Invest Like the Best: Recent Episodes
Patrick O'Shaughnessy
Exploring the ideas, methods, and stories of people that will help you better invest your time and money. Learn more and stay-up-to-date at InvestorFieldGuide.com
My guest this week is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder and CEO of Coinbase. The topic of our conversation is the future of cryptocurrency and decentralized finance. Its been a while since I checked in on the world of crypto and while prices are still below the 2017 highs, there’s been a ton of additional work and infrastructure laid. We discuss the major events of the past decade and what might happen in the 2020s. Perhaps most interesting, we cover the potential benefits of a modernized financial system, which Coinbase hopes to help usher in. As I’m trying to do more in conversation with CEOs, we also discuss the lessons he’s learned building a business. Please enjoy my conversation with Brian Armstrong.
This week’s episode is sponsored by Bottomless. Bottomless is a smart coffee subscription which automatically re-orders coffee for you based on your consumption habits.
Bottomless is offering one month and your second bag of coffee for free at bottomless.com/patrick.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:23) – (First question) – Most important developments in cryptocurrencies
(3:00) - What happened in crypto over the last decade
(3:01) – What will happen to cryptocurrency in the 2020s
(4:01) – Long term vision for Coinbase
(6:57) – Why should we be aiming towards an open financial system
(11:41) – How crypto improves the movement of money
(14:22) – Creating sound money and currencies
(16:21) – Why economic freedom is an important variable in what he’s trying to do
(19:44) - How economic freedom can happen with various regulators around the world and in different countries
(22:49) – How Coinbase attracted its first users
(26:33) – The December 2017 madness of cryptocurrencies
(29:50) – How he thinks about recruiting teams and motivating them to be productive
(33:40) – Mistakes with people he’s learned from
(34:56) – Steering a product roadmap and creating a successful business
(37:17) – What do the non-Bitcoin currencies offer that Bitcoin doesn’t
(41:19) – Innovation in cryptocurrency that excites him: DeFi
(43:40) – Interesting geographic locations and their impact on crypto
(45:29) – How his thoughts on company building has changed over the years
(46:47) – Battling any loss of confidence as a founder
(51:01) – Improving decision making as a leader
(53:54) – Aspects of the job that he loves the most today
(56:25) – Largest impediments to mass adoption of crypto
(58:25) – His curiosity for scientific research and bioengineering
(59:19) – Advice that helped him that he would offer others
(1:01:38) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today, Matthew Ball, is a long time coming. He’s the former head of strategy at Amazon Studies, an investor, and probably my favorite business essayist writing today.
My guest today is Kat Cole, the COO and president of North America for Focus Brands, which owns famous companies like Cinnabon, Carvel, Jamba, and more. Kat’s story and career trajectory are remarkable, as are the lessons she’s picked up along the way which she shares with us all in this conversation. We discuss negotiation, distribution, brand building, brand extension strategies, and leadership. I always enjoy having a true operator on the show, so I was very excited to discover Kat and her thinking. Please enjoy this great conversation.
This week’s episode is sponsored by Bottomless. Bottomless is a smart coffee subscription which automatically re-orders coffee for you based on your consumption habits.
Bottomless is offering one month and your second bag of coffee for free at bottomless.com/patrick.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:13) – (First question) – Her call to prayer
(2:16) – Kat Cole on Pomp’s podcast
(5:20) – Her positivity lens
(7:59) – Applying that positivity lens in business
(13:34) – How to show positivity in early interactions with someone
(17:37) – Overview of Kat’s career
(21:03) – Lessons learned building brands
(27:11) – Changing relevance or differentiation within a brand
(32:34) – Keeping a brands dominant position in people’s minds
(36:00) – The power of franchising and shared commitment
(40:50) – How her experience makes her a better investor
(42:55) – Lessons around distribution
(46:24) – Effectively negotiating and getting your fair share in a partnership
(52:49) – Attributes of a brand that get Kat most excited
(56:34) – Transferring her brand lessons to software and tech companies
(59:09) – Biggest lessons in leadership she’s learned
(1:04:13) – Checking In: the power of intention, reflection, and action to be your best and help others do the same
(1:05:18) – Most effective questions in her check-ins
(1:06:29) – Personal check-ins vs professional check-ins
(1:10:44) – Balancing gratitude and ambition
(1:14:37) – The kindest thing anyone has done for Kat
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Eric Vishria, a general partner at Benchmark Capital. Eric joined Benchmark after spending the first part of his career as an operator and CEO. The topic of our conversation is the past, present, and future of software businesses. We begin by explaining why public software companies trade at such incredibly high multiples today. We then explore the several different generations of these businesses and why the future remains so bright for companies building software as their primary product. I’d go one step further and suggest that the information in this episode is even more valuable for non-software businesses and investors, because its crucial to understand the impact that these products will have on the overall business landscape. COVID has accelerated the long-running transition to digital across the corporate world, and Eric serves as the perfect guide. Let’s dive in.
This week’s episode is sponsored by Bottomless. Bottomless is a smart coffee subscription which automatically re-orders coffee for you based on your consumption habits.
Bottomless is offering one month and your second bag of coffee for free at bottomless.com/patrick.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:29) – (First question) – His take on public markets, and specifically as it relates to SaaS businesses
(4:04) – Why these companies trade so high
(7:53) – Peter Zeihan Podcast Episode
(11:19) – The competitive frontier in the digital markets
(14:02) – The API competitive frontier
(14:22) – Chetan Puttagunta Podcast Episode
(18:36) – Every Company is Becoming a Software Company
(20:10) – John Collison Podcast Episode
(22:54) – Charging in an API business model
(24:09) – Describing the different generations of SaaS, starting with Gen 1
(28:15) – Gen 2 SaaS businesses
(31:52) – Being an investor in SaaS
(36:55) – Gen 3 and importance of traditional SaaS companies to get into API
(38:06) – Other problems software can solve
(44:19) – Why more money isn’t going into SaaS
(46:48) – Lessons from the investment universe and how it could apply to SaaS
(47:26) – The Hierarchy of Marketplaces — Introduction and Level 1 - Sarah Taval
(51:49) – Lessons about scaling
(57:51) – Cross customer strategy
(1:00:01) – Energy and Civilization: A History
(1:01:28) – Qualities of an interesting investor
(1:03:52) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at
My guest this week is Turner Novak, a partner at Gelt VC. Many of the largest companies in the world today are consumer social companies, so Turner and I discuss the past, present, and future of those businesses. When executed right, they are often the fastest-growing companies in history, and the rise of TikTok and some other companies we discuss makes it clear that there may always be more room at the top. The network effects that support these companies make them unique beasts to analyze, and Turner’s writing has been among my favorite content on the topic. Please enjoy our detailed conversation on this important are of public and private markets.
This week’s episode is sponsored by Bottomless. Bottomless is a smart coffee subscription which automatically re-orders coffee for you based on your consumption habits.
Bottomless is offering one month and your second bag of coffee for free at bottomless.com/patrick.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:18) – (First question) – History of consumer social companies
(3:28 – The importance of quality growth over rate of growth
(4:43) – Importance of friends and identity in a social network
(6:21) – Major markers he analyzes in new social networks
(7:59) – The meteoric rise of TikTok and how it compares to other social networks
(8:08) – The Rise of TikTok and Understanding Its Parent Company, ByteDance
(13:38) – How TikTok deals with user friction
(17:28) – Why TikTok copies is a waste
(21:08) – Advising companies to build a media arm in this environment
(24:18) – Business models beyond advertising for social networks
(30:44) – His thoughts on Pinduoduo and the opportunity for a similar company in the US
(37:36) – What Snapchat is doing
(43:51) – How social eCommerce could be a competitor to an Amazon
(46:31) – His review of Zynn
(46:36) - Attack of the Clones: TikTok’s Rival Kuaishou Lands in the US
(52:22) – The geopolitical battle of social networks
(53:36) – Creating social commerce companies
(54:27) – Fantasy draft portfolio
(59:18) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Charlie Songhurst, the former head of strategy at Microsoft and a prolific investor, having personally invested in nearly 500 companies throughout his career. I met Charlie at an event hosted in New York and you can tell within one minute of meeting him that his mind is sparkling with ideas and curiosity. Its no wonder he’s been among the most commonly requested guests when I asked several top investors and CEOs who I should have on the show. We discuss the lessons he’s learned about business, investing, and people from such a large sample size of companies. I won’t reveal any more here, I highly recommend you just listen to Charlie and learn. Let’s dive in.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:25) – (First question) – Stack ranking the vices of power, money and fame
(2:41) – Memorable response to the stack ranking question
(3:13) – Best scenario to explore this stack ranking concept
(3:55) – Other ways to rank founders
(4:44) – Quick look at this career
(5:16) – Time at Microsoft
(6:03) – Features he looks for in startups
(10:55) – Managing the declining curve of productivity
(14:55) – Why founders are often unique people
(14:57) – Jeff Gramm Podcast Episode
(15:04) – Aliens, Jedi & Cults
(19;43) – How early entrepreneurs need to make recruitment a serious part of their work
(23:06) – How successful founders win the best candidates
(25:27) – The East Coast vs. West Coast investment strategies
(30:40) – When it’s time to bring in quantitative factors into early stage investing
(34:36) – The markers that pop up in companies that hit
(37:22) – Boring but successful investments
(39:28) – Investor aesthetics
(41:29) – Characteristics of investors that he believes are important to success
(42:57) – Impacts of Covid and some of the permanent changes that have happened as a result
(47:49) – Investing opportunities in the local community
(49:13) – His take on cryptocurrencies
(53:47) – Most mis valued asset in the world
(55:16) – Investing opportunities in Europe
(57:34) – Make up of his 483 investments
(57:58) – Matt Clifford Podcast Episode
(59:17) – Curation as a skill
(1:01:54) – Timing and startup success
(1:05:11) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Blake Robbins, a partner at Ludlow Ventures. We talk about all things video games, including the major companies in the industry, how games monetize, how in-game economies work, how e-sports has evolved, and much more. This is a fast-growing segment of consumer attention and interest, I believe we are in the very early days of gaming going mainstream.
I also have a favor to ask. My team and I have built a small survey for Invest Like the Best listeners and if you’ve enjoyed the podcast, I’d deeply appreciate it if you took 5 minutes to fill it out at investorfieldguide.com/survey. It will help shape the future direction of the show, which I intend to keep improving in the years to come. Thank you, and now please enjoy my conversation with Blake Robbins.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:35) – (First question) – Overview of the gaming industry and how folks may get involved as an investor
(3:46) – Some of the biggest players in the space
(5:30) – The monetization methods of these gams
(9:22) – How do these games respond to real currencies
(14:49) – The landscape of e-sports/e-gaming as a whole
(19:57) – His involvement with 100 Thieves
(25:52) – The media landscape and the role of influencers
(29:05) – When he invests and what the opportunities are out there
(33:07) – The engines behind a lot of this; Unity and Unreal
(34:58) – Other investors that get this trend
(37:43) – Other interesting areas of investment for him, including the creator economy
(41:25) – Opportunities to build out and invest in the infrastructure of the creator economy
(45:37) – Infrastructure opportunities that need to be built
(48:08) – Advice for younger professionals
(49:04) – Investment allocation he is most proud of
(50:08) – A unique skill he couldn’t teach or train in others
(52:27) – Something in gaming he doesn’t understand or wants to learn more about
(54:08) – The kindest thing anyone has done for Blake
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club and new email newsletter called “Inside the Episode” at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Brad Gerstner, the founder and CIO of Altimeter Capital, a multi-billion dollar technology-focused investment firm. Brad and his team are known for a deep expertise in internet-enabled businesses, including Expedia, Facebook, Uber, and many more. We discuss the evolution of opportunity in this style of investing, including the important shift to private investing, where so much of the value creation now happens. I won’t soon forget our discussion of consumer intent on the internet and how it has shifted, the role that essentialism plays in Brad’s business and life, and the rise of the Chinese internet giants like Bytedance. Please enjoy this great conversation with Brad Gerstner.
This episode is brought to you by the MIT investment management company (MITIMCO)
Reach out or learn more:
- Email: partner@mitimco.org
- Website: https://mitimco.org/partner/
- MITIMCo 10 year Letter: https://mitimco.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/MITIMCo-Alumni-Letter.pdf
- MITIMCo brochure: https://mitimco.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/MITIMCo-Brochure_web_2018-12-05.pdf
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:32) – (First question) – Overall investment philosophy at Altimeter
(5:12) – Most interesting thing in the landscape today
(11:16) – Disrupting the tech giants moving forward
(13:56) – The investing opportunity in the backend of the internet
(16:42) – His take on old line businesses and how technology could shift his view on them
(18:56) – Lessons from company founders whose platforms rely on consumer discovery
(21:32) – Running his business on essentialism
(21:40) – Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
(26:11) – Tactical applications of essentialism
(29:46) – Applying essentialism outside of business
(31:16) – What travel has taught him about business
(33:43) – What we should know about the Chinese internet market
(37:11) – The emergence of bite sized transactions across the web
(39:22) – Bite sized work
(42:43) – How early on can you figure out what company would win a vertical
(45:36) – What problem space would he tackle today
(48:49) – Collaborating in the private markets
(57:27) – Pricing businesses as a key component of his investment choices
(1:02:47) – Fascination with life sciences and software
(1:04:12) – What about the future excites him
(1:06:48) – Kindest thing anyone has done f
My guest today is John Collison, the Co-Founder of the digital payments company Stripe. Stripe’s mission is to increase the GDP of the internet, a lofty and deeply interesting pursuit. John is clearly a voracious learner across business and investing, which you’ll hear instantly. He started Stripe with his brother Patrick when he was just 19 years old, and has grown it to, at last valuation, a $36B business. In our conversation, we discuss conglomerates, the internet economy, the power of writing, and why board members are like Pokémon characters, each with different powers. It’s a lively and wide-ranging conversation with one of the entrepreneurs I’ve most enjoyed speaking with. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:30) – (First question) – Interest in industrial conglomerates
(9:10) – Their thinking on acquisitions vs starting new companies
(11:42) – How the payment landscape looked when Stripe was started
(15:55) – View on the internet economy
(20:09) – Exciting possibilities for the future of the internet economy
(22:11) – The forces of size vs speed among startups
(26:53) – Driving reasons why employees choose Stripe starting with clear communication
(28:55) – Tips for better internal communications
(30:09) – The importance of rigor in Stripe’s corporate culture
(32:15) – Investors and investing styles that are most intriguing to him
(36:02) – Teaching vs experiencing business lessons
(37:56) – Lessons from going to market with new ideas
(50:58) – Allowing teams to explore new ideas at Stripe
(44:11) – Best startup companies to study to understand the history of this space
(44:52) – Softwar: An Intimate Portrait of Larry Ellison and Oracle
(48:18) – Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the Rise of the Modern Cable Business
(48:43) – Infrastructures of internet businesses that are missing
(52:03) – Does general accounting practices need to change to capture the true value of a company like Stripe
(1:01:53) – Shared playbooks in Silicon Valley
(1:02:02) – The transition to the no code movement
(1:08:22) – Other businesses that pique his interest outside of software
(1:10:21) – Future trends that excite him
(1:11:10) – First memory when he felt like he was participating in the tech economy
(1:12:46 – The role of board members
(1:15:48) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
(1:18:49) – Advice for young people
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Jeremy Grantham. Jeremy is the co-founder and chief investment strategist of Grantham, Mayo, & van Otterloo (aka GMO). GMO, which manages more than $60B for clients, was a firm that helped educate me early in my investing career. They’ve long published thought-provoking research, most of which came from Grantham himself. He is regarded as a highly knowledgeable investor in various stock, bond, and commodity markets, but is particularly noted for his prediction of various bubbles. In this conversation we discuss the current crisis, which he calls the fourth major event of his long and storied career as an investor. As he says, this one is the most uncertain. We also discuss unique topics like commodity-based companies, and how opportunity often lies between fields of expertise. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:37) – (First question) – What keeps him going in investing
(2:54) – Changing approaches to managing money over the decades
(7:27) – Their investment forecast for major allocations and how that has evolved
(10:06) – How to markets compete with FAANG stocks
(16:06) – More opportunity for active investors and where
(30:55) – How he talks to clients about major stock market events
(34:09) – His interest in natural resources/commodities
(47:07) – Long term argument for the three natural resources: oil, metals, and food
(47:10) – An Investment Only A Mother Could Love: The Tactical Case
(52:01) – Specific case for particular metals
(56:46) – Areas in the future that excite him or that he wants to learn more about
(1:03:42) – Advice for people interested in investing
(1:05:15) – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jeremy
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Ben Thompson. Ben is the author of my favorite business strategy newsletter called Stratechery. He’s also the host of the exponent podcast, and now the Dithering, a podcast he recently launched with John Gruber. I think Ben is among the most interesting business analysts in the world, and I’ve learned from and directly applied many of his ideas. We cover many of the major concepts he’s introduced over the years, including his well know aggregation theory. I think that to understand how the internet has changed the business world for good, you must read Ben and follow his thinking. I’m excited to finally have him as a guest on the show. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(01:26) – (First question) – Companies that are built for the next disruption
(1:32) – The End of the Beginning
(9:58) – Aggregation Theory and the Smiling Curve
(13:18) – Steps to creating an aggregator
(19:46) – Pattern of successful aggregators or luck?
(24:34) – How aggregators interact with suppliers and consumers
(30:49) – Taking on other aggregators
(34:09) – Platform vs aggregator in the scope of Shopify vs Amazon/Walmart
(40:55) – The Moat Map
(46:16) – Value chain thinking and profitable business models
(51:58) – Future of media and independent content creator’s vs bundles
(56:07) – Bundling independent creators
(1:00:37) – The infrastructure layer of technology and software companies
(1:02:35) – His thoughts on gaming platforms
(1:06:13) – The atoms vs the bits in the tech world
(1:12:18) – What he’s learned from covering Netflix
(1:13:46) – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ben
(1:15:56) – Stratechery Podcast
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Shishir Mehrotra and the topic of our conversation is the bundle: offering access to multiple products, services, or providers for a single bundled price. This topic is full of incorrect pre-conceived notions, and as it turns out, the bundle is one of the most powerful ideas in business. Properly harnessed it is good for everyone involved. Shishir explains the ins and outs of bundles in this conversation.
Shishir ran product at YouTube for years and sits on the Spotify board of directors. He founded and now leads Coda (which is “A Doc” spelled backwards) in 2014, to bundle together productivity apps like docs, spreadsheets, databases, and applications. I love this wonky, detailed conversation which has me thinking differently about many businesses and business strategy. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:08) – (First question) – The arc of his career
(3:32) – Why he has an interest in bundling
(7:45) – The concepts of superfan, casualfan, and nonfan businesses
(11:05) – Using Spotify as an example of bundles
(13:24) – The first myth of bundling: Bundling is bad for consumers
(17:53) – The second myth of bundling: 1st vs 3rd party providers and the bundlers
(23:03) – Low usage but high Marginal Churn Contribution (MCC) business
(24:26) – How insurance fits into these models
(26:37) – Myth 3 of bundling: How this impacts consumers
(32:12) – How marginal costs play into the thinking of bundling
(34:54) – Myth 4: Bundling things that have nothing to do with each other
(39:51) – How bundling companies can apply this into their product development
(43:21) – Strategic advice to companies building bundles
(49:01) – How price and pricing power play into advantages for certain bundlers
(54:16) – How does bundling play into his investing thesis
(56:47) – Most interesting bundles he’s observed
(58:44) – Eigenquestions: The Art of Framing Problems
(59:14) – What the future of this trend is
(1:02:24) – What is an eigenquestion
(1:06:29) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Hamilton Helmer, the Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Strategy Capital and the author of one of the best business books in history called 7 Powers, which is the topic of much of our conversation.
My guest today is Tobi Lutke, the co-founder, and CEO of Shopify. This is both a timely and evergreen conversation. Timely, as the world as moved aggressively digital in the past two months, and Shopify powers so much of digital commerce. Evergreen, because while we touch on Covid and the Shopify business, this is much more a conversation on business and personal principles, learning, design, and growth. Tobi is one of the CEO’s I look up to most for the type of company he is building and for the way he conducts himself. We discuss business focus, why video games help you learn the power of attention, what design means for products and organizations, and much more. Please enjoy my conversation with Tobi Lutke.
This episode is brought to you by the MIT investment management company (MITIMCO)
Reach out or learn more:
- Email: partner@mitimco.org
- Website: https://mitimco.org/partner/
- MITIMCo 10 year Letter: https://mitimco.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/MITIMCo-Alumni-Letter.pdf
- MITIMCo brochure: https://mitimco.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/MITIMCo-Brochure_web_2018-12-05.pdf
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:35) – (First question) – The launch of the new Shopify shop app
(2:44) – Daniel Ek Podcast Episode
(2:45) – Jeff Lawson Podcast Episode
(4:56) – Having the right focus and growing a good business
(9:06) – Marketplace business model vs the merchant driven business model
9:16 – Bill Gurley Podcast Appearances - 162 | 144 | 137
(11:47) – His role as a decisionmaker as CEO of the company
(14:07) – What does he mean when he talks about quality
(18:28) – His thinking on design and quality
(18:32) – Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance
(19:59) – The Design of Everyday Things
(21:06) – Friction as a force in business and manufacturing
(26:04) – His thoughts on systems and being free of process
(26:08) – The Systems Bible<!--
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My guest today is popular past guest Ali Hamed, who joins us for an update on private credit. We discuss what has happened so far, what parts of the market are frozen, and where opportunities may lie. We also talk about how the world has shifted digitally since the beginning of the COVID pandemic. Please enjoy my conversation with my friend Ali Hamed.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:41) – (First question) – World of private credit in the pandemic age
(4:50) – Bag of uncertainty
(6:27) – Important levers in private credit
(9:15) – Scary scenarios and systemic risks in this world
(13:21) – General trends in the credit data
(15:30) – Are investors factoring government response properly
(17:02) – Defining advanced rates
(20:18) – Focus on quality vs rate of return now
(22:26) – Pockets of opportunity as uncertainty declines
(26:06) – Online ecommerce platforms, like the YouTube economy
(29:40) – Non advertising driven ecommerce platforms
(31:54) – How venture capital is responding
(38:19) – How junior debt could be am opportunity
(40:17) – Trends he’s thinking about; redefining small businesses
(43:07) – Ali Hamed Podcast Episode
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today for a flash update is Chris Bloomstran, the founder and CIO of Semper Augustus and a popular past guest on the show. We talk about his view on the state of the public equity market, why it will be hard for the market to deliver great returns for the next decade relative to the last, and where opportunities may lie. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:42) – (First question) – Adjustments to his portfolio in the age of a pandemic
(6:41) – Chris Bloomstran Podcast Episode
(9:36) – The Federal Reserve Act
(12:32) – Surprising action in the markets during the crisis
(13:08) – 2020 Investment Letter
(15:02) – Why we won’t see the same performance in tech over the future as we’ve seen the last decade
(21:00) – The carnage in energy sector and return potential
(30:06) – Berkshires activity since the crisis started
(35:48) – Where sectors are valued in the current market
(41:12) – Expectation for deflation over inflation
(48:54) – Characteristics to look for in businesses to own over the next 10 years
(52:05) – Economic factors they are focusing on
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest today is Josh Kopelman, the founder of famed venture capital firm First Round Capital. Prior to starting First Round, which has invested at the earliest stages in companies like Square, Uber, and Roblox, Josh was a three-time entrepreneur, so our conversation spans early-stage investing, business building, and entrepreneurship. I’ll not sure forget his analogy distinguishing between navigators and cartographers, nor the rest of the interesting ideas he shared after seeing and investing in so many great businesses. We also discuss how First Round has bucked the trend to build what I’d call a platform adjacent to the core investing business which does a lot for their entrepreneurs and is a model for other professional investing firms, both in venture and elsewhere. Please enjoy my conversation with Josh Kopelman.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(2:05) – (First question) – How pandemic has impacted their investing strategies
(3:54) – How this stressful environment impacts founders
(6:23) – His early career as a founder and how startup culture has changed
(10:15) – Most important lessons from his entrepreneurial career and building from just an idea
(11:50) – How to analyze a founder
(14:05) – Common disagreements when it comes to deciding on an investment
(15:33) – How many opportunities they evaluate in a meeting
(16:16) – The curvy road to their investment in Roadblox
(17:52) – Whether the concept for a platform is overused
(19:36) – Founders asking what google search they should build on
(20:46) – Solving existing or forecasted problems
(25:39) – How the startup scene is impacted by the huge legacy tech companies
(30:28) – What makes a great early stage investor
(32:19) – Do they focus on founders or themes
(33:19) – Where will valuations and returns come back to after the pandemic
(36:30) – How are business models evolving in technology entrepreneurship
(36:31) – Matt Clifford Podcast Episode
(39:40) – The Dorm Room Fund
(43:02) – Whether investment funds should have their own platform
(47:31) – Product mistakes in software building
(51:52) – What he’s most excited about for the future
(54:05) – The kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Manny Stotz, the founder of Kingsway Capital. Manny is one of the leading investors in Frontier Markets, investing in equities in countries like Egypt, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. We discuss the opportunity in these markets from all angles: demographics, valuations, sectors and beyond. It is important to note that we recorded this conversation before COVID, and these markets have fallen 30% without a similar rebound in prices that we’ve seen in the U.S. As you listen you’ll hear why this may be relevant for the companies Manny focuses on and may accentuate the opportunity in Frontier Markets even relative to the numbers quoted in this conversation. Listeners will know my interest in Frontier Markets runs deep, so I was excited to have one of the categories leading investors join me.
Please enjoy my conversation with Manny Stotz.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:07 – (First question) – How Kingsway was conceived, their focus on frontier emerging markets, and his career path
11:57 – What are the best company builders good at when it comes to fostering a brand
18:30 – How country-specific factors impact the tailwind
25:43 – How markets are faring in these special circumstances
32:09 – Building a book in many of the markets they trade-in
37:10 – Understanding your edge in frontier markets, showing up
39:59 – Importance of solid distribution for the companies he invests in
42:12 – Concentration in various markets
44:10 – Moving beyond consumer brands in these markets
47:14 – Some of the most interesting countries they are looking into and the country business model
47:42 – Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
47:44 – Civilization: The West and the Rest
47:46 – Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty
53:21 – New topics he’s excited to learn about that will impact his business over the next 10-20 years
55:37 – Best way for people to get involved and invest in these markets
58:17 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Sarah Tavel, a general partner at Benchmark, working alongside past guests Bill Gurley and Chetan Puttagunta. Sarah has a long history as both an investor and as an operator. She was an early product leader at Pinterest before joining Benchmark. Sarah has become one of my go-to resources for topics like networks, consumer technology, and marketplaces among many other topics. I’ve used her framework for how to think about client engagement, company data, and marketplace liquidity and quality over and over again in my business life. I’m so excited to finally have her on the show. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:24 – (First question) - Lessons learned from watching the food delivery space
5:44 – Hip camp and how they are thinking about the space rental sector
5:45 - The a16z Marketplace 100
7:47 – Valuing private companies vs public companies
9:37 – Building marketplaces
14:24 – Tipping a market
14:30 – Bill Gurley Podcast Episode
18:09 – How to incorporate reputation scores into a network
19:55 – Search ranking as a tool for marketplaces
21:00 – Size of marketplaces vs their competitors
22:15 – Niching of marketplaces
22:21 - Chetan Puttagunta Podcast Episode
23:26 – State of the consumer social sector
27:50 – The LinkedIn problem and how she would build a social platform
30:42 – Things that are piquing her interest in the consumer space
32:20 – Lessons learned about scaling while working at Pinterest
38:42 – Pricing and the marketplace
41:25 – Identifying and optimizing a Core Action in a digital business
44:18 – Accruing benefits and mounting losses as part of the product design
47:48 – Her investment in Reci
52:18 – How should companies gather the best data from their business
56:03 – Lessons to SaaS investing
56:29 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Sarah
57:45 – Most interesting philosophy lesson
58:09 – Creating a Kingdom of Ends
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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In the midst of the worldwide quarantine, my friend Boyd Varty decided to begin an adventure he has been considering for a long time: a 40 day and 40 night stay in the African wilderness. I’m releasing this short conversation with Boyd to pique your interest in his daily dispatches. He will be taking short audio journal-like recordings and sharing them with the world as he goes. As of today they are several that you can listen to by subscribing to the Track Your Life podcast on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Please enjoy this short chat with my good friend Boyd Varty.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(0:31) – The start of his 40-day trip
(1:42) – Origin of the word quarantine and how it led to this journey
(3:07) – History of this idea
(6:14) – The logistics of this 40-day venture
(9:59) – His experience doing this before and how it changed his psyche
(12:07) – What is he most fearful of
(13:22) – How he feels about sharing this experience when he returns
(15:47) – The mental preparation to this journey
(15:48) – Priya Parker Podcast Episode
(15:49) – The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters
(17:33) – How can outsiders make a connection to Boyd while he’s in this isolation
(19:55) – How can people actually follow him on this journey
(20:23) – Track Your Life with Boyd Varty Podcast – Apple Podcasts | Spotify
(20:33) – Instagram - @boyd_varty
(20:36) – boydvarty.com
(20:43) – 40daysand40nights.com
(21:05) – The story of the 17 lions
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is with past guest Gavin Baker, the founder and CIO of Atreides Management, LP. We discuss investing during a bear market and the major ways in which the COVID19 outbreak has dramatically altered the investment landscape. Please enjoy my second conversation with Gavin Baker.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(1:40) – How he sees the markets right now
(3:06) – How he handles information uncertainty and the value spreads
(5:53) – Trading in today’s market and the volatility
(9:45) – How the economic activity squares with the amount of stimulus being pumped into the market
(13:11) – Market Wizards: Interviews with Top Traders
(13:56) – Asset tests for individual companies in this environment
(19:09) – This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly
(20:45) – His take on software companies during the crisis
(28:57) – Fast pace of change during extreme times of duress
(35:14) – Space as a service
(39:52) – Attention and time inside digital universes and how investors can take advantage
(46:17) – Why chaos is a ladder
(50:42) – It Was a Very Good Year: Extraordinary Moments in Stock Market History
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is D.A. Wallach, one of the more interesting investors I’ve come across. He is the former lead singer of the group Chester French and the former artist-in-residence at Spotify, where he was also an early investor. While he’s also an early investor in companies like SpaceX, his focus the last 5 years has been on early stage health care investing, which is the topic of this conversation. We discuss the entire life sciences and heath care investing ecosystem. This was recorded in the very early days of the Coronavirus outbreak so while we touch on it briefly it isn’t the primary focus, and I intend on returning to more traditional episodes like this one in the coming weeks, meant to be evergreen conversations. Please enjoy my conversation with D.A. Wallach.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:31 – (First question) – Where is interest in healthcare started
4:04 – How to categorize health services
5:13 – The product of medicine
6:56 – How medicine is changing in 2020
10:17 – What is enabling innovation in medicine
12:41 – Manufacturing of solutions, gene therapy example
17:16 – Using CRISPR
19:47 – Pros and cons, and the morality of gene intervention
23:44 – How progress is being made in medical breakthroughs
26:51 – What is the business and investment world seeing on the longevity side
30:15 – What is next in the wearable medical tracking trend
33:04 – The personalization of medical treatments
34:31 – How he thinks about all of this from an investing standpoint
36:37 – Exiting these companies
39:41 – How he thinks about founders in this space
42:35 – Drug prices
42:46 – The Paradox of Pricing
46:45 – What will lead to a change in the pricing of drugs
49:05 – The delivery side of healthcare
51:09 – Investments that could improve the delivery side of healthcare
53:33 – Thoughts on the anti-interventionist line of thinking in the medical world
57:50 – Lessons from his health portfolio
1:02:33 – Other frontiers that pique his interest, including gut biome
1:06:46 – His career in music
1:08:20 – Lessons he learned during his time in the music industry
1:10:19 – Opportunities in the music industry as an investor
1:12:29 – Kindest thing anyone has done for DA
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest today is Chad Cascarilla, here to discuss some of the tail risks in the economy and markets as of March 24th in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic. Chad was one of the most successful investors during the global financial crisis with a specialty in the banking and finance systems. He now runs Paxos, a trust company which trades and custodies unique products like pax gold, bitcoin, and other tokenized assets including simple pax dollars. I feel it is important to avoid confirmation bias in times like this and not just talk to people are optimistic or long, and while I still believe this is ultimately a positive and optimistic conversation, Chad acknowledges and outlines scenarios that few are talking about yet in the markets.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
(2:04) – (First question) – Today’s market and the porridge scenario
(7:38) – Risks to the market that people aren’t focused on
(10:54) – What lessons from 2008 do we need to heed this time
(13:07) – How does he think about inflation on the other side of this crisis
(16:02) – What does a too cold recovery look like
(20:35) – Benefits of nationalizing the banks vs pumping liquidity
(24:13) – What does the just right recovery look like
(25:24) – Assets that might be ideal to hold in a too hot or too cold scenario
(29:00) – His take on how Bitcoin has performed during this crisis
(31:53) – The US’s inherent strengths compared to the rest of the global economy
(34:50) – Advice for people
(38:59) – Paxos.com
(39:48) – What is he monitoring to see which way things shake out
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My conversation today is with my close friend Brent Beshore. Brent is a private equity investor who owns and interacts with many small businesses, which have been hit especially hard by COVID. We discuss the various impacts that COVID has had and may have on both small business and the private equity investing community. Brent also proposes some policy actions which he thinks may help those most in need. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:13 – (First question) – What Brent sees as the current landscape for small businesses
3:25 – The real problem for small businesses right now
6:02 – How long can small businesses survive these freezes
9:14 – Ideas to help businesses stay afloat during a global shutdown
11:01 – The cost of restarting businesses on the other side of this
13:41 – Policies that could help
14:30 – government co-paying some business expenses
16:05 – Suspending payroll taxes
16:17 – The small business bond
18:00 – Wider latitude for banks
20:03 – How effective would Brent’s ideas actually be at lessening the pain
22:41 – A look at how things look in the private equity complex
25:39 – What are the potential opportunities out there
29:24 – What is a balance sheet product
32:00 – How this is personally impacting Brent
34:20 – How this is personally impacting Patrick
35:45 – Importance of relationships for personal health
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this morning is Dan Rasmussen of Verdad Capital. Like me, Dan and his firm focus on quantitative research. Just a month before the COVID crisis hit markets, they completely and published a study on investing during periods of market crisis, which is the topic of this conversation. We discuss what works and what doesn’t during and after acute periods of panic in markets. I think you’ll find it extremely informative. Because Dan’s firm and my own share many beliefs about investing and conduct similar flavors of research, I try to offer devil’s advocate questions throughout. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:54 – (First question) – What he sees in the markets today given the atmosphere right now
4:26 – An overview of their study: Crisis Investing: How to Maximize Return During Market Panics
8:38 – How things get more predictable during crisis
11:15 – The length of these crises and assets they focused on
12:40 – What happens to bonds and credit during these times
15:50 – Geography of crises
18:14 – How does this impact the philosophy of just index investing
20:40 – Positioning of value in this market
27:50 – Lessons from other crises
32:21 – Importance of a blended factor approach
35:44 – Role of momentum
38:10 – What else he is paying attention to during this crisis
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest in this flash podcast is Bryan Krug of Artisan partners. We discuss what has happened so far in the corporate high yield and investment-grade credit markets, and the loan market. We compare today’s environment to the financial crisis and other past crises with lots of nuances that I hope will be helpful to bond and equity investors. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:08 – (First question) – An overview of what he covers in the corporate credit markets
1:52 – How things have changed in the last couple of weeks
3:56 – Composition of the high yield market
7:07 – Major sectors of the high yield market outside of energy
8:39 – How do they price the risk in securities right now
11:21 – How do they handicap a great unknown
13:00 – Risk for broader contagion in the overall credit markets
14:49 – What’s the downside potential here
16:31 – Potential for upside
18:33 – How does he view companies that are drawing down on their entire line of credit
19:44 – An overview of the loan market
20:42 – What warning signs equity investors should be watching for in the bond markets
21:57 – What do credit spreads look like today compared to before this crisis
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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This week, I’ll be recording and immediately releasing a series of conversations on business and market reactions to the spread of coronavirus. The conversations will be on oil and gas, corporate credit, and the reaction within the venture capital community. Today’s conversation is with Matt Smith, Ian Singer, and Kobi Platt of Deep Basin Capital. We are investors in Deep Basin, and they were past guests on the podcast. We discuss the new price war in the oil markets and the impact it might have on equities and especially on U.S. oil producers. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:59 – (First question) – An overview of the global oil market and demand
3:37 – Supply and demand shocks we’ve seen lately
6:22 – What happened this weekend with Russia and Saudi Arabia and why the outcome was so shocking
9:45 – The knock-on effects of this activity on equities
14:24 – Impact on US energy production
18:29 – What other industries will feel the effect of reduced production in the US
20:35 – Defining a price war and how victory is defined
27:53 – Saudi Arabia’s calculus in this energy fight.
