Markets Work
Capital markets are not perfect and prices are not always right, but markets are so competitive that it is unlikely an investor can systematically profit from mistakes in the market at the expense of other investors.

Active Management Generally Fails
There have been (and will be) a limited number of active managers that outperform the market, but no more than you would expect by chance, and it is difficult to identify them in advance.

Market Timing Is Risky
Following decades of empirical investigation of capital markets by literally thousands of financial economists, there is no widely accepted and conclusive evidence that market timing works. A successful timing strategy requires three correct decisions: when to get in, when to get out, and when to get back in. The success rate required to beat a buy-and-hold strategy is unattainable for most investors.

There Is No Crystal Ball . . . and You Don't Need One!
At the root of all forms of active management is some sort of forecast, but the future is by definition unknowable. Although no one can predict the future, you don't need to in order to have a successful investment experience. With capitalism, there is a positive expected return on capital.

Risk and Return Are Related
Markets are drawn to a state of equilibrium where risk and return are related. Only non-diversifiable risks are rewarded with higher expected returns.

Diversification Is Key
Diversification is the closest thing there is to a free lunch. Proper diversification increases the likelihood of earning expected returns and may reduce risk by eliminating risks you are not paid for taking.

Bring Discipline to the Process
Capital markets are noisy; but in the face of that noise, investors must maintain their discipline and stick to a long-term investment strategy in order to have a successful investment experience that captures capital market rates of return. Some studies conclude that individual investors underperform the market by as much as 5% annually, likely due to a lack of discipline that results in chasing hot stocks or hot funds or by timing markets.1

Know Thyself
Investors often exhibit behavioral biases that can lead to poor investment decisions. Overconfidence, self-attribution, mental accounting, searching for patterns, hindsight, regret, and fear are cognitive biases and emotions that an advisor can help overcome in order to promote both wealth and well-being!

Costs Matter
All investors in aggregate form the market. Therefore, it must be the case that the average investor earns the market rate of return less fees and expenses. Managing costs (management fees, operating costs, trading costs, taxes, etc.) allows investors to capture more of the capital market return that is there for the taking. Keeping costs down puts the odds of success in your favor.

1Bogle, John C. "The Mutual Fund Industry 60 Years Later: For Better or Worse?" Financial Analysts Journal 61, no. 1 (Jan/Feb 2005): 15-24. Calculation based on a comparison of time-weighted returns with the dollar-weighted returns earned by fund investors of 600 general equity funds during 1993-2003.