Tag Archives: Investor Psychology


Learning to think probabilistically is the key to finding success in investing

In discussions about artificial intelligence, we often hear the question: Why do neural networks, designed to think like us, generate…
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When it comes to investing, time trumps rate of return

In 2005, the novelist David Foster Wallace gave a commencement speech at Ohio’s Kenyon College. He began: “There are these…
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Why ‘stay the course’ is good advice for investors

In a thought-provoking article last month, Globe and Mail contributor John De Goey questioned the common investing advice to “stay the course”…
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How to go about pursuing the perfect portfolio

The recently published In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio, by Andrew Lo and Stephen Foerster, reviews the work of 10 of the…
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Three errors every investor, big or small, needs to avoid

At Longview, we recently recorded a decade of annualized investment returns of more than 17 per cent in our global…
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Steel resolve: A hands-off approach to investment gains

In Ian McEwan’s recent novel, Machines Like Me, the main character buys an advanced robot that winds up competing with him…
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The argument against holding bonds: Your portfolio is better off without them over the long haul

Studies have shown that, when it comes to investing, most people make decisions based on intuition rather than reasoning. They…
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Blending fundamental, quantitative approaches can boost outperformance odds

Studies of investment returns reveal a startling paradox. Over time, the vast majority of professional investors will produce an after-fee…
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The Importance of Time

When people talk about investing in stocks, a comment often heard begins with “The most important thing is …” How…
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In investing, you need to understand the importance of time

When people talk about investing in stocks, a comment often heard begins with: “The most important thing is …” How…
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Why a do-nothing approach to investing is often the right way to go

Have you ever come across an article in the financial press recommending a do-nothing or “couch potato” stock portfolio? Typically,…
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The struggle to invest rationally

Richard Thaler won this year’s Nobel Prize in Economics. This is the third time in the past 15 years that…
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The folly of trying to time the market

Is now a good time to invest in the stock market?  When asked this question, most market commentators respond with…
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Putting The Odds In Your Favour When Investing

When asked how he managed to be such a successful investor, Warren Buffet said it was all about putting the…
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Putting the odds in your favour when investing

At a Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting, Warren Buffett was asked how he managed to be such a successful investor. He…
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An Intelligent Bet, Not Taken

In the 1960s the Nobel Prize‐winning economist, Paul Samuelson, offered his MIT colleagues a bet. Samuelson would toss a coin…
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Predictable companies are long-term hits

Twitter Inc.’s recent IPO has many people talking about how its business will evolve in coming years. The one thing…
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Overconfidence: the Achilles heel for investors

Several years ago I was discussing with a colleague the well-known strategy of buying companies with low price-to-earnings ratios. He…
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Investing – It’s All About Discipline

At Longview, we spend a lot of time thinking more broadly about what works in investing. Happily, there have been,…
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Lessons from the few who beat the market

Having trouble deciding whether you should worry more about the European banking crisis, the U.S. debt cliff or the slowdown…
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Book Recommendation: “Fooled by Randomness”

A concise and highly insightful book on the crucial role of chance in investing, and in life – and on…
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Book Recommendation: “The Little Book of Behavioural Investing”

This book explains why most investors (including the pros) underperform the index — i.e. how, when it comes to investing, human…
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