Why This Blog Exists

This weekend, Dividend Mantra hit 1,000,000 pageviews! Simply amazing. I started this blog back in March, 2011 never anticipating any kind of readership at all. I thought I would put my information out there and hopefully a couple people would find some inspiration and I could start some kind of dialogue with like-minded investors. I'm extremely proud of what this blog has accomplished thus far, and I hope to continue reaching new people in an exponential manner as time goes on.

I've always wanted to put an article together explaining exactly why I write this blog and what I'm really looking to accomplish from it. With the 1 million pageview milestone now achieved, I can think of no better time than now.

Three High Quality Dividend Growth Stocks On My Radar

"Price is what you pay. Value is what you get."

- Quote by Warren Buffett.

Words have never rang truer. Warren Buffett is one of my personal heroes, and I can think of few quotes that more embody his thesis on investing than the one I've included above.

I'm including that quote because it's easy to get caught up in the excitement of the stock market. When stocks are going up seemingly every single month and it appears impossible to pick a bad company, one needs to be even more persistent on focusing on the intrinsic value of the companies that are being investigated for a possible investment of long-term capital. Time heals all wounds, but overpaying even for a very high quality company can lead to sub-par total returns for a long period of time. I believe in paying fair value for a high quality company, but if I can get high quality for a price below fair value I'm a very happy investor.

This being said, I'm going to include a list of three stocks that could allow an investor to buy equity in high quality companies for what I feel are reasonably attractive prices relative to their intrinsic value and the broader market as a whole.

Recent Buy

The broader market continues to show strength on the back of speculation that the Federal Reserve will continue Quantitative Easing because the economy has not shown that it is strong enough to continue a recovery by itself. Whether or not QE continues or tapers, and whatever the reason the broader market continues to be modestly overvalued really matter not to me. I don't focus on major macroeconomic trends or try to predict the future, and my success doesn't hinge on my ability to do so. My success simply hinges on my ability to find wonderful businesses and buy equity positions in these businesses at attractive prices relative to their intrinsic value. I believe that equity positions in high quality businesses is the best way to build wealth over the long haul.

As such, I decided to put more cash to work into what I believe is a high quality business trading for an attractive price on a long-term basis.

As part of my Recent Buy series, I try to let my readers know of any equities I purchase soon after the transaction is completed. This is just one way I try to document my progress toward early retirement and financial independence.

Income/Expenses For May 2013

Each month I will post my income/expenses for the previous month. I track every dollar in and out, so what you see is exactly what I earned and spent (rounded to the nearest dollar).

Weekend Reading - June 8, 2013

Wow! How time flies by. I started this blog as a modest little spot on the world wide web just over two years ago as a way to document my journey to early retirement/financial independence on a middle class income. It's grown far beyond my wildest dreams and the greatest benefit of running the blog has been the relationships I've developed with fellow bloggers and you readers. Without this blog I would have never met Kraig over at Young Cheap Living and I wouldn't have such a wonderful resource here in Dividend Mantra with which to learn from so many fantastic investors. I'm here to learn as much as I am to share, so thank you all for supporting my journey and sharing your ideas and success. It makes us all better investors and people.

I'm now nearing 1 million pageviews. Quite amazing. I never would have thought that this site would be what it is today. Obviously being featured in national media like The Today Show certain helped, but in the end it's you regular readers that make this blog what it really is.

I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend! I'm taking my girlfriend and her son out to Chili's tonight for a little 2 eat for $20 for us and an entree for him. We'll go out and have a little fun while eating on the cheap. We may even squeeze in a margarita or two!

Here are some excellent articles from fellow dividend growth investors, frugalists and personal finance bloggers from the past week.