100508閱讀筆記for Bill Gross’s IO as of May 2010

佳句摘要

– Nemo : Bill Gross mentioned about three books in the article, Investing for Mummies, The Intelligent Investor, and The Big Short.

– Experience is a great teacher, but the foundation of civilization, and too investing, is also dependent upon the capsulization of the experiences of others and that is where books have played a formative part in my own career.

– Common sense can not be taught.  CQ – Common Sense Quotient – in addition to an IQ in order to succeed in investing.

– Not so with investing, because prices are a delicate combination of mathematical value and human nature – something that quantitative scholars and practitioners rejected to their eventual ruin in their pursuit of “efficient market”.

– If a chef were to concoct a gourmet investment recipe, he would likely blend a teaspoon of intelligence with a tablespoon of common sense, but the same proportions would probably not apply in other professions.

– Whatever the future holds, remember that a tablespoon is larger than a teaspoon, and that CA beats IQ most of the time in the investment world.  “Two plus two equals four” needs a lots of CQ, but requires only a second grader’s IQ.

– Their quantitative models appeared to have a Mensa-like IQ of at least 160, but their common sense rating was closer to 60, resembling an idiot savant with a full command of the mathematics, but no idea of how to apply them.  (Nemo : after discussion the poor credit valuation of subprime crisis and Greece from famous rating service firms such as Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch.)

– No one or no one company has a monopoly on investment or ratings expertise.  Second grade intelligence and a high CQ are a rare combination for an individual rating agency or an investment management firms as well.


尼莫心得

– 好的價值投資人應有持續學習和閱讀的習慣。文中葛洛斯提到三本經典的書,也提到閱讀對他的重大影響(where books have played a formative part in my own career)。看過巴老的滾雪球的人也應該都知道巴老花很多時間閱讀和思考。SO請認真想想,跟他們相比,我們花在閱讀和思考的時間是否足夠?是否有持續學習和進步的習慣?如果沒有,憑什麼能夠靠投資致富?

– 提到以及不斷強調Common Sense的重要性遠勝於IQ。有位一直以來尼莫很崇敬的一位銀行家,根據別人對他的描述,他連大學都唸不畢業,但能夠達到今天的成就,主要就是有足夠的Common Sense。對尼莫而言,Common Sense已涉及智慧的階層,一點都不簡單。

– 對效率市場假說的批判。好像每位價值投資派的大師都對效率資本市場假說嗤之以鼻,關於這點,也許昨天的美股盤中大跌近千點是是最好的證明。市場真的有效率嗎?

– 對傻瓜信評的批判。這點應該從兩年前次貸風暴起,世人就看透了,這些信評單位做的RATING根本就是屁,只會用事後諸葛的方式來調整信評,這樣叫三歲小孩來都會做,而信評最重要的價值"預警功能"卻一點都沒做到。關於這點,as a lending banker,尼莫覺得重要的是不要人云亦云,凡事依賴別人的判斷來做決斷,這樣等於把命運交在別人手上,重要的是要靠自己獨立蒐集資料後思考判斷出的評價。由此延伸,能夠獨排眾議,敢於和別人不同且持續堅持自己的看法,不合群且有點孤僻,有異於常人的自信心甚至傲氣,似乎是價值投資者的最適性格。真的是如此嗎?

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