| > One of my methods is to simply read comments at sites like HN, Slashdot, Fark, and maybe even Reddit. That's a great idea and I've found companies exactly like that (although as private companies - scouting for a VC). We're really in an advantageous position working in tech because we know which companies are doing well and where companies are spending their money. One disadvantage is that a lot of gains are privatized or with VCs - and some of the best performing companies remain private for longer - but there is still some growth in public markets I tend to follow the cloud, infosec, social and other tech public companies. I think the SaaS stocks are a bit overvalued at the moment, and there are too many that spend too much on sales and marketing to fuel growth. One of the great benefits of SaaS was that it could infiltrate companies from the bottom up and bypass the S&M process and customer acquisition costs, but there really aren't many of those - and even those companies that did do that, have ended up spending a lot on S&M I did like Twilio a lot - I liked the Authy acquisition and growing out that way. I'm not sold on the "integration without programming" promise - a lot of companies have tried just that but it hasn't worked. You need dev platforms and developers. I was hoping Twilio would provide a drop-in oauth/openid server for enterprise because the current solutions there suck (serve both internal, intra and external auth backed by LDAP, AD, RDBMS etc.) Theres a lot of value in their global integrations and routing - but i'm also not sure what the ceiling is for voice + SMS and outside of a handful of countries in emerging markets most messaging is application layer. Being able to push messages via WeChat, FB, WhatsApp etc. would be interesting But you're right - can't go wrong with long term investments in these markets - either a fund or a basket of stocks you know. The Motley Fool posts are usually good value on getting up to date on some stocks, although there is a lot of people talking up or down their own investments there with what borders on FUD sometimes. |
It is quite a change. I've been retired for ten years, but I'm still getting used to certain things - and there were many things I had no compelling reason to learn.
Which is why I dabble in the market. I've even done some of my own bond selection. I am a sort of partial to bonds because then I can see what project it is that I'm supporting, find out who that project is supporting, and make choices that are both ethical and financially sound (less risky might be a better term).
It has been fascinating to learn some of this stuff. I do visit Mötley Fool sometimes but I mostly only use it as an educational resource. I'm not sure I can put my finger on it, but it just seems a little bit off to me. It's a vague thing, but it seems like they are trying to push me in a certain direction, like they are trying to influence not just what I should buy but the categories I should buy in - and I'm not really sure they have my best interests in mind.
I don't know if that makes any sense, really? It just seems off to me. It's like a feeling that I'm being manipulated. I'm pretty sure I'm not a paranoid schizophrenic or anything, it just isn't where I go for specifics. I happily go there to research and learn.
I still own a whole lot of shares in the now-parent company. I've been pondering unloading some of them and moving them to a more risky position. They are steady growth and I have no complaints but I'd like to put more into the account that I control and that is one way of doing it. Again, nothing that I can't afford to lose.
You've given me a lot to think about and I'm quite grateful. I'm always open to good advice. ;-) I freely admit there are many things I don't know.