Crazy like a fox

Not much of a talker on airplanes. I usually sleep, get some work done or if there's a television on the back of the seat in front of me, I go for the "King of Queens" marathon. But an elderly woman - anywhere between the ages of 80 and 150 - sat next to me a couple of weeks back. Clearly uncomfortable with the modern world around her, she adopted a defensive posture with the flight attendants. When they announced it was a "cashless cabin," meaning only credit cards were accepted for food and drink, it got her talking ...

Her view of credit cards, as you might expect, was generally negative and maybe slightly deranged. Without getting into the details of the colorful conversation, she likened credit card companies to modern day highwaymen (can we blame her?). She then proceeded with a detailed history of her spending and saving habits. Suffice it to say, if she couldn't afford it, she didn't buy it. Granted, she had a pension, but she diligently saved for retirement and invested in conservative, long-term investments that did quite well, all things considered. So despite her unease with iPods and cell phones, the one thing she remained comfortable with was her financial situation, which afforded her, among other things, the ticket for the plane trip she was now on.

So how does any of this relate to our annual Broker/Dealer Excellence Award winners? At the risk of comparing one of the largest independent broker/dealers to a crazy old woman, they did what they've always done: investing and retirement planning based on sound, well-diversified and time-tested fundamentals. It's not to say they're not innovative, they're just not hyper-innovative (always looking for the "new, new thing" to offer clients in order to attract fees). They were called old-fashioned during the bubble hysteria, which suited them fine then, and it suits them even better now (and is the reason for their second win in a row). So congratulations to Raymond James and the other category winners, and if history is any judge, we'll save some space for next year.