I worked for ten years for a Madison safety products distributor. It was a good experience, and I liked being part of a company that provided products, training and services to help keep people from harm in the workplace or their homes. But not everyone who uses a safety product is guaranteed to be safe. Unforeseen hazards arise and people make mistakes.
The word “safe” is also used to describe many investments. CD’s or annuities are viewed as “safe” until you dig a bit more and understand the type of safety you have. Inflation, rising interest rates and other factors can erode safety in just about any investment. However, there are investments with a higher likelihood of safety than others. That includes investments in companies that pay dividends. Some dividend-paying stocks are very risky and are like fools’ gold. But others, with growing and sustainable dividends are “safe.”
I recently read Charles B. Carlson’s book The Little Book of Big Dividends. Much of what Mr. Carlson says fits with my view of investing. If I were to recommend two books on investing, this would be number two. The other helpful resource Mr. Carlson offers is the “Big Safe Dividend” website. The resources, including the ability to see some potential investments are helpful. The links below can get you directly to those resources. I put the current information in a spreadsheet, so if you want a copy of that, send me an email, and I will send you the spreadsheet or a PDF of the spreadsheet. A sample of the first page is shown here:
Know Your Flocks & Herds 