This investment oath was first published in Graham’s The Intelligent Investor. I have modified it to suit an Indian investor’s requirements.
Fill it, print it, stick it in front of your work desk, and read it every day.
I, _____________ ___________________, hereby state that I am an investor who is seeking to accumulate wealth for many years into the future. I know that there will be many times when I will be tempted to invest in stocks because they have gone (or “are going”) up in price, and other times when I will be tempted to sell my stocks because they have gone (or “are going”) down.
I hereby declare my refusal to let a herd of strangers make my financial decisions for me. I further make a solemn commitment never to invest because the stock market has gone up, and never to sell because it has gone down.
I will invest with discipline – month after month – and into businesses that I understand and stocks that I find are trading with a good margin of safety as compared to their intrinsic values.
I hereby declare that I will hold each of these investments continually through at least the following date (which must be a minimum of 10 years after the date of this contact): _________________ _____, 20__.
The only exceptions allowed under the terms of this contract are a sudden, pressing need for cash, like a health-care emergency or the loss of my job, or a planned expenditure like a housing down payment or my children’s education bill.
I am, by signing below, stating my intention not only to abide by the terms of this contract, but to re-read this document whenever I am tempted to sell any of my investments.
This contract is valid only when signed by at least one witness, and must be kept in a safe place that is easily accessible for future reference.
Signed: ________________________
Date: __________
Witnesses:
1. ______________________
2. ______________________
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