from Hacker News

Ask HN: Invest where you eat?

by josnyder on 2/25/12, 7:22 PM with 1 comments

Where does a hacker put his or her savings? How much of it should be in the technology industry?

Starting off with some assumptions: a) the technology industry is a juggernaut which will power massive economic growth, b) there are many good investment opportunities in technology equities, c) there will be boom times, there will be lean times, and d) lean times will involve a contraction of wages and/or loss of jobs.

Let us further assume that one's objectives don't (currently) include: a) concentrated investment in one risky place in the hope of making an outsized return (i.e., forming a startup), or b) otherwise investing outside the realm of publicly traded securities.

Should a hacker be worried about a double whammy: loss of one's job and a simultaneous decline in tech equities? What are the appropriate strategies for anticipating this, and how should they be calibrated to one's personal risk tolerance?

by baremetal on 2/25/12, 9:04 PM
Never put more than 5% of your liquid assets in one bet, this means any one investment idea; ie Buying 2 different Large Cap US stock mutual funds is not two different ideas. Diversify, and try to get assets that are uncorrelated is the modern schpeal. I look for companies that are undervalued with strong cash flows and durable competitive advantage ala buffet. I also look at technicals to help time buying and selling.