31:11 – How does all of this change what factors they use to analyze companies
35:43 – What it actually looks like within the commodities markets to trade energy
40:01 – What uncertainty is most intriguing to each of them
43:00 – The long-term interest in investing in the energy sector
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Peter Zeihan, the author of a new book, the Disunited Nations. Peter was an extremely popular guest on the show last year and after reading his new book, I knew we had a lot to discuss in round 2. In this conversation, we discuss two ways of ruling the world, the coming American disinterest in global affairs, and which country are poised to do well int eh future. We explore military and non-military technologies, political changes, and up and coming alliances like that between the United States and Mexico. As with last time, peter packs more information into an hour than just about anybody. Please enjoy our conversation.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:57 – (First question) – What makes for a successful country
6:02 – Five first-tier countries that are well positioned
7:14 – Ruling the world, US carrot model vs British stick model
9:39 – How other countries will use these models in the future
12:59 – The surprising reliance of Iran and Russia on the US
15:24– Key points of his research on the Middle East
18:36 – Advice for how those operating in the US should think about future business investments
23:05 – The future of manufacturing partnerships with the US and the focus on Mexico
27:30 – What Coronavirus has taught us about the world economy
30:01 – What the primaries and election are teaching us
35:09 – What role does Africa play in the future
38:36 – Strong and weak players in Europe and how Brexit has impacted things
44:41 – The future for nuclear power
46:27 – The outlook for South America
50:42 – The trends and future in military technology
55:03 – Non-military technology that will have a major impact
58:26 – Skills young people should focus on for the future
1:00:07 – Coronavirus as a dress rehearsal for large scale disruptions to the world
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Jeff Lawson, the Founder, and CEO of Twilio. Twilio is a 15-billion-dollar company offering a cloud communications platform to its customers. Twilio is used by customers like Lyft, Twitch, and Yelp to make communications in their products easy. Jeff and I talk about why it pays to be a platform, how to be a platform, and how to sculpt a company culture. This is a must-listen for anyone building a business whether it’s a tech business or not.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:18 – (First Question) – Company vowels and draw the owl
5:26 – Significance of API’s
12:14 – How non-software businesses can transition into the space
17:50 - Agile way of working at ING Belgium (video)
18:38 – How they strategize their product build
23:27 – The idea of asking your developer and why it’s so important to them
33:02 – How they codified their business culture
45:12 – Parting advice for people building platforms
48:13 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jeff
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Niko Canner is the founder of Incandescent where he and his team help the leaders of large companies in the areas of strategy and innovation. He was also the founder of Katzenbach Partners and a member of Bridgewater’s management committee. Niko is a fantastic writer, and I highly recommend you check out his blog “On Human Enterprise,” which has posts on many of the most interesting aspects of business and personal purpose. This conversation was inspired by many of those posts. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:17 – (First Question) – The story of Doctor V
3:24 – Aravind and the Choice of Great Achievement
4:00 – Becoming the perfect instrument
6:05 – What is Niko planning to be the perfect instrument of
8:18 – How should individuals think about finding what they can be the perfect instrument of
8:59 – Brett Victor – Inventing on Principle
10:59 – How do businesses apply this principle
13:20 – Making choices easier
16:43 – Era’s to a company and when it’s time to start a new one
19:52 – How can business culture be cultivated and useful
22:53 – Cultures at the tail end of a distribution
24:33 – Can hierarchy be fluid, or does it need to be a dedicated corporate structure
27:47 – My Unlikeliest Favorite Business Book
28:03 – The Millionaire Real Estate Agent: It's Not About the Money...It's About Being the Best You Can Be!
30:46 – The Red Test and how it can be used by businesses
36:54 - Ten Principles for How to Run a Company
42:25 – Dealing with the sponsor owner brief in the software world
45:24 – How does one choose customers
46:32 – Bill Hubbard passage – A Theory for Practice: Architecture in Three Discourses
49:09 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Niko
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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For the 100th episode, I’ve brought back my good friend Brent Beshore. Brent was the 10th guest on the podcast, after we met because of a mutual interest in capital allocation. I quickly learned that Brent was one of the most unique and thoughtful investors around. He was an entrepreneur from the moment he left school, trying many different things before finding a fit buying smaller business with the intention of owning them forever.
What amazes me about Brent is his encyclopedic understanding of business and the nuances of different business models and deal structures. This comes from reps. He and his team have looked at about 12,000 deals over the years, at every kind of business that you could imagine. I’ve been with him when he goes through this process and it’s fun to hear what makes certain businesses stand out from others, which is largely the topic of this conversation.
You all know transparency is key for me, so it’s important to know that my family and I are investors in a fund called permanent equity, run by Brent and his firm Adventure.es.
To commemorate this milestone episode, I can think of no one better than Brent, because he exemplifies what has made this podcast so fun for me: learning from other people who are willing to share what they themselves have learned through fun, blood, sweat, and tears. Please enjoy our conversation, and thank you so much for coming along on this journey. I can’t tell you how much it means to me.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:02 - (First Question) – How does he think about optimizing risk in terms of the capital stack when looking at deals
5:27 – What conditions would they add debt down the road after investing in a company
6:52 – What business sectors are most intriguing for Morgan to invest in right now
6:57 – Trent Griffin Podcast
9:34 – Why no HVAC businesses if it’s such an attractive sector
13:56 – thoughts on rolling up similar businesses and horizontal scale
16:04 – Another industry Brent would focus on
18:02 – Difference between property management in larger cities vs smaller metro areas
18:51 – What role does profit margin play when Brent is evaluating a business
22:46 – The appeal of a hyper cyclical business
22:52 – Brent Beshore Podcast Episode
27:27 – Favorite counter cyclical business
28:14 – How they judge assets, tangible vs intangible assets
33:58 – How does he think about wage inflation when considering the cost of a business
37:21 – His fascination with pet crematoriums
38:57 – History of the permanent equity fund and the changes by having a larger pool of capital
43:48 – Pitching investors on a new structure for the business
46:14 – How will this business model scale
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is a good friend and a business mentor of mine. Chetan Puttagunta is a general partner at Benchmark Capital and has a remarkable track record of investing in early-stage software businesses, including several like Mulesoft, MongoDB, and Elastic that went on to be public companies.
Chetan has been my key guide for understanding the world of enterprise software as we at O’Shaughnessy Asset Management have built an investing platform called Canvas. His advice has been critical to our early success. In this episode, we explore the history of software and software investing, and go into the details on how to build and grow new software businesses. We discuss product, sales and marketing, recruiting, scaling, and everything in between.
Please enjoy this great conversation with one of my favorite business and investing thinkers.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:34 – (First Question) – How Chetan found MongoDB and decided to invest in it
8:01 – The evolution of databases in the growth of technology
16:19 – Market penetration of this space and what investors should be thinking about
21:46 – Advice how companies can build software effectively
25:12 – Tactics to effectively implement empathy led product building
30:33 – Companies asking users what to build vs telling users what they want
34:26 – The need for the right capital, and patient capital in particular
37:55 – Creating the perfect customer experience
44:37 – Common reasons they don’t invest in a company
48:48 – Lessons on scaling, especially in sales and marketing
52:47 – Best recruiting pipeline strategies
59:56 – Pitfalls of unit economic traps
1:00:23 – The Dangerous Seduction of the Lifetime Value (LTV) Formula
1:01:34– The Hierarchy of Engagement
1:02:18 – What has changed for Chetan in his time working with the team at Benchmark
1:06:009 – Later stage life cycle business considerations and Amazon’s AWS
1:13:29 – The business model of open-source software
1:15:54 – Being default open
1:17:53 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Chetan
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Rebecca Kaden, a partner at famed venture firm union square ventures. USV is known for thesis-driven investing, which is the topic of our conversation. Rebecca walks us through the evolution of USV’s thesis into its third generation, and from there we explore many of the most interesting and exciting areas of business, technology, and learning. Please enjoy our conversation
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:11 – (First Question) – An overview of Union Square Ventures Thesis 3.0
7:49 – Core changes that can help any community
9:59 – Ways to fix the broken education system
13:41 – Gap between job preparedness and the education system
14:44 – Companies creating education systems to prepare people for careers in their field
18:49 – Most unique technological solution for people to educate themselves
22:00 – Ways to improve access to capital
26:49 – The distribution problem in capital markets
28:19 – How does she assess an early-stage company and its team’s ability to assess their ability to maximize distribution
30:56 – Digital marketing and why it could be broken
34:22 – Examples of masterful marketing
36:07 – How they are focused on improving wellbeing, their first focus on healthcare
39:35 – Wellbeing on their focus on community
41:29– The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
45:30 – Her thoughts on mentorship
48:23 – What she has learned in her time at USV
51:50 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Rebecca
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Matt Clifford. He’s the co-founder of Entrepreneur First, the world’s leading talent investor. They invest “pre-company” by helping the best people in cities around the world find a co-founder, develop an idea, and start a company. So far, they’ve helped 1000 people start 200 companies worth a combined $1.5B. This conversation covers their entire ecosystem and holds lessons for anyone building a business. I especially loved Matt’s ideas on the history of ambition.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:20 – (First Question) – An overview on talent investing
4:37 – The history of ambition
10:08 – How do they search for ambitious people
12:21 – What happens early on for these formed teams
17:43 – Assigning an idea to a talented team
20:52 – Opportunities in deep technology
27:16 – A closer look at the hardware and machinery of the deep technology changes
30:54 – The geographical focus of venture capital investments
37:16 – Problems with the way early-stage investment world works
41:22 – People who are creating value in a management company and how they manage their investments
55:12 – Advice to people creating investment companies and pricing power
1:00:31 – The power of cities
1:02:46 – Topics they cover in their newsletter; technological sovereignty as one example
1:04:11 – Experience and thoughts on China
1:06:51 – A.I. Nationalism
1:12:03 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Matt
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Peter Buffett. Peter is a musician, composer, author, and philanthropist. Peter is an Emmy Award winner, New York Times best-selling author and co-chair of the NoVo Foundation. We discuss music, community, philanthropy, and finding one's note in life. This is a very different episode much more about life in general, with no business or investing discussed. Like his father Warren, Peter has the gene for phrasing ideas in memorable ways, and I think you’ll find many great phrases in this chat that will stick with you. I’ve been thinking about Peter's idea making sure those in your life are safe, seen, and celebrated ever since our chat.
Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:27 - (First Question) – Welcome and small talk
1:35 – Why Peter is in Kingston and how it plays into his foundation work
4:01 – How moving from the city to the country changed Peter
6:27 – Seeing connections vs living abstractions
7:30 – What is the Nova Foundation
11:03 – Historical points that inform his views
13:51 – Identifying qualitative negative side effects and which ones they are attacking
17:51 – What makes for effective community
20:22 – Linkage between consumption and individualism
23:55 – The cultivation of work ethic, curiosity, and education
23:57 – Life Is What You Make It: Find Your Own Path to Fulfillment
27:22 – Early exploration of his curiosity
32:26 – What has music taught Peter about music that is unique to that experience
34:26 – Most memorable question a person has asked Peter at his concert and conversation series
36:46 – What makes for good relationships, in particular marriage
42:03 – What keeps people from putting in the work into a relationship
45:11 – What he has learned about being a good friend
46:29 – How does one person have a relationship with a large community
49:21 – Dark sides of the philanthropic world
49:54 – The Charitable-Industrial Complex
53:21 – Dignity: Seeking Respect in Back Row America
55:55 – What one spot would he send everyone to learn
57:48 – Traumas and helping people find their note
57:49 – The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
1:00:38 – How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
1:02:24 – What is he most interested in right now: how to best use Nova’s funds
1:04:45 – Lessons from family
1:07:22
My guest today is Ben Savage, a partner at Clocktower ventures. Ben is focused on financial technology, fintech, investing which is the topic of our conversation.
I’ve been making the fintech is rounds of late, and plan on making a few of these conversations public. Ben is the first in what may be a mini-series because of the sheer amount I learned in our discussion.
We cover all aspects of the fintech ecosystem. I hope you enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:15 (First Question) – The market portfolio and how technology will move us away from liquid markets
7:24 – Businesses that are making assets that weren’t investable, investable
9:11 – Ryan Caldbeck Podcast Episode
12:03 – Most interesting places where technology is creating investment opportunities
18:33 – Assets that are likely to tap into new sources of beta
23:46 – How well are investors prepared for the changes that are coming
28:35 – Trends in asset management with technology
33:05 – View on cryptocurrency and blockchain
36:45 – Places where startups can reduce costs/fees and create efficiencies
40:17 – Views on private equity markets and their future
45:40 – Privilege of access problem
48:50 – Verticals in fintech that are interesting to him
59:53 – The importance of focus and niche
1:02:26 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ben
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Jeff Ma. Jeff was on the famous MIT Blackjack team from the book Bringing Down the House but has spent his career in an around fields of analytics and data science. He’s studied sports betting and analytics, built companies for analyzing human capital, and ran the data science and analytics group at Twitter. Here are links to his book, blog, and podcast.
Our discussion is about a number of fascinating ways data is being used to make decisions in the worlds of sports and business. Please enjoy!
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:20 - (First Question) – How quantitative analytics have evolved in sports and how they’re being used
4:26 – Best role of humans in the analysis process
8:38 – Sports that are most interesting to observe through analytics
10:26 – How does luck play into sports analysis
11:54 – Team analytics vs better analytics
12:38 – Concentration of success among sports betters and their moats
14:58 – Favorite lessons learned from professional gamblers
16:45 – How analytics got introduced into gambling
19:21 – Understanding one’s own biases
24:04 – How he became VP of analytics at Twitter
28:37 – Primary lessons from the work evaluating human capital and talent with analytics
28:59 – Niel Roberson Podcast Episode
31:40 – How to model people for success when hiring
33:29 – How to hire the right data scientists’ team
37:54 – Most interesting problems they tackled at twitter
42:31 – Responsibility of social platforms to police itself
45:34 – Areas that would interest him in the future as an investor
49:24 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jeff
51:50 – Values instilled in him by his parents.
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Vaughn Tan, who studies quality, innovation, and organizational behavior. His resume is bonkers. He’s a PhD from Harvard, Was an infantry signals logistician in the Republic of Singapore Army, then worked at Google on advertising, Earth, Maps, spaceflight, and Fusion Tables. He’s also been a wood sculptor.
But the topic of our conversation is how to foster quality and innovation in ourselves and inside of companies—lessons he learned in part by studying inside some of the world’s best restaurants.
If you enjoy this conversation, I recommend you also check out his new book, The Uncertainty Mindset Innovation Insights from the Frontiers of Food. Please enjoy my conversation with Vaughn Tan.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:33 - (First Question) – Interesting ways to identify high quality
5:06 – The current problem with the way we think about the world
8:56 – How people think about their careers and college
11:21 – Uncertainty vs risk, and productive discomfort
19:08 – Cultivation of discomfort for an individual
24:05 – Successful innovation cultures
32:25 – Analyzing quality and restaurant bread
37:43 – The Slug idea
40:43 – His research project where he observed restaurants
45:44 – How do people mandate their own structure in the face of uncertainty
53:46 – How employees should approach this rent-to-buy hiring structure
57:17 – Example of someone who took advantage of uncertainty time
1:00:05 – Playful adults
1:00:07 – Jerry Neumann Podcast Episode
1:03:10 – Other changes companies can make to their culture to be more innovative
1:08:19 – The difference between simplicity and complexity
1:11:12 – How he applies his thinking into several different ideas, like Cannabis
1:16:17 – Asking the right question
1:19:05 – Andy Rachleff Podcast Episode
1:20:19 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Vaughn
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Gavin Baker, the founder, and manager of Atreides Management. I met Gavin in the same way I meet many of the most interesting people, on twitter. His focus is on consumer and technology growth investing, which is the topic of our conversation. We discuss many of the largest trends in these sectors, several fascinating investment cases, and also explore the videogame industry in detail—which I found especially interesting. Please enjoy my conversation with Gavin Baker.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:16 – (first question) – His unique view on the markets
4:00 – Distilling Apple as a growth investment
6:44 – What is the most important lever for Apple looking forward
9:01 – His view on Intel
11:03 – Most important technological changes that may dictate his investing strategy
16:20 – How do you look at a big idea, like AR, and then apply to an individual business
18:21 – Fortnite isn't a game, it's a place
18:26– Fortnite Is the Future, but Probably Not for the Reasons You Think
18:56 – His insight into video games and their ability to control attention
28:36 – How do you invest in the gaming sector
40:06 – Favorite video games
32:07 – Why gaming and customer sector allows him to find Alpha richness
34:17 – Being in the top 1% of knowledge before investing in a company
36:24 – His view on value investing today and, in the future,
41:15 – Increase of regulatory capture
42:01 – Headwinds to the tech companies today
43:50 – Thoughts on the Chinese internet market and how it impacts US markets
45:36 – How often companies look at China for ideas
46:21 – Role of alternative data in his process
49:36 – Big trends today we should be paying attention to
54:20 – the most interesting company he does not own
58:48 – Advice for new investors
1:00:17 – Non-obvious tech resources - TechMeme
1:00:50 – Favorite sci-fi character
1:01:19 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
All opinions expressed by Patrick and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of O'shaughnessy asset management. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions. Clients of O'shaughnessy asset management may maintain positions in the securities discussed in this podcast. Clients of the podcast guest’s firm may also maintain positions in the securities discussed in this podcast.
My guests this week are Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, the co-founders of Instagram.
I met Kevin and Mike a few months ago over a shared interest in business and investing. I have found them both to be extremely good people who have a rare talent for finding and solving interesting problems. Indeed, problem-solving and jobs-to-be-done is a big part of our conversation.
I realized walking into the podcast that Kevin and Mike have a rare set of experiences: having both built and sold an extremely successful product from scratch, but then also operated and scaled inside one of the largest businesses in the world. This means they have unique knowledge to offer just about anyone interested in business and products. We dig into all those lessons here.
I am working on hosting more founders and CEOs on the podcast, and can’t think of a better pair to show you why I want to do so. Please enjoy my conversation with Kevin and Mike.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:38 – (first question) – Projects they’ve been working on since leaving Instagram
5:22 – How they can apply what they are learning in machine learning
7:18 – Most interesting experience diving back into data and machine learning
8:42 – How startups compare today to when they founded Instagram
13:23 – Judging founders and whether they know how to use their data effectively
14:26 – The jobs-to-be-done framework
19:14 – Laying out a vision vs solving problems that pop up
25:20 – Developing and sharing the principles of the company with the team
30:48 – Creating a community when it includes almost the entire world
39:03 – The most popular ways people used the platform
41:24 – What was the jobs-to-be-done rational behind the stories feature
44:15 – Interesting things that they saw as Instagram entered the developing world
46:40 – Their thoughts on how Instagram shaped culture and if they focused on those
52:58 – The new waves that they are observing right now
55:11 – How their thinking on leadership and teams changed during their time at Instagram and Facebook
1:03:23 – The pillars of a good business, including humility and confidence
1:06:06 – Focus on growth and distribution in a startup
1:10:01 – How early were they thinking about monetization on this free platform
1:13:43 – How do they think about how they invest their money and allocate resources
1:17:36 – Mentors for Kevin and Mike
1:20:30 – Their passion for learning to fly and the someday/maybe list
1:23:01 – Their interest in coffee
1:26:24 – Advice for everyone else
1:30:00 – Kindest thing anyone has done for them
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Daniel Ek, the founder and CEO of Spotify.
In my conversations with Daniel, I’ve found him to be one of the most interesting and thoughtful business leaders in the world. You’ll see what I mean as you listen to our conversation.
We talk about Spotify plenty, but what I so enjoy about Daniel is his way of thinking in systems and frameworks. He is committed to evolution, innovation, and growth for both himself and for Spotify and is on my shortlist of CEOs to emulate.
This was one of my favorite conversations on the podcast, I hope you enjoy it.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:21 – (first question) – Management lessons from a Dubai chocolate maker
4:54 – Trends shaping the business landscape today: globalization, automation, and digitation
7:51 – How he thinks about the vertical integration of his business and scale
10:37 – Are companies doing a good job adjusting to the changes in the global business landscape
14:44 – How does Spotify view scale moving forward
17:59 – What trends has he seen among creators as a result of the Spotify platform
20:32 – The community benefit that has been created by the platform
23:47 – Intimacy of audio
25:31 – Creating an environment that continues to spur innovation
29:12 – Star vs constellation business strategy
32:21 – Measuring network health
35:12 – Spotify Originals and what his competition in the video market is doing
39:36 – How podcasts play into the growth strategy
43:04 – How did he solve the problem of competing with free
47:21 – Is their strategy repeatable, going after fractured suppliers
49:02 – Role of the CEO in a startup
51:22 – Others who have taught him great business lessons
53:18 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Daniel
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is George Rzepecki, the found and managing partner Raba, an Africa focused investment firm. George is making investments across Africa in early-stage companies. Africa represents a fascinating opportunity: a huge and diverse population and enormous room for per capita GDP growth. We cover all aspects of investing in the continent, including unique potential rewards and risks.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:18 – (first question) – Interest in emerging markets and the tech landscape in Africa
4:57 – Similarities across all of the different metro markets across Africa
8:05 – Why has the continent lagged behind the rest of the world
10:49 – What is the history and landscape of capital in the African continent
13:32 – The market opportunity given the demographics
15:44 – US investment/involvement in Africa
18:06 – Kinds of companies that he likes to invest in
23:26 – Initiatives and investments that could help lift the population out of poverty: finance
29:33 – The public marketplace landscape in Africa
31:49 – Capacity on the private side
34:24 – How the valuation of deals compares to other markets
36:13 – Unique risks in the investments they are making
38:28 – Most exciting trends or changes he is seeing
40:22 – The professional investor environment
43:25 – How to learn more and get involved
43:49 – China Africa Research Initiative
44:17 – China Africa Project
44:38 – Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World--and Why Things Are Better Than You Think
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Chad Cascarilla, the CEO and co-founder of Paxos, which describes itself as a financial technology company “mobilizing assets at the speed of the internet.“ Thanks to more than 20 years of investing and financial services experience, Chad has a unique perspective on integrating blockchain technology with traditional systems. He also has one of my favorite bitcoin origin stories, which we explore.
Before Paxos, Charles co-founded institutional asset management complex Cedar Hill Capital Partners in 2005 and its blockchain-focused venture capital subsidiary, Liberty City Ventures (LCV).
Our conversation is less about cryptocurrencies and more about the history, current state, and potential future states of our financial system. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:32 - (First Question) – His work in the finance world before crypto’s
5:12 – Experience navigating the subprime mortgage trend and what it taught him about blockchain
9:59 – The levers that matter in the financial services industry today vs when he first started
14:07 – Open vs closed money in financial services
19:16 – How slowdowns are different in the modern era
23:06 – What would lead to a major winding down of global debt
27:09 – What would be his focus as a traditional investor
29:21 – How he first got involved with bitcoin
29:47 – Elliott Wave Newsletter
31:53 – His measured view of Bitcoin and living through the volatility of it
32:03 – Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
35:57 – Allocation of a portfolio which includes crypto
36:54 – His involvement and feelings on gold
37:56 – The formation of Paxos and the problem it exists to solve
41:34 – How Paxos is impacting the space
44:12 – Advantages of a private blockchain
43:59 – What is Pax Gold and how does it work
48:53 – Bad ways and situations to own gold
52:12 – Using a stable coin
56:00 – Biggest problem they are working on now
57:23 – What should people be paying attention to in the crypto currency space
59:23 – Coindesk Research Archive
59:39 – Has the influx of interest in crypto helped in other spaces
1:02:11 – Other lessons people should learn from his career
1:04:53 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Chad
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Bill Gurley, general partner at Benchmark Capital. Our conversation is about one specific issue that has popped up as a topic of interest in the investing community in recent months: the comparison between bringing a company public through a traditional IPO vs. what’s known as a direct listing.
As a third party observer with no real dog in the hunt (as we don’t buy IPOs at O’Shaughnessy Asset Management), I thought this was a small and nuanced issue. I’ve therefore been surprised by the strength of opinions on both sides of this issue as I’ve explored it behind the scenes this past week. It feels almost like I’ve encountered a political third rail, where one side throws a lot of vitriol towards the other.
To be clear, this episode is very much in favor of direct listings instead of traditional IPOs. For those that want a good discussion of the IPO process and its upsides, check out episode 173 of the Exponent podcast with Ben Thompson.
Now please enjoy my very interesting conversation with Bill Gurley
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Show Notes
1:22 - (First Question) – His view on the IPO process
5:42 – Will now be the turning point for IPO’s
6:40 – The engagement between a new company going public and their counterparty and the IPO process
13:38 – The math of capital costs
18:18 – Banks that underprice the IPO’s
20:45 – The psychology of IPO’s
23:14 – The pop in the IPO and the media
24:54 – The value that shareholders give vs VC’s
25:37 – The Green Shoots
28:17 – The lock-up
31:40 – Direct listings vs IPO’s
36:07 – Spotify’s CEO Reveals Why He’s Not Doing a Traditional IPO
38:23 – The capital raised in an IPO and diluting the company
40:18 – Privilege access and buy-side firms
43:33 – What will actually lead to changes in the IPO space
44:48 – Why he became so interested in the IPO space
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Albert Wenger, a managing partner at Union Square Ventures and the author of the book World After Capital.
Albert studied economics at Harvard and earned a PhD in information from technology, but if you’d asked me to guess before looking those up, I’d have guessed that he studied philosophy because of how widely he has thought about the world and the impact of technology.
Our conversation is about how technology is changing the world from an Industrial Age to a knowledge age. We explore how cryptocurrencies, low cost computing, and regulation will impact our future and why the transition may require delicate care.
I loved this conversation because of my obsession with the concept of scarcity. We explore what has been scarce through time and what may be scarce in the future. Albert is one of the most interesting thinkers I’ve come across and was a pleasure to speak with. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Links Referenced
World After Capital
Show Notes
2:16 – (First Question) – Defining what it means to be human
2:58 – World After Capital
3:56 – Trans-humans vs neo-humans
4:37 – The concept of Qualia
5:25 – Albert’s investment philosophy=
8:27 – How Albert began his exploration into cryptocurrencies
12:59 – Most exciting things blockchains could enable
14:27 – How does Albert view blockchain technology from the view of an venture capital investor
17:00 - Why Albert thinks that the dominate cryptocurrency of our time may not exist just yet and what he is looking for in protocols that will become the leader in the space
20:16 – What are the central functions that will be important in cryptocurrencies
21:22 - The state of regulation in the cryptocurrency space
27:37 – What has Albert most excited for the future of blockchain
29:10 – The idea of universal basic income
32:26 – How do you solve the problem of giving money value in a world of universal basic income
35:00 – How scarcity has changed over time
39:01 – Role of financial capital in the last 200 years of civilization
42:39 – Are we as a society only capable of solving problems once they become an immediate threat
44:15 – Explaining the idea of attention as a scarce resource
47:56 – The two key drivers of change; zero marginal cost distribution and universality of computational power
53:13 - What should we as investors and inventors be focusing on as the new objective function
57:24 – Scariest aspect of this transition into the knowledge age
59:45 – Three basic freedoms we all seek; informational, economic, psychological
1:02:13 – Fermi’s paradox and the scarcity of attention
1:02:56 – How Albert thinks about his own day and wellbeing given all of this information
1:05:01 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Albert
Learn More
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My guest this week are Matt Smith and Ian singer of Deep Basin Capital, a hedge fund specializing in the energy sector.
I first met Matt almost 10 years and, in that time, I’ve grown to respect him as much as any investor that I’ve ever met. Now having spent time with Ian, who specializes in oil and gas field exploration companies and the rest of the Deep Basin team, I have similar respect and admiration for all of them.
Deep Basin does almost the exact opposite of what us quants do. In fact, their entire goal is to build a portfolio of mostly idiosyncratic or stock specific risk, the very thing us quants mostly remove from portfolios. Deep Basin positions the portfolio to make a series of carefully constructed bets, long and short, without taking market risk, style-factor risk, or even commodity risk. They use a hybrid fundamental and quantitative process which we explore in detail. This is definitely another good example of who we are all up against in public markets.
What makes this story unique is that we are investors in Deep Basin’s management company and so have a clear interest in their ongoing success. Listeners know that I want to be as transparent as possible on this podcast so we event spend a little time telling the story about how it all came together a few years ago.
I have learned a ton about investing from my countless hours with this team and hope that this conversation gives you a glimpse into what is happening at the cutting edge of investing in the world of hedge funds.
Please enjoy my conversation with Deep Basin
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Books Referenced
Expectations Investing: Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns
Show Notes
2:47 – (First Question) – Looking at the universe of the energy space that they are focusing on
7:48 – Breaking down the important components and their labels in this space
10:27 – What makes energy companies distinct from the broader market.
12:52 – How the isolate unique value creation
14:58 – Ian’s take on the upstream part of the business where he has spent a lot of time
18:35 – How does Deep Basin use data and what edge do they derive from it.
21:31 – What insight are they looking for from updated well data
23:59 – How do they use combine the business value that they measure with the market price that is being forecasted
24:40 – Expectations Investing: Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns
29:34 – How do they build an actual portfolio
31:51 – Their systematic approach to energy investing
37:53 – What are their thoughts about using leverage when making investments in the energy space
40:53 – A look at the changes to the hedge fund industry over the entirety of their careers
45:46 – Defining the culture of Deep Basin
49:15 – The story of how OSAM and the O’Shaughnessy’s came to be investors in the Deep Basin
54:13 – Kindest thing anyone has done for each of them
Learn More
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My guest this week is Pat Dorsey, who was the longtime director of equity research at Morningstar, where he specialized in economic moats: sources of sustained competitive advantage that allow a few companies to deliver huge returns over time. Several years ago he left Morningstar to form his own asset management firm, Dorsey asset management, and build a portfolio of companies with wide moats like those he studied at Morningstar. And while moats are critical, equally important is how companies allocate the capital generated--or made possible--by the existence of the moat.
A special thank you to Brian Bares who introduced me to Pat, and to Will Thorndike--an earlier guest on the show. In the vast majority of conversations you hear on this show, I'm meeting the guest for the first time. I mention this to encourage you to connect me with anyone whose story or way of looking at the world might resonate. Always feel free to contact me with ideas.
Pat and I begin our discussion with the key differences between the sell side and the buy side, and then discuss all aspects of moats and capital allocation.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/dorsey
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Show Notes
2:23 – (First question) – Transition from the sell side to the buy side and the biggest surprise
3:40 – What is a moat
5:16 – What part of the stock market universe has a moat
6:57 – Pat’s framework for identifying moat, starting with intangibles
8:32 – The power of brands
9:44 – what chance does an upstart have to come in and usurp a well-established brand
12:24 – Switching costs as part of the framework for identifying a moat
14:55 – The third component of identifying a moat, network effects, and what businesses should do to effectively build one
17:29 – Last component, cost advantages/economies of scale
19:29 – How do you analyze these four components into an investing framework that can be built into an actual strategy
21:13 – How does Pat think about this from a mis-pricing standpoint
23:37 – How does Pat incorporate current price of a company in consideration for future returns when pricing a moat
25:39 – How should a company with a moat operate to protect that characteristic, especially when it comes to their capital allocation
26:51 – Which characteristic of a moat does Pat find most intriguing
30:35 – What makes for good and smart capital allocation
35:58 – What is Pat’s process for identifying the best investment opportunities
38:38 – What are good economics when looking at a company
41:03 – If Pat could take any business, but have to swap leadership, what would he choose.
44:13 – Back to his process of finding investment opportunities
46:05 – Kindest thing anyone has ever done for Pat
Learn More
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My guest this week is Joe McLean, the founder of Intersect Capital, which provides financial advisory services to a variety of clients, including a number of NBA players and other professional athletes.
What I loved about this conversation was the weaving of sport, coaching, and finance into a cohesive whole. There’s so much to take from this discussion—from the importance of service and low self-orientation to the impact of strict standards for who you work with, to common mistakes we all tend to make with money.
Please enjoy my conversation with Joe McLean.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:18 - (First Question) – His backstory and the combination of athleticism and finance
2:43 – His time in Ireland
3:29 – Moving away from basketball and into finance
6:08 – What the Intersect business is today and his early lessons
7:55 – Most important coach/mentor
8:59 – Where the name Intersect came from
10:22 – Setting high standards early on
12:35 – Biggest mistakes he saw in his early clients
14:04 – Developing his value proposition to clients
14:24 – Michael Kitces Podcast Episode
16:57 – Process when he’s working with a client signing a new athletic contract
19:53 – The concept of a Pro’s Pro and Top 50 Reasons Professional Athletes Remain Wealthy
22:40 – Managing clients’ interest in creating businesses off their brand
24:20 – The role media plays in athletes’ long-term strategies
25:40 – Getting early clients into compliance with his strategy
28:24 – Daily maintenance role he plays with clients
32:24 – What has impressed him most from his young clients
33:36 – What makes for a great coach
34:50 – The meaning of “all in” to Joe
35:54 – His assessment of the financial services industry today
37:32 – Where his value in service came from
39:05 – Longer term vision for his business
40:33 – Unique ways he finds himself helping his clients
43:49 – Watching his client’s mentor the next generation
45:10 – Historical players and teams he personally admires
46:22 – Athletes and venture capital investing
47:38 – Who makes up his trust network
49:09 – What he’s most excited about for the future of the business
49:46 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Joe
50:24 – Biggest impact a coach had on his life
Learn More
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This week’s guest is, Zack Kanter, the founder and CEO of the Stedi. Zack and I decided not to talk much about his business on this podcast and opted instead to explore more generally, so a bit of an introduction to what they do may be helpful here for some extra context. Stedi is a platform for exchanging and automating 300+ types of business-to-business transactions - transactions like purchase orders, invoices, etc. It’s a modern take on an archaic protocol called EDI - electronic data interchange, something I’d never even heard of until several months ago. Learning about EDI is a bit like finding out about the Matrix - every physical object you come across, from the food you ate for breakfast to the clothes you’re wearing and consumer electronics you use - anything with a barcode on it - was likely touched by EDI, often dozens of times before making it into your hands. Stedi is the first update to this messaging later in decades.
Our conversation in this podcast is about business in general, starting with Zack’s fascination with Walmart and Amazon. I should also not that my family is a recent investor in Stedi, and I’m thankful to have learned a great deal from him over the past few months. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Show Notes
1:52 - (First Question) – Interest in Walmart and Amazon
4:02 – Sam Walton: Made In America
4:49 – What from their success can be applied elsewhere
11:07– The idea of tempo with a business
17:17 – Ability for a business to expand laterally
24:33 - Magic of Amazon as a constitution
26:24 – The concept of the OODA loop
26:40 – Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
31:51 – Orientation within software businesses
32:24 – The Systems Bible: The Beginner's Guide to Systems Large and Small
38:03 – Lessons in building software
38:37– Certain to Win: The Strategy of John Boyd, Applied to Business
41:51 – Setting a common vision for a company
44:14 – Changing the dynamic of teams and how different size teams can accomplish different things
48:00 – How leaders should think about build vs buy
51:07 – The different types of value propositions
53:07 – Utility for companies
57:31 – Concept of network health and the best question from VCs
1:04:04 – Massive projects are less frequent in a world where we can do a lot quickly
1:04:08 – Wait but Why
1:09:37 – Just in time vs just in case learning framework
1:11:55 – His favorite question
1:13:39 – Why is most commonly heard advice wrong
1:18:06 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Zac
My guest this week is Chris Bloomstran, the president and chief investment officer of Semper Augustus Investments Group. He became famous in investing circles a few years back for his incredibly detailed investigations of Berkshire Hathaway. While we do cover Berkshire towards the end of the conversation, we spend most of our time talking about what makes for a quality business. I loved some of his angles on the current landscape, including our discussion of companies like Richemont and Disney which are actively taking distribution back in house. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Show Notes
1:18 - (First Question) – Largest investing error
4:52 – Defining quality investor and their investment strategy
11:48 – Incremental return on capital and other themes that they focus on with investments
15:33 – Importance of unique business models
22:58 – Ownership of the customer relationship
28:06 – Bringing distribution back in house
29:55 – Doing something unique with owned distribution
32:40 – His thoughts on growth and value
32:42 – Chuck Akre podcast episode
37:12 – History of his interest in Berkshire Hathaway and he characterizes the business
53:29 – How is Berkshire protected into the future
59:17 – Most important trends in adjustments
1:08:00 – Which sectors or industries would he focus on
1:10:02 – Most intriguing business he’s unlikely to own
1:11:44 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Brian Christian, the author of two of my favorite recent books: Algorithms to Live By and The Most Human Human. Our conversation covers the present and future of how humans interact with and use computers. Brian’s thoughts on the nature of intelligence and what it means to be human continue to make me think about what works, and life, will be like in the future. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
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Show Notes
1:11 - (First Question) – Summarizing his collection of interests that led to his three books
2:59 – Biggest questions in AI
3:43 – Defining AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) and its history
5:18 – Computing Machinery and Intelligence
7:54 – The idea of the most human human
9:59 – Tactics that have changed the most in learning to be the most human human
16:10 –Tests for measuring AGI and updates made to them
20:12 – Concerns for once we have AGI
26:06 – Self-awareness as a threshold for AGI
31:58 – Skeptics’ take on AGI
37:14 – Advice for people building careers and how AGI will impact work
38:16 – Explore/Exploit trade-off
44:57 – How to explore/exploit applies to business concepts
49:16 – Impacts of AGI on the economy
52:40 – Highlights from his second book
57:39 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Brian
Learn More
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My guest this week is Eric Sorensen, the CEO of Panagora asset management, which manages more than $46B for clients across a variety of strategies.
