To listen to the audio version of this article click here. In the world of trends, history repeats more than it rhymes. Things which were considered “in” decades ago, reemerge as cool again decades later. From mom jeans to vinyl records and even Marxist ideology. The spotlight of today turns to things—both good and bad—once forgotten.

“If you can’t hold it in your hand, you don’t own it.”
That’s one of the most common refrains we hear from gold and silver investors. And while there is a kernel of truth in this saying, investing by these words alone could prove a costly mistake.
This popular phrase conflates and entangles two different concepts.

Yield. It’s on the tip of every investor’s tongue, but it’s much harder to find than it used to be. A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away (like the early 1980’s) one could simply open a savings account, purchase a CD or US 10-year notes, and earn between 7% to 14%.