I was skeptical, but excited to see if there was anything to learn from the class from a "Professional" at Fidelity. It was entertaining to say the least, and about 6 months ago before i started reading, i would have ate up everything she said.
First when reviewing a funds past performance, looking at year, 5 year 10 year and LOF (lifetime of fund) she told us that it had a LOF of 12%, i tried to tell her that this was the average return per year since inception in 1964, but she said, no that is the gain over its life time. She even followed up with an example "if you invested $1000 in 1964 you would now have $1120...." then she realized that can't be right and changed her mind
Second, she was not ok with my assets being 100% in stocks at age 27 and stated that I need to reallocate immediately!
Third, she was trying to sell the freedom funds, where you tell them your age, they decide when you should be retiring and manage your allocations, for a fee of course. She used someone as an example in his early 40's, and he told her, but I plan to retire in 10 years, she proceeded to laugh and say good luck, you planning to hit the Lotto or Rob a Bank? Can’t imagine what she would have said if I told her I plan to retire in 10 – 12 years at age 27.
Last and my favorite, our plant manager asked if they had comparison for expense ratios and performance of funds to other companies such as Vanguard, and she immediately stopped him, and said, we don't talk about competitors, especially better ones...
That was entertaining and a waste of time, but reinforced the fact that many people are afraid to take control of their finances and don't know the potential by controlling spending and being a little smart with your money, the sky is the limit.