Eric began his career serving in the Air Force as both a pilot and instructor in high-performance jet aircraft. He then accumulated 40 years of quantitative research and investment experience, with a Ph.D. along the way.
Please enjoy our conversation on the changing landscape of quantitative investment strategies.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:15 - (First Question) – His background in the Air Force
1:23 – Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
3:18 – Training people on high-performance machines
4:47 – Traits that made for better pilots
5:51 – The evolution of quantitative equity research and its stages
7:56 – How his research led to becoming a practitioner
9:10 - The early feature sets in his research
10:44 – Tradeoffs in the spectrum of interpretability
12:08 – Early days of his practitioner career
13:24 – Risk Premia and the 5 C’s
14:28 – Quantitative Equity Portfolio Management: Modern Techniques and Applications
17:13 – Applying the 5 C’s to value investing
18:38 – Knowing when a strategy/signal is broken
21:24 – What does this strategy plan mean for his firm today
24:56 – Mixing expert systems and portfolio construction
30:07 – Natural language processing
32:00 – The cultivating the power and creativity to ask good questions
35:13 – The concept of a research graveyard
37:45 – State of risk premia today
40:04 – Active equity process
46:37 – Frontiers of research that he’s excited about
48:53 – Safe havens for non-quantitative investors
52:16– Advice for young quants
54:36 – Quants on the buy-side that he admires
55:41 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Jane McGonigal, PhD is a world-renowned designer of alternate reality games — or, games that are designed to improve real lives and solve real problems.
She is the Author of Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World and is the inventor and co-founder of SuperBetter, a game that has helped nearly a million players tackle real-life health challenges such as depression, anxiety, chronic pain, and traumatic brain injury.
Our conversation is about how to design useful games, how games effect us and our kids, and what the future might hold. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Show Notes
1:22 - (First Question) – Her take on the history of gaming and studying the players themselves
3:44 – Where her passion for gaming really started
4:55 – Her take on flow states
7:47 – Kids and gaming
10:32 – Advice for parents when it comes to the role of games
11:06 – SuperBetter: A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Stronger, Happier, Braver and More Resilient--Powered by the Science of Games
13:53 – Types of games that develop the right skills for kids
16:20 – Four things all games share in common
16:23 – Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World
20:50 – Her take on Carse’s theory about infinite gaming
21:04 – Finite and Infinite Games
26:28 – How to understand gaming culture if you’ve never played a game before
28:28 – Amazon and gaming
31:18 – How fun makes anything more enjoyable
34:55 – How game designers calibrate feedback loops
39:14 – The good and bad of gamifying life
45:01 – What is the superbetter app
52:43 - Why powerups and bad guys are so important in games
57:03 – Secret identity
59:04 – Playing with boundaries
1:00:36 – Most worried about in the gaming world, and most exited about
1:07:32 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jane
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Bill Gurley, a general partner at Benchmark Capital and one my favorite investment thinkers. As you’ll hear, despite enormous success through his career, Bill is clearly still in love with business and investing. Where many might discuss past glories, I’ve been incredibly impressed with how both Bill and his partners emphasize the current portfolio and market landscape. I’m thankful to have had the chance to speak with him in this format. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:13 - (First Question) – The idea of increasing returns
1:21 – Competiting Technologies, Increasing Returns, and Lock-in By Historical Events
2:07 – Complex Systems Theory – Santa Fe Institute
4:35 – Markers that could be a sign of network effect in a company
6:27 – The opportunities for companies to capture network effect
8:46 – Are there certain teams/leaders that are more conducive to leading a network effect company
11:55 – Liquidity quality
13:35 – How important is the revenue model at the beginning
15:59 – Fascination with Nextdoor
17:56 – Paradox of Choice
18:39 – Finding opportunities
20:17 – Potential marketplaces and assets that could be commoditized
20:20 – All Markets Are Not Created Equal: 10 Factors To Consider When Evaluating Digital Marketplaces
21:39 – Usage yield on the world’s assets
23:50 – Has technology changed the world of value investing
26:28 – Hyper niche marketplaces
27:52 – Challenges of labor marketplaces
30:12 – User generated content businesses
32:44 – People who are capable of building UGC businesses
33:16 – His interest in Discord
34:31 – Factors of a healthy marketplace
37:57 – Fools’ gold in marketplace businesses
39:04 – How influx of cash is impacting the marketplace business landscape
40:43 – All Revenue is Not Created Equal: The Keys to the 10X Revenue Club
43:20 – How does the influx of money into the space impact him
46:44 – Spending money to attack top brands
50:32 – Regulatory capture
53:36 – His thoughts on the IPO market
57:49 – How did he realize this was his passion
1:00:42 – Qualifying his passion
1:01:52 – Favorite thing about working with entrepreneurs
102:48 – Honing your craft
1:04:33 – Making yourself a good mentor
1:05:56 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week I have a very special guest years in the making. Like another favorite episode, with anonymous guest Modest Proposal, this conversation is with one of the stars of the financial twitter universe who writes anonymously and goes by the pseudonym Jesse Livermore. I met Jesse 6 years ago after reading his unbelievably unique investing research, which tackled all the big and interesting issues in markets. He now also works with me as a research partner at OSAM, where’s he’s used our data to continue to his search for truth in markets. Despite being one of the brightest minds I’ve encountered he is also as humble and unassuming as they come. I’m at least a slightly better person because of trying to emulate how he conducts himself. I get to have many conversations with him that go from 0-100 fast, and I’m thrilled to be able to share one of those with you.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:33 - (First Question) – Jesse’s origin story for investing
4:37 – Exploring his ways of problem solving starting with intuitive
7:53 – David Epstein Podcast Episode
11:46 – Looking at the analytical way of problem solving
15:42 – Statistical inference
24:45 – Should we opt for simplicity in the investment process
25:26 – Does his own investing include all three, intuition, analysis, and statistics
26:09 – The evolution of his research, process, and thinking on various investment factors.
31:38 – Thoughts on inflation and its impact on market valuation
40:05 – The Earnings Mirage
46:25 – Free Cash flow and valuations
50:51 – What should investors take away from this research
53:01 – Thoughts on trend as an interesting market signal
59:00 – The problems with trend
1:00:34 – Post on “The Single Greatest Predictor of Future Stock Market Returns”
1:11:15 – His work into understanding factors
1:15:36 – Looking at momentum
1:18:16 – His curiosity into the current market cycle
1:20:04 – Lessons learned from his time in the military, an effective way to create an environment where people can safely disagree with their co-workers
1:30:10 – The concept of progress in meaningful work
1:33:08 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest today is Chuck Akre, a now widely famous investor who founded Akre Capital Management in 1989, which now manages approximately $10B dollars. We discuss his investing style and his “three-legged stool” for evaluating companies. Please enjoy this great conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:06 - (First Question) – Advantage of being in Middleburg, Virginia
2:11 – What a day looks like for Chuck
3:06 – Why imagination is more important than knowledge
3:38 – Difference between curiosity and imagination
4:38 – The origins of the Nirvana Three-Legged Stool concept
10:14 – First leg of the stool, Extraordinary business and ROE’s with a focus on Bandag.
14:36 – How his evaluations of value has changed over the last 10-15 years
16:10 – A look at recent businesses that he’s bought and why they are interesting
19:56 – Why they keep things simple
21:35 – Second leg of the stool, the people involved and characteristics of managers he has invested in
23:20 – Role of capital allocation in the people he focuses on
28:03 – Favorite biographies
28:22 – 100 to 1 in the Stock Market: A Distinguished Security Analyst Tells How to Make More of Your Investment Opportunities
29:34 – Third leg of the stool, reinvestment
21:09 – How does he think about diversifying across an investment area
33:32 – Great businesses wrapped in a bad balance sheet
37:35 – What would cause him to sell
38:52 – What does he look for in people
43:27 – How curiosity has impacted his interest in land conservation
43:51 – Advice for investors, especially younger ones
46:14 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Jerry Neumann. Jerry is one of the most thoughtful early stage investors that I’ve encountered, and his writings at reactionwheel.net are my favorite on this topic. He applies an incredibly structured way of thinking to a notoriously mysterious investment category. This is our second conversation, in which we cover why investing with one’s gut is a bad idea and why some of the popular edges in startups, like network effects, may be picked over. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:17 - (First Question) – His take on the venture landscape and the type of investments new VC’s are making vs what they should be making
3:44 – Most important implications of excess VC firms
5:32 – Misalignment of incentives in the VC space
8:19 – What he does differently from angel investors or VC’s
10:11 – The notion of risk and the types of risk the people he invests in takes
14:33 – Protections that he thinks about when it comes to the ideas he invests in
19:37 – Is there an area of expertise that provides an edge for startups
20:11 – Network effects are picked over
21:35 – IP protection
23:08 – One of the two most interesting things for VC’s to go after, brands
25:13 – The other most important thing, the value chain
27:42 – A current example of a disruptive value chain
29:14 – Innovation as the source of profit
29:16 – Schumpeter on Strategy
31:50 – Efficiency innovation vs value innovation
31:52 – Energy and Civilization: A History
35:50 – Efficiency investments he’s made
37:13 – Investment in Unsupervised and the machine learning landscape
41:25 – Investment in Sila
43:14 – Investment in Edmit
44:44 – investing on gut
50:32 – Black boxes and their value in investments
53:23 – Metrics about the predictive level of whether people are going to succeed
54:45 – What defines good people worth backing
57:50 – Advice for LP investors in this space and how they should evaluate VC’s in this space
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
I came across this week’s guest thanks to the overlap of three passions of mine: data informed investing, value creation, and basketball.
Sam Hinkie worked for more than a decade in the NBA with the Houston Rockets, and then most recently as the President and GM of the Philadelphia 76ers. He helped launch basketball's analytics movement when he joined the Houston Rockets in 2005, and is known for unique trade structuring and a keen focus on acquiring undervalued players. Today, he is also an investor and advisor to a limited number of young companies in which he feels his experience can improve outcomes.
At one point in our conversation, Sam mentions that he tracked success via future financial outcomes, so I did some research and found many interesting stats about the 76ers surrounding Sam’s tenure. When he took over the franchise, it was 24th in ESPN’s franchise rankings, and today it is 4th. This is the result of an impressive crop of young talent—players like All-Star Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons—which resulted in large part from unconventional decisions Sam and his team made.
While I’m sure these estimates are imperfect, Forbes estimated the 76ers value at around $418M when Sam took over and $1.2B a few months ago. NBA teams in general have grown in value, so a lot of that appreciation is obviously “beta,” but given that the 76ers had the top percentage growth number more recently of any team, some of it is “alpha,” too. While we can’t parse the exact amount, it seems his unique approach to building a team clearly created some large amount of current franchise equity value. And it looks like the dividends from those decisions will compound for many years to come.
While basketball was where Sam plied his talents in the past, his approach is more elemental. It is about finding great people, using data, and structuring decisions that create the possibility of huge returns, be they financial or otherwise. I don’t know what Sam will do next, be it investing in companies, running one, or taking over another team, but I know it will be fun to watch.
Please enjoy this unique episode with Sam Hinkie.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History
Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids: Why Being a Great Parent is Less Work and More Fun Than You Think
Links Referenced
International Justice Mission
Show Notes
3:24 – (First Question) Advantages of having a long view and how to structurally harness one
6:08 – Using technology to foster an innovative culture
6:18– Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History
10:16 – Favorite example of applied innovation from Sam’s career
11:34 - Most fun aspect of doing data analytics early on the Houston Rockets
13:38 - Is there anything more important than courage in asymmetric outcomes
14:29 – How does Sam know when to let the art of decision making finish where the data started
16:29 - Pros and cons of a cont
My guest this week is David Epstein. David is a writer and researcher extraordinaire and the author of two great books. His second, Range, is out today and I highly recommend it.
We discuss the pros and cons of both the generalist and specialist mindsets in detail and go down many interesting trails along the way. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:12 - (First Question) – What he uncovered in “The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance” that led him to his latest book
2:38 – Debate with Malcolm Gladwell (YouTube)
4:12 – What did the public pay most attention to and what did they gloss over
7:56 – How his views on nature vs nurture shifted during the process of writing The Sports Gene
10:05 – Blending practice with your nature
13:04 – His process of reading 10 journal articles a day as part of his research
19:06 – Exploring his new book “Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World”, and his idea of Martian tennis
23:03 – Idea of the cult of the head start and how we set up our own feedback loops
28:58 – What does his research say about the nations education system
30:42 – The Flynn Effect chapter
33:54 – Hacks for learning
37:52 – The concept of struggle and harnessing the power of it
46:31 – Personality changes and how to drive those changes in a positive way
52:00 – Using the outside perspective in businesses for more productive outcomes and how it applied to Nintendo
52:59 – Josh Wolfe Podcast Episode
1:04:45 – Other examples of using withered technologies, 3M
1:09:00 – The arc of his work and how it has evolved
1:13:54 – Taking a different view on problems
1:17:52 – Ending Medical Reversal: Improving Outcomes, Saving Lives
1:18:04– Anyway to change these bad trends with new strategies
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week I’m hosting an investor retreat and so thought it fitting to release this conversation with Priya Parker on the art of gathering.
I’ve been interested in the topic of community and gathering for some time and along with the book The Art of Community, Priya’s book on the art of gathering is by far the best I’ve read. It is both conceptually interesting and extremely practical. In the book there is literally a table for how big a gathering space should be per person, sorted by the type of vibe you are after.
We had a time constraint but I could have talked to Priya for much longer. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did, and that it inspires you to do something new and different with friends, family, or colleagues.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:23 - (First Question) – Overview on what she does as a conflict resolution facilitator
1:38 – The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters
4:45 – Lessons about structuring a gathering from her early very difficult work and the idea of sustained dialogue
7:43 – First event she facilitated
9:38 – Importance of a good opening for any gathering
12:30 – Identifying a good purpose for a gathering
15:06 – Why being specific on rules/code of conduct leads to more success
18:54 – Do rules help facilitate more creativity in groups
21:22 – Segregating a good from bad purpose
24:34 – Identity and good/bad gatherings
26:50 – Purpose and the guest list for a gathering
31:03 – Community building is line drawing
32:27 – Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
34:29 – Importance of well crafted invitations
35:17 – Making the middle of gatherings interesting
39:21 – Exploring risk at gatherings
41:28 – Patterns of Transformation
41:43 – The hero’s journey
46:54 – Making a meaningful transition out of these gatherings
52:39 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Priya
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week’s conversation is about artificial intelligence and interplanetary travel. Its about content creation, thinking from first principles, and death progress units. Its about brain machine interfaces and why it is crucial that you be a chef and not a cook.
My guest is Tim Urban, along with his business partner Andrew Finn. Tim is the most entertaining writer I’ve come across in years, who explains complicated and interesting topics to his millions of dedicated readers on the website “Wait, But Why.” As an example, Tim’s last post on Elon Musk’s neurlink venture is 40,000 words long, roughly the length of a short book. It explains almost all of human progress and our potential future using drawings and cartoons. Its impossible to stop reading.
While this conversation is wildly entertaining, it is also chock full of metaphors and lessons that will be useful to anyone doing creative work or building a company. I hope this leaves you as energized as it left me. I called this episode Grand Theft Life because that is the name that Tim and Andrew give to their worldview, which I think will change the way you behave, too. Please enjoy my conversation with Tim Urban.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/urban
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies
Links Referenced
The Cook and the Chef: Musk’s Secret Sauce
Wait But Why
Neuralink and the Brain’s Magical Future
Wait But Hi
YouTube Channel Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell
Show Notes
1:50 – (First question) – Explaining his concept of planets 1, 2, 3 and 4 and understanding the human colossus
5:46 – Tim’s favorite idea of the human knowledge compounding
7:52 – Die Progress Units (DPU)
9:45 – Different stages of AI and the positives and negatives of each stage
14;04 – What happens when AI gains breadth and general intelligence
16:23 – The idea of a cook vs a chef and how Tim had the chance to interview Elon Musk
17:48 – Why you should reason from first principles instead of reasoning by analogies
25:19 – Why it’s possible to turn a cook into a chef
30:08 – Why being a chef is the safer route in a world with AI and what Tim has changed in himself as to why.
31:22 – Looking at the discovery process
34:39 – Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies\
40:01 – Being the person who creates the metaphor vs being the people who simply using them
43:41 –
My guest this week is Stephanie Cohen, who is the chief strategy officer for Goldman Sachs and a member of their management committee. Prior to her current role, she spent the majority of her career in the investment banking and M&A divisions at Goldman.
We discuss lessons learned from her career in M&A and the many initiatives she now leads at the firm. I really enjoyed her perspective on how a big, established firm like Goldman can balance innovation with improving existing businesses. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:15 - (First Question) – Motives on both sides for doing M&A
3:26 – Most difficult deal she worked on
4:50 – Biggest value add she brought from her seat on the Fiat deal
5:59 – Biggest changes since she started to today
8:31 – Smartest ways for companies who want to be acquired to be prepared
10:14 – Best M&A banker she’s seen
11:13 – What should businesses looking to make an acquisition be thinking about
15:16 – What does a strategy from her perspective mean
17:16 – Tension between innovation and change
19:46 – Difference between bottom-up and top-down components of strategy
22:15 – Exploration vs exploitation
26:28 – Submission process within accelerate
29:37 – Next step after you see a good idea
31:05 – Her take on FinTech and Industrials and their collision
35:15 – Lessons from elite early stage investors
37:21 – The origins of the LAUNCH program
40:06 – Important pieces beyond just the capital
42:42 – How they market to women starting business
44:56 – Lessons that she has learned about narrative and communications
47:07 – How she handles developing talent internally
49:28 – Managing her time
59:28 – Biggest concerns about OKR’s?
52:09 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Stephanie
53:07 – Kids in the area of competing
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week’s guest is Will Thorndike, an author and investor whose book The Outsiders is an all-time favorite of mine. Our conversation is in two parts. First, we dive deep into the lessons of his 8-year research project studying CEOs who were master capital allocators. These CEOs include Henry Singleton, John Malone, Tom Murphy, Katherine Graham, and Warren Buffett. We discuss how these CEOs tended to be contrarians on topics like dividends, buybacks, acquisitions, and the use of debt. As we go through each of the tools in the capital allocators toolkit, you’ll hear several useful lessons for running or evaluating a business.
In the second part, we cover Will’s career in private equity. Will founded and continues to run Housatonic Partners, investing in buyouts, recaps, and search funds. Will has been one of the most active search fund investors for decades, and given how much time I’ve spent in past episodes on the searchers or operators in the micro-cap, permanent equity space, it was great to get the perspective of an experienced LP. As always, we also take time to survey the dangers and opportunities in today’s private equity market.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/thorndike
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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My guest this week is Josh Wolfe, co-founder and managing partner at Lux Capital. I had Josh on the podcast last year which was one of the most popular episodes in the shows history. This is a continuation of our ongoing conversation about investing in the frontiers of technology. My favorite thing about Josh and the way that he invests is the mosaic that he and his team at Lux are constantly building to understand the world and where new companies may fit in. We cover a crazy variety of topics from business model innovation, roles of a CEO, the military, the death of privacy, and arrows of human progress. Please enjoy round two with Josh Wolfe.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:22 - (First Question) –Ability to tackle massive scale problems
4:05 – Key roles of leaders and his checklist for evaluating them
5:55 – Common traits among founders that make them incredible storytellers and leaders
10:22 – The concept of ill-liquidity
14:53 – Thoughts on the types of companies going public
16:41 – Most innovative business models
19:14 - Advice for LP’s
23:51 – Common devil
24:01 – The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements
25:09 – Big internal debates at his firm, starting with price discipline
28:45 – The value debate internally
33:34 – CRISPR from an investment standpoint
36:50 – Edge cases they are looking at
46:52 – How they target ideas in a single concept
50:01 – The Coast of Utopia: Voyage, Shipwreck, Salvage
51:04 – New theses that they chase
56:31 – Recent adventure with special operations guys
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Katherine Collins, who is the head of sustainable investing at Putnam Investments, a portfolio manager on two of Putnam’s sustainable investing funds, and the author of the book The Nature of Investing: Resilient Investment Strategies through Biomimicry.
Our conversation is on the ins and outs of ESG and impact investing, a young but increasingly common topic in the investing world. This is challenging ground for me as a quant, because the data available is so new and limited—so Katherine’s perspective was very helpful as we continue to learn. Given the importance of this topic, I’m also searching for more guests with both positive and negative views on the role of ESG in an investing framework, and welcome suggestions for future guests. Please enjoy my conversation with Katherine Collins.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:29 - (First Question) –Mechanical vs human judgement processes
4:21 – ESG, and the non-utility portion of it.
7:11 – Data behind the objective function that is different from returns
12:34 – What are the most interesting data sets
16:04 – How does she determine what factors to target
19:31 – Why do we know that diversity of experience/opinion/background is good for a company
21:30 – The social vertical and how it plays into her investing system and better returns
25:51 – Corporate Sustainability: First Evidence on Materiality
27:00 – Environmental factors and the issues that jump to mind
29:48 – Importance of signing the UNPRI and is it just box checking
32:33 – Data for companies on the solution oriented companies
34:53 – Why doesn’t the market recognize the Alpha
36:17 – LP interest in ESG investing
38:25 – How other groups of investors approach ESG
40:03 – Best practices at business making an impact in ESG
44:01 – Unique or interesting tactics in environmental
46:33 – Who is the biggest opponent or position in opposition of ESG
47:37 – Most interesting edge
48:20 – Playbook for business managers thinking about social for the first time
49:59 – Measurements vs principles/values
51:21 – Advice to quants trying to use ESG in how they gather data
53:04 – Most memorable encounter with a company through the lens of ESG
53:53 – Where to learn more about ESG
54:50 – How much role regulation plays in the future of business sustainability
56:30 – Any more lessons from her research into natural systems
57:05 – Kindest thing anyone has done for her
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week Geoffrey Batt and the topic of our conversation is how to earn transformational returns in very hard markets. In his case, that means Iraqi equities which we cover in detail. He now runs a large pool of capital in Iraqi stocks through his firm Euphrates, but the journey was arduous to say the least. This is one of my favorite boots on the ground contrarian investments stories thus far on the podcast. I hope you enjoy the story and the lessons that Geoff has to offer.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:15 - (First Question) – What does it take to earn transformational returns
4:43 – How he deals with LPs, especially given the volatility of the market he invests in
10:26 – Why LPs have to think about the other investors in a fund
1:17 – How Geoffrey got interested in the Iraqi market
16:15 – Factors he was considering when exploring Iraq
16:53 – Harvey Sawikin Podcast Episode
19:20 – Visiting companies in Iraq
22:30 – Most memorable meeting with a company on his first trip
27:18 – Size and nature of Iraqi market when he first got interested
30:44 – A specific allocator in Iraq
34:37 – Does price reflect the work over there
37:51 - What does he perceive as his role in the changes to Iraq’s equity market
40:12 - How do Iraqi equities look today compared to when he started and is the opportunity still interesting
44:14 – How businesses perceive him now that the market has opened up more
47:28 – Scale of potential return and where it comes from
49:51 – Advice for younger aspiring investors exploring frontier markets
52:16 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Geoffrey
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Brian Singerman, a partner at the venture capital firm Founders Fund. Founder’s Fund is widely considered one of the top VC firms and its partners are known to have diverse investment strategies.
Brian invests across industries and focuses on backing exceptional founders. You’ll hear right off the bat that he cares about moat, market, and strong execution. I love his point that the only way to become a good investor is to do a lot of investing. He describes himself an investor who uses his gut a lot, which took me a while to get used to in our conversation. But I have to say that at the end of this episode I felt refreshed and generally excited to keep putting in reps in my own way, both in the podcast and the quant research settings. I hope you enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notesd
1:28 - (First Question) – What Brian looks for when evaluating companies
2:38 – What a moat looks like in investing
3:11 – Most memorable initial moat
4:17 – How he evaluates a potential market
5:28 – Attributes they look for in founders
6:24 – Most significant technological changes and how they have impacted his investment strategy
8:57 – The sourcing of his deals
13:00 – Qualities he likes at various stages of deal sourcing
13:46 – How he evaluates the teams he may fund
15:17 – His take on the pricing landscape for deals
16:13 – How he allocates his time as a board member
17:16 – Thoughts on long term stock exchange
18:26 – How much research does he do on an industry in order to stay on top of his investments
20:10 – Outside information he follows
21:20 - Other investors he’s learned a lot from
23:12 – What values does Peter Thiel instill in the partners
24:05 – Process of StemCentrics
26:03 – Other places holding his interest today
26:57 – His interest in e-sports
31:44 – Interactions with LP’s
32:51 – What they look for in recruiting new partners
34:32 – How geography impacts the opportunity for new ideas
36:24 – Opportunities in public companies and other investment types
37:57 – Aspects of overseeing a startup venture
39:26 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week for the third time is Michael Mauboussin. If there is a major question about markets and investing, Michael has usually written one of the best pieces of research on that topic. Today’s conversation is a mix of several of his research pieces, but focuses on the sources of alpha.
The framing of the conversation is the brilliant question “who is on the other side” of a given trade. If you are buying, who is selling, and why? Knowing the answer to this question is one key to understanding where excess return comes from. As is usual with Michael, we also explore tons of other interesting ideas that will serve as food for thought. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:23 - (First Question) – An outline of the syllabus for the course he teaches
4:02 – What are smart people missing when it comes to decision making
5:33 – Why Michael went down the path of defining major investing concepts
7:41 – On the impossibility of informational inefficient markets
9:14 – Beware behavioral finance
12:03 – What are the behavioral errors that people can take advantage of in a trade
15:14 – Timing opportunities
17:25 – Modest Proposal Podcast Episode
17:47 – Where the analytical edge comes from
21:16 – Is there an advantage to exhibit time arbitrage
23:53 – Technical arbitrage
29:34 – What impact do flows into ETFs play on the market
32:25 – Informational edge and how you source that edge
36:39 – Biggest changes that he has seen on the buy side
43:18 - How would Michael apply this as a sports GM
48:35 – His views on stock buybacks
51:02 – The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
52:55 – EBIT to EBITDA paper
54:43 – What Does a PE Multiple Mean?
59:28 – The concept of benign myths
1:02:06 – What the future holds of Michael
1:04:17 – The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is with Annie Duke, and the topic of our discussion is how to improve decision making.
We break decisions down into their component parts: values, beliefs, decisions, randomness, and outcomes. After diving into each, we discuss how to make better decisions, how to work in group settings, and how to harness power of tribes and identity to improve our behavior.
Annie has thought about this as much as anyone, and her various tricks for getting us to think in probabilities and to stop evaluating decisions based on outcomes that have been tainted by randomness will be useful for anyone listening.
Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:23 - (First Question) – Why people don’t take the best investing advice
2:11 – Investing tribes
4:21 – Jay Van Bavel twitter
6:34 – Rule setting as a way of crafting an investment strategy
11:13 – How much control do we have in choosing our values
15:52 – Anatomy of a decision
19:28 – Her concept of resulting
26:47 - How beliefs impact your decision making
34:28 – Tact’s for making the best decision
42:40 – Ego and decision making
47:06 – People who are exceptional at changing their decision making
48:18 – How often do people who change their decision making, stick with the rules of the game
50:07 – Finite and Infinite Games
50:28 – Psychology of making decision that involves other people
59:20 - Never close doors on other people
1:01:57 – Best decision that Annie made
1:04:24 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Annie
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is unique and so requires a short story.
I met our guest Michael Mayer because of twitter. I followed and enjoyed one of several pseudonymous accounts that he maintains to experiment with ideas. His various accounts have wide followings.
I think many of the best accounts on twitter are anonymous or pseudonymous, and I’ve always made a point to get to know the ones I like best. As it turns out, Michael was also an entrepreneur. He’d been building a new company and was raising a small amount of outside capital.
I didn’t invest personally, in part because he raised it so quickly after I spoke with him. Ever since, I’ve gotten to know him better and followed his company, Bottomless, with interest. You know that I am always hyper transparent about any potential conflicts of interest, so it’s worth noting that while I am not an investor in this company, I expect to be at some point in the future.
The topic of our conversation is both his social media activity and his company. I am a coffee fanatic, and the problem he is solving is one I live. I order a weekly bag of coffee beans, but I often have too much coffee or run out. Bottomless solves this by shipping you a simple scale which you keep wherever you store your coffee, connect to your Wi-Fi, and set your bag of coffee on. It automatically orders new coffee for you at the right time. Thus the name: Bottomless. If you like the conversation, check out bottomless.com
With this podcast, all I’m really trying to do is find, meet, and learn from interesting people. Michael certainly qualifies. I hope you enjoy this unique episode.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:06 - (First Question) – Why he writes under a pseudonym online
2:58 – Positive impacts of writing this way
3:45 – His background
5:02 – Habits he improved upon
7:03 – Where did his exploration into technology and start-ups come from
7:33 – Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions
10:32 – Elements of business that interest him most
13:26 – Building social capital vs the current state of education
17:06 – What information does he like to consume
18:17 – Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
18:34 – Jerry Neumann blog Reaction Wheel | Podcast episode
18:39 – Kevin Simler’s blog Melting Asphalt| Podcast Episode
21:01 – Why the current education system is busted
22:54 – Formation of his business
24:04 – Importance of making things legible
25:54 – On demand delivery vs subscription business models
30:16 – Early day in developing the scale for his business
33:50 – What he learned about coffee roasters
35:29 – thoughts on supplier power
36:17 – The customer relationship
39:50 – Best objections to his business
41:58 – Biggest operational/emotional challenges
42:56 – Best moment
44:39 – Time at Y combinator
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Peter is a geopolitical strategist who combines expertise in demography, economics, energy, politics, technology, and security to assess an uncertain future. Before founding his own strategy firm, Peter helped develop the analytical models for Stratfor, one of the world’s premier private intelligence companies.
I came across Peter via his books the Accidental Superpower and the Absent Superpower. We discuss America’s changing place in the world and four additional countries poised to do well in the future. Spoiler alert: he believes the U.S. is particularly well positioned.
While we don’t discuss equity markets per se, all of what we talk about will obviously impact companies across the world for the remainder of our careers. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:32 - (First Question) – His model of the world
4:05 – What makes for a strategically advantaged country
5:35 – History of the Bretton Woods agreement and the order that it created
8:47 – The security apparatus that has made globalization of manufacturing possible
12:04 – The US’s pullback from being the naval police of global trade
12:08 – The Absent Superpower: The Shale Revolution and a World Without America
14:57 – How energy has played into America’s disinterest abroad
21:52 – Moving towards global disorder
24:55 – Characterizing factors that will impact countries in any collapse
27:38 – How this manifest in physical conflict
32:44 – How the new world order will end the ease of innovation we are accustomed to today
34:13 – What gets the US to reengage before this new world order
38:08 – Demographics that make a country prepared for this, Japan as an example
40:57 – A look at China
43:59 – What the story is about Argentina
45:52 – How North America fares based on their geography and relationships
49:50 – The trader wars that are currently ongoing
52:17 – US political system
56:15 – Most important policy issues moving forward
58:27 – His view on American infrastructure
1:00:33 – Technologies that interest him the most
1:02:55 – What he is watching most closely in his research, starting with media
1:05:59 – What are and should be the countries of the future
1:06:55 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Peter
1:07:32 – Favorite places he’s been
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Michael Kitces, who is one of our industries go-to experts on all things financial advise and financial planning.
We discuss the past, present, and future of financial advise, financial technology, and investing. If you are a financial advisor or use one, this conversation is full of great history and perspective. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:08 - (First Question) – History of financial planning/advice model
5:26 – Fee changes in the 1970’s
10:01 – The start of the AUM model
10:44 – Value proposition for financial advisors beyond trading vs robo-advsiors
11:49 – Why Robo-Advisors Will Be No Threat To Real Advisors
18:20 – Why are humans still dominating the space
23:58 – Future of advisor fees
32:50 – Viability of the human driven flat fee model
37:50 – The dominance of flat fee models
43:13 – What services are financial advisors offering to justify their fees
47:17 – Dimensions to divide potential customers
52:20 – Exciting updates on the investment side that will help differentiate managers
55:37 – Any investment function beyond the basics that is intriguing to him
58:45 – Most interesting problems to be solved on the investing and non-investing sides
1:04:52 – Advice for young advisors
1:09:24 – How does he invest his own money
1:11:31 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Michael
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Alex Danco. Alex is a member of the Discover Team at Social Capital, has a background in biology, and has written about all things tech and business. While Alex is only 30, it seems like he has spent decades thinking about all the topics that we discuss, from changing business models, to railroads, to the shift from products to functions, and the rise and fall of asset bubbles. I hope you enjoy this wide ranging conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:15 - (First Question) – A look at his day job on the discover team
2:20 – 40 problems doc
4:27 – How companies get on the list and the turnover
5:21 – Hardest problem they are looking at…housing
11:37 – The investment component that fixes housing
15:35 – Where we are in the technology cycle in the view of abundance vs scarcity
20:54 – Change in distribution and the business vs utility business idea.
28:40 – Bifurcation of small and larger businesses
32:48 – New forms of scarcity today
38:31 – The trend of massive company incumbency
41:07 – The utility of bubbles
49:08 – His favorite bubble
51:18 – Challenges and nuances of bubbles
53:35 – Zero to One Notes on Start-Ups, or How to Build the Future
1:02:22 – Future for VC funding in Silicon Valley
1:04:07 – Advice for business builders
1:08:23 – The Three True Outcomes
1:13:04 – His background in biology and innovation in that space that is coming
1:19:46 – Company examples that are of interest to him and that encapsulate his way of investing
1:24:56 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Alex
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Keith Wasserman, co-founder of the real estate investment firm Gelt.
This was my first fully dedicated conversation on direct real estate investing, so we cover many different topics, including the pros and cons of different types of real estate, current valuations, risk vs. reward, tax protection, and the most interesting emergent areas.
You can tell Keith is an entrepreneur at heart so I enjoyed his energy and all that he has learned. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:15 - (First Question) – Their interest in apartments and mobile homes as investments
2:32 – The returns spectrum for different classes of real estate
4:03 – His early entrepreneurial ventures and the start of Gelt
7:45 – Don’t be afraid of negotiating
8:34 – Going through early deals in real estate
11:57 – How he determines when it’s time to sell a property
14:13 – How do they think about taxes in their investment offerings
16:57 – Depreciation strategies in real estate investing
18:27 – The evolution of the types of real estate properties they’ve invested in
21:41 – Most important factors when evaluating a building to invest in
23:50 – Barriers to entry
25:41 – Changes in his cost of capital
28:51 – Cost of debt and deciding how much to put into a building
30:33 – A look at the competition
34:51 – Effective marketing strategies
37:07 – How demographics impact their strategies
39:11 – The co-living space
40:34 – Cloud kitchens and how he would invest in these
46:11 – How autonomous vehicles will impact real estate
47:52 – Pros and cons of developing new properties vs buying existing ones
49:59 – Early stage investing interest
53:48 – Favorite business/entrepreneur story
55:10 – Advice for younger entrepreneurs
57:09 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Keith
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
My guest this week is Alex Mittal, co-founder of Funders Club. Following past guest Jeremiah Lowin, Alex is my second elementary school friend to appear on the podcast—a trend I hope continues.
Funders club is a unique venture firm, because it is build around a network of investors and entrepreneurs who submit deals for consideration and invest together. But as you’ll hear, Alex and his co-founder Boris aren’t just building an open platform for early stage investing: they also then take a very traditional venture approach, making investing decisions themselves when it comes to building a centralized portfolio.
Our conversation is about what Alex has learned investing in almost 300 early stage companies over the past 7 years.
Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:30 - (First Question) – Inception of the Founder’s Club
1:36 – Jeremiah Lowin Podcast Episode
3:59 – How the process of their platform works
5:40 – Role of the network in Founders Club setup and success
8:26 – What he has learned from all of the data he has access to
16:00 – Early stage investing and finding the sweet spot
22:17 – What makes a really intriguing bad idea
25:23 – Why he remains so excited about Ethereum
31:18 – More bad ideas
31:55 – Apoorva Mehta on How I Built This Podcast
37:15 – Thoughts on retail and logistics and how they fit his Venn diagram of boring and crazy
43:13 – Chip and electronic design
45:47 – Companies that are not just increasing efficiencies but actually making foundational changes
45:54 – Energy and Civilization: A History
52:34 – What does he look for in founders
55:26 – Pivot or Fail
57:05 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Alex
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week, Eugene Wei, has one of the most interesting backgrounds of anyone I’ve had on the podcast. He worked at Amazon early in its life, was the head of product at Hulu and Flipboard, and head of video and Oculus.
