I. Session Theme#
This session’s theme is “There is no standard answer in investing.” The core idea is to encourage investors, after firmly grasping the basic principle of “buy whenever you have money, and never sell,” to enter a phase of “transformation” and “awakening.” This means not treating any single investment strategy or viewpoint as the only gospel, but rather daring to explore and seek truth. Ultimately, one should build a unique investment path that is most suitable for their own personality, risk tolerance, and life stage. The ultimate goal of investing is to liberate the soul, not to be shackled by the cage of money.
II. Briefing Content#
Investment Mindset and Information Filtering#
- Ignore Market Noise: Short-term information such as international situations, market volatility, economic analysis, and financial reports are irrelevant to long-term investing. Paying too much attention to these will cause anxiety; one should maintain a “nothing is happening” mindset.
- Select Valuable Information: Teacher James shares that he spends time listening to channels with deep philosophical and book interpretations like “Lao Mi Wen Yuan Ge,” believing this is content worth spending time on.
- Focus on Key Business Trends: While not focusing on short-term financial reports, he pays attention to key information. For example, the recent massive capital expenditures in AI by tech giants (Google, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon) and the high revenue growth (like Google’s AI business growing nearly 100%), as well as Amazon’s strategic investment in Anthropic, all confirm the strong demand for AI, which is the underlying logic supporting our investment in QQQ.
- Stability, Calmness, Peace, Contemplation, Attainment: Investing requires stability, not the anxiety of high-frequency trading. You need to calm down and not skip through information to grasp the key points. The teacher mentioned an example of a student who watched his videos for two years but couldn’t find his email because their mind was not settled, and they kept jumping around while watching.
Correctness and Transformation in Investing#
- Long-term holding is vaguely correct: Regardless of the specific strategy (like 433, 613, 7030 asset allocation ratios), holding on to high-quality assets for the long term (“hug them tight”) is the key to investment success. Many people bought Apple, AMD, and Nvidia at very low prices but missed out on huge returns because they didn’t hold on for the long term.
- From Basics to Transformation: When the concept of “buy when you have money, never sell” is deeply ingrained, you need to forget the “secret martial arts manual” and enter the “transformation” phase. What our channel teaches is the starting point and cornerstone of investing, not the end and the whole picture.
- There is no standard answer in investing: Don’t take any single sentence from the teacher as the only correct answer, and don’t challenge others. Everyone needs to “attain the Way” according to their own situation and find the path that suits them. Your “food” might be someone else’s “poison.”
- Maintain Humility: Always tell yourself, “I might be wrong.” Before judging others, first think about their logic. Those who truly understand don’t casually offer grand pronouncements.
Discussion on QQQI and High-Dividend Tools#
- QQQI’s Dividend Stability: Some people worry that QQQI’s dividend will decrease when QQQ falls. The teacher responded that this is the same as worrying about QQQ’s future growth rate declining. When making investment projections, one should adopt a conservative principle. You can estimate QQQI’s dividend yield at 10% or 8% for calculations, rather than rigidly assuming it will always be 12% or higher.
- QQQI’s Drag: Compared to QQQ, QQQI’s total return will have a certain amount of drag (about 5%). This is a necessary cost to obtain a stable cash flow, as it’s difficult for individuals to achieve the same effect through their own operations.
- QQQI’s Tax Advantages: Part of QQQI’s distribution is a Return of Capital, which is very friendly to US investors. Most of the distribution is not taxed, as it’s designed to solve tax issues.
- Choices for Investors in Different Regions:
- Taiwan: Investing in QQQI through a sub-brokerage account is a good choice for cash flow, as the brokerage usually handles tax refund matters.
- Other regions (e.g., Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia): Directly buying US-listed QQQI may face a 30% withholding tax with difficult tax refunds. Consider Ireland-domiciled JEPQ.L (JEPI) or similar products to avoid withholding tax issues. Also, be aware of the complexity of inheritance, and consider using a trust structure.
Financial Freedom and Life Goals#
- Two types of people shackled by money:
- Those with insufficient funds and no investment knowledge, unable to achieve spiritual freedom.
- The insatiably greedy, who have enough wealth (e.g., more than 25 times their annual expenses) but are unwilling to stop, continuing to toil for more money.
