Is it a co-incidence that portfolio managers in the same region tend to have similar stock picks? The home bias explains the local picks but the rest is a product of our sourced information. It is also the reason why we have gathered here today, summoned to share our weakness towards information bias. Good evening, everyone. My name is Eric, I’m a recovering trendspotter.

It all started when I came across a website that streamed CNBC for free, albeit with a 5 minute delay. Then the social media apps recommended me to follow the polished and convincing experts that had millions of followers. The occasional glance quickly turned into an obsession. I had to get a dose first thing in the morning. If I woke up at night, I thought it could help me sleep better if I got the inside scoop of the latest news developments in the world.

A functional trendspotter, I didn’t let it interfere with my work. But it was all I ever spoke about around the water cooler. Did you hear about that stock, this stock, of course you did. Our shared interest was our shared addiction. To add flavor, we started following tech forums and foreign news. There was no doubt that knowledge was power.

I used to go out in the evenings with friends and colleagues, but it was so convenient to get my fix at home. Before you know it, you’re on your sofa in your underwear with your laptop and your phone. When the eyes got tired, you let the latest podcast roll, preferably as a livestream. The trend was my friend and we were inseparable besties. I was connected. Every morning I had push notifications that revealed all the hot stock movers.

Although our paths are different, they have all lead us here today. Only the 9-to-5ers know when to turn off the information faucet. If you hate your job, it’s easy to disconnect. But for us independents that do not know the difference between work and life, there is no common off switch. I tell myself each public holiday that this time it will be different. I will just read news for 10 minutes. But each time I start, I can’t stop.

If you looked at my stock portfolio you could tell what influencers I followed, which newsletters I subscribed to, which newspapers I read and who was my favorite collaborator on the most popular news channels.

But thanks to everyone gathered here today, I promise to change. It wouldn’t be so damn difficult if the trend didn’t my rent. I will suit up in the morning, take my time to look at numbers instead of videos. Close my eyes and think. Open my eyes and explore the real analog world. Go outside in my immediate surroundings, travel and see what’s really going on.

Thank you for letting me share. Sharing helps. We are all in this together. I promise to attend our next Trendspotters Anonymous meeting next week.

Cheers!

#newstracker #stocktrends #intheknow