Our conversation is about the intersection of technology, media, culture. We discuss Eugene’s concept of invisible asymptotes: why growth slows down (for both companies and people) and how some can burst through. I’d list more of the topics, but we covered so much that you should just listen.
Finally, I’ll say that after spending a day with Eugene (including a wildly interesting dinner with Eugene, past podcast guest Sam Hinkie, and future podcast guest Kevin Kwok) that he is the type of uniquely interesting and kind person I am always searching for and one that I wish I could bet on somehow. If you know more people like this, reach out and suggest them for this podcast. Now, enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:38 - (First Question) – Idea of cuisine and empire
1:52 – Cuisine and Empire: Cooking in World History
4:20 – Key takeaways from the Defiant Ones Documentary
8;25 – Being convinced to buy a sports coat
11:10 – The concept of invisible asymptote
17:43 – How the medium shapes the messaging and the impact of cameras everywhere on society
17:48– Invisible asymptotes
17:56 – Selfies as a second language
22:57 – Proof of work in building a social network
32:51 – Magnification of inequalities in digital networks
34:01 – The Lessons of History
36:47 – His thoughts on the media industry’s impact on society as a whole
39:42 – His time at Hulu
44:48 – Places where video could replace text
47:30 – The need for media for any business looking to grow
49:35 – Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business
53:08 – Personal asymptotes
57:19 - Habit building and goal setting
1:00:29 – Travel recommendations
1:03:24 – Movie recommendations
1:08:16 – Product recommendations and what makes them indispensable
1:10:44 – Creation: Life and How to Make It
1:13:23 – Thoughts on the art of conversation
1:14:59 – The Most Human Human: What Artificial Intelligence Teaches Us About Being Alive
1:18:30 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Eugene
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Michael Duda, and the topic of our conversation is the role that brand plays in business and investing. Michael has worked on and invested in a wide-range of brands including Birchbox, Casper, Harry's, Citibank, DirecTV, Google, TripAdvisor, Under Armour and vineyard vines. His background in advertising made this a unique and interesting conversation. please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:11 - (First Question) – Mission of Bullish
2:15 – Typical relationship they have with companies
3:01 – Defining brand
4:35 – Ryan Caldbeck Podcast Episode
5:51 – A dive into how brands make people feel
7:54 – Does the emphasis on brand still matter to consumers and if so, where
10:01 – Process of building up a brand
14:53 – What has changed most in the planning of a brand strategy
18:35 – How does his thinking impact his investing strategy
21:48 – Where does he differ from the rest of the market
23:34 – Advice he would give to companies in general
26:18 – How advertising has changed in the current landscape
28:35 – The screening process for picking potential investments
35:16 – How they analyze valuation
37:31 – Unusual traits he likes in founders
40:12 – Categories most ripe for young companies to disrupt
44:03 – Most interesting marketing channel for direct to consumer businesses
46:45 – Marketing piece he is most proud of
49:23 – Companies that embody the best of what has been discussed
52:31 – His love for people in business
53:41 – Kindest thing done for Michael
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Over the summer. I spent time with Abby Johnson, who is the chairman and CEO of Fidelity Investments and several other business leads at Fidelity to understand how a very large firm like theirs is navigating change in our industry. What follows is a condensed version of my various conversations with Abby and her team. We discuss the big buzzwords like blockchain and machine learning, but also thoughts on leadership, client centricity and measures of success.
I hope you enjoyed this exploration
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:16 - (First Question) – [Abby] A look at the early part of Abby’s career
2:45 – Analyzing the skill of capital allocators
3:27 – A look at the asset management world of today and what to focus on today
7:23 – A set of decision-making principles that guide Abby
12:55 – Their strategy around the digitization of the world
16:07 – Balance between robo-advisors and humans and the markers of a good relationship
18:24 – What is the future of the role of the human in these relationships
20:15 – Their interest in emerging technologies like Blockchain
24:50 – Will crypto be its own asset class in the future
25:58 – [TOM] State of the business and the most interesting points of change
28:14 – Who is winning the battle for the next generation of investors
29:24 – How much of the change in financial business is cyclical
30:17 – What are businesses doing right to bridge that generational gap
31:01 – What does the future of the asset management industry look like
32:13 – What technologies could impact the asset management business the most
33:44 – The difference between machine learning and AI in this format
35:26 – In what way will AI impact these processes and replace humans
36:41 – What has him most excited about the future
37:54 – Advice for people thinking about pursuing a career in financial services
39:20 – Markers of a business that would be attractive for the next generation to consider working for
40:33 – The importance of brand when thinking about their business and those they work with
41:57 – Ways of engendering trust from a branding prospective
43:20 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Tom
44:28 – [VIPIN] Building a team around AI
45:21 – Markers for a good data strategy
47:25 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Vipin
48:58 - [ABBY] – How Fidelity thinks about data as an investing initiative
50:24 – Differentiating attributes of good analysts and if they’ve changed
51:34 – Investor she has always enjoyed learning from
52:37 – Favorite Peter Lynch story
53:17 – Business lessons that people could take away from Abby
54:59 – The role of women in financial services and what can be done to improve the situation there
57:35 – Trends that Abby is most excited to explore
1:00:22 – Positives and negatives of being part of a family business
1:01:46 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Abby
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Keith Rabois. Keith is currently an investment partner at Khosla Ventures, but has a storied and diverse background as an investor, entrepreneur, and executive. He has worked in senior positions at Paypal, LinkedIn, and Square; has led investments in companies like Stripe, YouTube, Palantir, and AirBnB; and started the company OpenDoor, which aims to transform the process of selling a home through technology.
One fun fact about Keith is that he may have the most impressive list of bosses I’ve ever seen, which we discuss during the episode.
We cover a lot, but one thing we kept returning to was business strategy. Keith’s frameworks for gaining and building strategic power helped me clarify my thinking on the topic, and his examples of contrarian thinking will hopefully make you question some commonly held beliefs.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:35 (First Question) – A look at his investing philosophy
3:16 – Favorite examples of his own investment history
4:40 – 7 Powers: The Foundations of Business Strategy
5:07 – Understanding what is anomalous in a given investment
7:07 – How much a secret needs to be protected within a business
11:51 – Why accumulating advantage with data is of interest to Keith
15:12 – Digital health companies and ideas that he finds compelling
16:17 – Nuance around financial services that investors should be mindful of
17:56 – How do they evaluate managers ability to recruit talent
19:36 – How similar are the roles of entrepreneur, board member, investor, etc that Keith has had in his career
24:02 – Ways that Keith is a contrarian, including his feelings on “lean startup.”
27:04 – Is problem identification a specific skill set
28:29 – Objection with experimentation/iteration
30:02 – Bad ideas in venture
31:36 – What he likes about Apple
31:51 – Creative Selection: Inside Apple's Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs
32:26 - Interview questions for identifying great talent
35:41 – Elements of good design
37:14 – Impact of platforms on opening new opportunities
38:42 – His take on valuation in the early stage environment
40:33 – Advice he would give people early in their careers
43:58 – Do high growth companies get beat by established larger businesses
45:25 – Popular narratives that he thinks are just wrong
48:22 – His thoughts on how people should learn, balancing experience vs information gathering
50:00 – Other investors that are taking a unique approach to investing
51:57 – Reflecting on the entrepreneur as a client model of private equity
55:04 – Books that he recommends that is least known
55:18 – The Upside of Stress: Why Stress Is Good for You, and How to Get Good at It
56:30 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Keith
Learn More
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My guest today is Bryan Krug, who manages the Artisan Partners Credit Team and overseas more than $3B in high yield credit investments for the firm. This was my first conversation on high yield, so I took it as an opportunity to get an overview on the investment universe and home in on the tools used for analysis and security selection.
As an equity investor, I think one of the most fruitful areas of research is into ways that companies fail or go wrong, and credit investors focus almost entirely on this potential for impairment. My guess is that all equity investors will learn something useful from this conversation. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:11 – Overview of the high yield debt markets
5:05 – Why should investors consider this investment class
7:11 – How analyzing a company’s debt is different from what equity analysts look for
8:42 – Primary factors when exploring a company’s ability to de-lever
9:43 – What is their alpha vs others in the space
12:02 – Deep dive into the quantitative factors for them to look into a deal
14:25 – Benchmarks he uses
16:08 – Portfolio construction
17:15 – Their preference for broadband providers over cable tv networks
20:01 – What piques his interest about spreads
21:50 – The ratings of debt
25:40 – A recent example of an opportunity and how the mispricing was identified
29:17 – Most valuable data sets in this world
31:51 – Favorite part of this process
32:26 – Most surprising new learning
33:01 Maintaining your advantage
34:49 – The biggest pools of error in this industry
48:00 – What industries interest Bryan
40:50 – Dedication to this market
41:45 – Evolution of his healthy skepticism
42:38 – Can things in the debt market help to project what will happen in the equity markets
44:56 – Current view of the world based on what is happening in the credit markets
45:51 – Categories of convenience that he cares about
49:15 – Anything that has him worried in high yield markets
50:38 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Bryan
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Maureen Chiquet, the former longtime CEO of Chanel. Maureen also spent much of her career at the Gap, growing Old Navy from scratch, and serving as the president of Banana Republic.
The topic of discussion is her experience running large businesses and of finding one’s way in a career and as a leader of others.
I hope you enjoy this unique conversation and that it encourages you to, among other things, travel somewhere new and interesting in the coming year.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:15 - (First Question) – The importance of being able to put yourself in other people’s shoes
3:05 – Scott Norton Podcast Episode
4:36 – Most memorable sale from her early career
5:03 – The intersection of facts and emotions in sales
6:40 – Most important emotions in business
7:30 – The importance of identity as part of the selling/marketing of sales and products
9:10 – Difference in strategy for luxury brands vs others
9:21 – The Luxury Strategy: Break the Rules of Marketing to Build Luxury Brands
10:55 – Striking a balance between tradition and innovation
13:46 – Advice for new brand company related to rarity
14:59 – Importance of being organic with your brand purpose
15:01 – Wild Company: The Untold Story of Banana Republic
16:26 – Maureen’s purpose over the years
18:44 – How to harness your purpose for your job
20:53 – Her process for writing and desire to do TV
24:01 – Her time with Micky Drexler
27:40 – As a leader, guiding people to succeed.
32:33 – Strategy for shifting culture at a company
37:54 – The importance of courageous conversations we should all be having
43:45 – Markers of courageous conversations
46:43 – How she thinks about introspection
50:12 – What draws here to certain locations
55:15 – Advice for younger people starting out their career
57:11 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Maureen
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Hunter Walk, the co-founder of Homebrew, a unique venture capital firm. Hunter is a tool builder, having spent his career before venture at companies like Google and YouTube. The topic of our conversation is the intersection of creative expression, technology, human behavior, and problem solving.
We discuss his time at the company behind the video game Second Life, building tools for creators at YouTube, and why a very hands-on style of early stage venture investing represents an interesting use of his skillset at this stage of his career.
Please enjoy my conversation with Hunter Walk.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:24 - (First Question) – Background on Second Life and what role Hunter had there
6:10 – The virtual currency system at use in Second Life
9:51 – Measuring how people behaved in this virtual world
12:21 – How closely is the Second Life world mimicking real life
15:13 – The market for platforms that lets people take on creative ventures
17:58 – Investments that interest Homebrew
20:21 – Lessons learned while working at YouTube
28:34 – The idea behind Homebrew
33:44 – How to best describe good problems to solve for
36:10 – The Shadow economy and investing in companies operating there
42:17 – Monetization of attention
47:22 – His interest in fintech companies
54:03 – Major trends of change he’s observed over his first three funds
1:04:13 – What is there take on the state of returns for VC’s
1:09:52 – What is the most common way that founders need help and what advice is more helpful
1:14:35 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Hunter
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
[REPLAY]
Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy, which explores the platform business model (Uber, Airbnb, Github). Alex is also the founder and CEO of Applico, a company that he started in his dorm room that is since grown into a huge enterprise that helps startups and Fortune 500 innovate with platforms. Alex and I talk about history and future of businesses and different types of business models. There’s a lot in here for investors, entrepreneurs, and historians. Please enjoy!
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
The Systems Bible: The Beginner's Guide to Systems Large and Small
The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires
Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
Links Referenced
Failed Color App
Applico
Show Notes
2:39 – (first question) – Exploring the history of business models from linear to platform.
5:46 – A look at the share of overall business platform companies have taken over
7:06 - Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
7:48 – The potential for platform businesses over the next 20 years
9:18 – Detailing the difference between a linear and a platform business
12:08 – Exploring transaction costs and core transactions across different business models
19:49 – Is the platform business model good for investors and VC’s since so many can get crushed when there’s a sole victor, or is it just for the founders and entrepreneurs.
24:35 – How the self-driving car is going to deliver more opportunity for consumer consumption
27:15 – Untapped supplies as the opportunity for new platforms and where we could see new openings
30:24 – How consolidated will things become across all platforms
33:16 – How do platform companies create a moat to keep others from replicating their business strategy
37:03 – Are there platform strategies that specifically don’t work
37:40 - Failed Color App
38:45 – Why complex systems typically don’t scale up and you should think small and easy to get started
38:47 – The Systems Bible: The Beginner's Guide to Systems Large and Small
40:02 – How the origin of so many larger co
My guest this week is Cliff Asness, the managing and founding principal at AQR Capital Management. 20 years after its founding in 1998, AQR manages $226 Billion dollars across a number of quantitatively based investing strategies.
Cliff was an original quant researcher and he has long been one of the financial writers and thinkers that I look to for education and for inspiration.
I distinctly remember reading one paper in particular—value and momentum everywhere—somewhat early in my career and thinking: this is the kind of research I want to do forever.
You can always tell when talking to Cliff or hearing him speak that he just loves researching markets. There is a deep intellectual honesty in his work, and a respect for thinkers at different ends of the market spectrum, from Gene Fama and Ken French, to Jack Bogle, to Dick Thaler and Robert Shiller.
Our conversation is about all things quant—past, present, and future. Cliff touches on many of the big issues facing quant investing and tells some great strong along the way. I hope you enjoy our discussion. Let’s dive in.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:47 - (First Question) – Favorite superhero
2:43 – Why ‘Ka nama kaa lajerama’ is part of his twitter profile.
3:38 – How portfolios have shifted the way they use factors in a portfolio
10:15 – What are good questions clients are asking right now
13:24 – Contrarian Factor Timing Is Deceptively Difficult
15:40 – Does technology impact investing strategy
22:14 – When to share information vs keep it proprietary for clients sake
26:40 – How their research process is governed
31:14 – How they will incorporate machine learning into their process
34:21 – What they will do when red flags show up
37:01 – Wackiest question from a client
41:47 – The Three Sharpe Ratio Strategy
41:53 – Liquid Alt Ragnarök
48:10 – Does his thinking change when it comes to asset allocation vs portfolio building
50:17 – Parallels Between the Cross-Sectional Predictability of Stock and Country Returns
53:01 – Sin a Little
57:14 – Trends in fees and pricing
1:02:43 – Thoughts on private equity markets
1:11:03 – Common attributes of really good researchers
1:13:21 – What is he most curious about right now
1:15:43 – What excites him outside of finance
1:17:00 – How much he discusses his work with his kids
1:18:35 – The Devil in HML’s details
1:19:36 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at
[REPLAY]
My guest this week is Peter Attia, M.D., whose mission is to understand and improve human lifespan and healthspan (or quality of life). Reading Peter’s research, you find that there are many similarities between health and investing—ideas like compounding—which we explore in detail.
We spend a lot of time on mind, body, spirit and performance as it relates to living a better life. Of particular interest is the strategic problem that we face when studying longevity. As Peter puts it in our conversation: we are the species of interest, but we can’t conduct the kinds of experiments on humans—randomized trials, with control groups—that we apply to solve other big problems. So we have to back our way into a better understanding of longevity and quality of life.
To that end, we discuss what we can learn from studying centenarians, the problem of progress in science, a drug called Rapamycin (which Peter believes could be revolutionary), eating, the importance of muscle mass, and the idea of distressed tolerance. We emerge with a framework for thinking about health and well-being which can hopefully help us all live longer, better lives. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/attia
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Posts From Peter Attia That You Should Read
Do Calories Matter
How You Move Defines How You Live
2016 Update
Long List of Questions Answered: Part 1 and Part 2
Links Referenced
The Scientific Method-Richard Feynman
Knowing Versus Understanding-Feynman again
Books Referenced
Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco
Diffusion of Innovations
Good Calories, Bad Calories
Show Notes
2:31 – (first question) – Getting Peter to define the concept of wealth and how it might have changed in his life
5:01 – How do you increase the number of really good people in your life.
6:50 – Looking at the relationship between healthspan and lifespan and a chart that Peter created on this specific topic.
11:11 – Drilling down into the different dimensions and aspects of this chart that could be most important for people, especially how compounding plays into our health.
16:57 – The difference between strategies and tactics that will help you extend lifespan
17:54 – The Scientific Method-Richard Feynman
My guest this week is Ryan Caldbeck, a private equity investor who wants to bring quantitative rigor to the private markets. Ryan is the CEO of Circle Up, which uses a system it calls Helio to identify attractive investments in early stage consumer brands.
While I am of course a fan of quantitative investing, I also know from experience how much harder private markets are than public markets when it comes to the transactions themselves. We discuss this and many other potential roadblocks to bringing models to private markets.
Using many individual companies as examples, Ryan explains some of the major predictive factors they’ve uncovered in their research. We also discuss which parts of the private markets might be infiltrated by quant processes first, and which may never be.
I expect many more to go on a journey similar to Ryan’s in the years to come. They serve as an interesting example for ambitious investors out there.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:39 - (First Question) – Formation of Helio
6:57 – How they handle the relationship building needed to make investments in private markets
10:26 – Why consumer and retail are interesting spaces to apply their quantitative approach in private markets
12:54 – Searching for new relevant data
16:14 – How do they stay ahead of the commoditization of uniqueness
16:21 – Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning
17:24 – Sam Hinkie Podcast Episode
18:00 – Dominant predictive factors in this world
21:05 – Which is more important, relative value or rate of change
21:48 – What does the data say about online sales vs offline (being in a store)
23:30 – Variable that consumer investors think matters but it doesn’t
24:53 – Valuing companies and accounting for mispricing’s
25:36 – Michael Recce Podcast Episode
26:41 – Goes through the process using Liquid Ivy as an example
28:46 – Most interesting sub-categories
29:33 – Future for this model
32:10 – Albert Wenger Podcast Episode
35:19 – Other categories outside consumer and retail interest Ryan
36:28 – Biggest challenges for CircleUp as a business
38:46 – Handicapping their earnings expectations
41:36 – Take on the VC/PE landscape
43:03 – The types of models that are most interesting to the team
45:05 – Quantitative elements of brand that are most interesting
47:30 – Most unique brand and distribution strategy he’s come across
53:27 – Who has influenced Ryan the most
54:37 – His personal values
55:51 – More people who had an influence on Ryan
56:05 – The Innovator's Dilemma: The Revolutionary Book That Will Change the Way You Do Business
57:07 – Thoughts on goal setting at the company
59:29 – Unchangeable factors that shape their long-term vision
1:02:01 – Most interesting individual conversation as part of this journey
My guest this week aspires to be the Larry David of investing, and we discuss why. Howard Lindzon is hard to categorize. He’s primarily an early stage investor right now, but he’s participated in all types of investing. He describes himself as a trend follower and always has a unique take on popular topics.
In this conversation, we cover his investing history and his take on the fintech investing landscape. What I’ll remember most is the idea that we should focus on what is happening versus what we think will happen or might happen. There is a Peter Lynch like quality to some of Howard’s thinking, and a willingness to embrace the weird that I find very appealing. The few times I’ve met Howard, I’ve smiled or laughed most of the time, which is about as nice a thing as I could say about someone.
He’s a good example of why I like this podcast format. His investing style bears literally no resemblance to my own, but it got me thinking about a lot of new things. I hope you enjoy our chat.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:42 - (First Question) – Why he wants to be the Larry David of investing
2:00 – Why his investing style is best described as trend following
4:05 – The biggest inspirations/influencers on Howard’s investing
6:39 – What made his second mentor, Fred Wilson such a great investor
9:52 – Formation of Wall Strip
12:33 – Why weird is so important in his investment philosophy
14:56 – Understanding his investment philosophy through his investment in Rally Road.
21:02 – His assessment of the fintech space
28:54 – Why fintech pushes away from human nature
30:50 – Major trends in fintech that have his attention
35:02 – What stands out about the teams at these companies he invests in
36:37 – Thoughts on fractionalization plays
36:44 – Capital Allocators podcast episode
36:54 – Venture Stories Podcast
40:03 – Any major trends that are changing and worth attention
42:06 – The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
43:26 – His take on the media landscape
45:10 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guests this week are Ali Hamed, Brian Harwitt and Marc Porzecanski who work together at CoVenture Credit. When I first had Ali on as a podcast guest, we discussed the many aspects of what his firm does, ranging from venture, to crypto, to credit. We glossed over the lending side of the business, but having since learned a lot from them on the topic, I was excited to get the chance to talk with members of their credit team for today’s longer exploration of esoteric high yield lending.
I am always proselytizing the value of investor education, s this week we have a podcast first. The CoVenture team has prepared a long series of posts that correspond to our conversation and go even deeper into the topic of credit investing. You can find them in the shownotes at investorfieldguide.com/credit
This is entirely differently from any conversation I’ve shared before, so I hope you learn as much as I did. Please enjoy my discussion with team CoVenture Credit.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:42 - (First Question) – The formation of their unique credit business
7:09 – Their advantage in seeing both the equity and credit side of their investments
10:23 – Looking at the Returnly deal as an example
14:07 – How they view these deals and are able to sustain them as long-term investments
18:09 – Their interest in payroll deduction lending
20:08 – Finding unique types of default risk
21:31 – What stands out in a platform that makes CoVenture want to take a deeper look
26:43 – Most interesting types of problem they have come across that they have yet to do a deal in
31:35 – What is going to change to make for more thoughtful underwriting of subprime lending
35:51 – Major structures of asset backed lending
39:49 – Whether the home serves as an interesting playground for credit opportunities and whether people will own anything again
42:44 – Mark’s experience working at a huge firm vs his experience at CoVenture
44:31 – How does the current credit cycle impact their view
47:04 – Lending against bitcoin
50:06 – Who is interested in these loans against bitcoin
50:57 – How to set interest rates against a weird asset like this
53:00 – What are the key determents of success in this business
1:02:27 – Kindest thing anyone has team for the team
1:03:52 – How to treat people that you pass on
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Saifedean Ammous, author of the book the Bitcoin Standard. This was one of the more interesting conversations I’ve had in the world of cryptocurrency, primarily because we don’t talk about Bitcoin or Crypto until 25 minutes into the talk. Instead, we focus on history, economics, sound money, low time preference, and gold—all interesting topics.
Saif’s thinking on cryptocurrencies other than bitcoin—which is that they are worthless—is unique and thought provoking. His reasoning around why gold shouldn’t be compared to the returns generated by assets like equities was also compelling. If you’ve followed my Hash Power episodes, this is a new a differentiated interpretation of Bitcoin as a technology for the store of value use case. Please enjoy our conversation.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:10 - (First Question) – Explain Sound Money
4:25 – Examples of hard vs easy money
7:36 – the even money trap
9:36 – The benefits of hard money vs today’s standards
14:05 – Why this interests him
14:16 – Gold Wars: The Battle Against Sound Money As Seen From A Swiss Perspective
14:56 – Democracy – The God That Failed: The Economics and Politics of Monarchy, Democracy and Natural Order
16:17 – Correlation between time preference and people’s ability to succeed in life
19:59 – How money markets worked in the late 18th century vs today
27:57 – How he came across Bitcoin and how he thinks of it as a digital gold
35:42 – How will the world transition to a sound money standard
42:15 – The impacts of hyperinflation on crypto currencies
45:04 – The idea of a orderly upgrade of the world currency
48:20 – His thinking on alternative coins
54:05 – What it takes to compete with bitcoin
1:01:43 – How he diversifies
1:04:35 – Stalling bitcoins demand
1:06:11 – Does he apply his thinking of lower time preference elsewhere in his life
1:07:09 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
“This is an unusual early episode release thanks to the timing of the recent news on Tesla. In this short episode, Danny and I discuss cannabis stocks, Tesla, and his “wild bill” story about quant investing.”
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is one of my best and oldest friends, Jeremiah Lowin. Jeremiah has had a fascinating career, starting with advanced work in statistics before moving into the risk management field in the hedge fund world. Through his career he has studied data, risk, statistics, and machine learning—the last of which is the topic of our conversation today.
He has now left the world of finance to found a company called Prefect, which is a framework for building data infrastructure. Prefect was inspired by observing frictions between data scientists and data engineers, and solves these problems with a functional API for defining and executing data workflows. These problems, while wonky, are ones I can relate to working in quantitative investing—and others that suffer from them out there will be nodding their heads. In full and fair disclosure, both me and my family are investors in Jeremiah’s business.
You won’t have to worry about that potential conflict of interest in today’s conversation, though, because our focus is on the deployment of machine learning technologies in the realm of investing. What I love about talking to Jeremiah is that he is an optimist and a skeptic. He loves working with new statistical learning technologies, but often thinks they are overhyped or entirely unsuited to the tasks they are being used for. We get into some deep detail on how tests are set up, the importance of data, and how the minimization of error is a guiding light in machine learning and perhaps all of human learning, too. Let’s dive in.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:06 - (First Question) – What do people need to think about when considering using machine learning tools
3:19 – Types of problems that AI is perfect for
6:09 – Walking through an actual test and understanding the terminology
11:52 – Data in training: training set, test set, validation set
13:55 – The difference between machine learning and classical academic finance modelling
16:09 – What will the future of investing look like using these technologies
19:53 – The concept of stationarity
21:31 – Why you shouldn’t take for granted label formation in tests
24:12 – Ability for a model to shrug
26:13 – Hyper parameter tuning
28:16 – Categories of types of models
30:49 – Idea of a nearest neighbor or K-Means Algorithm
34:48 – Trees as the ultimate utility player in this landscape
38:00 – Features and data sets as the driver of edge in Machine Learning
40:12 – Key considerations when working through time series
42:05 – Pitfalls he has seen when folks try to build predictive market investing models
44:36 – Getting started
46:29 – Looking back at his career, what are some of the frontier vs settled applications of machine learning he has implemented
49:49 – Does intereptability matter in all of this
52:31 – How gradient decent fits into this whole picture
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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(0:49) This week, to mark the two-year anniversary of the podcast, I offer a quick summary looking back and forward.
(0:55) Yesterday I heard about an Appalachian Trail thru hiker named Croatoan, or Crow for short. Crow was his trail name, which all A.T. thru hikers carry. Importantly, you can’t give yourself a trail name. Someone else has to name you along the way. Crow’s girlfriend was named Porridge. Another hiker he encountered along the way was named Bear Wrestler…more on him in a few minutes.
Crow was a Sobo, a south bound hiker heading from Maine to Georgia. This is a far more unique route, as most thru hikers are Nobos, hiking north. These hikers maintain a rich culture. Each wears their own trail flare, and has their own trail style. They are obsessed with their gear and food. They develop their own improved walking method to cover ground efficiently. Hikers typically won’t veer far off course, no more than a tenth of a mile, for almost any reason. Crow once left a meaningful gift he had received by a river bed, realized it two tenths of a mile later, and just kept moving. Two exception to this rule are to visit a brewery or find some homemade ice cream.
(1:50) There are different types of thru hikers. White blazers are hikers who follow the main trail, lit by the famous white blazes marking the way. Blue blazers often go a step further, exploring side trails in addition to the main trail. Green blazers smoke weed the whole time. There are other colorful ones I’ll stay away from here as they aren’t safe for work.
Apparently you can spot an imposter in a number of ways. My favorite was that anyone wearing big, sturdy hiking books should be questioned, because most thru hikers realize quickly that they are way too heavy and opt instead for lightweight shoes. Crow had a nice pair of Altras.
(2:22) This brings us back to Bear Wrestler. Around a campfire, Bear Wrestler was telling Crow and his girlfriend all about his long trail adventures and feats, but Crow noticed that Bear Wrestler was still chubby, carrying 40 pounds of fat. This is a second way to spot a potential imposter. When hiking intensely for months on end, it is impossible to keep any weight on, so Bear Wrestler was clearly a yellow blazer, a type of hiker who drives between trail heads instead of hiking the entire way like the purists.
As I heard about Crow and his adventure, I was thinking about what to say in this short episode about what I’ve learned across two years running this podcast. What I quickly realized is how many yellow blazers there are in the world, and that at many times in my life, I too have been a yellow blazer—opting for easier but less authentic, and less interesting, routes. The podcast is part of a portfolio of things that I’ve put in place in my life to try to avoid being a yellow blazer. To instead push myself to be more like a blue blazer, exploring anywhere I can.
(3:16) Looking back on the incredible guests I’ve had, I realize now the common mindset that unites them, and I’d like to highlight that mindset here. Even though my guests have come from just about every conceivable background, investing and otherwise, they are all in persistent and consistent pursuit of original experience. Now, that might sound obvious, but its rare to meet people whose default is to chase original experience. These people stand out quickly now to me, because I can recognize freshness in them, patterns I haven’t already seen 10 other times elsewhere. I now think often: am I doing this because its conventional, and/or because I’m watching what other people do? I think if you do the same exercise, you’ll be alarmed by how often the answer is “yes.”
Diving a bit deeper into these people and what unites so many of my past guests, there are four elements that I see over and over again.
(4:01) The first is common trait is deep curiosity. My take on curiosity after meeting all these people is
My guest this week is Kathryn Minshew, the co-founder and CEO of the Muse, and the co-author of The New Rules for Work: the Modern Playbook for Navigating Your Career. I’ve learned in business is that the quality of people and the culture they create dictate outcomes. Having made plenty of mistakes hiring, and having had many enormous successes, I am always interested in best practices for finding and successfully recruiting the right people.
Given that Kathryn runs a jobs marketplace and has written a book on the topic, she is the perfect person to explore some the core concepts around pairing people with the right positions. We discuss how companies should market to prospective employees, how employees should represent themselves to employers, and the most common mistakes she sees across the hiring landscape.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:31 - (First Question) Largest changes in the nature of work and how people approach finding the right job for them
3:27 – Can this work be jammed into a formula
5:18 – What strategies is she sharing with employers when it comes to hiring
8:31 – How long should the process take
9:33 – Biggest mistakes employers make in this process
10:39 – Besides the usual stuff, what can perspective employees do to bolster their chances
12:50 – How much more efficient will matching technology get in the years to come
16:00 – What will be the largest changes to work itself
19:09 – Will we move away from full time work into parsels of work units
20:50 – Most successful piece of content or content strategy the Muse has employed
22:34 – Advice for early stage entrepreneurs
26:24 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Kathryn
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
I intentionally avoid the world of quantitative investing on this podcast. The whole point of this format is to learn about many different fields, and the vast majority of my time is already spent in quant world.
Occasionally I’ve broken this rule because of something unique, including this week’s conversation with Richard Craib, the founder and CEO of Numerai. If you listen to the podcast often you’ll have heard me reference Numerai, a hedge fund which blends quant investing, cryptocurrencies, crowdsourcing, and machine learning — talk about a PR company’s dream.
One important note: Numerai is both incredibly open and very secretive. You may sense a bit of frustration on my part, but that is only because, as a fellow quant who loves details about data and modeling, we couldn’t go deeper into the details on the record.
We discuss how Numerai has created an incentive structure to work with data scientists around the world in an attempt to build better investing models. The idea of having data scientists stake cryptocurrency in support of the quality of their models is fascinating. Like many hedge funds, Numerai doesn’t share its track record, so we don’t know if this works—but I hope you, like me, use this conversation as inspiration for how different technologies can intersect.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
Please enjoy my conversation with Richard Craib.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
2:32 - (First Question) – How he came up with Numerai and how its related to his background
4:08 – How he works with and models the data for his system
5:24 – Describing machine learning as it relates to his work, and specifically linear regression
7:11 – The important stages in his sequence
8:46 – How the scale in the number of data scientists they use is different from other areas
11:30 – Which is the most important aspect of creating alpha; their data, algorithm work, proprietary ensembling of those algorithms.
14:30 – The idea of staking in blockchain
17:30 – Does the magnitude of the stake matter in blockchain
19:10 – Understanding the full incentive structure for both staked and unstaked work
21:07 – How is the prize pool determined
22:29 – Philosophy on how to source interesting data
26:11 – His thoughts on the crowd model and the wisdom of crowds
27:12 – The size of stakers for Numerai
27:51 – Interpreting the models and knowing when something is broken
30:03 – How they think about people not submitting their models
31:48 – Their model building
32:39 – Most interesting set of things they are working on to improve the overall process
35:38 – The Market for "Lemons": Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism
37:11 – How people can come along with their own data
39:00 – His thoughts on the quantitative investment community
40:44 – What else is interesting him in the hedge fund world
44:03 – Building a marketplace and staving off competition
46:16 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions ev
My guest this week has a fascinating background. He has a PhD in biology but has split his time as both an investor and an operator. As an investor, he’s involved in companies like Airbnb, Coinbase, Instacart, Opendoor, Stripe, Square, and Pinterest—not too shabby. As an operator, he helped both Google and Twitter scale their businesses, in the case of Twitter from 100 employees to 1500 over two years. He’s just written a book about these experiences called the High Growth Handbook.
Our talk centered on what makes for a good investment and more specifically how Elad identifies an interesting market. Operators and early stage investors will find lots of nuggets in this fun conversation. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:31 - (First Question) – Process for evaluating a young business
2:43 – Andy Rachleff Podcast Episode
3:09 – Data factors for evaluating a business
5:08 – Reference checks
6:42 – Advice for companies that are reliant on product cyclicality
7:01 – Where to Go After Product-Market Fit: An Interview with Marc Andreessen
7:31 – High Growth Handbook
9:30 - Lessons learned from marketing and growing companies
12:09 – How do you hire the best people to improve your distribution
13:16 – How does he think about lifetime customer value vs customer acquisition cost
15:57 – Should companies just focus on the high margin power users
16:35 – Best ways to organize a company hierarchy
19:16 – His interest and background in the area of longevity research
21:52 – Changes he has made in his own life as a result of this longevity research
22:56 – Most effective use of a CEO’s time
24:58 – How he evaluates or identifies interesting markets for potential businesses
28:03 – Any markets that fit his criteria that are underappreciated by investors
30:02 – Worst practices for businesses
32:19 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
33:20 – What would be the topic of his next book
34:40 – Biggest lessons he’s learned about markets
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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For the 100th episode, I’ve brought back my good friend Brent Beshore. Brent was the 10th guest on the podcast, after we met because of a mutual interest in capital allocation. I quickly learned that Brent was one of the most unique and thoughtful investors around. He was an entrepreneur from the moment he left school, trying many different things before finding a fit buying smaller business with the intention of owning them forever.
What amazes me about Brent is his encyclopedic understanding of business and the nuances of different business models and deal structures. This comes from reps. He and his team have looked at about 12,000 deals over the years, at every kind of business that you could imagine. I’ve been with him when he goes through this process and it’s fun to hear what makes certain businesses stand out from others, which is largely the topic of this conversation.
You all know transparency is key for me, so it’s important to know that my family and I are investors in a fund called permanent equity, run by Brent and his firm Adventure.es.
To commemorate this milestone episode, I can think of no one better than Brent, because he exemplifies what has made this podcast so fun for me: learning from other people who are willing to share what they themselves have learned through fun, blood, sweat, and tears. Please enjoy our conversation, and thank you so much for coming along on this journey. I can’t tell you how much it means to me.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:02 - (First Question) – How does he think about optimizing risk in terms of the capital stack when looking at deals
5:27 – What conditions would they add debt down the road after investing in a company
6:52 – What business sectors are most intriguing for Morgan to invest in right now
6:57 – Trent Griffin Podcast
9:34 – Why no HVAC businesses if it’s such an attractive sector
13:56 – thoughts on rolling up similar businesses and horizontal scale
16:04 – Another industry Brent would focus on
18:02 – Difference between property management in larger cities vs smaller metro areas
18:51 – What role does profit margin play when Brent is evaluating a business
22:46 – The appeal of a hyper cyclical business
22:52 – Brent Beshore Podcast Episode
27:27 – Favorite counter cyclical business
28:14 – How they judge assets, tangible vs intangible assets
33:58 – How does he think about wage inflation when considering the cost of a business
37:21 – His fascination with pet crematoriums
38:57 – History of the permanent equity fund and the changes by having a larger pool of capital
43:48 – Pitching investors on a new structure for the business
46:14 – How will this business model scale
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Today’s conversation is a continuation of my discussion on applying the lessons of tracking animals in the wild to tracking in your own life. I encourage to listen to that episode first.
