#95 🇺🇸 Ben Felix on wise investing, risks and what really matters

<p>What if you could create a life that genuinely reflects your values, manage uncertainty like a pro, and make investing decisions with more clarity? In this episode, I’m honored to welcome Ben Felix, the portfolio manager and CIO at PWL Capital, co-host of the Rational Reminder podcast, and one of the most reputable voices in the field of evidence-based investing. Together, we examine what sensible investing actually entails, how to approach risk and uncertainty, and why concepts like global diversification, mean reversion, and skewness are more important than most people realize. We also discuss the significance of a consistent investment process supported by data rather than headlines, as well as dividends versus total return. We also delve further into the private sphere. Ben talks candidly about a recent medical diagnosis, how it changed his outlook on life, and what it means to live intentionally. We discuss PERMA-V, the FIRE movement, how to balance a fulfilling career with family life (Ben is a father of four!), and what happens when your work and investing philosophy are aligned with your personal values. You will gain insightful knowledge, useful takeaways, and much-needed time to reflect on what matters most in life and in money from this discussion.</p><p><br /></p><p>⚔️ Help Ukrainians to fight for our Freedom </p><p><a href="https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate-en/#donate-army-card-once" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate-en/#donate-army-card-once⁠</a></p><p>🟢 Support GOALS on FIRE on Buy me a coffee</p><p><a href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/goalsonfire/membership" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/goalsonfire/membership⁠</a> </p><p>💳 Say thanks via direct card transfer here</p><p><a href="https://bit.ly/DonateGoF" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠https://bit.ly/DonateGoF</a></p><p><br /></p><p>In this episode:</p><p>- Are markets efficient and what it means for investors</p><p>- Indexing vs. active: lessons from SPIVA and historical data</p><p>- Dividends vs. total return: what really funds retirement09</p><p>- How to handle market crashes, noise, and doomsayers</p><p>- Ben's personal investments and their rationale</p><p>- The difficulty of stock selection and the skewness of returns</p><p>- Mean reversion: myth or market truth?</p><p>- Global diversification lessons learned when nations fail</p><p>- Health shock and how it shaped Ben’s view of risk and life</p><p>- PERMA-V for investing and living with purpose</p><p>- FIRE movement: pros, cons, and Ben’s honest take</p><p>- Balancing family, work, and content creation</p><p>- Fitness, longevity, and what really matters for vitality</p><p>- PWL + OneDigital: scaling values through acquisition</p><p>- Audience Q&amp;A</p><p>- Rapid FIRE: what is enough and other questions</p><p><br /></p><p>Author – Roman Koshovskyi</p><p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/roman.koshovskyy " rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠https://www.facebook.com/roman.koshovskyy⁠</a></p><p><a href="http://mykrp.com.ua/" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠http://mykrp.com.ua/⁠</a> </p><p>Join the FIRE community for Ukrainians here:</p><p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/fireukraine" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/fireukraine⁠</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Try FIREkit to track your wealth and path to Financial independence <a href="https://firekit.space/?promo=gof" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://firekit.space/?promo=gof</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Bonus section </p><p>• Ben's YouTube channel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@BenFelixCSI" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://www.youtube.com/@BenFelixCSI</a> </p><p>• The Rational Reminder Podcast <a href="https://rationalreminder.ca/podcast-directory" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://rationalreminder.ca/podcast-directo