I had never hired an investment management corporation before. You see, I have always taken a very hands-on approach to business. I learned it from my dad – an entrepreneur himself. He didn't believe in investment capital management through a broker. He amassed a financial fortune, and all while doing the paperwork himself. Of course, he worked about 80 hours a week and died at the age of 55 of a heart attack, so there are things about his life that I don't want to emulate. Even so, managing investment myself was a hard habit to break.
Nonetheless, eventually I just couldn't handle it anymore. I don't know if my investment portfolio had grown too diverse, too large, or if I just didn't have my father's talent for figures. Whatever the reason, I didn't have the time to manage the family business and manage my investments. Something had to give, and it was obvious what it was. I hired a good capital asset management firm the very next day.
A lot of things have been difficult about the new investment management company. The most difficult, of course, has been giving up some control over my investments. When I first hired the investments management company, I tried to keep as tight a leash as possible. I wanted to know about every transaction, approve every decision, and in general keep my hands in the pie at all times. Finally, my broker spoke to me honestly. He said that there was no point in having an investment manager if I was going to try to do all the work anyway. He then asked me quite straightforwardly if I wanted him to do my investment management or not. I backed down, knowing he was right.
However, the hardest thing about investment management has been recognizing the fact that this company has done a better job than I have with it. Even with the money that I have to pay them, I am still making a huge amount more off of my investments than I ever have before. My investment portfolio has grown at twice its normal rate this year, and shows no sign of slowing down. I had almost expected to have to take control back at first. Part of me had even hoped that investment management would turn out to be a failed experiment. After all, it is hard to admit that someone else can do something better then you can.