In this second part, Boyd’s sister Bronwyn joins and offers perspective on business and life. Given that Boyd and Bron grew up in this wild place, their perspective on the world is refreshing and very different. We discuss a wide range of things, But the section on restoration near the end is just phenomenal stuff.
Please enjoy part two of my conversation with the Varty family.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:21 - (First Question) – Concept of shame and the role it plays in the lives of the people that visit
3:11 – Bron’s take on shame and if this is uniquely male issue
5:15 – How the Varty’s think about the concept of presence, and time with Nelson Mandela
13:34 – Selfishness as an impediment to presence
20:26 – Tending the cup
20:37 – Life is not a zero-sum game
23:15 – How they run the reserve as a business
30:18 – Importance of motivation as a business
33:55 – Cultivating a culture that makes a business a family
40:15 – How they help other family businesses
45:29 – The idea of restoration as a business and legacy
51:23 -Restoration model in investment
53:49 – The age of restoration will be born on the age of information
54:48 – Places that have given Varty’s deep connections (other than Africa)
1:00:46 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Bron
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
An interesting question that I think about a lot: how do you balance exploring the new with savoring what you already know and love? Most of the time I prefer to explore, but the best part of this podcast experience for me has been meeting people who become close friends. For episodes 99 and 100, I’m bringing back two of the most popular past guest who are both now dear friends.
This week’s episode is split into two parts, today and tomorrow. Today’s episode is with Boyd Varty and tomorrow is with both Boyd and his sister Bronwyn. The incredible Varty family hosted me in South Africa, so you’ll hear birds and elephants in the background as we talk.
This conversation with Boyd is about our shared experience called “track your life” which I couldn’t recommend more highly. We tracked animals on foot for five days, and learned a lot from the environment itself. While we discuss our time together, this is much more about how to live. My original conversation with Boyd had a huge impact on me, and this continues the exploration of Boyd’s idea that we should all be going our own way, in the right way, instead of simply following well trodden paths.
I hope you enjoy this conversation with Boyd and check back tomorrow for another conversation with the Vartys.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:55 - (First Question) – Encounter with five wild dogs
10:19 – The idea of a perfect day on the track
15:59 – The importance of silence
19:42 – Why we could all benefit from the power of silence
21:37 – Side effects of being on the track
23:49 – Following the smaller paths
25:20 – How culture can keep us from forging our own path
29:34 – The stress he puts on the watch at night
33:34 – The power of going from alert to rest and back again
35:11 – Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers
38:25 – Disconnecting from the modern world and reconnecting with your life’s purpose
41:42 – How much does skill play into finding your life’s calling
43:23 – Common objections to what they do
49:58 – Importance of end of day on the track
52:33 – Silence and feeling of thousands of years of time passing through hallucinogenic
56:22 – His experience with bees
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Ryan Selkis - The Crypto Barbell and Token Curated Registries - [Invest Like the Best, EP.98]
This week’s conversation is for those interested in the nitty gritty of cryptocurrencies and for those who, like me, are fascinated by that world but more than a bit skeptical of the investing prospects for the many cryptocurrencies now in existence.
My guest is Ryan Selkis, who I met at an event hosted by Union Square Ventures and Blocktower Capital. At that event, in a crowd of many brilliant people, Ryan was consistently asking hard questions and raising counterpoints.
I love his perspective because he is both passionate, but realistic, excited about crypto, but worried about many aspects of the ecosystem.
We discuss many new topics like his barbell analogy for thinking about different kinds of coins, token curated registries, and the need to better transparency around decentralized projects.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
Please enjoy our conversation.
March for the Fallen
Want to meet other curious investors, get in good shape, and support a fantastic cause? Consider joining a great group to hike 28 miles in honor of those who have fallen in defense of our nation.
Learn more and sign up at alphaarchitect.com/mftf.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:55 - (First Question) – how he best explains blockchain technology
4:12 – How does he categorize each cryptocurrency
9:11 – How Numeraii is valued
10:04 – Explaining token curated registries (TCR)
12:58 – How Token Curated Registries are being applied
15:05 – Innovations that will protect against nefarious actors in the crypto space
16:37 – How do you convince investors to commit to TCR’s
18:40 – Biggest headwinds to this industry
22:12 – What are the quality filters to root out the bad actors
25:42 – Thoughts on the ICO market as an alternative to capital raising
29:23 – Litmus test for who should use an ICO to raise capital
34:28 – What is unique about creation of a token vs the normal exchange of cash to determine if a company needs a token
36:21 – How many ICO projects are really necessary
38:28 – How should people form an investment opinion about this space
41:35 – Core mission of his company
44:28 – What are some of the reasons his goals won’t happen
49:30 – Lessons learned while working at Coindesk
49:58 – What is he most excited about for the future of this space
52:56 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ryan
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Cathie Wood, the founder of ARK invest. Cathie and her team believe that disruptive innovation is the key to long-term growth and, therefore, alpha in the public markets.
Because their style of investing is entirely contingent on what will happen and change in the future, it is about as different a style as exists from the quantitative approach to investing, which relies on what is currently knowable about stocks and businesses.
The future is notoriously hard to predict, so I am always interested to hear about investing approaches which try to model or handicap the future and build portfolios against that work.
In this conversation, we explore all the most interesting and exciting technology trends at play in the world today—and how those trends may play out for investors. We discuss genome sequencing, blockchain, software 2.0, mobility as a service, automation, and more.
We also discuss Cathie’s take on building a bridge between the worlds of finance and Silicon Valley, and why starting with a benchmark is anathema to their process.
It is hard to deny Cathie’s passion and enthusiasm, and I credit her for building a unique firm culture that emphasizes openness and collaboration. Please enjoy our conversation on investing in innovation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:30 - (First Question) – Cathie’s idea of bringing open source to Wall Street
4:47 – Deep dive into the platform
6:09 – White Paper on Bitcoin – Could Bitoin serve as the role of money
7:43 – Why disruptive innovation is so inefficiently priced
10:04 – How well does the market discount cash flow of disruptive businesses
14:09 – A look at their investing strategies, starting with top-down.
16:10 – How they picked their 5 categories of technological change, starting with foundational
19:42 – Changes in energy
21:53 – Robotics
24:17 – Excitement over deep learning
28:03 – How they express their top-down ideas from the bottom up
36:06 – Mobility as a service as a key area of focus
45:25 – The power of public mistakes
46:39 – What she looks for when hiring
51:14 – her philosophy on building and maintain a portfolio
56:38 – Behind the growth of the company
1:04:01 – Most exciting area for her right now
1:07:52 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Cathie
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
I’ve often heard that good investors are a bit like journalists: doggedly collecting evidence and building an understanding of how all the pieces of a company or investment fit together. My guest this week is one of my favorite writers and journalists, Bethany McLean. Across her career, Bethany has covered many of the most interesting stories in business and investing, including Enron (which became the famous book and documentary, the Smartest Guys in the Room), Valeant, Wells Fargo, SAC Capital, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the great financial crisis, and most recently, fracking and the energy revolution.
Given how deeply she has investigated all of these topics-- and thought about the common threads across them all--this was an amazing conversation. When talking to her, you can feel how much she cares and how diligent and fair she is when analyzing a topic. In addition to all of the great stories already listed, we discuss the art of persistence and other lessons she has learned about businesses and people gone bad. I especially loved her evolving take on housing in America.
Please enjoy my conversation with Bethany McLean
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Mindsets: Optimism vs. Complacency vs. Pessimism
Disgraced ex-BofA exec raises uncomfortable questions about #MeToo
The Hunt for Steve Cohen
Books Referenced
The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron”
Free Radicals: The Secret Anarchy of Science
Shaky Ground: The Strange Saga of the U.S. Mortgage Giants
Saudi America: The Truth About Fracking and How It's Changing the World
Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy
All the Devils Are Here: The Hidden History of the Financial Crisis
Show Notes
2:22 - (First Question) – Differences and similarities between investors and journalists
3:19 – What has more of an impact on business practices, exposing negatives or reporting positive
4:57 – first story that got Bethany intrigued with finding bad behaviors
6:19 – The process of getting to know the people who know more than the market
7:43 – Mindsets: Optimism vs. Complacency vs. Pessimism
8:18
A very short introduction today because my guest is anonymous. Suffice it to say he manages a large pool of private capital.
He goes by the pseudonym “modest proposal” and his twitter presence is one of the reasons I first got on and now stay on the platform.
He is level headed, smart, and skeptical by nature, all of which made for a great conversation. We discuss how difficult the market has become for active investors, thematic investment opportunities, and the potential sources of market mispricings.
Please enjoy our conversation, and let me know which other anonymous accounts you’d like to hear from.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Factors from Scratch: A look back, and forward, at how, when, and why factors work
Josh Wolf Podcast Episode
Mike Zapata Podcast Episode
Michael Mauboussin Podcast Episode
Show Notes
1:55 - (First Question) - How value investing has changed
5:45 – How does he apply the lens of market over-reaction to the current market today
5:47 – Factors from Scratch: A look back, and forward, at how, when, and why factors work
7:06 – Josh Wolf Podcast Episode
8:35 – Areas where he prepares most
8:36 – Mike Zapata Podcast Episode
12:18 – Where markets may be over reacting in media
20:10 – How does he invest on this thinking
20:44 – Michael Mauboussin Podcast Episode
22:35 – Other parts of media that he finds interesting
27:35 – Aggregation theory and how it plays into his investment philosophy
31:06 – Structuring a long-short portfolio in today’s media market
35:59 – Customer acquisition costs and how it’s impacting retailers
40:51 – The role of physical locations in a world that was upended by virtual retailers
49:41 – Consumer Internet Story thesis and what he’s seen during his career
58:11 – Why the FANG stocks can’t win in the niches
1:02:25 – The distrusted 50
1:05:00 – How he thinks about Capital Allocation and buybacks
1:11:08 – His view on international equity markets
1:13:58 – His take on the asset management business
1:19:38 – Allocation of a portfolio in between periods of conviction
1:21:08 – People that he has learned the most from
1:23:54 – How do you identify people who are capable of evolving after a rough spot
1:26:53 - How does he force himself to adapt to new conditions and evolve
1:30:31 - Thoughts in investing in cannabis industry
1:32:31 – Conditions where he would get interested in crypto currency
1:36:20 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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With Patrick out of the country this week, we thought we'd play an old favorite that many of you have not heard.
Please Enjoy!
This week we explore a rare and underappreciated skill through the lens of an incredible story. My guest is Eric Maddox, whose name you probably don’t know but won’t soon forget. Just trust me that you need to listen to this entire episode, and listen carefully—because that is what the episode is ultimately all about: how to listen to others, with care and empathy, in the age of distraction.
Sometimes it’s fun not to know what’s coming and be surprised, so I won’t say anymore. After the episode, you can learn more about Eric at Ericmaddox.com.
On his wall, Eric has a framed Cuban cigar, he starts his story by explaining the significance of that cigar. Enjoy this episode, and try Eric’s method. It has worked wonders for me.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/maddox/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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This week’s episode covers a new set of topics. The conversation, with Niel Robertson, covers media, e-sports, content distribution, marketing, and a lot more. Niel started a software company out of his bedroom when he was 14, and sold his first company in 1999 for $280 million, when he was 24 years old. He has started and sold other companies to Twitter and Cisco. He started another large business that ultimately failed. He’s been an investor, venture partner, and serial entrepreneur. You can find more in the shownotes.
As I often do, I cut the long background section from the interview so we can get right to the meat of things, but Niel concluded that section saying: “I think that could be all summed up by I just liked building things and I can't stop doing it.”
In addition to the overall media landscape, we discuss the role that the biggest media platforms will play, and where other opportunities may exist. We cover digital collectibles stored on blockchain, and what type of digital assets may be leased to others. We close with a discussion of leadership, company structure, content creation, and something you should do each year.
Please enjoy this unique conversation with Niel Robertson.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Start-up of You: Adapt to the Future, Invest in Yourself, and Transform Your Career
Show Notes
2:30 - (First Question) – Overview of the media landscape as it relates to influencer marketing
6:42 – How does he think about this space as an investor
12:21 – What is the future of distribution of products
17:01 - An overview of the e-sports ecosystem
18:20 – The shift of people watching others play video games
20:06 – Will we see power shift from the platform to the influencer
27:03 – Why Amazon is the sleeper in this game
29:38 – Reviewing some of the other platforms, starting with Snapchat
30:54 – Twitter
32:06 – Other platforms that should be focused on…Pinterest
33:38 – His interest in blockchain and digital collectibles
36:34 – Who will be disrupted by digital collectibles
37:55 – Why does the decentralization of these assets matter
39:49 – The tokenization of assets
42:11 – What companies have the largest hurdles to innovate in these spaces
44:57 – His thoughts on leadership
46:44 – The Start-up of You: Adapt to the Future, Invest in Yourself, and Transform Your Career
47:52 – Advice for content creators and content aggregators
50:10 – His thoughts on companies that aggregate top content creators
53:17 – His experience owning restaurants
55:46 – His experience in motocross
57:31 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Neil
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Eric Balchunas, the senior ETF analyst for Bloomberg and the author of the Institutional ETF toolbox. This episode is intended for those in the asset or wealth management industry who have considered using ETFs in their portfolios, or for the individual investor who likes to stay up to date on trends in the market for asset management products. We cover all aspects of ETFs in some detail, and luckily in ways that have little overlap with a few other recent ETF-centric episodes on two of my favorite podcasts: the Meb Faber Show and Capital Allocators with Ted Seides with Matt Hougan and Tom Lydon respectively.
We open with Eric’s favorite ETF tickers, discuss the pros and cons of ETFs versus other investment vehicles, and explore the largest areas of opportunities for new ETFs coming to market in the years to come. ETFs have become the vehicle of choice for many investors, so it was about time we covered them in depth in this forum. As you’ll hear, Eric is the right person to teach the world about ETFs, thanks to deep domain knowledge and unflagging enthusiasm. Please enjoy my conversation with Eric Balchunas on the past, present, and future of ETFs.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Quantitative Momentum: A Practitioner's Guide to Building a Momentum-Based Stock Selection System
Links Referenced
Chart – There Are Now More Indexes Than Stocks
Show Notes
2:32 - (First Question) – Eric’s favorite ETF tickers
4:07 – How Eric got started into his career and how it led him into the ETF world
8:04 – An overview of the ETF landscape
10:10 – Active managed ETFs
12:17 – Chart – There Are Now More Indexes Than Stocks
13:32 – Key variables he thinks about when assessing a new ETF
15:18 – Evaluating shiny object ETFs
17:30 – The appeal of ETFs
20:18 – Future regulatory concern of the tax treatments of ETFs
22:10 – The liquidity advantage of ETFs and why that can actually be bad for investors
24:19 – What would Eric do to build the perfect ETF
26:03 – What are the future trends for new ETF’s launched
29:40 – Categories that work well in the ALT world of ETFs
31:32 – Most effective marketing strategy for ETFs
35:50 – Quantitative Momentum: A Practitioner's Guide to Building a Momentum-Based Stock Selection System
36:28 – How will the winning asset managers have done differently in this space
41:56 – How the next downturn could impact ETFs
46:17 – Do ETF’s create pricing distortions
50:33 – What trend is Eric most interested in right now
53:21 – Alpha through Beta
55:51 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Eric
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.
My guests this week are Kyle Samani and Tushar Jain, both managing partners at Multicoin Capital.
I’ve taken a bit of a break from crypto because I hadn’t sensed many new angles to explore in this forum, from an investor’s point of view. I felt that while things keep evolving, the major investment theses have been established and explored.
Kyle and Tushar are interesting because of their often divergent views. For example, Kyle has been an outspoken supporter of Ethereum relative to bitcoin.
This conversation, which is meant for those still curious about crypto, offers lots of new food for thought. We discuss smart contract platforms, network effects, the coming platform wars, and why blockchains may not matter in ten years. Please enjoy my conversation with the partners of Multicoin Capital.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Paths to Tens of Trillions
An (Institutional) Investor’s Take on Cryptoassets
On the Network Effects of Store Value
If SaaS Products Sell Themselves, Why Do We Need Sales?
Money, blockchains, and social scalability
Nakamoto Institute
Token Economy
Multicoin.capital
Crypto Cannon
Show Notes
2:11 - (First Question) – What would get the entire cryptocurrencies ecosphere to 5-10 trillion dollars
2:53 – Paths to Tens of Trillions
4:37 – What will be the effective uses for crypto currencies, store value vs utility value
4:38 – An (Institutional) Investor’s Take on Cryptoassets
8:48 – Why they are negative on bitcoin and more positive on Ethereum
10:07 – Where will start to see widespread adaption of the utility value of cryptocurrencies
14:44 – What is the major breakthrough that cryptocurrencies create
21:21 – How do we gain confidence that a utility token will become a sound investment
25:16 – The different type of network effects
25:47 – On the Network Effects of Store Value
31:18 – How do you convince institutional investors to consider the crypto space
34:21 – Factors that they care about when first evaluating a crypto currency
39:21 – How does technological development and marketing factor into their decision when picking a crypto currency
40:31 – If SaaS Products Sell Themselves
My guest this week is Michael Recce, the chief data scientist for Neuberger Berman. The topic of our conversation is the use of data in the investment process, to help cultivate what is commonly referred to as an information edge.
I call the episode “Tim Cook’s Dashboard” because of an interesting question that Michael poses: if you armed the best apple analyst in the world with Tim Cook’s private business dashboard, what might that be worth? Effectively Michael’s goal is to recreate the equivalent of a company dashboard for many businesses, helping analysts understand the fundamental health and direction of companies a bit better than the market does, and in so doing create an actionable edge.
This is a daunting task, and you will hear why. It requires both a fundamental understanding of business and of data, statistics, and methods like machine learning. In our own work, we’ve found machine learning to be useless for predicting future stock prices, but extremely useful for other things, like extracting and classifying data.
This conversation can get wonky at times, but as listeners know that is the best kind of conversation, even if it requires a second, slower listen. I hope you enjoy this talk with Michael Reece. Afterwards, I highly recommend you invest the time to read a series of posts called Machine Learning for Humans, which I will link to in the show notes. It helps demystify the buzz words and explain how these new technologies are being used.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Crossing the Chasm
One Two Three Infinity
Links Referenced
Sam Hinkie Podcast Episode
Show Notes
2:44 - (First Question) – Changes in data science through the lens of Michael’s career
5:17 – The basic overview of using data and machine learning to create an edge
6:58 – How the state of business is more than just a single data point
7:53 – How you know when you’ve pulled a real signal from the noise of data
10:49 – The advantages that data provides
13:01 – Is there still an edge in decaying data
15:34 – Building data that would predict stock prices
19:43 – Prospectors vs miners in data mining
22:18 – Knowing when your prospectors are on to truth
27:09 – Understanding machine learning
30:10 – Defining partition
32:17 – Applying the parameters of selection process to stocks
36:05 – What’s the first step people could take to use data and machine learning to improve their investment process
38:54 – Building a sustainable advantage within data science
41:35 – Predicting the uncapped positive vs what’s seemingly easier, eliminating the negative
43:58 – How do we know to stop using a signal
46:22 – The importance of asking the right question
47:09 – Categories of objective functions that are interesting to measure data against
47:42- Crossing the Chasm
48:37 – Most exciting things he’s found with data
51:17 – What investors, in
My guest this week is Ash Fontana, a managing partner at venture capital firm Zetta, who invests in companies which build software that uses artificial intelligence methods like machine learning to predict and prescribe outcomes. Ash’s combined experience as a founder, entrepreneur, and investor give him the perfect background to discuss with us one of the hottest topics in business and investing.
This conversation is useful for anyone trying to evolve their own way of dealing with data. Of particular interest are the ways that Ash and his team evaluate data sets and how they think about competitive advantage in this new world—where he advocates a new term to replace the concept of moat: loops.
If we can use data to do things better than humans, or if we can supercharge our intuitions with predictive models, we can harness the power of this new technology. What Ash has taught me is that data itself is dumb. But great data sets can represent the fuel for incredible companies. Let’s dive into how that may be. Please enjoy this conversation on how AI is changing business, and how we might profit from that change.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Most Important Thing: Uncommon Sense for The Thoughtful Investor
Links Referenced
Jerry Neumann Podcast Episode
Ali Hamed Podcast Episode
Show Notes
2:25 - (First Question) – A look at their very specific investment strategy
3:35 – Future of competitive advantage in the SaaS industry
6:45 – How startups and new companies can compete against software giants that are pretty well entrenched in the market
8:38 – How do copies with narrow focuses attract VC money which is looking for massive returns
12:28 – The stages in which AI will be enabled
15:55 – Framework of an AI company
18:49 – Importance of the feedback in the AI company framework
20:56 – Examples of AI companies
23:50 – Why companies that are AI from the start will have a significant advantage in the space
26:21 – How do companies change their thinking about compiling useful data
32:18 – Regulation of AI
35:03 – Preventing other companies from leap frogging you in the AI space
37:57 – Some of his favorite AI companies
40:43 – How much has he seen in the finance world
41:07 – Jerry Neumann Podcast Episode
43:10 – Why the focus on B2B AI companies
45:34 – Major components of the enterprise stack that he focuses on for AI
49:30 – What impact will all of this AI have the daily lives of people
51:38 – Biggest problems that he is excited to see AI tacklet
53:04 – How do you value the intangible asset of an AI model
57:13 – How Ash thinks about getting other investors into firms they seeded
1::00:27 – Other investors that Ash really respects
1:01:15 – The Most Important Thing: Uncommon Sense for The Thoughtful Investor
1:03:29 – Ali Hamed Podcast Episode
1:04:04 – Where would Ash invest
My guest this week is remarkable. He now applies his talents on Wall Street, searching for smaller cap companies trading at huge discounts in an effort to compound wealth for his investors. He is classically trained, having earned his graduate degree from Colombia, a school known for producing value investors. But his method also reflects what he learned across more than a decade of active duty in the U.S. military.
Mike Zapata served us all as a Navy SEAL in the aftermath of 9/11 and ultimately as a member of the SEAL’s “Development Group,” commonly known as SEAL team 6. I think everyone listening strives for excellence in what they do. This week we get to hear from someone who has pursued excellence on our behalf.
I’ll let him explain the meaning of his firm’s name, Sententia, but for now suffice to say we are lucky to have quiet professionals like Mike. If you are interested in supporting the families of soldiers who fought with Mike and lost their lives, I encourage you to check out the Tip of the Spear foundation and make a donation along with me, small or large.
Please enjoy my conversation with Mike Zapata.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel
Fearless: The Undaunted Courage and Ultimate Sacrifice of Navy SEAL Team SIX Operator Adam Brown
Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
Show Notes
2:23
2:23 – (First Question) – A quick overview of Mike’s career leading up to his time at Columbia
3:43 – What led him down the path of value investing at Columbia
3:51 – The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel
5:57 – The focus and goal of the firm
7:12 – Where the name of the firm, Sententia comes from
8:04 – His experience in the Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) program and lessons learned from it
13:14 – How much grit is innate vs can be learned
14:59 – What the actual job was in BUD/S
17:33 – Difference between the broader SEAL community and being part of the more exclusive development group
19:03 – The team dynamic within the SEALS
20:26 – Fearless: The Undaunted Courage and Ultimate Sacrifice of Navy SEAL Team SIX Operator Adam Brown
21:18 – The sacrifice that SEALs make with the story of Adam Brown as an example
24:35 – Waiting for darkness before deployment
27:23 – How do you know when to violate your best practices for a risk
29:26 – A look at three pictures in his office and why they are meaningful
31:36 – Lessons that would be useful to other people
33:10 – Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
33:17 – How is Mike’s skillset applied to the investing world
3
I came across this week’s guest thanks to the overlap of three passions of mine: data informed investing, value creation, and basketball.
Sam Hinkie worked for more than a decade in the NBA with the Houston Rockets, and then most recently as the President and GM of the Philadelphia 76ers. He helped launch basketball's analytics movement when he joined the Houston Rockets in 2005, and is known for unique trade structuring and a keen focus on acquiring undervalued players. Today, he is also an investor and advisor to a limited number of young companies in which he feels his experience can improve outcomes.
At one point in our conversation, Sam mentions that he tracked success via future financial outcomes, so I did some research and found many interesting stats about the 76ers surrounding Sam’s tenure. When he took over the franchise, it was 24th in ESPN’s franchise rankings, and today it is 4th. This is the result of an impressive crop of young talent—players like All-Star Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons—which resulted in large part from unconventional decisions Sam and his team made.
While I’m sure these estimates are imperfect, Forbes estimated the 76ers value at around $418M when Sam took over and $1.2B a few months ago. NBA teams in general have grown in value, so a lot of that appreciation is obviously “beta,” but given that the 76ers had the top percentage growth number more recently of any team, some of it is “alpha,” too. While we can’t parse the exact amount, it seems his unique approach to building a team clearly created some large amount of current franchise equity value. And it looks like the dividends from those decisions will compound for many years to come.
While basketball was where Sam plied his talents in the past, his approach is more elemental. It is about finding great people, using data, and structuring decisions that create the possibility of huge returns, be they financial or otherwise. I don’t know what Sam will do next, be it investing in companies, running one, or taking over another team, but I know it will be fun to watch.
Please enjoy this unique episode with Sam Hinkie.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History
Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids: Why Being a Great Parent is Less Work and More Fun Than You Think
Links Referenced
International Justice Mission
Show Notes
3:24 – (First Question) Advantages of having a long view and how to structurally harness one
6:08 – Using technology to foster an innovative culture
6:18– Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History
10:16 – Favorite example of applied innovation from Sam’s career
11:34 - Most fun aspect of doing data analytics early on the Houston Rockets
13:38 - Is there anything more important than courage in asymmetric outcomes
14:29 – How does Sam know when to let the art of decision making finish
My guest this week is a bundle of curiosity, and that is one of the nicest things I could say about someone. For several years, Tren Griffin has been writing a weekly blog post that highlights things he has learned from various investors, businesspeople, musicians, comedians, and more. Lately, he has also been tackling individual businesses, and broad topics like scaling, competitive forces, and product market fit.
Tren’s full time job is serving as a director at Microsoft. He’s also worked with or for several well know businesspeople and investors like Craig McCaw, and written several books including one on lessons for entrepreneurs, one on Charlie Munger, and another on negotiation.
We discuss value creation vs. value capture, alpha in investing, sales, hip hop, and why he’d teach high school students about convexity through a drunk driving analogy. I could have talked to Tren for much longer than I did, but sadly, we both had flights to catch.
If you take anything away from this, I hope its just how much fun it is to just be curious about business, and how you can learn a tremendous amount if you just keep reading about the things that interest you and talking to others. Please enjoy my conversation with Tren Griffin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:26 – (First question) – key levers of the universal business model
4:26 – How do you know when you’ve achieved real value creation
6:24 – Importance of value capture and how they enhance value creation
6:31 – Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
9:08 – Price power
10:28 – Are discussions of moats more useful to businesses than to investors
13:12 - What Tren learned during his early years working with Craig McCaw
16:28 – The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
16:36 – The skill of capital allocation
18:37 – How would Buffett and Munger bet on tech if they were starting out today and their philosophy of betting against change
21:57 – How Tren became so fascinated with Charlie and what he’s learned from him
22:32 – The Alchemy of Finance
23:17 – Damn Right: Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger
23:19 – Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger
25:21 – Most memorable moment or lesson from Charlie
28:19 – There are more pockets of Alpha
19:20 – How he thinks about factor investing
31:25 – What are the scalability features that make a business attractive
31:28 – A Dozen Attributes of a Scalable Business
35:37 – Exploring some of the other important levers of businesses, such as subscriptions, customer acquisition cost, and more.
36:20 – Getti
I believe that any investment strategy that will deliver strong returns in the future must evolve. Any strategy should rest on rock solid foundational principles, which change rarely if ever—things like price discipline, or business growth. But the features of the strategy must keep getting better, because the marketplace is incredibly competitive.
That evolution is the topic of today’s conversation with Jason Karp. Jason is the founder and CIO of Tourbillon Capital Partners, a multi-billion dollar asset manager based in New York City.
We cover a ton of interesting ground. We start with what has happened in public and private markets, discussing the role of quants, passive indexes, and value vs. deep value investing. We compare the relative merits of investing in private equities, and where and how opportunities arise.
We then focus in on two interesting private investing trends: the health and wellness sector and the cannabis industry. First, we discuss Hu kitchen and Hu Products, the food business that Jason started with his family several years ago in response to personal health challenges. Second, we discuss his evolved views on Cannabis as an investment space and why it may also represent a massive growth opportunity.
You all know I value transparency, so it is important to note that since I recorded the conversation, my family became an investor in Hu Products. It has been a fascinating means to learn about the food, health, and wellness industry which has grown rapidly in recent years. We were customers of Hu in New York City long before I even knew Jason, which made that part of the conversation especially interesting for me.
This episode re-enforced my believe in pushing one’s investing strategy to adapt to change market conditions and competitive pressures. If we have any hope of beating Vanguard, we can’t ever rest on our laurels.
This was an especially eclectic and fun conversation, I hope you enjoy my chat with Jason Karp.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
3:06 – (First question) – Jason’s view on private markets vs public markets and how his view has evolved
6:02 – Phase of the private markets where companies can achieve huge size and scale without going public
10:31 – Framework of Jason’s value-based investing strategy
13:47 – Reverse discounted cash flow
16:27 – Are there areas of the market that are easier to predict using Jason’s models
20:29 – Tech dominance the longer they are around
21:01 – Jerry Neumann Podcast Episode
22:08 – How markets have changed over Jason’s career
25:58 – Types of edge that you can have in the market
30:00 – Broad examples of sectors that are high-quality, but momentum is hurting them
31:32 – Backstory of Hu Kitchen
38:33 – Investment research into health and wellness
42:56 – State of acquisitions, particularly in consumer product goods
47:13 – Jason’s research into Cannabis
50:43 – The misperceptions of Cannabis
56:30 – Why cannabis is a more important sector to consider than crypto
57:51 – What are the most important levers to growing a business
1:02:24 – Biggest lessons learned in hiring good people
1:06:10 – Investing lessons
1:09:27 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jason
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldG
My guest this week is Chris Douvos, a managing partner at Venture Investment Associates, which allocates 1.6B in behalf of investors.
Chris is the first professional allocator I’ve spoken with who focuses specifically on venture capital funds, so I had a ton of questions for him on how to build a portfolio in an asset class known for uncertain, but often enormous, outcomes.
We discuss the major recent changes in the asset class and where things might be going.
I sought Chris out because while this is an investment style that is full of creativity and hope, I’ve always felt it could use a healthy dose of skepticism and a value investor’s mindset. He delivers in spades as we try to separate the real from the ideal.
We didn’t record it, but Chris’s tour of Palo Alto was one of the most interesting and entertaining hours I’ve spent. He is a student of history and markets, and I look forward to learning more from him in the future.
Please enjoy our conversation
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Pioneering Portfolio Management: An Unconventional Approach to Institutional Investment
Links Referenced
Domino Rally Business Models
All About the Benjamins
Speak Like the Locals
David Salem podcast episode
Curveball
Show Notes
2:18 – (First question) – Four factors that Chris thinks are important for future success of venture firms; portfolio concentration; repeatability; being early; size discipline
7:40 – What the venture landscape looks like today from Chris’s viewpoint
8:32 – Pioneering Portfolio Management: An Unconventional Approach to Institutional Investment
14:07 – Is there a glut of startups making it difficult for investors
17:33 – How does Chris think about the investments that are a bit different from what everyone else is investing in in Silicon Valley
19:17 – Why he focuses on college campuses for innovation
20:54 – The role that geography plays in venture
25:06 – The Four M’s; money, momentum, mentorship, entrepreneurial management
27:13 – Chris’s perspective on crypto currency as a threat to venture capital
31:44 – The idea of venture capitalists as service providers to the companies they are investing in
35:15 - Views on investing in hyper focused VC’s vs those that are generalists and just go after the best opportunities in any sector
39:00 – What hot button areas are of most interest to Chris and why, from an investment standpoint
39:38 – Domino Rally Business Models
42:22 - What can a public market investor learn from a value venture investor who mostly has to rely on qualitative metrics
43:08 – All
My guest today is Arianna Simpson, who has spent her career in an around the world of technology working at startups, Facebook, and now in venture capital as an investor focused on the world of cryptocurrencies.
I met Arianna when I hosted a panel at a big investing conference in New York City and she was one of the panelists. On the panel, I found her style to be very straightforward and compelling. It is clear that she loves to learn and that the best manifestation of her style of learning is investing in technology.
In our conversation we discuss broad trends in crypto that we haven’t spent much time on before: decentralized versus centralized exchanges, privacy coins, and evaluating a found or early team. We build a framework for learning about this new asset class, discuss the importance of travel, and the value of pushing oneself outside of comfort zones.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
Please enjoy our conversation
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:12 – (First question) – How to teach someone else to build an investing philosophy around crypto
4:00 – The major risk factors to investing in crypto
6:28 – best practices for mitigating risk
7:39 – What factors to think about when it comes to whether a token will lose all value or not
8:39 - Taking a pulse of the investment community on crypto
11:36 – How she heard about and became interested in crypto currencies
12:34 – Are people really using crypto currency as a hedge against rampant inflation
13:52 – Investing thesis in the space
14:07 – Arianna’s systems for learning about cryptocurrencies and staying up to date on them
15:19 – Arianna’s take on the issue of increasing transactional through put
16:49 – Layer 1 solutions and making it all scalable on a blockchain
17:56 – her take on the fat protocol thesis
20:32 – Defining utility vs security tokens
21:54 – evaluating different coins
21:02 – Why cross currency swaps are important and how they work
26:17 – What are the chances of a scenario where there’s just one token and everything is built off of that one
28:02 - Comparing centralized and decentralized exchanges
29:47 – How the traditional investing world is going to regulate transaction involving cryptocurrencies and view security around those transactions
31:54– Impact this will have on capital formation
33:44 – Evaluating teams behind crypto companies
35:48 – The importance of gut when evaluating people
38:47 – How Arianna’s global upbringing impacts her thinking on the technology
39:51 – What countries or regions have had the largest impact on Arianna’s investing philosophy
42:41 – Doing things you’re not qualified for
43:59 – Gender imbalance in crypto and what can be done to shift that
45:28 – Most recent thing that has gotten Arianna excited in the crypto space
46:15 – Explaining Zero X
47:33 – How her views on reading have evolved
48:54 - Kindest thing anyone has done for Arianna
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at
We’ve always found that even in public equities, you learn more once you have a live portfolio. One of the best ways to learn is to put some capital at risk.
To learn about the venture capital world, for example, I made an investment in a startup called Ladder, a platform business which connects coaches (fitness trainers to begin with) with consumers who need or want a coach to help them improve their fitness and their health. The idea is by making the entire coaching system more efficient, Ladder can provide consumers with a real person as a coach, but at a fraction of the cost, and provide coaches with both new customers and a much better way of managing their existing businesses. If you are interested in the businesses backstory, you can listen to episode #60 of the podcast to hear founder Brett Maloley’s story and his vision for Ladder.
We are now six months into the launch of the business, with thousands of users and coaches on the platform and run rate revenue past a million dollars. What I was most curious about at this stage, aside from building something useful, was the relationship between a startup and institutional venture capitalists, who are allocating capital from their funds into startups at various stages.
For this episode, I asked two VCs to sit down with me and Brett and treat the conversation as they would a normal pitch meeting, so that we, the audience, can get a peek into their world and the types of questions they ask.
The venture capitalists in question are Thatcher Bell, of CoVenture, and Taylor Greene, of Collaborative Fund. Both have experience evaluating new companies, but also have specifically spent time on companies like ladder, which follow the platform or marketplace model.
While we do cover a little bit of background on the company, I’ve edited most of that part out so we can talk about the business model itself. While I don’t spend much time talking in this episode, you will hear me asking Thatcher and Taylor some questions to better understand why they care or don’t care about certain aspects of a business.
Lastly, I love the data aspect of all this. The interaction between coaches and customers produces a wealth of data of different types, all of which is analyzed and used to improve each aspect of the process. To help gather more data—about onboarding, working with a coach, and tracking results—Brett and the Ladder team set up a little promo code for listeners, which can be accessed by going to joinladder.com and using the promo code ILTB2 as in Invest Like the Best 2.
The first voice that you’ll hear is Thatcher, and the next person asking questions is Taylor. I began by asking Thatcher to give us a bit of background on how he approaches young companies before diving in with questions of his own.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
3:12 – (First Question) – getting a flywheel business going
4:49 – Brett’s background and how that led to the formation of Ladder
7:58 – Breakdown of the product
9:29 – The sign-up process
10:29 – Key problem for each party of the ladder transaction
12:34 – Diving deeper into the problem of being a health coach
14:29 – How does Ladder differentiate itself from other apps that help people locate a trainer
17:01 – A deeper dive into the consumer using this product
20:28 – The accountability factor being the moat for Ladder
24:12 - How successful is the product righ
My guest this week helps me complete the first trilogy of guests on the podcast. His name is Nikhil Kalghatgi. Along with past guests Ali Hamed and Savneet Singh, Nikhil is a partner at the asset management firm CoVenture. If you liked those two conversations, you will love this one—it is somehow even more wide-ranging than the first two.
