“We do not have, never have had, and never will have an opinion about where the stock market, interest rates or business activity will be a year from now.” – Warren E. Buffet, the worlds most admired, least imitated investor, in his annual letter to shareholders dated 30 years ago today, February 28, 1989

Have you ever heard someone say that experience is the best teacher? Here’s another one–there are no mistakes, just lessons. Well, I would like to take a slightly different tack. Experience isn’t the best teacher. Someone else’s experience is. Learn from other peoples’ mistakes and you can save yourself a lot of grief. In that spirit, I’d like to review the biggest financial mistakes I’ve seen and offer you ways to avoid them.

As the end of the year nears, here are 7 ideas to keep in mind.

Some of you may have noticed that since the beginning of October market volatility has picked up. If you watch any financial news or read publications, you are reminded about it almost daily. It may even be giving a few of you some indigestion, so what I would like to do is make a case as to why volatility, in the long run, is actually your friend and not your enemy.

September 15th marked an ominous anniversary. Ten years prior, Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy, sparking a financial crisis that engulfed the global economy. Lehman’s failure could easily be described as a “systemic event.” That’s financial jargon for an event that triggers severe financial instability and sends shockwaves through the economy. Economically, we've recovered from the downturn but the crisis left an indelible mark on investors. For some, the scars remain.