Intestinal fortitude
Do you have it? It could be tested at some point this year as VIX spikes and the threat level economically and geopolitically increase.
Empty Chair
Jeff Bezos is one of the best decision-makers in business. He is also not shy in sharing his thoughts and ideas on how to sharpen your decision-making processes.
It's not me, it's definitely you!
It's not me, it's definitely you!
In cognitive science, the "bias blind spot" refers to recognising bias in others but not in oneself.
Who is the most famous traitor?
Who is the most famous traitor?
Judas Iscariot? Benedict Arnold? Scar from The Lion King?
In the UK, the current season of Traitors on BBC is riveting viewing, especially if you are as keen on psychology and human behaviour.
Conflict in decision-making
If you work in investments, there is a good chance you have sat in either an investment committee meeting or a team meeting when there has been an argument between members. I have seen this many times, with some more eventful than others!
Predictions, predictions.
Fool's paradigm in my opinion but they are a requirement for any serious investment firm. It's a cottage industry.
Nine Lies About Work
How do you build a high functioning team?
It's a really good question and one you may have either faced or will encounter in the future.
Pareto Principle
I know a lot of you will be making resolutions and planning out 2025. I hope you all achieve what you set out to. Some of you may want to achieve more ‘balance’ either through work/life or trying to make more time for things you enjoy. If this is something you are contemplating then my only piece of advice is to ensure you don’t mistake ‘balance’ with 50:50. It is incredibly hard to get to 50:50 and quite frankly I fine it unproductive. I would rather take the advice of Vilfredo Pareto.
Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
The Hollies sued Radiohead for their top 10 hit 'Creep' due to the melody and chord progression being too similar to their 1972 song 'The Air That I Breathe'. Radiohead settled and gave an out-of-court settlements to writers Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood (The Hollies).
Keep It Simple, Stupid
The sage advice of James Montier when thinking about behavioural decision-making in investment. Too often we get bogged down in data, technicals and complexity that it distorts the objective of what you are trying to achieve. Simplify the process wherever you can and ask yourself if you really need that extra bit of information.
Masked Man Fallacy
The election of Donald Trump in November ended up being more conclusive than commentators predicted prior to election night.
Peter Principle
It’s almost the end of the year and if you are a manager of people you may be thinking about:
📊 How your team have performed
🏆 Incentives/Promotions
🎯 Objectives for 2025
Plane Spotting
The image shows an outline B-17 Bomber airplane (or aeroplane? I can never decide on that one!) commonly used by the US Air Force in WWII. The red dots represent bullet holes from incoming enemy fire.
Are you Listening?
“We have two ears and one mouth so we can listen twice as much as we speak”
Epictetus
90% of Active Managers underperform
New study by S&P shows about 90% of fund managers in the active equity sector underperform their benchmark.
Sutton’s Law
This is 'Sutton’s Law' and is taught in medical schools worldwide as a way to help practitioners diagnose the most obvious reason before jumping to alternative theories.