Nikhil is the CEO of CoVenture Crypto, but he ended up there because of an overarching investing style that he calls moonshot investing, which we explore right from the start and in great detail.
He is obsessed with productivity and happiness, and we spend a long time on those topics. One of the most interesting experiments I’ve heard about on the podcast is his Happiness project, for which he interviewed more than 100 of the wealthiest people in the world. The lessons he gleaned from those conversations are very helpful, and I won’t soon forget the lesson related to sacrifice.
We also discuss asteroid mining, networking, shared experience, and philosophy. Oh and crypto currencies. Nikhil’s take on crypto has always been refreshing to me. In fact the first time I met him he was throwing cold water on a room full of enthusiastic crypto investors. Within crypto we discuss business opportunities, mining, and how new retail and institutional capital will affect the asset class.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments.
Please enjoy this sparkling conversation with Nikhil Kalghatgi.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:42 – (First Question) – What moonshot investing is
4:41 – Creating sustainable differential investment advantage
9:30 – Assessing the market for moonshots
12:15 – Types of people suited for moonshots
13:42 – The Happiness Project
17:45 – Commonalities among successful people
25:15 – The importance of humor in life
17:16 – Recipe for a good joke
28:00 – The night Patrick and Nikhil met
29:17 – His perspective on the world of venture capital
33:26 – What did Nikhil learn from his time at SoftBank
34:52 – Craziest thing Nikhil has done
40:27 – What he took away from his time in military intelligence
46:10 – The idea of manufactured serendipity
47:13 – Nikhil’s approach to investing in cryptocurrency and what he finds interesting about it
53:23 – How Nikhil reconciles the excitement of crypto with the lack of tangible asset
58:10– The timeline of retail and institutional investors becoming more involved in crypto
1:02:43– Exploring their liquidity strategy
1:04:10 – What happens if regulators shut down the cryptomarkets
1:09:48– The role of miners in crypto and how that might change moving forward
1:10:43 – What is the frontier of crypto mining
1:12:31 – What’s the most compelling rabbit hole in crypto
1:16:23 – How would the original creators of crypto currency feel about the current state of the market
1:20:01 – What Nikhil sees as the value proposition for the whole ecosystem.
1:21:00 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Nikhil
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Pa
This week’s episode was the first one that I’ve recorded live. It was the second dinner in what I expect to be a long series where I bring together 30 people from a variety of backgrounds to discuss an interesting and emerging topic, whether that be cryptocurrencies, health, cannabis investing, or some other compelling, emergent thing.
My guest, for the second time on the podcast, is Peter Attia, who has lead one of the more interesting careers I’ve ever come across and who is focused on understanding longevity, health span, and quality of life. We dive into many dimensions of health, scientific research, what we can and cannot learn from evolution and our ancestors, and the 7 primary modalities we should focus on when it comes to our health and well-being.
Excuse the lack of clear audio quality on some of the audience questions—the ones that are a little difficult to hear are fairly short and I felt it was better to include them for some context.
As have all of my conversations with Peter, this one has sparked countless subsequent conversations with my wife, my friends, and my colleagues on what is important and how we can change out behavior to improve our quality of life. My partner and sponsor at these events is Peter Tiboris of Strongpoint Wealth Advisors, who with me loves exploring these topics and understanding how they might affect our lives and out portfolios. Thanks to Peter for helping me realize this series in New York City. Now, please enjoy my live conversation with Peter Attia.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Marvin HAGLER vs Tommy HEARNS: FULL FIGHT
longevity chart
Senescence
Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life
Show Notes
2:07 – (First Question) – Peter’s career journey that led him to where he is today
2:31 – Marvin HAGLER vs Tommy HEARNS: FULL FIGHT
3:46 – How he thinks about longevity
4:37 – Peter’s longevity chart
6:31 – Four things most likely to kill you
7:47 – The quality of your life in the later part of your life
9:03 – Four ways he defines health span; cognition, physical dimension, sense of purpose and social support, capacity to cope with distress or distress tolerance.
10:56 – The problem with clinical studies in analyzing longevity and his mission to get from medicine 1.0 to 2.0 to 3.0
12:15 – Medicine 1.0 and major leaps in longevity
13:01 – Medicine 2.0 and clinical trials
14:52 – Medicine 3.0 and personalized medicine
16:22 – The playbook for living longer
19:26 - Senescence, the cells that are programmed to do bad things
22:17 – Understanding our evolutionary needs to learn what as individuals do to increase lifespan and quality of life as it pertains to food, sleep, and movement.
30:32 – Where evolution doesn’t offer insight into living a better life; mindfulness
33:27 – What are the changes that Peter has made that he’s been doing the longest and most recently
3
[After talking to the brilliant string of guests the past several weeks, Patrick’s brain needed a rest—oh and a concussion didn’t help matters. To hold you over until next week, here is one of the most interesting but less well known conversations from the invest like the best archives.]
This week’s episode is the most unique to date. My guest is Boyd Varty, who grew up in the South African Bush, living among and tracking wild leopards. The main theme of our conversation is tracking, and how the same strategy for pursuing animals in the wild can be applied to all aspects of our lives. Boyd’s family has been tracking animals for four generations, and he is bringing what they have learned to a larger audience around the world.
The episode includes the best answer I’ve ever heard (which comes when I ask Boyd to describe his most memorable experience). We also discuss the dangers of an achievement or goal oriented mindset, and what he learned from spending time with Nelson Mandela as a boy.
This episode is one I hope you share with those you love, because I think Boyd’s ideas will have a profound impact on many who are thinking about what to do with their lives—whether they are young or old.
Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
0:00 – Exploring Boyd’s childhood through a story about a black mamba
3:13 – Looking at the early history of Boyd’s family and their foundation in the bush of South Africa
7:00 – The launch of their safari business
8:06 – How they connected with an ecologist that encouraged them to “partner” with the land and how that led to the leopards of Londolozi
14:25 – Expanding their model to other areas and creating an economy of wildlife.
15:12 – How Boyd discovered what he wanted to do with his life in healing
15:20 – Cathedral of the Wild: An African Journey Home by Boyd Varty
20:49 – The concept of Ubuntu, the African value “I am, because of you.”
25:18 – How Patrick got to meet Boyd
26:15 – Exploring the idea of building your villages and some of the forces that combat that in our daily lives.
31:23 – The
My guest this week is Albert Wenger, a managing partner at Union Square Ventures and the author of the book World After Capital.
Albert studied economics at Harvard and earned a PhD in information from technology, but if you’d asked me to guess before looking those up, I’d have guessed that he studied philosophy because of how widely he has thought about the world and the impact of technology.
Our conversation is about how technology is changing the world from an Industrial Age to a knowledge age. We explore how cryptocurrencies, low cost computing, and regulation will impact our future and why the transition may require delicate care.
I loved this conversation because of my obsession with the concept of scarcity. We explore what has been scarce through time and what may be scarce in the future. Albert is one of the most interesting thinkers I’ve come across and was a pleasure to speak with. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
World After Capital
Show Notes
2:16 – (First Question) – Defining what it means to be human
2:58 – World After Capital
3:56 – Trans-humans vs neo-humans
4:37 – The concept of Qualia
5:25 – Albert’s investment philosophy=
8:27 – How Albert began his exploration into cryptocurrencies
12:59 – Most exciting things blockchains could enable
14:27 – How does Albert view blockchain technology from the view of an venture capital investor
17:00 - Why Albert thinks that the dominate cryptocurrency of our time may not exist just yet and what he is looking for in protocols that will become the leader in the space
20:16 – What are the central functions that will be important in cryptocurrencies
21:22 - The state of regulation in the cryptocurrency space
27:37 – What has Albert most excited for the future of blockchain
29:10 – The idea of universal basic income
32:26 – How do you solve the problem of giving money value in a world of universal basic income
35:00 – How scarcity has changed over time
39:01 – Role of financial capital in the last 200 years of civilization
42:39 – Are we as a society only capable of solving problems once they become an immediate threat
44:15 – Explaining the idea of attention as a scarce resource
47:56 – The two key drivers of change; zero marginal cost distribution and universality of computational power
53:13 - What should we as investors and inventors be focusing on as the new objective function
57:24 – Scariest aspect of this transition into the knowledge age
59:45 – Three basic freedoms we all seek; informational, economic, psychological
1:02:13 – Fermi’s paradox and the scarcity of attention
1:02:56 – How Albert thinks about his own day and wellbeing given all of this information
1:05:01 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Albert
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is another in a recent series of people that makes me want to work harder, learn more, and do more for others. His name is Savneet Singh, and he has already accomplished a remarkable amount in the worlds of business and investing. He’s preferred to keep a bit of a low profile, but I’m hoping, for everyone’s sake, to change that a little bit.
Savneet has invested in unique things like Spanish real estate, famous startups like Uber, cryptocurrencies before they were cool, and even websites. He founded and built a fintech company. And now, he both a partner at the wide-ranging investment firm CoVenture, with my previous guest Ali Hamed, and the co-founder of Tera Holdings, which is trying to become the Berkshire Hathaway of software companies.
To say this conversation is wide-ranging is an understatement. What’s neat is that my favorite parts aren’t even on investing, but are instead on principles for living.
Savneet is one of the best people I’ve met in this journey. I’ve had several other conversations with him with shockingly low overlap with the one you are about to hear—a testament to his active and curious mind. I hope you enjoy learning from him as much as I have.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Ali Hamed podcast episolde
The VERY simple bear case for bitcoin
Owl Mountain
Books Referenced
Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist
The Gorilla Game: Picking Winners in High Technology
Show Notes
2:30 – (First Question) – How Savneet started thinking about Spanish real estate.
4:29 – Why Airbnb could be the most impactful and interesting of the companies like this
5:25 – Savneet’s early entrepreneurial ventures
6:42 – His big investing influences
7:02 – Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist
7:40 – What did Savneet learn in his two years on the sell-side of Wall Street
8:50 – How the financial crisis impacted Savneet
10:11 – The entrepreneurial journey and GBI
11:40 – Savneet’s observations on the FinTech space and investing in it
14:59 – How we can use FinTech to get into an actual new business
16:22 – His thoughts on venture capital style investing
18:36 – Transition out of GBI into his partnership with Ali Hamed
20:46 – What Savneet took from his tennis career
22:13 – The impactful things that his parents did for him
23:23 – How Savneet thinks about justice in his life
24:39 – Most memorable trip Savneet took
25:50 - Why you have to take action
26:19 – Why value investing struck a chord with Savneet
27:22 – How culture plays an important role in the compounding companies he would invest in
28:14 – Defining the proper long-term mindset when starting a company
It has been a while since we discussed private equity on the show, so I was excited for this week’s conversation. My guest is Dan Rasmussen, the founder of Verdad advisers. Dan worked in private equity and has spent years studying the entire field.
Dan identified several key drivers of private equity’s outsized returns: size, value, and leverage. His firm uses these factors as a starting point to build a portfolio of public equities that behave like their private brethren.
We cover a ton of ground, discussing the prospective returns for equities, forecasting, and tons of investing strategies.
Please enjoy this conversation with Dan Rasmussen.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Subscribe to Dan
The Gospel According to Michael Porter
Tobias Carlisle
Steven Pinker
E.O. Wilson
Books Referenced
What Works on Wall Street, Fourth Edition: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time
Quantitative Value, + Web Site: A Practitioner's Guide to Automating Intelligent Investment and Eliminating Behavioral Errors
Expert Political Judgment: How Good Is It? How Can We Know?
Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction
Show Notes
2:03 – (First Question) – The current state of private equity investing
4:09 – The three myths of private equity
6:51 – Taking a deeper dive into the myth of growth through operational improvements
9:29 – What Works on Wall Street, Fourth Edition: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time
11:25 – Valuations for private market investment and where they’re going
14:03 – Private equity companies that have a higher chance of delivering results that exceed expectation
16:39 – Other observations on the private equity space that would be interesting to investors considering the asset class
19:33 – Importance of being very purposeful in picking your reference classes
19:42 – Subscribe to Dan
22:03 – How do the lessons Dan has learned in private equity translate to his investment strategies
25:
My guest this week, back for a second conversation, is Pat Dorsey. Pat ran equity research at Morningstar before leaving to start his own asset management company: Dorsey Asset Management. His areas of deep interest are competitive advantage and capital allocation. He believes that capital allocation should be in service of competitive advantage and invests in a concentrated portfolio that he and his team feel embody these ideas.
If you have not already, I strongly recommend listening to our first conversation, which is a sort of crash course on moats. In this conversation, we cover different ground. We spend much more time on individual stocks like Facebook, Google, and Chegg, using them as examples to explore Pat’s investment philosophy and strategy.
Across a few conversations with Pat, I can tell he is in love with this stuff, and I always enjoy talking to investors like him who so passionately pursue and edge. Please enjoy round two with Pat Dorsey.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Pat Dorsey's first appearance on the podcast
HQ - Live Trivia Game Show
Books Referenced
World After Capital
Principles: Life and Work
Show Notes
2:15 – (First Question) – Pat’s methods for valuing a business
4:17 – Is this process done after they would first identify potential targets for investment
5:11 – Pat’s take on how the market classifies stocks as growth vs value
6:40 – Qualitative insights and why the market can’t price them very accurately
9:57 – The business model behind zero marginal cost distribution business model
12:00 – Network effects and the potential downside to them down the road
13:54 – Valuing Facebook as a business heavily reliant on network effects
16:45 – What would have to change for Pat’s position on Facebook to radically change
18:58 – Most important lessons that a smaller/private business could learn from Facebook or Google’s business models
19:48 – Where is Amazon in Pat’s portfolio
20:27 – Primary research and the value that is derived from it
22:06 – An example of where primary research led to a big surprise about a company
24:05 – The value of travel in this business, starting with recent travel to India
26:05 – Why are they targeting India and Japan
27:24 – How does he think about the risk of investing in foreign markets
29:52 – His thinking on relative vs absolute market share
31:26 – Exploring the SaaS business model
34:35 – The application of moats and pricing power with SaaS businesses
34:36 – Pat Dorsey's first appearance on the podcast
36:17 – Understanding how to evaluate a SaaS or subscription-based business (Lifetime Value of the Customer vs Acquisition Cost)
40:07 – Other models that Pat explores and how to screen for them
41:37 – How does he parse the difference between attention and demand
43:19 – How would Pat monetize something like HQ - Live Trivia Game Show
Long-time listeners will have heard me joke before that this podcast should really be called “this is who are you up against.” I’ve been waiting for the right episode to deploy the joke as a title, and this week we have it.
The joke is meant to convey how incredibly impressive these people are who we get to hear from every week. My guest this week is Josh Wolfe, a founding and managing partner at Lux Capital in New York City. Lux is a venture capital firm, but a highly unique one. They’ve spent more time in hard sciences and interesting nooks and crannies of the market than the typical VC firm.
Some of investing is zero sum: my outperformance is someone else’s underperformance. Sometimes, though, investing is positive sum. The combination of capital, ideas, people, drive, and raw energy leads to amazing new things.
I think the best investing and best investors of the future will be more collaborative than competitive. After finishing with Josh, I couldn’t stop thinking “god, do I want to be involved with whatever he’s doing, if only just to learn.”
This conversation made me rethink my joke “this is who are you up against.” Now I won’t think of it as a zero-sum joke, but instead as a reminder: this is the kind of person who is out there. You better find your niche, and still be the absolute best you can within that niche.
Please enjoy this killer conversation with Josh Wolfe. We cover just about everything.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Investing in Biofuels or Biofools?
Ali Hamed podcast
Alex Moazed podcast
Andy Rachleff podcast
Popplet
@wolfejosh
Books Referenced
Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
World After Capital
Show Notes
2:35 – (First Question) – Lux Capital and the kind of investments they have made over the years
5:42 – The formation of the investment philosophy for Lux
8:17 – Why randomness and optionality are important cornerstones to the philosophy
9:52 – Investment philosophy 100-0-100 (ambition, arrogance, intellectual humility)
10:40 – How Josh manages his time and attention
12:53 – Investing in Biofuels or Biofools?
13:29 – Obsession with nuclear
15:15 – Investment in metamaterials
18:28 – Focus on autonomous vehicles
21:02 – How all of these gambles are viewed by Josh’s investors
22:56 – Tattoo technology
24:20 – Ali Hamed podcast
24:36 – How Josh evaluates people when considering early stage investments
24:45 – Alex Moazed podcast
24:49 –
My guest this week is Harvey Sawikin, a co-founder and lead portfolio manager at Firebird Management, which manages funds dedicated to investing in emerging market equities. Emerging markets are often a blind spot for investors of all types: most of us have never traveled to the far east or eastern Europe, where many of the thousands of emerging market public equities operate.
I’ve been very lucky to travel quite a bit in Asia and the Middle East, but never to eastern Europe, which where Firebird focuses its investments. Harvey and I discuss his 24 years of experience evaluating emerging and frontier market countries, industries, and individual stocks. We discuss his experience buying privatization vouchers in Russia, banks in the Baltics, and how today’s emerging market opportunity set compares to the past.
Like so many of these conversations with investors who have earned significant excess returns, its clear investing opportunities in emerging markets are often disguised. Finding them requires risk, hard work, discipline, and a dose of luck and timing. Please enjoy my conversation with Harvey on Emerging Market Opportunities.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Via
Books Referenced
The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel
Education of Rick Green, Esquire
Show Notes
2:26 – (First Question) – Most memorable travel experience since the beginning of Firebird
5:41 - How Harvey got interested in emerging markets investing, specifically, Eastern Europe and Russia
10:00 – How does the landscape for emerging markets today compare to when he first started
12:30 – What are the factors of an emerging market to look at and why do some not pan out
15:04 – Do countries have to meet minimum criteria before Harvey and his team will even start to do work on an emerging market
17:33 – How does Harvey distinguish between frontier and emerging markets
18:37 – Thoughts on the access points that regular investors have into emerging markets, such as ETF’s and Mutual Funds
23:48 – How does Harvey think about risk exposure when constructing a portfolio
25:56 – Looking at the bottom up part of the equation, what factors within a company or sector are considered as part of the investing decision
31:05 – Dividends in emerging markets
33:09 – How do US equities stack up as an investment against fixed income
34:53 - The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel
36:52 - How do US equities stack up as an investment against emerging markets
39:38 – What type of investor allocate funds to emerging markets
42:37 – The value of travel in understanding emerging markets
50:19 – Biggest mistakes that emerging market investors make
54:49 – What in today’s markets has the smell of opportunity
55:53 – Harvey’s interest in Via
56:58 – Interest in buyin
My guest this week is Anthony Pompliano. Pomp began his career in the military, and has since been a successful entrepreneur, worked as a head of growth at Facebook, and started Full Tilt Capital, an early stage investing firm in North Carolina.
This conversation has three memorable sections. Early on, we discuss the four traits Pomp looks for in founders, which we cover in detail. These double as traits that are important when hiring anyone. Next, we discuss his unique take on cryptocurrencies, where he is excited about the prospects for tokenized securities. Finally, we explore a unique media company, Bar Stool Sports, and what makes it such a powerful brand.
Please enjoy our somewhat abbreviated discussion and know we will continue the conversation soon.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Dave Portnoy and Barstool Sports’ Secret Billion Dollar Plan
Books Referenced
Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don't Matter
Show Notes
2:06 - (First Question) – Recap of Anthony’s military career
4:07 – Most memorable experience while deployed
5:27 – Transition out of the military and how it shaped his investing philosophy
11:19 – investing philosophy of Full Tilt, starting with deal economics
10:00 – Attributes of an ideal founder
13:50 - Where you actual learn the attributes that make you a good founder
14:40 – Time that Anthony has taken the biggest risk in life
16:45 – What is the viewpoint that Full Tilt has today that gives it Alpha in the market
18:47 – Why tokenized securities could be advantageous for investors in a company
19:51 – Anthony’s explanation of a tokenized security and what needs to happen for this idea to be fully realized in the market
22:22 – What could be the impact on the markets of making liquidity in venture so readily available
24:39 – What are tokenized securities actually invested in in the real world
27:42 – What does Anthony think about the commodity risk
29:04 – Describing Standard American Mining, a company they incubated
29:58 – Exploring the shift from a CPU world to a GPU world
31:49 – Getting involved in places where we haven’t caught up with the rest of the world
33:05 – Anthony’s interest in Barstool Sports
33:11 – Dave Portnoy and Barstool Sports’ Secret Billion Dollar Plan
37:09 – Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don't Matter
39:02 – What lessons from Full Tilt world would Anthony share with others in the more traditional business world
40:35 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Anthony
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Dr. Ben Hunt, the chief investment strategist at Salient and the author of the extremely popular epsilon theory.
I’ve always enjoyed Ben’s writing style, particularly his use of farm and animal based analogies to describe market phenomenon.
In this conversation, we discuss his recent post the three body problem, why growth has been beating value, and why a strategy that he calls profound agnosticism—a take on risk parity—may be the most appropriate investing strategy in what he views as a very uncertain world. We also discuss some of his favorite lessons from the farm.
Please enjoy our conversation!
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
The Three-Body Problem
Show Notes
1:54 - (First Question) – Applying the three-body problem to investing
7:24 – Fundamental view of investing, Profound Agnosticism
8:24 – Why has value done so poorly relative to growth in this framework
11:01 - Ben’s thoughts on why value has been underperforming for so long
13:52 – Investors should be able to adapt
17:49 – Thoughts on the risk parity approach
23:23 – Ben’s strategy for working with several teams
26:48 – What’s the best way to gain an edge, top down factors vs company/bond individual analysis
28:29 – How do you measure risk amid the large amount of uncertainty that exists in markets
32:40 – How does Ben personally think about investing
34:41 – Ben’s farm and the investing lessons learned by some of the animals
39:55 – How bees can plan out their entire work structure by the angle of the sun
42:58 – Defining basis risk
44:59 – Personal risk vs portfolio risk
49:30 – The concept of fingernail clean and our perception of what eggs are
53:57 – How ETFs are like mass produced eggs
54:56 – Exploring the idea of quality vs scaling
58:39 – What is the current challenge/puzzle that Ben is focused on right now
1:01:59 – What is Ben looking for when looking into game theory and applying it to the words that are published and spoken about investing
1:03:57 – Most memorable day on Ben’s farm
1:05:04 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ben
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Preston Byrne. Preston is vocal critic of crazy prices and projects in the world cryptocurrencies. His background is in the legal world and also as a founder and former COO of Monax, which made the first open-source permissioned blockchain client.
As Preston says, he is a “blockchain without bitcoin” guy, who believes that this crypto mania will end in some sort of apocalypse for token holders and ICO issuers .
We tackle several issues, from his broad skepticism of crypto assets, to the potential regulatory reaction from major governments, to types of coins like stable coins, which Preston views as analogous to perpetual motion machines.
Please enjoy our conversation and for any crypto investors out there, let me know if this conversation affects your opinion of the investing prospects for cryptocurrencies.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Bitcoin white paper
The Bear Case for Crypto
Hash Power series
Zero Hedge
Preston tweet on Reverse network effect
Show Notes
2:12 - (First Question) –Ponzi scheme vs pyramid scheme vs Nakimoto scheme
5:29 – Why there are regulatory challenges to cryptocurrency
5:33 – The Bear Case for Crypto
9:59 – Who are the most influential people supporting this and how are they swaying the regulatory minefield on this issue
10:28 – Hash Power series
13:23 – Looking into the idea of a digital asset and the difference between blockchain and the token itself
16:09 – What about the idea that cryptocurrency’s only feature is that it’s censorship resistant
18:39 – Why cryptocurrencies become less usable the more successful they are
18:59 – Zero Hedge
21:04 – Why can’t we rely on offchain solutions to solve the scaling issue
22:29 – The idea of bubbles and what happens next in this one
25:41 – What are the incentives to build technology to support cryptocurrencies
29:23 – Explaining Ripple
31:21 – What would precipitate a massive reversal in the inflated valuations of cryptocurrencies
34:52 – Understanding reverse network effects
34:36 – Preston tweet on Reverse network effect
37:45 – The principles behind Stablecoin
42:20 – What has been the greatest lesson that Preston has learned about blockchain he wish he knew when he first got started
44:05 – How embedded will blockchain be by 2024/2025
45:12 – ICO’s, why Preston is not a fan and if there are any positives to them
50:20 – What are the conditions under which these things will be viewed legally.
54:00 – Preston’s history owning cryptocurrencies
55:35 – What has Preston most excited in the space
59:02 – Utility settlement coin
1:00:36 – Why the fascination with m
I have a special request this week: share this episode with every curious person in your life.
The conversation, with a 26-year old investor named Ali Hamed, serves as an example of what’s possible when you think creatively.
Ali views the world with a fresh set of eyes, and has already become an expert at identifying new investment opportunities where others have not. As the second prodigy 26 year old in as many weeks on the podcast, these young guns are making me feel like an ancient 32 year old.
We talk a lot about “alpha” in our world, earning returns better than the market. But the key word in that last sentence isn’t alpha, it’s earning. Hopefully you, like me, will use this conversation as a reminder of what it takes to earn differentiated returns. It’s not just the hard work, but also the mindset. We explore many examples of how to create new investment opportunities, from rolling up Instagram accounts, to financing perishable fruit like watermelons, to heavy machinery software.
Please enjoy this special conversation with Ali Hamed. Follow him and his partners. And then go figure out how to earn success yourself in whatever it is you do by helping other people solve problems with empathy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine
Links Referenced
Sheel Tyle Podcast
Seed Investing is a B2C Business, While Growth Stage investing is a B2B Business
Ira Judelson podcast
Free Content and Digital Media Are Increasing Socio-Economic Disparity
Show Notes
2:24 - (First Question) Ali’s investment philosophy
3:33 – History of Coventure and its unique structure
6:30 – The story of how Coventure was seeded
12:29 – What makes cost of capital such an interesting topic for Ali
14:13 – Exploring fee structures and the expectations for return in the current environment
17:02 – The current state of the VC world
21:42 – Ali’s investment process on the VC side
25:32 – What other requirements are there for Ali to make a VC investment
28:00 – Understanding the difference between judgement and empathy in founders
28:20 – The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine
29:47 – Dealing with LP’s
32:47 – Sheel Tyle Podcast
33:39 – At one point did Ali feel the most personally at risk in his career
37:55 – Why did they get involved in cryptocurrency
43:30 – What excites Ali most about crypto
46:09 – Lending as an alternative way to invest in businesses
48:09 – An overview of their lending business
50:21 – How does deal flow and sourcing work in these arrangements
52:54 – How much encroachment will Ali face from competitors
54:28 – Exploring the idea of valuing and buying
My guest this week is Sheel Tyle, who at just 26 years old has already had a successful career in venture capital. His most recent stint was as the co-head of the seed investing business at NEA, the largest venture capital firm in the world, where Sheel was also a partner. Now, Sheel has set off on his own, setting up his own firm called Amplo and having recently raised a $100M venture fund where he is the sole general partner. He aims to invest with young, mission driven entrepreneurs with a global focus. As you can tell from this resume, which also includes a degree from Stanford and a law degree from Harvard, this is one ambitious guy.
There are several aspects of this conversation that will really stick with me, specifically his points on networking and the smartest decision that he’s seen entrepreneurs make. I also loved our discussion of some of the same trends we explored last week with Chris Dixon—topics like drones, automated cars, and blockchain, where Sheel often has a different take than the consensus.
Please enjoy my conversation on Africa, entrepreneurship, venture capital trends, technology, and more with Sheel Tyle.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World
Links Referenced
Andela
OneConcern
Andy Rachleff Podcast Episode
Mark43
TechCrunch
VentureBeat
Bill Draper (author)
Show Notes
2:20 - (First Question) Sheel’s upbringing and how it shaped his interest in Africa
4:43 – The outlook for Africa
6:10 – Primary differences in valuations and momentum in Africa vs opportunities in other places which Sheel conveys through the story of Andela
10:45 – The perspective returns of venture capital investments
15:16 – Does the hyperfroth in ICO’s serve as a threat to traditional venture capital
17:53 – Where Sheel falls on the importance of networking in terms of his venture capital interests
20:38 – The stronger impact of a smaller, more tight-knit network
22:46 – Sheel’s feelings on driverless cars and the timeline for this sector
27:17 – What are the positive side effects of driverless cars taking over
29:01 – What is the best way to invest in driverless cars from a venture capital standpoint
31:30 – Sheel’s overrated/underrated take on different technology spaces
31:30 – VR/AR
32:21 – Blockchain
32:54 – Machine learning/AI
33:41 – Drones
34:53 – Other categories that we should be thinking about
36:54 – OneConcern
38:21 – Should entrepreneurs be raising more money over future liquidity concerns of the venture capital markets
39:40 – What are the places that Sheel can help a founder in the early stage formation of the company
My guest this week is Chris Dixon, who has written some of my favorite essays on technology and venture investing. Chris is a prolific investor and thinker, having been an entrepreneur, angel investor, and now partner at the well-known venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
Our conversation focuses on major trends in technology, including cryptocurrencies and the future of autonomous vehicles and drones.
Chris has a rule of thumb for technology trends: find out what smart people are working on during the weekend, and you’ll know what other will be doing years in the future. After surveying his old essays, it’s clear you use Chris’s writings as a similar litmus test.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
Please enjoy this great conversation with Chris Dixon on the future of tech.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages
Who Controls the Internet?: Illusions of a Borderless World
Links Referenced
Douglas Hofstadter
Daniel Dennett
How Aristotle Created the Computer
New Yorker Cover on automation
The World of Numbers website
Jerry Neumann podcast episode
David Tisch podcast
ERC-20 Token Standard
Eleven Reasons To Be Excited About The Future of Technology
Show Notes
2:04 (First Question) – Why did Chris choose to study philosophy
2:23 – Douglas Hofstadter
2:24 – Daniel Dennett
3:20 – How Aristotle Created the Computer
3:35 – Where has his thinking and viewpoints changed the most having been in the real world
4:42 – What is the real driving force behind all of the technology that we are creating and will automation kill all of the jobs
6:16 – New Yorker Cover on automation
6:57 – The World of Numbers website
8:36 – A look at his history in networks and network design
11:03 – Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamic
So far I’ve spent no time in the podcast discussing real estate, so I was excited to get the chance to talk to the team at Sorin Capital, a billion dollar hedge fund which specializes in commercial real estate, REITs, and commercial mortgage backed securities. Sorin is lead by Jim Higgins, who founded the firm, and Tom Digan, who coincidentally was a college classmate of mine at Notre Dame.
The conversation has two unique angles. The first, which starts about 20 minutes into the conversation after we introduce the sector and opportunity set, is a deep dive into a specific trade: a fairly contrarian take on the retail industry, specifically comparing different types of retail real estate. As you’ll hear, the dispersion of mispricings in the sector may be huge, creating opportunities for specialists to earn real alpha by doing bottom up work.
The second angle we explore is what I believe to be a strong model for the future of asset management businesses, that is tailoring products, strategies, and even specific trades to the needs and risk-return profiles that clients want and need, instead of just selling a one-size-fits-all comingled fund.
You’ve probably heard me joke that this podcast should be called “This is who you are up against,” and this episode is a good example. I always enjoy exploring a niche part of the market, and this conversation on real estate is a perfect example of the type of work that firms do on behalf of their clients. Please enjoy my conversation with the team from Sorin Capital.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Ugly Americans: The True Story of the Ivy League Cowboys Who Raided the Asian Markets for Millions
Liars Poker
Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco
Show Notes
2:43 - (First Question) –Outline the Real Estate Investment Trust world and what the assets and total value look like
6:10 – What does the profile of investors in the space look like compared to investors in the broader debt markets
9:43 – What are the characteristics of a liquid real estate portfolio that make them so attractive to investors
10:54 – Looking at the history of Sorin Capital and how the business has evolved to where it is today
12:35 – Understanding the idea of securitization of commercial mortgages
17:01 – What really led to the formation of Sorin after working for Bear Stearns
20:19 – Looking at the retail sector in real estate in the scope of actual trades that are being made
25:08 – From an investing standpoint, how do you craft a portfolio that takes advantage of the real estate space as retail appears to be suffering on the surface
30:09 – The different type of real estate investments in the retail sectors and what piece of the pie do they make up
32:43 – How does the business model of the mall work and why is it so connected to the department stores
34:08 – What is the future of malls itself with the big changes happening to the legacy stores that helped them proliferate
37:44 – Why won’t the same thing tha
My guest this week is Franklin Foer, the author the recently published book “World Without Mind.” The topic of our conversation is one that I’ve been thinking through often this past year: the impact that large technology companies have on our minds and behavior. This conversation is only indirectly related to markets, but given that the companies we discuss are now several of the largest by market cap in the global stock market, what happens to them likely impacts all of our portfolios whether we own them or not. Given that these companies compete for our attention and dollars, they also affect our businesses.
As an example, My friend Brent Beshore and his team at Adventures wrote a long and incredibly thoughtful piece on how they think about Amazon as a force in the market, and how they plan on navigating around such a fierce competitor.
Franklin’s book, especially the early history, is very thought-provoking, so it was no surprise that our conversation was too. Please enjoy our talk on the tech giants.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Free PDF of The Whole Earth Catalog
Amazon Must Be Stopped (New Republic)
Hannah Arendt Philosophy
Time Well Spent
Books Referenced
World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech
The Whole Earth Catalog
The Lessons of History
Show Notes
1:40 - (First Question) – As part of Jonathan’s new book, World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech, exploring the idea of the whole earth catalogue.
4:09 – The Whole Earth Catalog
4:36 – Free PDF of The Whole Earth Catalog
4:49 – What happened next for Brand and how he laid the early groundwork for today’s modern Silicon Valley
7:43 – Franklin’s personal journey into writing this book
10:00 – Amazon Must Be Stopped (New Republic)
11:48 – Thoughts on the advancement of technology in our world
15:52 - Filling the gap into Brand’s influence on Silicon Valley from the early 80’s to today
18:57 – How does the current state of the free internet without gatekeepers hold up for the next generation
20:53 – Is there a chance that technology’s unlimited mining of our attention is not the horrible thing we often make it out to be
24:47 – What are the ways we can have a free internet and other technologies, but not let them get perverted
28:09 – How will people respond to our tech monopolies
31:54 –
My guest this week is Adam Ludwin, the founder and CEO of Chain, a blockchain technology company targeted at large enterprises. Before shifting his career to focus solely on crypto, Adam was a venture capitalist focused on FinTech, which is how he came across the Bitcoin whitepaper earlier than most. I called this episode “a Sober View on Crypto” because Adam’s take is so balanced. He is certainly long crypto, both in his portfolio and career, but he is very skeptical of much of what is happening in the ecosystem today. For example, he offers the best reason I’ve heard for not launching an ICO or investing in them.
If you haven’t read Adam’s widely shared open letter to Jamie Dimon, it has become a must-read piece for crypto-enthusiasts. Read it as soon as you can.
I edited out an earlier chunk of our conversation as it was largely introductory. If you need a broader introduction to cryptocurrencies, I suggest starting with episode one of Hash Power and working your way forward. One key insight from Adam in our offline discussion what how cryptocurrencies function very much like equities or bonds. Just as equity financing enables the activity of joint stock corporations, cryptocurrencies enable activity in decentralized applications. We pick up our discussion with Adam discussing whether anyone really uses these decentralized apps today.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:35 - (First Question) – Will anyone use cryptocurrency in the real world at a large scale
3:43 – The idea of censorship resistance
12:29 – Will society be accepting of this technology
14:39 – Why decentralized apps can’t be acquired
18:24 – The idea of exponential vs linear improvements on a trend and if there are limits to the growth of decentralized technologies
23:26 – The struggle with early adaption of blockchain
25:41 – Best application for bitcoin, storing value
29:52 – Adam’s introduction to cryptoassets and how his thinking has evolved in the space
36:44 – In this hyper frothy market, is there a situation that makes an ICO exciting to Adam
43:51 – Even though it appears to be easy money, Adam explains why you shouldn’t just create an ICO
50:59 – A look at what Chain is doing and what Adam is excited about
53:23 – How does what Adam is working on help to improve the ledger of his clients
1:02:00 – Why you can easily be an early investor in crypto currency
1:04:27 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Adam
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Joanne Wilson, a New York City based angel investor, writer, podcaster, trend spotter, and self-described “woman around town.” Joanne has had a multifaceted and winding career, and began angel investing a decade ago when she put money into NYC-based media company Curbed media which we discuss in detail. Since then, she’s invested in more than 90 companies and been pitched by countless more. She is an instantly likeable person, you can literally tell in 10 seconds you are going to have a great conversation, so it’s no surprise that part of what makes her unique among angels is a very close relationship with many of the founders she backs.