- The ultimate goal of investing is to liberate the soul: The core mission of CLEC is to enhance investors’ financial literacy and awareness, ultimately achieving spiritual liberation, allowing them to paint freely on the canvas of life and do what they love.
- What to do after retirement: Retirement requires practice. You can spend time with family, drink coffee, travel, and develop hobbies. The teacher gave examples of visiting the North Coast, Yangmingshan, Sun Moon Lake in Taiwan, noting there are so many wonderful things to do.
III. Q&A Session#
Mo#
Sharing: Shared her experience of attending a ten-day Vipassanā meditation retreat in Malaysia. The retreat required silence and cutting off external stimuli, focusing on observing one’s breath and bodily sensations. Through practice, she learned to maintain equanimity towards pleasant and unpleasant physical sensations, without generating aversion or craving. This process helps to objectively view and accept emotions, reducing habitual reactions of “greed, anger, and ignorance,” which aligns well with the mindset of “not chasing highs and selling lows” in investing. She found the experience profound and powerful and recommended it to everyone.
- Teacher James’s Comment: He thought it was a great sharing and asked her to post the relevant link in the comments for everyone’s reference.
Sarah#
Question: Asking for a relative in mainland China. What is the difference between investing in the Nasdaq 100 index in mainland China through “Guangfa Nasdaq 100 ETF (513100)” versus opening an account in Hong Kong to buy ETFs?
- Teacher James’s Reply: If the sole purpose is to invest in the Nasdaq 100, there’s no need to go to the trouble of opening an account in Hong Kong. You can buy on-exchange ETFs (like 513100) through a brokerage in mainland China. The funds are secure, you can buy in large amounts, and you can also do dollar-cost averaging. Don’t buy the off-exchange funds, as they have limits.
Scott#
Sharing:
- When he was doing a live stream about leveraged ETFs, he found that the sense of accomplishment and happiness he gained from sharing far exceeded the effort he put in.
- He applied the teacher’s mindset of “You are right, I might be wrong” in the workplace and found that it genuinely reduced a lot of disputes and internal friction, making every day very happy.
- Teacher James’s Comment: He affirmed Scott’s approach. When you first acknowledge that the other person is right and then think about why they are right, you can better understand them and avoid unnecessary conflicts. Many conflicts in the world arise because everyone insists they are right.
Helen#
Sharing:
- She started following the teacher’s channel in 2021, went through a period of lacking confidence, sold her QQQ, and then, with renewed conviction, re-entered at a high point. She considers these mistakes valuable tuition fees that have strengthened her resolve to continue on this path.
- Following the teacher’s advice, she sold her primary residence and started renting. She rented a single-family house, also with a yard, but without the need for personal upkeep, which felt very relaxing. The funds from the sale are being gradually invested in the market. She is very grateful to the teacher’s method for showing her the hope of retirement.
Question 1: She is 52 this year and plans to invest the money from selling her house into QQQ and use a Pledge Loan to pay rent, while continuing to invest with her salary. Is this method feasible?
- Teacher James’s Reply: Absolutely. At any age, if you can borrow money, you should do it as early as possible. The interest rate on a Pledge Loan (around 6%) is quite good, so you can do it. The earlier you use leverage, the better, but you must control the risk.
Question 2: In her asset allocation, her 401K will be taxed upon conversion to a Roth IRA in the future. Her Roth account is small, so she can’t do a 433 allocation and might only be able to do 613. Is that okay?
- Teacher James’s Reply: It’s fine. You don’t have to do 433; 613 is also acceptable. You don’t have to max out your leverage; allocate according to your own situation.
Question 3: She wants to treat the teacher to a meal to express her gratitude.
- Teacher James’s Reply: We’ll be in touch.
Jenny#
Sharing:
- During a group activity, she and a friend (also a student) shared the philosophy of investing in 00662 with other members. She feels that walking together as a group allows them to go further and influence more people.
- She previously used a home equity line of credit to invest and felt a bit stressed. Recently, she sold a parking space she had owned for 20 years and invested the funds in QQQI. She found that the monthly dividend she receives is three times the previous rental income, which perfectly covers her mortgage interest, making her feel very comfortable and at ease.
