Wit. Wisdom. Value Investing.
“I hate it! It’s like the end of world for me!” said my friend Ravi hanging his head in desperation.
“What happened?” I asked. “You lost someone in your family? Oh, I’m so sorry!”
“Oh no, not that!” he said.
“Then what? Your dog died?”
“No, no!”
“Someone stole your Blackberry?”
“Vishal, will you let me speak?”
“Yeah, c’mon tell me what happened?” I smiled at him and asked.
[Read more…] about Want to Become a Better Investor? First Get Your Brain Damaged
iPods, iPads, and iPhones would have baffled the German social scientist Max Weber, who died in 1920.
The father of modern sociology, however, would surely have understood something about the man behind those futuristic gadgets.
Weber defined the ‘charismatic leader’ as one whose influence stems from almost preternatural insights and imagination, and who inspires devotional loyalty from his followers.
This definition adds up to an uncanny description of Steve Jobs of Apple.
Weber also argued that organizations structured around a charismatic leader are doomed to lose their vigor after the great one leaves the scene.
[Read more…] about Steve Jobs Resigns from Apple: Lessons for Indian Investors
The spread of business channels and other financial media has had grave consequences for investors over the past few years.
One of them is the need to justify each and every move of the market.
The other is the tendency to buy or sell stocks first and think about the rationale of buying/selling later.
The third, and the worst, consequence for investors of watching business channels and reading financial media has been the nonsensical focus on the movement of the Sensex or the Nifty.
[Read more…] about The Stock Market Nonsense Called ‘Consensus’
A few interesting items for your reading pleasure:
- Anther funny CNBC interview! Don’t buy now, bottom just around the corner (Moneycontrol)
- Hmm. Arresting India’s Downturn (The Wall Street Journal)
- Life after downgrade? Standard & Poor’s President to Step Down (The New York Times)
- Law breakers hiring lawyers! Goldman’s Shares Tumble as Firm Hires Top Lawyer (The New York Times)
- Great read. James Montier Suggested Reading List (The Big Picture)
- Hmm. Faber: Some Stocks Still Worth Buying (Moneynews)
What are you reading?
If this is a snake…
Yes, you are right, this is a drunken snake! And why not? If a sober can walk like a snake under the influence of alcohol, a snake can move like a sober under the influence of alcohol.
[Read more…] about Of Smart Central Bankers, Drunken Snakes, and Stock Prices
“If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, then you probably haven’t been following global financial markets over the past few weeks.” Thus went the first paragraph of a report I recently read on Bloomberg.
The dizzying price volatility – across asset classes and indifferent to national borders – might be taken as evidence that the market has lost its anchor to fundamentals.
One of the three resources – apart from your brain and willingness – you need to become a successful investor yourself is – Time.
Time is precious…even more precious than money, simply because you cannot save it.
You cannot set aside time for future use as you can money, food, fuel, or a number of other things.
Any attempt to save time by not using it is futile. What happens if you sleep eight hours and try to save the rest of the day by doing nothing? At the end of the day, the unused hours are gone forever.
[Read more…] about Investing in Stock Markets? Take Care of Your Most Precious Resource
Single Education (MBA/Engineering) = Ego (I can do nothing wrong).
Double education (MBA + Engineering) = Super Ego (I’m doing everything right).
Greed = I, me, myself!
Double education + Greed = I’m doing everything right…for myself!
If you haven’t already, sign up for our daily e-letter, The Safal Niveshak Post, and claim a Free copy of our Special Report – “10 Big Lies You’ve Been Told About Investing” – to be released on 20th August 2011. The Safal Niveshak Post covers deep insights on investing to help you navigate the stock markets with confidence. It’s free, and I’m sure you’ll get a lot out of it. Click here to sign up.
What separates an investor from a speculator?
Of course they look different. While an investor is generally calm and composed, a speculator is mostly agitated!
Anyways, the serious answer is – It’s not what they choose to buy but how they choose it.
At one price, any stock could be a speculation; at another (lower) price, it can become an investment.
And in the hands of different people, the same stock – even at the same price – could be either a speculation or an investment. It all depends on how they understood it and how honestly they assessed their own limitations.
[Read more…] about Are You an Investor or a Speculator?
A few interesting items for your reading pleasure:
- Oh-ho! ‘India least favoured equity market in emerging economies’ (The Economic Times)
- Just do it! Cohan Says Close Wall Street Casino Cut Pay In Half (The Big Picture)
- Nice read. Authenticity (The Big Picture )
- Wow! Gold’s climb is perfectly rational (CNN Money)
- Hmm. The moral decay of our society is as bad at the top as the Bottom (The Telegraph)
- ’Fine’ art of corruption. DLF fined Rs 630 cr for unfair practices, realty reels under shocks (The Economic Times)
- Nice read. Breaking and entering (Mint)
- Ouch! Jim Rogers: Higher food prices will spark riots soon (Moneynews)
What are you reading?