We cover a lot of ground. We talk about the personality traits of entrepreneurs, Joanne’s evolving investment style, her focus on female founders, fashion, business models, restaurants and a lot more. Please my conversation with the Gotham Gal, Joanne Wilson.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:12 - (First Question) – How does Joanne orient herself towards what’s new, in the context of food in New York city
4:10 – Can that mindset of forward thinking be cultivated
5:18 – Latest thing that got Joanne excited before everyone else
6:57 – Why the new frontier is going niche and local
10:23 – Joanne’s first investment
11:48 – Why do VC’s typically stay away from media
12:55 – How Joanne got into her first investment as a customer
14:11 – What is the skillset of making money that Joanne as
14:45 – Can you sense if a founder has that innate ability to just make money
17:04 – Are there common traits in founders
18:07 – Joanne’s progression into angel investing after her first investment
19:58 – Red flags when looking at investments
20:40 – Impression on growth without goals
23:30 – Trends among Joanne’s investments
25:56 – How much knowledge is transferrable between different industries that Joanne invests in
27:06 – The dichotomy and unique challenges between raising capital with female founders vs male founders
29:07 – How does Joanne balance her time and stay engaged with all of her investments
30:50 – Time when Joanne has helped a founder side step a pothole
31:35 – Most memorable first impression Joanne experienced
35:05 – How often does someone not have the right idea but is still worth investing in
37:19 – Why Joanne won’t start a fund
38:22 – Data on female founders returns and time
40:38 – Criteria for identifying emerging trends, especially in the more creative/artistic fields
43:29 – The changing costs of launching a brand, in the contest of fashion
47:11 – What has Joanne most excited right now
48:11 – Interesting facts about the fashion business
52:01 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Joanne
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week’s conversation is an ode to old school, fundamental public market investing. My conversation is with IMC’s Connor Leonard, who spends most waking hours thinking and reading about markets. His mandate is to invest purely as if it was his own money, with no pressure to hug a benchmark, and no pressure to do much of anything other than earn strong long-term returns.
The portfolio that results from this approach is highly concentrated and unique. Connor’s strategy is to sort companies into four categories based on their type of sustainable competitive advantage. As you’ll hear, the vast majority fall into the first category, which means they don’t have such an advantage and therefore should be largely set aside.
We spend the majority of our conversation talking about the other three categories: 1) companies with a legacy moat, 2) companies with a re-investment moat, and 3) an interesting category Connor calls “capital light compounders,” which we explore in detail.
When you step back and think about public markets, you realize how amazing it is that we can, from afar, buy an interest in so many companies around the world. A select few go on to deliver outstanding returns. This conversation highlights how hard that can be, but also how fun and ultimately rewarding. Please enjoy my talk with Connor Leonard.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Margin of Safety: Risk-Averse Value Investing Strategies for the Thoughtful Investor
The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
Links Referenced
Pat Dorsey Podcast Episode
David Tisch podcast
Will Thorndike Podcast episode
Show Notes
2:31 - (First Question) – Trends in value investing
2:52 – Margin of Safety: Risk-Averse Value Investing Strategies for the Thoughtful Investor
4:43 – A look at Connor’s backstory and the history of IMC, parent company of Golden Corral
8:01 – Why Connor loves the public markets so much
9:21 – The concept of intrinsic value when looking at companies
12:36 – How Connor categorizes MOATS
13:21 – Pat Dorsey Podcast Episode
14:27 – Legacy MOATS
16:11 – Reinvestment MOATS
17:58 – Capital light compounder MOAT
20:00 – Why classifieds are an interesting business model
25:12 – Looking at platform businesses
26:56 – Looking at companies in the 500 million to 5 billion range and what makes it so enticing
30:34 – What is the process that gets Connor to find investment opportunities
35:53 – David Tisch podcast
36:15 – How Con
My guest this week is unique. As you will hear early and often, he is programmed to go his own way, to, as he says, go one way when everyone else is going another. His name is Dhani Jones, a name I knew as a Notre Dame football fan, because he won a championship with our arch-rivals, the University of Michigan, in the late 90’s. Dhani went on to a long and successful career in the NFL, but even more interesting has been his many pursuits in business and investing outside of football. Like my conversation with Tim Urban, I’ll remember this conversation as a reminder to use a first principles mindset. Dhani seems to have this fresh mindset baked into his character, and as you’ll hear this has led to many a great adventure. Please enjoy my conversation with athlete, businessman, investor, philanthropist, movie buff, and bowtie wearer, Dhani Jones.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:30 - (First Question) – A introduction into Dhani Jones and everything he’s done
5:35 – How did Dhani change throughout his football career
9:55 – The power of your mind in every aspect of life
10:34 – Most memorable experience in the NFL
13:10 – Making the transition from the NFL to the business world
18:20 – Looking at Bowtie Cause
22:40 – The role of creative agencies in Dhani’s ventures and why story telling is so important for him
26:48 – Looking at some of the TV stuff that Dhani has done, particularly around travel
28:21 – Dhani’s favorite movie
30:35 – Back to the joy of travel and “Dhani Tackles the Globe.”
36:54 – How does Dhani think about risk
38:56 – Some of the other sports and activities Dhani did while filming his show
41:45 – The psychological benefit of travel in your personal and business life
44:41 – Looking into the business part of Dhani’s career
51:19 – How to expand diversity in the financial world
54:56 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Dhani
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This episode is a continuation of the Hash Power series. It is the first of what we will call a Hash Power single—a series of conversations each with a single guest on a specific topic. In this case my guest is Chris Burniske, and the topic is cryptoasset valuation. This conversation is loaded with information, I think you are going to love it.
Chris recently released book called Cryptoassets, which is a must read for those interested in this field. Chris was at one point the only tradintional buy side analyst covering bitcoin, and is now a partner at a new crypto firm called Placeholder. Chris has developed new frameworks for evaluating and valuing cryptocurrencies, marrying techniques and ways of thinking for several different asset classes to assess the newest asset class. Chris prefers the term cryptoassets because as you’ll hear, several of these tokens aren’t really currencies at all. We discuss the differences between cryptocurrencies, cryptocommodities, and cryptotokens. We begin our conversation with a deep dive into the equation of exchange, which Chris has been using as a starting point for understanding utility value.
You can see all crypto related conversations at investorfieldguide.com/Hashpower. Please enjoy this conversation with Chris Burniske.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor's Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond
Links Referenced
Hash Power Podcast Documentary
Nic Carter (twitter)
Cryptoasset Valuations (Medium)
Show Notes
4:58 - (First Question) – Chris’s overall method for evaluating cryptocurrencies
5:14– Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor's Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond
6:47 – The equation exchange
11:19 – Bonding
12:35 – How bonding may represent a more efficient way of representing consensus over proof of work
14:29 – Why the amount being bonded and held should be taken out of the float
16:58 – Using bitcoin as an example to figure out remittances in the PQ side
18:31 – Looking at the velocity of various crypto-assets
21:04 – Chris’s impression of the different way of categorizing various crypto assets
24:37 – Explaining Auger as an example of a cryptotoken
25:38 – How could these networks be impacted by not having any censorship
27:57 – Exploring the gap between expectation vs reality in the value of crypto currency
30:43 – Other ways of valuing these crypto assets
30:50 – Hash Power Podcast Documentary
33:32 – Explaining the idea of billion dollar a day onchain transactions
36:05 – How to measure the value of the underlying network
3
My guest this week is Brad Katsuyama, the founder of the IEX exchange and protagonist of Michael Lewis’s famous book Flash Boys, which chronicled the role of high frequency trading in markets.
This conversation was yet another reminder of how complicated markets can be, and that very few participants know all aspects of the process well. Brad and I get deep into the history behind his company, and the ways in which markets and exchanges have evolved, better or worse.
One of my favorite parts of this conversation was our exploration of entrepreneurship. Brad’s whole story is one that entrepreneurs will appreciate, and is full of lessons for those aspiring to start their own business.
Please enjoy my conversation with Brad Katsuyama
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt
Show Notes
2:10 – (First Question) Brad’s original discovery of a latency problem in trading stocks
12:51 – how the business model of the NASDAQ and exchanges and how it may surprise people
14:16 – The edge that exchanges are now monetizing
16:46 – How Brad went from finding a solution to his current firm
20:18 – Types of high frequency traders that there are
24:33 – The formation of IEX
27:56 – Funding IEX
30:48 – What happens to the initial funding
32:30 – Describe what IEX is as it was sold to early buy side investors
34:31 – Explaining the concept of a speedbump
38:18 – Pitching companies so they will be listed on their index
40:37 – Explains maker-taker fees
44:47 – The sources of revenue for IEX vs traditional exchanges
46:53 – Most memorable meeting Brad has had in establishing IEX
49:39 – How did he do this with young kids?
52:38 – Has the pool of potential profits that high-frequency trading firms can earn gone down
53:53 – What has Brad most excited about the future in terms of helping the buyside
55:17 – What was it like to see Brad’s venture get turned into a best-selling book. (Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt)
59:00 – Biggest thing that Brad has learned
1:00:56 – What would Brad do if he couldn’t work in the investing world.
1:02:25 - Kindest thing anyone has done for Brad
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week’s episode is part of an experiment and so requires a longer than normal introduction.
I’ve come to view this podcast as a learning tool, a means to understand a new topic in a short window of time. One of those areas is venture capital and startups—an area that one year ago was completely foreign to me. I think the best way to learn is aggressive immersion in a topic along with some consequences, what we often call some skin in the game. Accordingly, this is a conversation with the founder of a startup in which I am an investor.
I say this in full disclosure because I believe in being very transparent with you, but also obviously want this business to do well. Part of the reason I invested was because I thought I could affect the outcome of the business personally, in part by exposing the model and ideas to you all. I deeply respect your opinions and collective breadth of knowledge, and welcome thoughts you have on this topic.
The founder is Brett Maloley and his company is called Ladder. Ladder represents an overlap of many topics we’ve explore together over the last year. We’ve talked about venture capital, health and wellbeing, the difficultly of fundraising and power law outcomes in startups. We also spent an entire episode, with Alex Moazed, talking about the business model that Ladder is pursing: what Alex calls platform business model and what my favorite technology writer Ben Thompson calls the Aggregator model.
Alex wrote the book Modern Monopolies about this model, which describes how companies like Uber, Airbnb, and others serve clients. Platform companies sit at the intersection between consumers and producers in a given category, helping make life easier, cheaper, and/or better for consumers and more profitable and flexible for producers. But the value creation itself is about the facilitating the exchange of value more efficiently than it is about actually creating the underlying product. Airbnb, for example, doesn’t own real estate (the value in this case), but they unlock the potential of real estate owned by others. Same for Uber which, so far, doesn’t own cars.
As Alex explained to me in our discussion, a key sign of a market which might benefit from a platform company is some form of latent, untapped supply. Which brings me back to Ladder. The company is being built to unlock latent potential in fitness and potentially other types of coaching. Personal trainers are typically on the job [or; "at work'] 11 horus a day, of which four on average are downtime. That is the untapped supply. Ladder will allow two key things: much cheaper access to a real fitness coach for consumers who don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars a month in the current format, and a way for trainers with lots of free time to both get new customers and to better engage with their existing customers. Think of it almost like Opentable—which started as a way for restaurants to better manage their reservations, but turned into a liquid market for consumers to make reservations.
The reason this is so interesting, I think, is the enormous size of the commercial fitness industry and the fact that it hasn’t changed for a long time. I love people who have an almost bizarre level of knowledge in a niche field, and Brett certainly fits that bill. He grew up with the industry, his mentors and relatives having literally build the commercial fitness industry, what we think of today as gyms and personal training. He knows how this legacy model works and ticks, the flaws and benefits of different business models, and why the future might be different, with a much larger percent of the population using a fitness coach, and maybe other types of coaches, in categories like nutrition and health.
To see the app in action and get paired with a coach, Brett kindly set up a promo code of sorts like you often hear on other podcasts. If you search for “ladder coach” in the app store, download the ap
This week’s conversation is about artificial intelligence and interplanetary travel. Its about content creation, thinking from first principles, and death progress units. Its about brain machine interfaces and why it is crucial that you be a chef and not a cook.
My guest is Tim Urban, along with his business partner Andrew Finn. Tim is the most entertaining writer I’ve come across in years, who explains complicated and interesting topics to his millions of dedicated readers on the website “Wait, But Why.” As an example, Tim’s last post on Elon Musk’s neurlink venture is 40,000 words long, roughly the length of a short book. It explains almost all of human progress and our potential future using drawings and cartoons. Its impossible to stop reading.
While this conversation is wildly entertaining, it is also chock full of metaphors and lessons that will be useful to anyone doing creative work or building a company. I hope this leaves you as energized as it left me. I called this episode Grand Theft Life because that is the name that Tim and Andrew give to their worldview, which I think will change the way you behave, too. Please enjoy my conversation with Tim Urban.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/urban
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies
Links Referenced
The Cook and the Chef: Musk’s Secret Sauce
Wait But Why
Neuralink and the Brain’s Magical Future
Wait But Hi
YouTube Channel Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell
Show Notes
1:50 – (First question) – Explaining his concept of planets 1, 2, 3 and 4 and understanding the human colossus
5:46 – Tim’s favorite idea of the human knowledge compounding
7:52 – Die Progress Units (DPU)
9:45 – Different stages of AI and the positives and negatives of each stage
14;04 – What happens when AI gains breadth and general intelligence
16:23 – The idea of a cook vs a chef and how Tim had the chance to interview Elon Musk
17:48 – Why you should reason from first principles instead of reasoning by analogies
25:19 – Why it’s possible to turn a cook into a chef
30:08 – Why being a chef is the safer route in a world with AI and what Tim has changed in himself as to why.
31:22 – Looking at the discovery process
34:39 – Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies\
40:01 – Being the person who creates the metaphor vs being the people who simply using them
43:41 –
In episodes one and two of Hash Power, we explored blockchain technology and cryptocurrency investing. In this episode, we discuss the current and potential future states of the crypto world. We cover new forms of cooperation, regulation, security and storage, and why blockchains allow systems to evolve at such a rapid pace.
Be sure to listen until the end, where we close with some advice about conducting ourselves in a new world where creativity reigns and repetitive jobs disappear—a trend that may only accelerate thanks to blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/hashpower
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
0:05 – Intro to episode 3 and what to expect
4:00 - Olaf Carlson-Wee, founder of Polychain, on how the funding and investing in cryptocurrencies could easily get out of hand
5:00 – How people are creating holding companies to fund cryptocurrencies protocols
6:45 – Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) and how they will replace the aforementioned holding companies
8:32 – Could fully decentralized organizations replace other more traditional organizational structures, even outside of crypto currency
9:59 – How can DAO’s impact everyday lives
12:39 – Why your skills and accomplishments will become more important than who you are or where you are from
15:38 – Ready Player One: A Novel
16:09 - Naval Ravikant, CEO of Angellist, on the way humans cooperate and build new entities
17:51 – When people will demand oversight and regulation over crypto currency
20:42 - Peter Van Valkenburg, Director of Research at Coincenter on the current state of regulation
26:06 - Jameson Lopp on security needed to protect your cryptocurrency
26:22 - Glacierprotocol.org
27:51 - Ari Paul, co-founder of Blocktower, on how nail polish is used to protect their crypto wallet
30:03 – Juan Benet explains the Filecoin Protocol
35:52 - Muneeb Ali, co-founder of Blockstack, on how his team is plans to provide basic tools that will allow the broader developer community to build apps that the cryptocurrency population will use.
38:01 - Compa
In episode 1 of Hash Power, we explored blockchains as a technology—how they work, why tokens (also known as cryptocurrencies) are an integral part of any blockchain, and how these new networks might change the world. In episode two, we spend time with the leading investors in the field. Like any frenzied asset class, there are countless cryptocurrency hedge funds popping up everywhere. But founders from three of the original firms—Polychain, Metastable, and Blocktower Capital—are our primary guides this week.
As I speak, the total market cap of cryptocurrencies is $136B. There are hundreds of tokens currently available, but bitcoin and Ethereum represent 75% of the total market cap. $136B sounds like a big number, but its tiny relative to any other asset class—and I use that term with hesitation. To put it in perspective, that’s exactly the same size as the market cap of IBM. But IBM had more than $10B of earnings in 2016. Tokens have none. As you will hear, valuing tokens is a very hard exercise.
In such a nascent world, we are seeing investing strategies take hold. Olaf Carlson-Wee, Josh Seims, and Ari Paul walk us through different takes on cryptocurrency investing, be it early stage, long term buy and hold, or more hedge fund style strategies.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/hashpower
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Fat Protocols (Joel Monegro)
Show Notes
0:05 – Recap of part 1 and introduction to part 2 of Hash Power
2:58 – Ari Paul, CIO of Blocktower explains how he got involved in cryptocurrencies
5:23 – Why do we need bitcoin
7:23 – Polychain Capital founder Olaf Carlson-Wee on why the value of tokens accrue
9:23 – How main stream money is getting into this space
12:26- Useful comparisons when talking about ICOs when compared to IPOs
15:01 - Naval Ravikant, CEO of Angellist, is asked to explain the protocols of cryptocurrencies to platform businesses like Uber or Airbnb
17:43 – Naval’s interest in investing in cryptocurrencies
18:42 – Why average folks should avoid it before they dive thoroughly into the topic
20:25 – what are the most compelling counter arguments to using cryptocurrencies
23:07 - Olaf Carlson Wee on the lifecycle of a token
24:02 – SAFT note, Simple Agreement for Future Tokens
25:31 – What is the earliest stage that edge is most present for investors in cryptocurrency protocols
28:12 – How do you mitigate the volatility that is present in blockchain
31:18 - Jeremiah Lowin, a risk and statistics expert, who runs risk management for a large private family office, talks about why he no longer owns cryptocurrencies
34:19 -
Welcome to the first episode of Hash Power, an audio documentary that explores the world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies with leaders in the field like Naval Ravikant, Olaf Carlson-Wee, Fred Ehrsam, & Ari Paul. Hash Power is meant to be an introduction, but really, it is an invitation to explore this emerging world on your own.
In the coming weeks, we will cover the technology, the power of decentralization, bitcoin, Ethereum, ICOs, cryptography and hashing. We will spend time with the leading active hedge fund managers in the field, and with outside investors who are both optimistic and skeptical. Episode one covers the big picture, and answers the question: what is blockchain and why might it significantly affect our world?
If you enjoy what follows, you’ll still be very early in understanding this field. Most don’t. So help me spread it like wildfire, because the more people that understand blockchain, the better its impact might become. Please enjoy episode one, and stay tuned next week for episode 2, which explores investing in cryptocurrencies.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/hashpower
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Sovereign Individual: Mastering the Transition to the Information Age
Nostalgia for the Absolute
Links Referenced
Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
Reddit User jav_rddt
SHA-256 Calculator
The BitCoin Model for Crowdfunding
Fat Protocols
#cryptotwitter
Show Notes
0:05 – Introduction
CHAPTER 1 – Understanding the Concept of Blockchain (3:25)
4:30 – Jeremiah Lowin explains how blockchain is like a database
5:14 – Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
5:46 – Owning a digital asset
7:14 – Naval Ravikant, CEO of Angelist on how blockchains can help to create personal networks and organize humans
11:01 – How blockchains represent a way to coordinate global activity through tokens
13:33 – New coins popping up around data storage and utility needs like solar panels
14:57 – Permission vs permissionless networks
16:37 – Protocols and the introduction of scarcity
18:13 – Keeping track of scarcity and the introduction of tokens
18:49 – Societal structures and how blockchains will change them again
My guest this week is David Tisch, who was instrumental in building and fostering venture capital investing in New York City. If you liked my conversation with Jerry Neumann--who, incidentally, introduced me to David--you are going to love this one.
David was a co-founder at tech stars, New York's answer to Silicon Valley’s famous tech incubator Y Combinator. He now runs the Box Group, a prominent seed stage venture capital firm, which has looked at thousands of startups and invested in more than 200.
We explore tech investing outside of Silicon Valley, the tech accelerator model, the evolution of early stage investing, and why the best companies may start coming out of non-traditional venture hubs.
David does a great job of explaining how things have changed for technology startups and why certain strategies--especially those for acquiring customers--won't work nearly as well in the future.
I learned a lot during this hour, and I think you will too. Please enjoy.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/tisch
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:16 – (First question) – Looking at David’s motivation and role in building up the venture capital tech investment scene in New York
6:14 – What David did to further the mission of fostering tech startups in New York, namely his work with TechStars
10:11 – What is Y Combinator and how does that differ from Tech Stars
13:02 – What is the procedure for getting into a startup incubator
17:08 – Most memorable applications
19:12 – What is the boot camp/incubator experience like
20:34 – What should future incubators be focused on to help develop the right ideas
23:46 – What aspects of the business should a start up be focused on in the beginning
26:46 – What got David interested in investing
28:47 – The challenges of launching new tech today and the colonization of identity
32:04 – Exploring David’s investing strategy
35:45 – Finding the consumer facing companies that can scale and provide a return for venture capitalists
38:03 – The problem of scaling up for start ups
39:20 – What business models does David prefer when making venture investments
40:53 – What’s important to look at when investing in other sectors, starting with Fintech
44:41 – Where does David think we are in the venture capital cycle
49:37 – How much does the exit strategy play into the initial seed investment
50:18 – David’s thinking on the portfolio of companies when picking an investment
52:48 – David’s biggest sin of omission
53:56 – Common personality traits among potential founders
55:24 – Is storytelling relevant for startups focused on the enterprise side of the business
56:07 – David’s story to convince founders to work with him
57:51 – biggest mistakes that David has seen
1:01:47 – What does it mean for our health that are time has become completely consumed by technology
1:03:58 – What trend has David most excited looking forward
1:06:44 – Kindest thing anyone has done for David
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast
The investment strategy discussed in this week's episode is diametrically opposed to my own value tendencies, but it still one that has done exceptionally well.
My guest is David Gardner, co-founder of the Motley Fool. He is unique in that he is both a pure investor--a true stock junkie--and an entrepreneur. His energy is remarkable. His positive vibes are something to behold. You'll hear it over audio, but it's ever more palpable in person.
Our conversation is about finding companies which are breaking rules in the right way and reshaping industries. David's goal is to find these companies early in and hold them forever.
If you love investing, you are going to love this regardless of your prior beliefs. Please enjoy my conversation with David Gardner on rule breakers.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/gardner
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail (Management of Innovation and Change)
The New Penguin Dictionary of Modern Quotations
Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game
The Motley Fool Investment Guide: How The Fool Beats Wall Street's Wise Men And How You Can Too
The Wisdom of Crowds
The Motley Fools Rule Breakers Rule Makers : The Foolish Guide To Picking Stocks
Links Referenced
Totally Absorbed
FANG stocks
Henry Cloud (author)
“I had a lover’s quarrel with the world” by Robert Frost
As You Like it (Shakespeare)
Invest Like the Best episod with Morgan Housel
Don't Be a Dip: The 1 Thing You Need to Know About Buying on Dips
Board Game Agricola
Boardgamegeek.com
Show Notes
2:03 – (First question) – Among the experiments that David has run in his podcast, which one has he enjoyed the most
3:42 – A deep dive into the rule breaker mentality that David u
My guest this week is Meb Faber, who started a podcast similar to this one right before mine and was a big reason I was open to the idea in the first place. Meb is a quantitative researcher whose firm Cambria has been behind many interesting investment strategies that break the Wall Street mold. We talk investing factors, dividends, angel investing, podcasts and more. This was a fun catch up with a close friend in the industry who has been in a leader in using data to explore the best active strategies in a variety of asset classes. Please enjoy our conversation, which begins with a factor draft.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/meb
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation: The Definitive Guide to the Evolutionary Biology of Sex
Links Referenced
Update on the Valuation Metric Horserace: 2011-2015
Jason Calacanis on Meb Faber Show
Brent BeShore episode of Invest Like the Best
Team Ritholtz episode of Invest Like the Best
Show Notes
1:55 – (First question) – Drafting quant factors
4:10 – Update on the Valuation Metric Horserace: 2011-2015
10:25 – Most interesting thing Meb’s learned over the past year
14:05 – Jason Calacanis on Meb Faber Show
14:49 – Brent BeShore episode of Invest Like the Best
16:10 – What is Meb’s process for investing in private companies
18:35 – What part of the fintech landscape would Meb be most excited about
26:50 – What has been working well on the business front for Meb
30:34 – Looking at investor behavior and changing fee structures
35:54 – What has Meb enjoyed most about doing a podcast
36:26 – Team Ritholtz episode of Invest Like the Best
40:55 – A list of guests that meb would like to have on
41:27 – Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation: The Definitive Guide to the Evolutionary Biology of Sex
43:19 – If Meb couldn’t work in this business, what would he do
45:02 – Same question for Patrick
47:28 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Meb
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign
My guests this week don't need to be introduced. In celebration of the one year anniversary of invest like the best, I asked Josh Brown, Mike Batnick, and Barry Ritholtz to join me for a hour, during which I spent more time laughing than asking questions.
I chose this team because they are the pioneers of mold breaking honesty and personality in our industry. They all figured out that just being themselves yields incredible results. This is a strategy that everyone should try, but very few do. Honesty and transparency require vulnerability, which is hard for most of us. I still struggle with it. But the evidence is in. The Ritholtz team has grown as fast as almost any RIA. Listen to this and tell me you wouldn't want to spend your career working with people this friendly, funny and open. Hell, I want to give them some money just so I have an excuse to drop by more often.
Thanks to everyone who has listened in the past year. We are past 1.25mm listens, and growing fast. You own this thing as much as I do, because the size helps me penetrate deeper and get the best people, which begets more listeners. This podcast is one hell of a discovery machine, and the first year was our warm up. We have a ton of new angles, formats, and events coming in year two. Stay tuned. But first, time to laugh in celebration of year one. Please enjoy my conversation with team Ritholtz
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/ritholtz
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
Barry @ritholtz on twitter
a16z Podcast
Scott Galloway and Aswath Damodaran on Bitcoin vs Gold
Latest 'These Are the Goods' post
Show Notes
2:35 – (First question) – What stock best represents you
5:09 – How was this team assembled at Ritholtz
8:50 – Why larger asset management firms are slow to pivot on new technology
10:00 – The humor of Barry @ritholtz on twitter
11:48 – What technology channels are working best
13:08 – What would happen in a Ritholtz stock picking contest
15:19 – How do you keep investors from wanting to move money into or out of buzzworthy trades
20:23 – Pricing out the news and the value premium
23:41 – Why people want complexity and activity in their portfolios
29:51 – People always want to be a part of the next frontier, example bitcoin
31:08 – a16z Podcast
33:13 – Exploring research in action and living the investments
39:35 – Biggest argument against bitcoin could be the underlying utility and what will make it successful
45:13 – The Hindenburg Omen
46:34 - Scott Galloway and Aswath Damodaran on Bitcoin vs Gold
47:38 – How the relati
My guest this week is Pat Dorsey, who was the longtime director of equity research at Morningstar, where he specialized in economic moats: sources of sustained competitive advantage that allow a few companies to deliver huge returns over time. Several years ago he left Morningstar to form his own asset management firm, Dorsey asset management, and build a portfolio of companies with wide moats like those he studied at Morningstar. And while moats are critical, equally important is how companies allocate the capital generated--or made possible--by the existence of the moat.
A special thank you to Brian Bares who introduced me to Pat, and to Will Thorndike--an earlier guest on the show. In the vast majority of conversations you hear on this show, I'm meeting the guest for the first time. I mention this to encourage you to connect me with anyone whose story or way of looking at the world might resonate. Always feel free to contact me with ideas.
Pat and I begin our discussion with the key differences between the sell side and the buy side, and then discuss all aspects of moats and capital allocation.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/dorsey
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:23 – (First question) – Transition from the sell side to the buy side and the biggest surprise
3:40 – What is a moat
5:16 – What part of the stock market universe has a moat
6:57 – Pat’s framework for identifying moat, starting with intangibles
8:32 – The power of brands
9:44 – what chance does an upstart have to come in and usurp a well-established brand
12:24 – Switching costs as part of the framework for identifying a moat
14:55 – The third component of identifying a moat, network effects, and what businesses should do to effectively build one
17:29 – Last component, cost advantages/economies of scale
19:29 – How do you analyze these four components into an investing framework that can be built into an actual strategy
21:13 – How does Pat think about this from a mis-pricing standpoint
23:37 – How does Pat incorporate current price of a company in consideration for future returns when pricing a moat
25:39 – How should a company with a moat operate to protect that characteristic, especially when it comes to their capital allocation
26:51 – Which characteristic of a moat does Pat find most intriguing
30:35 – What makes for good and smart capital allocation
35:58 – What is Pat’s process for identifying the best investment opportunities
38:38 – What are good economics when looking at a company
41:03 – If Pat could take any business, but have to swap leadership, what would he choose.
44:13 – Back to his process of finding investment opportunities
46:05 – Kindest thing anyone has ever done for Pat
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at <
My guests this week are both veterans of the podcast, Jason Zweig and Morgan Housel. They are two of the best in the world at making the complicated simple, and in that spirit, I’ll keep this introduction short. Morgan shifted from public markets to the private markets a year ago when he joined the Collaborative Fund, so we begin with what he has learned about venture capital in his first year on the job.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/writers
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Devil's Financial Dictionary
Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
Life and Fate
Online References
A Rediscovered Masterpiece by Benjamin Graham
Rishi Ganti podcast
Small Companies Are Gone, But Should they Be Forgotten (Zweig Column)
Show Notes
1:43 – (First question) – Morgan on why he got disenchanted with the investment industry and shifted to venture capital
4:05 – Jason’s thoughts about investing in the private markets
5:19 - A Rediscovered Masterpiece by Benjamin Graham
7:57 – Morgan’s thoughts on how private market investments differ from public market investments
10:24 – Exploring valuations of businesses and what they say about broader trends in the market
13:21 – How much does Jason think about individual companies when exploring the overall market trends
18:41 – The Devil's Financial Dictionary
19:28 –What does it take to be a successful founder
23:40 – How does Jason look at activities that are work related vs just for pleasure
25:33 – If Jason had to start a business, what would he do
27:22 – What business would Morgan start
29:18 – Problems with the financial planning industry
30:56 - The role of stress in personal and business development
31:04 – Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
38:17 – Are there signs that let you know when to cut and run vs when to keep slogging along with something
42:02 – Thinking, Fast and Slow
This week's conversation is about performance. More specifically, it is about the ins and outs of steady progress and growth. My guest is Brad Stulberg who coauthored the book Peak Performance, which combines research from many fields into a description of how athletes, creatives and others continue to push boundaries in their respective crafts.
As someone who is intermittently lazy, the growth equation framework that Brad and I explore has impacted me often since I first read the book several months ago. I hope you enjoy this conversation, which isn't about investing, but which is, at its heart, still about the power of compounding.
Books Referenced
Outliers: The Story of Success
Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise
Online References
Jool Health
Show Notes
1:32 – (First question) – How Vick Stretcher influenced the book, Peak Performance
4:32 – Looking at some of the preliminary research at the science of purpose
7:58 – The idea of a growth equation and the components that can lead to success
11:47 – How the introduction of stress can help in all sorts of creative and entrepreneurial pursuits.
13:39 – The ratio between physical and mental as an impact on this formula
14:56 – Just manageable challenges and the role that they play in the growth equation
18:06 – The idea of just manageable challenges through the example of an athlete
22:19 – Favorite example of a crazy feat of physical performance, stress on older athletes operating at high levels
23:30 – Thoughts about outside influences like mentors/coaches and how they help high performance individuals advance
25:51 – Describe catabolic and anabolic states and why anabolic is so important
29:13 – How the relationship of catabolic and anabolic states also helps the mind
30:47 – How does the idea of practice play into the growth equation
32:49 – Exploring the nuances of practice and why you don’t go all out
32:56 – Outliers: The Story of Success
33:00 - Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise
34:24 – The idea of designing of a day
42:06 – What role can environment play on us
43:40 – How far is it healthy to run
46:25 – How does ego play into all of this
48:06 – The idea of camaraderie and study of Air Force Cadets highlighting this
49:28 – Fatigue and why it is believed to happen in the mind and not the body
54:00 – Most memorable day
55:43 - Method for finding purpose
56:29 – Jool Health
58:26 – Kindest thing anyone has ever done for Brad
Learn More
For more comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/brad
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
To get involved with Project Frontier, head to InvestorFieldGuide.com/frontier.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on
Several weeks ago my conversation with Leigh Drogen on quant investing proved timely and popular--because everyone in asset management is facing the rise of big data, and the use of data science in investing strategies. Because of the rise of quants, many are asking themselves how to survive and thrive in a changing industry. In short, how can traditional managers compete with quants?
This second conversation with Leigh was set up to answer many of the questions posed in the first one. If quants are taking over, what should other investors do about it?
Leigh proposes a method by which old school asset managers can restructure their thinking and their process to compete with and even beat purely quantitative competitors. The method involves pulling the best from both worlds and combining them into a hybrid structure. But it will be impossible without a wholesale change in mindset, which is where we begin. Please enjoy round two with Leigh Drogen.
Links Referenced
Revenge of the Humans Part II: A New Blueprint For Discretionary Management
Show Notes
2:14 – (First question) – What role will ego and mindset play for traditional hedge funds looking to transition into quantitative investing strategies
4:21 – Describes the traditional process that hedge funds use to make investment decisions and how the internal politics can hamper it
6:08 – What value has portfolio managers played at hedge funds traditionally as the quarterback of a fund
9:57 – A look at what Leigh has seen as he sits with teams
12:20 – A look at places that have tried to simply add quant to their firm’s strategies without “tearing it down to the studs” and properly integrating them into the process
15:00 – Leigh is asked to define the basics of a good investment firm’s strategies
16:57 – Strategies for writing down core beliefs, whether it’s for yourself or your firm
17:49 – Exploring the second step, finding a differentiating view and how to succeed with it.
21:43 – The importance of force ranking and structuring the unstructured
26:14 – Building factor models
29:42 – How the portfolio manager position should have less room for subjectivity than at the analyst level
33:44 – Is anyone integrating this kind of high level data at the portfolio manager level into the decision making the way Leigh describes
35:07 – What blind spots are created by systematizing their processes
36:18 – Why much of this applies more to shorter and structured periods
38:23 – Shifting to portfolio constructions and what Leigh would do to create the right mix
43:39 – Shifting to management structures in these firms starting with the role of the CIO
45:24 – Looking at the different quant roles that exist in a firm and what they should be responsible for; data engineers, data analysts, pure quants, and quantitative engineer
48:20 – If you are an undergrad or grad student right now interested in asset management, what are the roles you should be thinking about targeting
49:25 – Why communication skills are still so important, no matter what role you are in
50:25 – With all of the tools and skills that Leigh has at his disposal at Estimize, why not institute an active strategy
52:01 – What has Leigh observed in the dispersion of skill in the Estimized data set
53:47 – What is the relationship between specialization and accuracy among funds
55:29 – The pros and cons of the generalist
56:56 – A look at Leigh’s background into War Theory and what lessons that he still draws on today
1:00:19 – How the field of study around war and battle relates to the investing world
Learn More<
My guest this week is a version of me—a funnier, cooler version who has a PhD and served as an active duty marine. Lots of you will already be familiar with Wes Gray, and those of you who are not are in for a treat. Wes is the founder of Alpha Architect, a firm which manages quantitative equity strategies for clients using factors like value and momentum. He also advocates for a more concentrated, pure approach to factor investing, which listeners know is music to my ears.
While we share a lot of the same views on markets and investing, you will still find this refreshing. The conversation was easy to structure--I just took all the questions clients and prospective investors always ask of me and my firm, and turned them on Wes. These range from very specific questions on quant investing to big existential ones. I listened to this on a long drive home and laughed out loud in the car at least 5 times. You are going to love it all.
I close this introduction by offering you an opportunity which is not for the faint of heart. On September 16th, I will be joining Wes and his crew on a 28-mile trek called “March for the Fallen” which is a small but important way of honoring those who have given their lives in service of our country. Wes and I invite you to join as well. If you are interested, check out the post on Wes’s site with all the details. I will link to it in the shownotes at investorfieldguide.com/wes. If you are still interested, then email me with the subject heading “March for the Fallen.” I told you Wes is a much cooler version of me, and true to form he will be doing the hike with a 40-pound rucksack. I will be doing the version without a rucksack. Either way, it will be a day of comradery and remembrance that we won’t soon forget. Join us.