Question: We often hear about “wealth redistribution.” By shifting from buying individual stocks to investing in indexes, are we also part of the wealth redistribution team, and will we be allocated wealth?
- Teacher James’s Reply: That’s not it. True wealth redistribution is when the government prints money, and you get some of it. Whoever gets the money first is the winner. And “borrowing money” is the way to get the money the government prints. Therefore, whether it’s a stock pledge, a line of credit, or a home equity loan, knowing how to borrow money safely is the key to participating in wealth redistribution. Borrowing without understanding investing is a disaster, but after understanding investing, borrowing can put you far ahead.
Ruth#
Sharing:
- She shared her complete journey from first encountering the teacher’s channel in March 2022, to making the decision to adjust her assets, and then starting to practice retirement life in July 2023. She emphasized the importance of diligently listening to the lessons and calming down to clarify her own financial situation.
- She believes that retirement needs practice and that one should explore what they truly love early on. She now lives a very happy life, spending half the year living abroad.
- She believes that in the CLEC community, everyone is in a “win-win” situation rather than a competitive one, because the pie is getting bigger, and everyone will get better and better.
- Teacher James’s Comment: Execution is very important. The simplest principle of investing is “buy when you have money, and never sell.” It’s fortunate to start investing at any time because human growth is accelerating, and future gains may be even higher than in the past. The key is to become a capitalist who understands investing, not a worker who fears changes like AI.
Steve#
Question: His company offers RSUs and ESPP, and he wants to sell them to buy QQQ. A friend suggested he do Tax Loss Harvesting. He wants to ask for the teacher’s opinion.
- Teacher James’s Reply: Don’t do it. The returns on products designed for tax avoidance are usually very low. When you do the math, you’re better off just paying the taxes. Investing and financial management aren’t that complicated; pay the taxes you owe. Besides, if you don’t sell those stocks, you can’t use them for a stock pledge, losing out on financial maneuvering opportunities.
Jackie#
Question 1: The stock pledge interest rate she was quoted at TD Bank in Canada is 6.2%. Is this rate acceptable?
- Teacher James’s Reply: Yes, a 6.2% rate is good.
Question 2: Her 18-year-old daughter has been accepted into both the University of Waterloo’s Computer Engineering program and Shopify’s “degree + work” program (studying at Carleton University). She is very hesitant about which to choose.
- Teacher James’s Reply: First, don’t make the decision based on “good job prospects in the future” or the hourly wage offered, because the future is full of uncertainty, and companies like Shopify could also be replaced by AI. The key is which school’s curriculum, environment, and professors the daughter is more interested in. Interest is the best teacher. Any decision is the best decision. Once you decide, move forward.
Brian#
Question: He received an offer from a startup (in the AI data center space) where the equity part is a “Profit Interest Unit (PIU).” He doesn’t understand this concept, and the company can’t clearly explain key issues like dilution, which makes him feel the risk is high. He wants to ask for the teacher’s opinion.
- Teacher James’s Reply: A PIU is “future equity,” meaning you get a proportional share of the company’s future value appreciation. This is done to avoid diluting the shares of early investors. However, the teacher advises him to consider the overall picture. If going to the new company requires sacrificing his current quality of life or expending more energy, it’s not worth it. Don’t trade your labor for uncertain wealth. If his current investment path can lead to financial freedom in 5-10 years, then the potential equity from the startup, which may or may not materialize, is no longer that attractive to him.
David#
Sharing: While watching his child’s 100-meter race, he realized that life is like a race, a process of striving alone and enjoying the scenery along the way. When a runner catches up from behind, it motivates you to sprint. This made him think that all experiences in life are a driving force for moving forward.
Question: His child is now in the fifth grade, and he is considering whether to send him to a very good public high school or a private all-boys school in the future. He leans towards the private school with smaller classes to build closer peer relationships and wants to hear the teacher’s opinion.
- Teacher James’s Reply: First, don’t create another problem to solve one (like a long commute). Second, the advantage of a public school is that classmates live nearby, and social connections can be maintained for a longer time. Large and small schools each have their pros and cons. The final decision should be based on whether the child is happy and whether it’s convenient to get to school. Letting the child feel and choose for themselves is more important than the parents’ planning.
