is that small investors (most of us) keep it simple. Look, we lead busy lives – balancing jobs, families and countless other commitments. We don’t have the time, inclination, tools, or experience necessary to outwit the Ivory Tower boys. Besides, many find investing boring and/or confusing. That’s not a bad thing. It’s just reality.