I tend to be a rule-follower.
Partly, I'm just built that way. Partly, it's just easier. And safer.
I don't need to make an enemy of the police or the ATO, for example, nor do I want to unduly attract their attention.
When it comes to tax (and rules in general), my approach is 'if you don't know where the line is, you're too close to it'.
Sure, I could push the envelope. But is it worth the time, energy, hassle, and risk of overstepping that line? I don't think so.
And when it comes to my investing, while I don't have 'rules', per se, I do tend to follow a particular approach that, in my experience and based on what I've learned from other successful investors, tends to work pretty well.
That… isn't the approach taken by the most successful investor at The Motley Fool, who also happens to be one of our co-founders.
David Gardner has an extraordinary record, as a stock-picker.
He bought some of the most valuable businesses on Earth, years and years before they became the household names of today.
And held them. And bought more, even as prices rose.
He did it even though many called them 'overvalued'.
He's not so much a contrarian as an independent thinker.
You've seen me use the phrase 'variant perception' before. In the context of investing, it means looking for situations where we have a different view to the rest of the market – buying shares when you think they're worth more than other people do, and benefiting when your perspective turns out to be true.
David's 'variant perception' was identifying 'rules' that other investors followed that he thought were wrong.
And breaking them.
Accordingly, he called his approach 'Rule Breaker Investing'.
And it's been extraordinarily successful.
Why am I telling you all this?
I mean sure, there's no harm in giving my boss' boss' boss a wrap. But that's not why.
And he's got a new book out, but I don't get a cut of the sales. So that's not why, either.
But it is to give the book a wrap.
And his style of investing.
Spoiler: I don't invest that way. But I have learned a lot from him, and his thinking has definitely influenced the way I do invest.
The thing is, he's a smart guy. A really nice guy. He speaks and writes in a really engaging, interesting and fun way, too.
And I spoke to him for just under an hour the other day, on camera, and posted the interview to our YouTube channel.
My suggestion?
It is well and truly worth your time. I reckon you should give it a watch.
And I reckon the book is worth buying. If it gives you only one new investing insight, that'll probably pay the purchase price back many times over.
Am I saying that, just because he's the boss? Not even a little bit.
Because, as I mentioned earlier, his track record is extraordinary.
He doesn't need me as his hype man (and he'll sell a truckload of books anyway).
I just really enjoyed the book. And I knew he'd be a great interview subject (and he was).
So… your call.
But I think you'll be glad you watched the interview, and glad you bought the book.
Just click on the image below to be taken straight to the interview on YouTube.
… and the image below to buy the book on Amazon (I own shares, but feel free to buy it wherever good books are sold!)
I reckon you'll be glad you did.
Fool on!
