And for a Friday (because this is a long weekend), a few stray thoughts and a few general observations and a few points of view (all my own work): Like the two great minds that influenced the 20th century the most were Gandhi and Einstein. Einstein changed the way we think about what the world … Read more
“So someone sent me a joke yesterday of an HR Manager who is asked to choose between Heaven and Hell at the Pearly Gates by St Peter”, said Jigneshbhai, as we sipped our coffee last weekend. Swami and I were busy reading up on the stock markets, as they were getting interesting by the day. … Read more
Till the morning of May 16th, nobody was sure, but India finally has a government, and how! The people have delivered a verdict that leaves no excuses for performance, and have put a man who promised that at the helm. No more whining about coalition compulsions and dual power centers with no will or abilities for … Read more
My friend Swami was quite cheerful a few days back when we met. “Finally the markets are going up – now that Modi is sure to become the Prime Minister.” “There is no such thing as a sure thing” said my broker friend Jigneshbhai, putting brakes on Swami’s enthusiasm, as he sipped coffee during our … Read more
Invest in businesses as if you are investing in farmland. Look at the earning capability of the asset and how that will increase consistently over time, and hold it for decades. This, or something to that effect, is what Warren Buffett said in his latest shareholder letter – drawing parallels with his own investment in … Read more
“I’m not strange, weird, off, nor crazy, my reality is just different from yours” wrote Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. My adventures with data and analytics have often landed me in situations where I have wondered whose version of reality is the right one. In some … Read more
Most investors find it difficult to truly appreciate the mind-boggling effect of the power of compounding. Financial companies keep touting how 5000 rupees invested regularly will give you 1 crore in 25 years, but most people don’t quite get it. The human brain has a problem with understanding geometric progression. The reason, perhaps, is that the … Read more
‘It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.’ So said someone accomplished. I learnt this truth in my job a few years back when I used to analyse marketing campaign effectiveness for marketing managers. How much ever I tried to tell them that a … Read more
So the old saying that ‘Money does not buy happiness’ is true, and a Princeton-Gallup study has data that backs it up. Take a look at this link: Happiness is Love – and $75,000 The study by Princeton Nobel laureates does say that money does count (or, let’s say, is a significant variable!) for happiness … Read more