Source: Robert G. Hagstrom, Investing: THe Last Liberal Art (2nd ed.) (2013), pp. 104-1254
The Main Ideas.
I'm absolutely convinced that my work in philosophy, history, policy debate, and literature has generated obscenely more investment alpha than my hardcore finance experience.
- Investors are imprisoned in reading silos (they’re in the Panopticon, and thus, don’t realize it)
- (Proper) reading boosts investment acumen (+ don’t fall into the trap of passive reading / "consumption" culture)
- Don’t underestimate the value of literature in investing
- Critical selection and a clear reading methodology prevent drowning in information floods
- Every text demands answering 4 questions (each one conditional upon validation of the prior): (1) what’s the text about as a whole? (2) what’s being written in detail? (3) is the text true, in whole or part? (4) why do I care?
- There are specific strategies to explore each of the four questions
The Details.
Related Field Notes (inter alia).
- Field Note 27 (data silos)
- Field Note 57 (counter-conventional investing, metaphors)
- Field Note 3 (info smog)
- Field Note 6 (crypto info diets)
- Field Note 48 (Foskett's pyramid)
