It’s April, and that means something special to the Fabian family. Why? Well, because the April issue of our flagship newsletter, Successful Investing, is our anniversary issue. This year, we celebrate our 34th year helping investors to protect their serious money, while achieving market-beating returns.

I must admit that thinking about publishing a newsletter each month for 34 years is a mind-boggling concept. In fact, sometimes I find it hard to believe. Yet, the publication is such a part of the Fabian family that I literally cannot see myself apart from it.

I know many Alert readers also are Successful Investing subscribers, and many are familiar with the history of the how the service came to be. But for those of you who aren’t acquainted with our past, I think it’s important to tell the tale. By knowing where we came from and why Successful Investing was created, you’ll get a good sense of how we developed our winning methodology. Plus, the story is just downright interesting, and is a true example of the entrepreneurial spirit at work.

Almost exactly 34 years ago, my father and mother, Dick and Marie Fabian, sat down at their dining room table (a table they still have, and use daily) and decided to start a newsletter designed to help investors manage their money. That service was called the Telephone Switch Newsletter. Now I know this is a strange title for an investment publication, but the name actually meant something specific.

You see, back in the mid-1970s, moving your money around at a mutual fund company via telephone was state-of-the-art technology. For the first time, investors could call their mutual fund directly and, without the help of a high-priced stockbroker, allocate their capital to stocks, bonds or cash, based on the trend-following philosophy originally developed by my father. And while we’ve come a long way technologically since the 1970s, the one thing that hasn’t changed is our commitment to following the overall trend in the market, and letting the circumstances in the market dictate our approach to stocks.

So, what’s the Fabian trend-following philosophy really all about? Actually, the idea is quite easy to understand, although the application of the idea is sometimes a bit more complex. Basically, the Fabian Plan watches the market to see where it is in relation to its key moving averages. Based on how stocks are trending in relation to those key technical measures, we move our investment capital in, and/or out, of the market.

Essentially, the Fabian Plan is designed to be in the market during boom times and, more importantly, out of the market during bad times. We’ve done this quite successfully during the last 34 years, and the success of this service is one reason why we opted to change the title of the publication to Successful Investing.

One critical component of the Fabian Plan, particularly during the past several years, has been our focus on the potential downside looming in the equity markets. Ever since stocks demonstrated that they can crater the way they did during the 2008-2009 bear market, our emphasis on risk management has been a key aspect of our philosophy.

This year, we still have that safety-first focus in our back pocket; however, we have a much more bullish stance on the market for 2011. And while I never want you to let your guard down when it comes to your serious money, today’s bull market deserves a healthy allocation.

Throughout the month, we’ll be celebrating our anniversary by presenting some interesting facts and lessons we’ve learned during the past three-plus decades. These lessons are particularly relevant today, as the market trades higher in the face of what seems like substantial adversity.

From our family to yours, happy anniversary!

If you’d like to find out how you can become part of the Fabian family of advisory services, I invite you to check out our flagship service, Successful Investing, today.