The Thornton Wealth Management Investment Philosophy (Why I Do Things The Way I Do) First and foremost, let me start by saying my approach to managing investment portfolios focuses on providing our clients with a successful investment experience. To me, this is defined as helping them minimize or even eliminate the stress they feel about the investment process, and allowing them to stay focused on the long-term rather than worrying about their money. My goal is for my clients to be able to enjoy their lives now without the stress of worrying about the future. I believe that capital markets work efficiently and effectively over time and that my role in the investment process is to prudently deploy clients' capital in a way that enables them to achieve market rates of return. By doing so, I am able to help my clients benefit fully from the wealth creation that comes from long-term market appreciation, the foundation on which our system of capitalism is built. This approach is in contrast to most advisors' strategies that try to "beat" or "outperform" the market. There are significant amounts of research showing this "active" style of investing to be extremely difficult and costly to pursue over time. In other words, market timing and investment selection simply do not work, especially in today’s fast-paced, technology-driven environment where all news is instantaneously integrated into the price of a stock, mutual fund or other security. With respect to my client portfolios, we typically utilize index funds and other passively managed investment strategies available through our partnership with Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA). DFA strategies are only available to large institutions and select non-commission-based, "feeonly" investment advisors like Thornton Wealth Management. DFA does not make their strategies available through brokers or directly to retail investors. To learn more about DFA's unique approach, please visit their website at www.dfaus.com. I believe my access to DFA provides a unique competitive advantage for my company and clients.
The cornerstone of my philosophy is helping clients focus on the elements they can control rather than on those they cannot. I believe there are four aspects of the investment process that are within everyone's control: • Discipline - I develop an asset allocation strategy for each client of
our firm. All investment decisions are made according to guidelines set forth in the asset allocation strategy rather than by gut feelings, emotions or reactions to market gyrations. • Diversification - I believe that a globally diversified portfolio is the
only effective way to deliver capital market rates of return. Each client portfolio is diversified across a minimum of twelve (12) asset classes covering domestic and international stocks, bonds, real estate, and cash, among others. • Costs - Many people are unaware of how much impact expenses
can have on the growth of their long-term assets. In general, lower expenses equate to higher returns. We pay careful attention to control all the costs associated with investing. • Taxes - Taxes can also play a significant role in limiting your
returns. You can't avoid paying taxes, but you may keep more of what you earn if you plan carefully. We seek to implement longterm, tax-efficient investing strategies for our clients. There are more details and decision points involved in my investment approach, but this provides a good summary of my foundational beliefs and philosophy. Please give us a call at 404-254-6993 or email us at russ@thorntonwealth.com if you’d like to discuss further how we can help you. And be sure to check out our website and blog at www.thorntonwealth.com where you can sign up to receive automatic updates when new information is published.