Book excerpt: What is an Investment Policy Statement? The IPS provides the foundation for all future investment decisions to be made by an investor.It serves as a guidepost, identifying goals, creating a system and discipline for a decisions. A client said,"Once the trustees adopted the Investment Policy Statement, we found that we were making our decisions in a deliberate fashion, rather than in the "heat of battle."Since we'd already thought about how things would get done under a variety of circumstances, we no longer found ourselves getting emotional. Planning ahead makes it easier for all of us when the investment markets get turbulent." If you are an investment advisor, financial planner, stock broker, insurance agent, CPA or attorney advising your clients about their money, this innovative book will be a key tool for working with clients.