Lynn#
Sharing:
- Investors in Singapore who bought QQQI through IBKR also successfully received tax refunds. This means that in Singapore, the choice between QQQI and JEPQ.L mainly comes down to estate tax planning.
- According to a bank’s wealth manager, in the future, CRS 2.0 and the US FATCA might “pierce through” structures like trusts and sub-brokerages to reach the actual beneficial owner.
- She shared her experience managing different accounts in mainland China and Singapore: In China, since she cannot pledge stocks, she rebalances more frequently, viewing cash as the ultimate purchasing power. In Singapore, because she can pledge, QQQ itself is purchasing power, and leveraged tools like QLD are just tools to achieve goals. Therefore, her mindset and operations are completely different.
- She believes that with a stock pledge, one’s mindset changes dramatically. You no longer obsess over rates of return but care more about cash flow and the health of the pledge line.
- Teacher James’s Comment: Completely agree. The stock pledge is the pinnacle of capitalism. Learning to borrow money safely is like getting the money printed by the government; it’s the key to achieving a leap in wealth. When you get used to pledging, you become indifferent to market fluctuations, only caring if your credit line is enough to spend, thus achieving true financial and spiritual freedom.
IV. Highlighted Views#
There is no standard answer in investing, only you know what the right answer is for you. This is the “Tao” (the Way). – Teacher James
Background: Teacher James emphasizes that investors should not blindly follow any authority, including himself. Everyone’s situation is different, and one must experience and comprehend personally to find the path in life and investing that truly belongs to them.
There are only two types of people in the world: one is the capitalist who knows how to invest, and the other is the capitalist who doesn’t. – Teacher James
Background: When discussing the changes brought by AI, the teacher pointed out that capitalists welcome change because they can profit from it, while laborers are fearful because they worry about being replaced. He encourages everyone to strive to become a “capitalist who knows how to invest.”
You have to borrow money to get wealth redistribution. – Teacher James
Background: When answering a student’s question about “wealth redistribution,” the teacher pointed out incisively that when the government prints money, whoever can borrow it first is the winner. Therefore, learning to use tools like stock pledges and lines of credit for safe borrowing is the most direct way for ordinary people to participate in wealth redistribution.
Your food might be another person’s poison. – Teacher James
Background: In explaining that there is no standard answer in investing, the teacher used this metaphor to illustrate that an asset allocation or investment strategy that is suitable for one person may be completely unsuitable, or even harmful, to another.
Any decision is the best decision. – Teacher James
Background: After offering advice on the student’s daughter’s school choice, the teacher concluded with this sentence, encouraging everyone to move forward with determination after careful consideration, without indecision or regret, because the future is not entirely determined by a single decision made in the present.
The financial market is not a place for the poor to get rich; it is a place for the rich to accumulate wealth. – David
Background: Student David shared his insight that ordinary people should first accumulate their initial capital through work and then enter the financial market to let wealth grow through compounding. Trying to get “rich quick” in the financial market often leads to getting hurt.
The stock pledge is the pinnacle of capitalism. – Lynn
Background: Student Lynn shared the change in her mindset after using a stock pledge, considering it the most crucial skill taught by the teacher. It completely changed her perspective on wealth and life, liberating her from the anxiety of chasing returns.
If you can calculate your assets down to 56.7 million, then you’re doing it wrong. You are being too meticulous with your assets. – Teacher James
Background: The teacher taught everyone how to mentally break free from the shackles of money. He suggested that people only need to remember the approximate magnitude of their assets (like “over 50 million”), ignoring the trailing digits. This way, they can achieve true freedom in consumption and life, unbothered by short-term market fluctuations.
V. Summary#
The core ideas of this sharing session are “transformation” and “awakening.” Teacher James guides everyone, after mastering the basic principles of long-term investing, to leap out of their fixed mindsets and realize that there is no one-size-fits-all “standard answer” in investing. By analyzing AI industry trends and explaining specific tools like QQQI, he ultimately leads the discussion to the essence of investing—achieving financial freedom and spiritual liberation. The sharings from several students also confirmed the feasibility and profound impact of this path. In particular, practical experiences like selling a house to invest, using stock pledges, and adjusting one’s mindset vividly illustrate how to transform from a passive laborer into an active capitalist, and ultimately find a comfortable and free path in life.