Hey we all start somewhere! 3 years ago I was googling what a bond is. KB layed it out pretty well, glamor stocks tend to be insanely overvalued. Even if you believe in (Activision)Blizzard long term, all of the known data is already factored into the price, it's really hard to make money on them. You're right about index funds vs managed funds. The former passively tracks a market, which means it's very low fee. Active funds are managed by someone on wall street, which means that someone is going to take a cut. It raises fees and (in my opinion) risk. KBs investment philosophy is very different from mine. If you want a very beginner friendly book and to learn more about my investing style I highly recommend "the bogleheads guide to investing". No previous knowledge required. The information is available for free on the bogleheads wiki but the book lays it out pretty well for beginners. Don't get overwhelmed! KB hit you with a ton of information and I'm adding even more. Finance is tricky, but the sooner you learn this stuff the better off you'll be long term. I do twice a year check ins, and I try to learn a bit more and do things a little better each time. Don't worry about getting everything figured out right away.
In what sense? Are you heavily into stocks? My investing philosophy is put some boring money where the boring people tell you to put it, and risk the fuck out of the leftovers. I prefer investments that I have a marginal amount of control over, however, so my stock portfolio is a drop in the bucket.KBs investment philosophy is very different from mine.
His funds are all actively managed, which I avoid. He also uses a lot of annuities, which don't make sense for me. I've also noticed in several finance threads on here(including the one he linked on Efficient Market Theory) people here tend to skew very pro real estate, which I am essentially terrified of. I'm not focusing on knocking his methods, they work for him, I just want to explain that there are different approaches. I use a mix of investment classes, but it's really pretty simple. My emergency fund and just in case money are in a mix of "safe" investments - cash, high yield savings, cds. and I will eventually add in TIPS. I largely don't own individual stocks. I instead buy index funds that track entire market. These are low fee and give me excellent diversification. Twice a year I check in, re-balance to keep everyone on track, then forget about it - it's why they are called lazy portfolios. This method works very well for me, I've beaten everyone I know who's tried the DIY approach. Here is my asset allocation. I included links to example funds I use but since this portfolio spans my 401k, Roth IRA, and brokerage account I use a mix of funds to get these numbers. 35% - US Index - FSTVX 30% - International index - FSGDX 5% - US Small Value - Not required, I value tilt to add a little flavor :) 9% - REIT - VNQ 20% - Bond - FTABX 1% - Play money - Cash, bitcoin, ESPP. No more then 5 - 10 trades a year.