Books Referenced
The Devil Dogs at Belleau Wood: U.S. Marines in World War I
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Online References
The Limits of Arbitrage
Show Notes
3:07 – (First question) – Exploring the mindset that is ingrained into Marines
3:16 – The Devil Dogs at Belleau Wood: U.S. Marines in World War I
5:27 – Most memorable experience growing up in the mountains of Colorado
6:29 – What experiences in the military have transferred to what Wes sees in the public markets
6:48 – Thinking, Fast and Slow
7:51 – Wes’s first foray into stocks
10:51 – What was the transition into the quantitative investing space
12:29 – How Wes would describe quantitative investing and what the landscape looks like today
17:10 – What is the nature of the strategies Wes uses, like high-frequency and market-making, and what makes them stand out in those
20:57 – What about the human capital arms race in this space and how different firms are attracting the top talent
23:21 – What the approach is for Wes and what his research suggests is the best predictor of performance in stocks
25:36 – Wes’s approach to portfolio construction
33:19 – What is the thinking behind the number of and the size of names in the QVAL ETF
35:19 – Over a 20-year horizon, does Wes pick value or momentum
36:20 – Why the data suggests momentum is the better pick
37:36 – Why price-to-book sucks relative to other value factors
39:55 – What things worry Wes about the future of this strategy
44:39 – How does
My guest this week is Rishi Ganti, who invests in what he calls esoteric assets. I'm not sure what to do other than laugh in amazement at his professional credentials -- PhD in economics, CFA, CPA, lawyer, speaks six languages, and so on. The best part is he isn't lording those over anyone and in fact casts some shade on the whole idea of credentials in our conversation. He just did it all because he's a learning fiend.
Rishi's core idea about markets is this: avoid markets at all costs. As he explains off the bat, the minute there are multiple buyers for anything, prices get efficient very quickly and there opportunity to find alpha shrinks. Instead he searches for what esoteric assets: things without a market, orphaned assets that require high human capital and human touch. We explore several interesting examples, from charter school financing to
A stark realization I had during he episode is how big the worlds asset base is. Almost all of our attention goes to the most highly refined ones: stocks and bonds. But there is a whole other world out there.
The closing sections, on what Rishi would do if not investing, and his answer for the kindest thing anyone has done for him were among the best answers I've heard.
Show Notes
3:30 – (First question) – Rishi’s broad take on markets and whether or not he really likes them
5:30 – Defining esoteric markets
8:31 – Looking at the mountain of assets that are most impacted or made most efficient by markets and how Rishi describes each level of that pyramid
12:28 – Looking at an esoteric asset at the early part of Rishi’s career
16:23 – Why is there little competition in these types of investment opportunities
23:06 – How they created a market and turned an esoteric asset into a return opportunity, starting with the charter school funding example
31:54 – Looking at how this is done internationally
38:55 – What they consider a platform
41:08 – How they are able to provide their service and skirt the government, legally
44:18 – A simplified explanation of what Orthogon does
50:30 – What are the main reasons people don’t want to go down this road since it seems like an obvious choice
59:00 – Looking at the most memorable experiences in esoteric investing
1:01:10 – What value has Rishi found in his extensive education, credentials, and certifications
1:07:31 – Another topic that Rishi finds interesting and he’d want to lecture on if he could other than investing.
1:09:48 – What is the right formula and types of goals you should consider in planning your life
1:14:39 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Rishi
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
I am drawn to a group of investors that I call practitioner philosophers. These are people who have gotten their hands dirty in their respective fields, but despite being doers, they still often sit back and ponder the big questions in business and life.
My guest this week is one such practitioner philosopher, NYC based venture capitalist Jerry Neumann. I came across Jerry's essays a year ago, and he is on a very short list of writers whose work I read without fail and almost always more than once.
You can think about this conversation on business, investing, and venture capital as a big funnel. We start very broad, discussing where we may be in a large 70-year economic cycle. We then break down the so-called power law which seems to govern venture capital returns and business outcomes. Then we get even more specific, discussing Jerry's process for evaluating early stage companies, and the particulars of what might make a good venture capitalist. I say "might" because as Jerry explains often, nothing is certain, and luck may always play a huge role.
I just loved this conversation. It is the type that without the podcast as an excuse would be a very odd and intense one if I were just meeting someone for the first time. You'll find no small talk or even medium talk here. This is a meaty discussion with one of the smartest and most straightforward people I've come across.
Books Referenced
Carlotta’s Perez - Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages
Thomas Hughes – Networks of Power: Electrification in the Western Society, 1880 – 1930
Frank Knight – Risk, Uncertainty, and Profit
Jeffrey West - Scale: The Universal Laws of Growth, Innovation, Sustainability, and the Pace of Life in Organisms, Cities, Economies, and Companies
Links Referenced
Deployment Age
Oswald Spangler
About Men; Corporate Man
Howard Mark’s 2x2 matrix of superior investment results
Michael E. Porter - How Competitive Forces Shape Strategy
DJ Teece: Profiting from Technological Innovation
Porter’s Five Forces
Show Notes
3:27 – (First question) – Start with Jerry’s essay the Deployment Age and a look at what it means for where we sit today (looking forward as investors)?
3:40 - Deployment Age
4:26 - Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages
9:28 – What time in history can you compare our current deployment age to and what does that say about the next 10, 20, and 30 years?
9:40 –
A future guest just told me, every band has a song about being in a band, so today I give you my version. I won’t do this often, and only do it this week in case listenership drops due to the holiday—I didn’t want any guest to have a smaller than normal audience. I have now been doing this for almost one year, and have learned a tremendous amount. Since the whole idea behind the show is to learn in public, I am going to share a few of the lessons I’ve learned with you today. I’ll shape it as a top ten list, which ends with a fun story about my recent dinner with Warren Buffett. You’ll notice that many of these are just good business and life lessons applied to something specific: a podcast. I hope you can pull the essence of one or more of these and change how you do things, especially if you create any sort of content as part of your job.
- (1:35) Conversation is my new favorite way to learn. I love books, and always will, but conversations are even more efficient and engaging. Talking with people who know their field deeply is the most fun thing in the world, and it is an underused method of learning. Lectures are too one-sided. Books often don’t flow the direction you want them to. Conversations are alive and interactive. I have been doing this very publicly on the podcast, but I’ve also been doing it more in private after realizing how powerful it can be. If you can commit to having conversations with new people where you tell them as little about yourself as possible, you’ll be off to a good start. I don’t mean that talking about yourself is bad—not at all--only that in each conversation, the time you spend talking about you is time that you aren’t learning something new. The less your ego gets involved, the more you will learn—and I should know because I used to have a big ego. This means asking dumb questions, sometimes more than once. It means probing on the simplest parts of a person’s field or knowledge. As everyone knows, it is fun to explain something you love to people that don’t know as much about the topic in question, but are eager to learn. So it logically follows that you should want to be the less knowledgeable person in most conversations. If everyone took this tact, things would be a mess, but I wouldn’t worry too much about that! One side effect of learning to ask good and interesting questions is that you realize how rarely anyone asks you good or interesting questions. An example of why it pays to remove ego: A month ago I didn’t even know what a cryptocurrency token was. Now I can have a fairly in-depth conversation on the topic because I made small incremental improvement improvements across ten different conversations. In each of those, I was the moron, trying to get up to speed. The more times you are willing to be the idiot, the faster you will learn. It is a pretty cool formula: ten times the idiot, one time the (relative) expert. They should teach you how to have a good conversation in elementary school.
- (3:31) Preparation and careful listening are everything. The best editing for the podcast is done before the conversation starts and during the conversation itself. Most of the episodes you hear are very lightly edited, if at all. A majority aren’t touched. The ones that I have edited a bit were my fault: I didn’t prepare well enough to be nimble and attentive in the conversation. What I’ve found is that the role of the person asking the questions is to create and sustain momentum. I have this visual of a rush of water running down a maze of tubes which have hatches that open and close. If the water hits a closed hatch, everything stops. My job is to anticipate by listening very carefully and get ahead of the water to open doors to keep the momentum going. The clues to what each person loves most are usually buried in another answer. I’ve gotten much better at picking up on those cues. One example: every time someone says “we can talk about that later,” it means “I
If you told me a year ago that I’d be learning critical life and business lessons from the founder of a ketchup company, and that thirty to fifty thousand people would listen to our conversation, well, I’d have told you that’s impossible. But the fact that it is true proves many of the points laid out by this week’s guest Scott Norton, co-founder of Sir Kensington’s which was recently acquired by Uni-Lever. Sir Kensington’s, which makes “condiments with character” is no ordinary Ketchup company, and Scott is no ordinary founder.
We talk about the most elemental aspects of business: product, relationships, sales, marketing, and culture. I love that we can do so through the lens of such a seemingly simple product, something that we use all the time with our families at a BBQ. Scott’s observations on culture, the importance of relationships in sales, and competitive edge are all memorable. But above all, I’ll remember his line: seek to learn that which cannot be taught. And I will continually return to the mental image of the Temple of Poseidon.
Oh, and as a bonus we also talk about biking around Asia, which like all of Scott’s stories comes complete with thought provoking lessons.
Enjoy this unique conversation with one of the most interesting people I’ve met on this journey. We begin with the history of ketchup.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/norton
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Links Referenced
They Call Me Supermensch: A Backstage Pass to the Amazing Worlds of Film, Food, and Rock’n’Roll (Movie)
Books Referenced
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In
How to Win Friends & Influence People
They Call Me Supermensch: A Backstage Pass to the Amazing Worlds of Film, Food, and Rock’n’Roll (Book)
Show Notes
2:40 – (First question) – A look at the history of ketchup
5:16 – The milestones of ketchup’s history in the US
10:26 – What were the early days like to compete in a market where the leaders have such a stronghold on the consumer
13:03 – A ketchup party to survey users
14:41 – Effective ways to negotiate
14:57 – Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In
16:32 – How may stages were there in the early products
19:04 – A look at kaizen and what it means to Scott
20:38 – Scandinavian business principles that they bring to the company
23:40 – As the company has grown, has Scott seen downsides to the stakeholder model especially when competing against larger companies that use the share
My guest this week is Andy Rachleff, who is the CEO of the automated investing platform Wealthfront. Andy was also a co-founder and long-time partner at Benchmark capital--one of the most interesting and successful venture capital firms in the world.
We spend most of our conversation discussing venture capital investing and entrepreneurship. Andy coined the now ubiquitous term “product/market fit,” and has great insight into how investors and entrepreneurs should think about business. In that vein, we discuss both what we refer to as the value hypothesis: building a product or service that customers love, and the growth hypothesis: scaling that product or service to a large market.
We finish our conversation by talking about Andy and his teams mission at Wealthfront, and this conversation is perfectly timed, as Wealthfront just released a new feature that allows investors to buy factor portfolios, similar to Smart Beta ETFs.
Above all, I’ll remember Andy’s advice to “put the gun in the other person’s hand,” a strategy that we explore in the middle of our talk.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/andy
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Four Steps to the Epiphany
The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses
Millennial Money: How Young Investors Can Build a Fortune
Diffusion of Innovations
Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers
Show Notes
2:36 – (First question) – The partnership setup and how they came to be 5 equal partners
7:57 – Why benchmark would not take on the chairman role in companies they invested in
9:28 – What made John Doerr the greatest capitalist investor ever
11:59 – Looking at the venture process and what made it an attractive investment for Benchmark, using eBay as an example.
18:06 – If you are willing to help other people, without an expectation of return, it can create other opportunities
20:08 – Andy is asked to explain the idea of Product Market Fit, a term that he coined
22:18 – How does one go about finding a Product Market Fit
23:05 – The Four Steps to the Epiphany
23:19 – The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses
25:55 – What are the componen
I’ve often joked that this show should be called “this is who you are up against,” because I am so often having conversations with brilliant people across the investment landscape who are effectively my competition and yours. This week’s conversation fits that description because it gives you an inside view into how things work among some of Wall Street’s most competitive investment firms. My guest is Leigh Drogen, who has worked as a statistical arbitrage portfolio manager and who founded and now runs Estimize, a data company which works with some of the world’s largest hedge funds.
Our conversation centers on the massive shift from what we call discretionary portfolio management—basically stock picking—to a landscape that is increasingly dominated by quantitative investors of various types. We talk about how any investor might hope to earn alpha, and how doing so is harder and harder.
There are so many great stories in this episode, told by someone with the perfect career experience to know how the system actually works. After many episodes where I’ve been learning on the fly about topics like venture capital, permanent equity, or health, this episode marks a return to my world of quantitative investing. I think you’ll learn a lot, and that you’ll likely finish with an even deeper appreciation of just the type of investors that we are all up against.
Books Referenced
Revenge of the Humans: How Discretionary Managers Can Crush Systematics
Links Referenced
The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds
Force Rank (App)
Founder of Estimize Explains How He Plans To Disrupt The World Of Wall Street Research
Show Notes
2:45 – (First question) – A look at Leigh’s early career and how he got started in investing
3:13 – Revenge of the Humans: How Discretionary Managers Can Crush Systematics
5:39 – Leigh is asked to describe the inefficiency in sell-side analysts’ estimate set
8:04 – What happened when things stopped working towards the end of 2007.
9:35 – The proper dimensions to separate any sort of potential Alpha edge
11:15 – The traits that help a fund perform well
11:42 – The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds
14:05 – Force Rank (App)
14:49 – How the scientific process plays into Leigh’s research strategies
19:18 – Explain what Estimize is and what it does
20:55 – How people are compensated for the estimates
23:33 – The scale of how many estimates they get per company
24:57 – Why you need to be part of this informational arms race if you hope to survive
28:30 – What happens if everyone buys Estimize data and the Alpha built into it goes away
31:04 – What has been the evolution in these hedge fund platform type companies
35:00 – If Leigh was designing a firm from scratch, what would it look like
37:25 – Understanding Numerai and crowdsourcing in funds
41:41 – What is an example of interesting data set that Leigh as come across
45:38 – What is the potential for a hybrid model between a quant only with a discretionary picker.
This week’s episode is very unique. It is the first episode devoted to bonds, just not the kind of bonds you are used to. My guest is Ira Judelson, who is the leading bail bondsman in New York City. I met Ira through my friend and former podcast guest Danny Moses, who is also a part of this conversation.
I have always had a passion for understanding how different businesses work. In this case, this week we are exploring a different business, but also a different world. Ira’s story is larger than life. He is as authentic and hard working as they come. In both his book and this conversation, there is a lot about family, loyalty, and hard work—principles which really resonate with me.
You’ll emerge from this hour with an appreciation of hustle and what it takes to get ahead. I can’t stop thinking about our discussion on how sources of power in any career morph through time, a framework that can help anyone think about their work and where to apply effort.
The conversation goes all over the place, but suffice it to say we discuss bond collateral, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, and DMX—and that is but one small fraction.
Please enjoy my conversation with Ira Judelson and Danny Moses.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/ira
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
The Fixer: The Notorious Life of a Front-Page Bail Bondsman
Links Referenced
Rao’s Restaurant
Show Notes
1:55 – (First question) – The role that Rao’s restaurant has meant to Ira’s business and career
6:11 – A look at Ira’s bail bonds business and how that industry works
6:22 – The Fixer: The Notorious Life of a Front-Page Bail Bondsman
8:31 – The story of how a pizzeria was a bad piece of collateral
11:10 – How often does Ira deal with bail jumpers
12:10 – What is the size of the open liabilities
13:14 – How long will the open liabilities last
14:55 – Ira’s relationship with his clients and the importance of character in this business
17:46 – the amazing story of how Ira got started in this business
31:05 – His early years of being a bail bondsman and how important his wife was to his success
29:52 – How Ira balances family with this kind of work
32:22 – Ira’s ability to be amazingly efficient on the phone when in social settings and a work call comes in
33:14 – Ira is the fixer
36:40 – Exploring the “Sources of Power” and where the balance for Ira of who he knows vs who he has shifted in this line of work.
38:29 – The importance of intense reliability, consistency and empathy, and why Ira can trust his clients may be considered bad people
30:19 – Two cases where Ira got emotionally involved
47:26 – Why Ira is not worried about people coming after him
48:57 – When a bunch of detainees were wailing to wait an extra day in jail for Ira bec
This week's conversation was especially fun. I have a long history with my guest, Dave Chilton, but this was the first time we'd met in person. I'd heard stories about him from people I work with for twenty years, so getting to finally spend time with him was a real treat. I'll let him reveal the connection.
This episode will also be fun for listeners in the US, as Dave is one of the best-known people in Canada because of his famous book the wealthy barber and his more recent stint as a dragon on Dragon’s Den, which is Canada's version of shark tank.
I called this episode the human blitzkrieg because of Dave's relentlessly positive style and curiosity. He has dabbled in many parts of the business and investing worlds. He is one of the most successful authors in history, has invested in dozens of interesting businesses, and is a Jedi master in the long-lost art of the phone conversation.
We discuss business, investing, and writing. If you enjoy this conversation and have any aspirations as a writer, I highly recommend you check out the series of videos Dave and his son recently released called the Chilton method, which I will link in the show notes. I have no financial interest in this recommendation, and neither does Dave! He put it together in large part to stop people from calling him for advice. We discuss a few of the hundred plus lessons from his course in this conversation.
As you'll be able to tell early and often, it is hard not to have a good time with Dave.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/chilton
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is David Salem. David was the founding president and CIO for The Investment Fund for Foundations, which served 800 endowed charities under David’s 18-year tenure. He's now the CIO of the Windhorse Group, which focuses on long-term, value oriented investing.
This conversation wanders into and explores many different areas of investing and life. The theme is how to think about asset allocation and investing holistically--from first principles--but we talk a lot about motivation, incentives, human behavior, and the fear of missing out as key variables in money management.
We discuss the history of the Yale and Harvard endowment models and how their success has affected the asset management world for better or worse. I had never heard such an interesting take on two very important institutions.
I also can't stop thinking about David’s "Mt. Everest" question, which we explore early in our conversation. I'd love to hear your answers to that question, so email me or message me with your thoughts.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/salem
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest today is Michael Mauboussin, who is the head of global financial strategies at Credit Suisse and is on my short list of must read writers on all things investing. If you read his entire catalogue, Howard Marks's memos, and Buffett's shareholder letters, you be sitting pretty. Michael was also a big reason for the early success of this show appearing as my second guest and now my 37th. He and his team have been prolific in the last six months, publishing several long research reports on the most interesting aspects of the investing landscape. In this conversation, we talk about business moats, industry analysis, and how to combine man and machine when building an investment strategy and portfolio. As I tell Michael at the end, you won't be able to listen to this episode at two times speed, because we go deep quickly.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/michael
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week’s guest is Will Thorndike, an author and investor whose book The Outsiders is an all-time favorite of mine. Our conversation is in two parts. First, we dive deep into the lessons of his 8-year research project studying CEOs who were master capital allocators. These CEOs include Henry Singleton, John Malone, Tom Murphy, Katherine Graham, and Warren Buffett. We discuss how these CEOs tended to be contrarians on topics like dividends, buybacks, acquisitions, and the use of debt. As we go through each of the tools in the capital allocators toolkit, you’ll hear several useful lessons for running or evaluating a business.
In the second part, we cover Will’s career in private equity. Will founded and continues to run Housatonic Partners, investing in buyouts, recaps, and search funds. Will has been one of the most active search fund investors for decades, and given how much time I’ve spent in past episodes on the searchers or operators in the micro-cap, permanent equity space, it was great to get the perspective of an experienced LP. As always, we also take time to survey the dangers and opportunities in today’s private equity market.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/thorndike
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
This coming weekend is the annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting in Omaha. That means this week is the perfect opportunity to discuss a topic which will likely figure prominently at Berkshire this weekend: Ted Seides’s famous bet with Buffett. Ted and I discuss the origins of the bet, the nuances beneath the headlines, and whether he’d make the bet again for the next ten years. Along the way, we cover many hot topics like hedge funds, alternatives, fees, and indexing. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/bet
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Danny Moses, who was directly in the middle of the biggest trades in market history, chronicled by Michael Lewis in his book the Big Short. Danny was the head trader on the Frontpoint team led by Steve Eisman, which was one of a small group of firms that figured out, in real time, the dire situation with mortgage-backed securities during the financial crisis, and how to build a portfolio to bet against the U.S. housing market. We cover his part in the Big Short story, but also lots of other interesting ground, including the state of sell-side research and financial markets. I love conversations with traders because they live and breathe market risk. You’ll be able to see why quickly in this great conversation with Danny Moses.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/danny
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
In this episode, I continue to pull on one of the most interesting threads that I have uncovered while producing this podcast: the world of permanent equity. My guests today are Royce Yudkoff and Rick Ruback, two Harvard Business School professors who have partnered to create a popular class that teaches students how to search for, acquire, and run a small business directly after graduation.
I approach this conversation from an investors standpoint. LP investors usually partner with these searchers to form what is called a search fund. A search fund allows recent MBA grads to spend time looking for a business and ultimately acquire it. The result is a small scale but often high return proposition for investors. I loved our discussion of what to look for in a business and what to avoid. The principles we list are useful for investors of any kind, and will particularly appeal to those from the buy and hold, value investing, and quality investing camps.
One point of note which wasn’t captured during the recording. One of the reasons this style of investing isn’t more well known that it is extremely costly upfront. It can take years to find a company, and once found, the transaction costs can be 20% of the total purchase price. Rick calls this category “REALLY private equity.
If you enjoy this conversation, be sure to check our Royce and Rick’s book. HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business, which goes into many of the topics we cover in even greater detail.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/hbs
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
SPECIAL EPISODE: Introducing Capital Allocators Podcast with Host Ted Seides
This is a special episode to premiere a new podcast from my friend, Ted Seides. In this show, Capital Allocators, Ted will feature a broad range of people that control the flow of money through the capital markets. Ted is in a unique position to this; he knows this world as well as anyone having spent with both allocators and the money managers who invest on their behalf. Below is the information about this first episode including a link to the homepage of this show, where you can subscribe.
Enjoy the first full episode of Capital Allocators.
————————————————————————
Steven Galbraith is best known as the former Chief Investment Strategist at Morgan Stanley. He also sat in every seat in the asset management industry – credit and equity analyst, portfolio manager, business executive, entrepreneur, and Board member at an endowment and a large family office. We discuss Steve's journey, incorporating his deep insights in the investing world alongside colorful anecdotes of market inefficiencies in European football, college sports gambling, local breweries, and Charter Schools.
For more episodes, go to capitalallocatorspodcast.com/podcast
Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides
This week’s episode is the most unique to date. My guest is Boyd Varty, who grew up in the South African Bush, living among and tracking wild leopards. The main theme of our conversation is tracking, and how the same strategy for pursuing animals in the wild can be applied to all aspects of our lives. Boyd’s family has been tracking animals for four generations, and he is bringing what they have learned to a larger audience around the world.
The episode includes the best answer I’ve ever heard (which comes when I ask Boyd to describe his most memorable experience). We also discuss the dangers of an achievement or goal oriented mindset, and what he learned from spending time with Nelson Mandela as a boy.
This episode is one I hope you share with those you love, because I think Boyd’s ideas will have a profound impact on many who are thinking about what to do with their lives—whether they are young or old.
Please enjoy.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/boyd
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Khe Hy. Khe has a very interesting, two-part story. We start with Khe's career at Blackrock, where he rose to be one of the youngest MDs at the firm, specializing in quantitative hedge funds. Khe shares his perspective on how the hedge fund landscape has changed and what investors should look for in hedge fund managers in the future.
The second part of the story is about Khe's attempt to understand himself. We get into fear, joy, and all that he has learned across several years of introspection and exploration. His lessons coalesce around four key pillars--compassion, stillness, uncomfortable introspection, and finding truth. We explore what he means by each of these ideas in detail. I don’t think that Khe is capable of lying. He is one of the most honest people I've met, for better or worse, and was kind to share both his struggles and moments of clarity on investing and life.
With Deep questions about purpose and deep questions about how to evaluate a quant hedge fund, This was my kind of conversation. Please enjoy
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/khe
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
This week, my good friends Ted Seides and Brent Beshore join me to discuss the future of asset management and a ton of fun side topics. While we are all passionate about investing, we’ve had very different careers: Ted in alternatives, hedge funds and fund of funds, Brent in lower middle market private equity, and my own in quantitative equities. What we share is a passion for investing in general, and a deep interest in where the asset management business and profession is going.
This conversation starts like most episodes—a somewhat structured exploration of the investing business –but morphs to be a bit more fun and informal as we work our way through a bottle or two of wine. In the later half, we talk about how to dissect an industry, common features of good businesses within a given industry, books we’d like to write, books we wish existed, and things we’ve learned in our careers.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/brentandted
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is my father, Jim O’Shaughnessy. He was a pioneer in quantitative equity research, part of an early group of explorers who combed through data to find factors which predicted future stock returns. While we’ve both written extensively on factor investing, we chose to mostly avoid that topic for this conversation. Instead, we discuss what has been a fascinating and colorful career on Wall Street. We talk about the power of premeditation, formative books, and his crazy experience during the dot-com boom when he ran a robo-advisor 15-years ahead of its time.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/jim
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guests this week are Trish and James Higgins, who run Chenmark Capital Management. In this episode we continue to explore a style of investing I call Permanent Equity. Returns in permanent equity come first from the ongoing cash flows of portfolio companies, not from reselling businesses down the line. The partners are Chenmark are pioneering this style of small business investing and share their experience with us thus far.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/chenmark
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Peter Attia, M.D., whose mission is to understand and improve human lifespan and healthspan (or quality of life). Reading Peter’s research, you find that there are many similarities between health and investing—ideas like compounding—which we explore in detail.
We spend a lot of time on mind, body, spirit and performance as it relates to living a better life. Of particular interest is the strategic problem that we face when studying longevity. As Peter puts it in our conversation: we are the species of interest, but we can’t conduct the kinds of experiments on humans—randomized trials, with control groups—that we apply to solve other big problems. So we have to back our way into a better understanding of longevity and quality of life.
To that end, we discuss what we can learn from studying centenarians, the problem of progress in science, a drug called Rapamycin (which Peter believes could be revolutionary), eating, the importance of muscle mass, and the idea of distressed tolerance. We emerge with a framework for thinking about health and well-being which can hopefully help us all live longer, better lives. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/attia
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is John Rogers, founder, CEO and CIO of Ariel investments, one of the longest standing asset management businesses still in existence. John has a very impressive resume. In addition to his success at Ariel, he was the captain of the Princeton University men’s basketball team, he was the co-chair of Barack Obama’s Presidential Inauguration, he sits on the board of McDonald’s, and he has given back to his community more than I can list here. John and I discuss Ariel’s investment process and its evolution over the years, lessons from John’s basketball career, value investing, and asset management’s diversity problem among many other interesting issues. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/rogers/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Alex Moazed, the co-author of Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy, which explores the platform business model (Uber, Airbnb, Github). Alex is also the founder and CEO of Applico, a company that he started in his dorm room that is since grown into a huge enterprise that helps startups and Fortune 500 innovate with platforms. Alex and I talk about history and future of businesses and different types of business models. There’s a lot in here for investors, entrepreneurs, and historians. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/alex/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Ian Cassel, a microcap investor who is always on the lookout for small companies which are run by men and women who are what he calls intelligent fanatics. Ian’s livelihood is based on the success or failure of a small group of companies that you have never heard of—he takes the idea of “skin in the game” to another level. We explore what Ian looks for in managers, why investors might want to invest in microcap companies, and the benefits of a frugal approach to life. Buying public companies that are as small as the ones which Ian considers is an entirely different style of investing than what most of us are used to in the public markets. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/ian/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Joe Mansueto, the founder, longtime CEO and current executive chairman of Morningstar, Inc. Joe is an entrepreneur at heart. He has the gene for spotting good business ideas and building them out with the customer in mind, so it is no surprise that the story behind Morningstar’s birth and growth is both entertaining and enlightening. While there are many business lessons in this episode, there is just as much to be learned from the way Joe conducts himself. He was kind, welcoming, and humble—you’ll see what I mean. There is something timeless and classic about his journey—I hope you enjoy hearing about it as much as I did.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/joe/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Brent Beshore and I spoke for 10 hours about all things investing and business, and decided to record a 2-hour chunk of our conversation. We start by discussing private equity, venture capital, and the importance of brand. We then explore the difference between public and private company valuation, and the potent idea of peer mentorship. The conversation wraps up with Brent’s recent experience with one of the greatest investors and thinkers of all time. Above all, this is a conversation about what is right and wrong in the world of money management and investing, and where the business is heading. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/adventures/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is writer, director, producer, and podcast host Brian Koppelman, who’s film credits include ‘Rounders’, ‘Oceans 13’, and ‘Solitary Man’. More recently he co-created the Showtime show, ‘Billions’, which allowed us to have some fun talking about the world of hedge funds and investing. Brian’s method for chasing curiosity is something that everyone can learn apply in their own lives. In this chat, we discuss creativity, the importance of storytelling and why we are all so intrigued by billionaires. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/koppelman/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Jeremiah Lowin is probably the smartest guy I know, and that is saying something. He is an expert in the fields of statistics, artificial intelligence, and risk management—among many other things. He is currently the Director of Risk Management for a private investment firm in the New York area, but has spent years working with machine learning and AI. This conversation is broken up into two parts. In the first part, we explore artificial intelligence, machine learning, and models. Then we shift to what risk means in a portfolio and how it can be managed or at least redistributed (which starts around 40 minutes into the conversation). Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/lowin/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week’s episode features the partners of the Collaborative Fund, a venture-capital firm based in New York City. This is a unique, group interview with Lauren Loktev, Kanyi Maqubela, and Craig Shapiro that explores all aspects of their search and investing process, including how they identify thematic change in the world and then build a portfolio around those themes. The quality of a team is crucial to success in investing and this is a great example of a team with chemistry on a singular mission. They all offer great advice on how to operate a business, build a team, and find interesting new investments.
Also, stay tuned to the end for a bonus segment captured while the tape was still rolling.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/collaborative/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest today is Dan Egan, who is the managing director of Behavioral Finance and Investing at Betterment. In this wide-ranging role, Dan has his hands is most of the ways that Betterment interacts with its clients and how it invests their money. This is one very interested and smart guy who is clearly passionate about helping investors make better decisions. In this conversation, we explore everything from science fiction, automation, investor behavior and how Betterment tries to solve problems that goes beyond the automated asset allocation that is their bread and butter.
Please enjoy.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/egan/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Shane Parrish, who created the extremely popular Farnam Street—a website dedicated to understanding the world by mastering the best of what others have already figured out. More than 100,000 people subscribe to the Farnam Street Newsletter which summarizes what Shane and his team learned and wrote that week. I read it every Sunday. Shane and I cover a lot of ground including the future of work, automation, mental models, and reading. Shane is a voracious reader and offers unique suggestions for finding your next great book.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/parrish/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Joining me on the podcast this week is Jeff Ptak, head of global manager research at Morningstar. Jeff’s role puts him in the unique position to discuss the state of active management because he gets to see mutual funds from both the bottom-up, through deep diligence on investment strategies and firms, and top-down, using Morningstar’s data to assess industry-wide trends. Jeff is one of my favorite myth busters and discuss different variables for assessing active managers and mutual funds, but we also cover his favorite punk rock bands.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/ptak/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week we explore a rare and underappreciated skill through the lens of an incredible story. My guest is Eric Maddox, whose name you probably don’t know but won’t soon forget. Just trust me that you need to listen to this entire episode, and listen carefully—because that is what the episode is ultimately all about: how to listen to others, with care and empathy, in the age of distraction.
Sometimes it’s fun not to know what’s coming and be surprised, so I won’t say anymore. After the episode, you can learn more about Eric at Ericmaddox.com.
On his wall, Eric has a framed Cuban cigar, he starts his story by explaining the significance of that cigar. Enjoy this episode, and try Eric’s method. It has worked wonders for me.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/maddox/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is one of the reasons that this podcast exists. Josh Brown is a financial advisor and the CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management. He is also the creator of TheReformedBroker.com, a blog about markets, politics, economics, media, culture, and finance that has become one of the most widely-read sites on the financial web. He is the author of Backstage Wall Street and Clash of the Financial Pundits. Josh was instrumental in finding me an audience years ago when he shared one of my research pieces with his rapid base of fans. This conversation includes a look at his journey, what he’s learned along the way, and most importantly, his top five, dead or alive.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/brown/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest this week is Christopher Cole, founder and managing partner at Artemis Capital Management. Chris’s specialty is in long volatility strategies, setting up portfolios that will benefit from significant change and volatility in markets. We discuss how a series of small bets can lead to disproportionally large nonlinear payoffs, in both life and in markets. We also discuss the kind of watch Chris wears, Dennis Rodman, and movies, all as metaphors for his life philosophy.
Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/cole/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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Today’s episode features one of my favorite thinkers and writers: Kevin Simler. Kevin has a background in technology and was one of the earliest employees at Palantir Technologies. Palantir specializes in big data and has worked closely with clients ranging from the Department of Defense to the world’s largest hedge funds. In this conversation, Patrick and Kevin explore startup culture, how to spark creativity, how social status functions like money, and how to think about the universe. This will be one of the most unique conversations you will hear on this podcast. Please Enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/simler/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week Patrick takes a deep dive in the world of Venture Capital with Craig Shapiro, founder and CEO of the New York based Collaborative Fund, which was an early investor in companies like Lyft, Kickstarter, and Reddit. We cover Craig’s investing roots, his process for sourcing and evaluating investment opportunities, and the very useful “villain test.” Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/shapiro/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week’s guest is Brent Beshore, Founder and CEO of adventur.es, a family of companies that invests in family-owned companies. Brent has a very specific mission with this company, to cultivate a disaster resistant, compound interest machine. At just 33 years of age he has already built a portfolio of private companies that has produced impressive results. He’s done all this out of the limelight and with no outside investors. Brent discusses his rewarding but difficult journey and what he has learned, including sourcing and evaluating businesses, how he and his team have improved profitability at his portfolio companies after acquisition and so much more.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/beshore/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Would you be comfortable with a robo-advisor running your entire investment portfolio? That’s the hope of our guest this week, Jon Stein, founder and CEO of Betterment. Betterment manages $5 billion dollars for over 175,000 clients. Patrick and Jon explore the challenge of getting young people to invest, Betterment’s recent foray into areas like the 401(k) market, and how Betterment works with financial advisors. If you’re unsure about robo-advisors, this conversation will make you better understand what they can do for you. Please Enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/stein/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This episode is a major departure from the norm. My guest, Kiley Adams, is only 21 years old. She has crammed more learning and adventure into two decades than most people could hope to in a lifetime. She’s track-and-field star, valedictorian, varsity soccer player, Tae Kwon Do fourth degree master black belt, and philanthropic researcher. She has traveled all over the country and the globe, recently spending two months by herself in India. I had the pleasure to meet here while teaching an investing class at Notre Dame and am thrilled to share her incredible story and her attitude that makes all of this possible.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/adams/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week’s guest has forgotten more about hedge funds than most people will ever know. This episode will appeal to managers, allocators and any investor interested in the world of hedge funds. Ted Seides worked under David Swensen at Yale’s endowment and was a co-founder, President and Co-chief investment officer at Protégé Partners, a multibillion dollar alternative investment firm. I met Ted after reading his book, “So You Want to Start a Hedge Fund: Lessons for Managers and Allocators.” He has taught me a lot ever since. Hedge funds have taken a beating, so this very nuanced investigation into the industry comes at the right time. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/seides/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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There is a good chance that this week’s guests manage your money. This episode is a rare and fascinating look into the world’s largest asset manager. My first guest is Gerry O’Reilly, who is the portfolio manager for the largest mutual fund in the world, and oversees more than $800 billion for Vanguard. My second guest is Jim Rowley, a Senior Investments Analyst with deep knowledge of indexing and ETF’s. The two provide incredible insight into some of the particulars that make Vanguard and its funds tick. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/vanguard/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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In this episode Patrick talks to Christian Rudder, who is the co-founder of dating service OK Cupid, a NY Times best-selling author, data and math junky, and musician. Patrick and Christian discuss interesting trends in OK Cupids dating data, artificial intelligence, the NSA, great books on the Civil War, and more. Please enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/rudder/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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In this week’s episode, Patrick and Morgan Housel explore the differences between private and public market investing, how to foster innovation and creativity, how businesses are structured and organized, and how Morgan finds interesting books and topics to write about. Morgan is a prolific writer and researcher, who recently left the Motley Fool and is now a partner at the Collaborative Fund, a venture capital fund in New York City. Enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/housel/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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In this episode, Patrick and Jason Zweig reflect on investing, financial advice, books, and life in general. The method for living discussed in the last 30 minutes will be useful for everyone.
Jason is the Intelligent Investor columnist for the Wall Street Journal and author of several books including his latest “The Devil’s Financial Dictionary.” His insights and advice are the results a life of critical thinking, reading, writing, humility, and curiosity. I think you are going to get a lot from this in-depth conversation.
Enjoy!
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/zweig/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Michael Mauboussin, Managing Director and Head of Global Financial Strategies at Credit Suisse, joins Patrick to discuss the current state of the asset management business, explore all of the stages of the investment process, and what edges might exist for those trying to beat the market.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/mauboussin/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Hedge Fund Manager and author Jeff Gramm talks with Patrick O'Shaughnessy about the history and current state of shareholder activism and discusses how Jeff invests himself, taking large positions and often board seats in undervalued companies.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to investorfieldguide.com/gramm/
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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