Summer has begun. This is the time when your thoughts may turn to that wonderful break in the year called a summer vacation.  Maybe you’ll think about a trip to a theme park, a secluded resort, or a cruise to the islands.  And maybe you’ve heard the expression that most people spend more time planning their vacation then they do planning their investment strategy. Unfortunately, the statement is true more often than not.

My wife and I have recently started thinking about our vacation. We travel a fair amount, but most of our trips are to business conferences or to run a marathon. Those aren't vacations. And working out the details for those trips is usually pretty easy. For example, in July I'm attending a business conference in Chicago. I didn't have to make the decision on where to have the event or the details of the event; I just needed to find a flight and a hotel.

Planning a vacation is an entirely different animal. Thankfully, there's this thing called the Internet that makes researching all those details pretty easy. Or does it?

Last weekend we sat down at our computers to start the process.  First, we have to decide where we would like to go. While we have traveled a good bit, there are still a lot of places we would like to visit. We've been to all-inclusive resorts in Mexico and the Caribbean in the past, and have enjoyed those trips. We would also like to take a tour of wine country in either Napa Valley or Sonoma. We’ve never spent any time in the Keys, so that's an option. Or, may be a cabin in the mountains of North Carolina in search of some cooler weather? After about an hour of searching different websites I realized that this was not going to be easy.

Of course, once we have decided on a location (and we still haven't done that), we have to find acceptable accommodations, make travel arrangements, and plan for whatever activities we would like to do while we are there. And, we have to do all this within the budget limits we have established for the trip.

After a little while longer, it finally dawned on us…there are professionals that do what we're trying to do.  And they do it professionally. I've always been somewhat resistant to using a travel agent because I didn't want to pay their fees. And then an even bigger realization hit me. I make my living as an investment advisor. Some people try to manage their own investment portfolio because they don't want to pay advisory fees.

Just like planning a vacation trip, managing one's own investment portfolio isn't really hard work, but it's very time-consuming and you often don't know what you don't know.  Sure, there are lots of websites out there that can help you.  Some will try to help you determine your risk tolerance.  Others can help you determine the return you need in order to meet your financial goals.  There are lots of them that will try to help you determine the proper asset allocation based upon your willingness, and need, to take risk.  There are lots more that will help you pick the right investment vehicle to build your portfolio.  Unfortunately, most of those sites are trying to sell you their funds, so be careful.  Once you have your portfolio built, there are sites that will help you monitor the progress and determine when and how it’s best for you to rebalance as time goes on.  Get the picture yet?

There’s no heavy-lifting when it comes to managing an investment portfolio, just like there’s no heavy-lifting when planning a vacation.  So, theoretically at least, anyone can do it.  But there’s a lot to be said for experience and education in both areas.  I would rather spend my free time doing things I like to do…and digging through all the various travel sites out there is not on my list.  Yes, I may pay a fee to turn it over to a professional.  But with her experience, she may find a package plan for our trip that I wouldn’t be able to, and actually save us money.

This is why my clients hire me.  They could take the time to learn about how to build an investment portfolio, and spend the additional time needed to manage and monitor it.  But they have other things that they would rather spend their time and energy doing.  And yes, they pay me a fee for my service.  But not only do I save them time and energy; with my experience I just might be a better investor than they would be.  What do you think?

I know what I think.  I’m calling my travel agent.