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Scott Phillips

Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Scott Phillips is The Motley Fool’s Chief Investment Officer in Australia. He is Advisor of The Fool’s flagship investment service, Motley Fool Share Advisor and the Portfolio Manager of Motley Fool Everlasting Income and Premier Portfolio, as well as running our most premium service, Motley Fool Platinum. He is passionate about investing, having managed his own portfolio for over 15 years. A dyed-in-the-wool Fool (in the best way), he has been a member of The Motley Fool since 1999. Scott holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Management) and a Graduate Diploma of Accounting. Before joining The Fool, Scott worked in various Sales and Finance roles in industry, which has allowed him to see the good, bad and the ugly of corporate management close-up. Giving him a great understanding of the way businesses run – and what separates the business wheat from the chaff – Scott wholeheartedly agrees with Warren Buffett when he said he was a ‘better investor because I am a businessman and a better businessman because I am an investor’. Scott left a successful career to follow his passion – helping our members achieve the best possible investment returns, and helping Australians learn to better manage their money. It’s no surprise he ended up at The Motley Fool.

Recent Articles

A concerned man looking at his laptop.
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Another day, another thing to worry about

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

If we invested only in companies that could never, under any circumstances, have any risks… well, we’d never invest.

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A little girl wearing a gold crown sulks and pokes her tongue out.
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Shakespeare's advice for investors

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Many people are wondering whether or not to invest right now...

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stadium signifying brisbane broncos share price
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Why Grand Finals are a terrible investing analogy

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Go the Chooks in 2024! Too early? Never!

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Diverse group of people enjoying a win
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Think the good times have gone? Think again…

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

It could be they're just warming up.

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A male investor sits at his desk looking at his laptop screen holding his hand to his chin pondering whether to buy Macquarie shares
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How I learned to love low share prices

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I raise it to remind you of how you should think about share prices.

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A couple sits in their lounge room with a large piggy bank on the coffee table. They smile while the male partner feeds some money into the slot while the female partner looks on with an iPad style device in her hands as though they are budgeting.
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You really should invest. Now.

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

By the time people get motivated to invest, it’ll probably be at the height of FOMO fever.

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A man sits at a desk holding a small replica house in his hand, upset at the sale of his property.
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The swiftest solution for housing affordability

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

There are three major buckets, here.

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a woman explaining information to an elderly couple about finance
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Making money… the old-fashioned way

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I can’t stress enough how important I think it is to find quality people with old-fashioned values.

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A young woman sits at her desk in deep contemplation with her hand to her chin while seriously considering information she is reading on her laptop
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How to choose a Super Fund

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

When it came to our default fund here at The Motley Fool, we had to answer this question.

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A man analyses stockmarket graph on his computer.
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Mr. Market vs. The Economist

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Most of the time the market is telling you about its mood... not its ability to correctly price companies.

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A man holds his head in his hands after seeing bad news on his laptop screen.
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The worst reason not to invest

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

No, Bradman didn’t score a century every time he went out to bat.

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man using laptop happy at rising share price
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Happy Vanguard Index Chart Day

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Happy Vanguard Index Chart Day, to all who celebrate.

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An excited man stretches his arms out above his head as he reaches a mountain peak representing two ASX 200 shares reaching multi-year high prices today
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Guess which company just hit an all-time high?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I’ve been recommending shares in the company to my members and readers for yonks!

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A group of older women and men cheers their wine glasses ecstatically, even though they're in lockdown.
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Is your portfolio ageing like a fine wine?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Giving good wine some time to mature is a smart strategy.

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a man wearing a business suit has a wide-eyed surprised expression on his face with a powerboard in one hand and a power plug in the other and yards of power chord wrapped many times over around his neck and body.
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No degrees of difficulty in investing

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

See, unlike in Olympic diving, there’s no extra points for degree of difficulty when you invest.

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A man sits in deep thought with a pen held to his lips as he ponders his computer screen with a laptop open next to him on his desk in a home office environment.
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Don't let cheap brokerage cost you money

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

What’s not to like about cheap brokerage?

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Uluru at sunrise under a majestic sky.
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The beauty of long-term investing (and the outback)

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

It's easy to get away from it all when you invest for the long term.

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A male investor sits at his desk looking at his laptop screen with his hand to his chin pondering whether to buy Origin shares
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Are you getting value for what you're paying?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

There are some financial planners who seem to view their clients as meal tickets.

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A man in a business suit wearing boxing gloves slumps in the corner of a boxing ring representing the beaten-up Zip share price in recent times
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Mike Tyson on investing

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Mike Tyson more than anyone, understands ‘no pain, no gain’.

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A surprised and curious male investor drinks black coffee while reading the latest news on rising ASX shares in the newspaper
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Investors 1: 'Permabear' forecasters 0

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

When the ASX stock market gets volatile and the permabears come out, choose very carefully who you listen to.

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The Australian Coat of Arms flanked by a kangaroo and an emu features as a fresco on a building with the backdrop of a blue sky.
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My budget verdict

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I’m glad you asked.

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graphic depicting australian economic activity
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Do we dare hope, when it comes to the budget?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

What are we to expect tonight?

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A young investor working on his ASX shares portfolio on his laptop
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Buffers, bank blow-ups, and Buffett

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Yeah, it’s been one of those weeks!

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Percentage symbol in white with a black rising arrow.
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Buffett, rates and cigarettes

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

The government is stimulating the economy while the RBA is trying to cool it.

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A male investor wearing a white shirt and blue suit jacket sits at his desk looking at his laptop with his hands to his chin, waiting in anticipation.
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Another ASX company to disappear

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I don’t love the idea of the ASX losing yet another consumer branded business to an overseas buyer.

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remembrance day poppy
Community Service Announcement

Lest We Forget

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

We will remember them.

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A female sharemarket analyst with red hair and wearing glasses looks at her computer screen watching share price movements.
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Just when you thought it was safe to stop day-trading

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

There’s a new index to compete for our attention.

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A young woman sits at her desk in deep contemplation with her hand to her chin while seriously considering information she is reading on her laptop
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What investors can learn from the RBA's mistakes

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Successful investors, I would argue, focus not on the past, but the future.

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A man with a wry smile on his face is shown close up behind ascending piles of coins as he places another coin on top of the tallest stack representing rising dividends
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11 times your money? Yes, it's possible (we did it)

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I’m pleased that I can share a real world example of the power of investing.

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Young boy with glasses in a suit sits at a chair and reads a newspaper.
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Of rains and interest rates…

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Hopefully our capital-F Foolish investing analogy is clear. 

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A senior investor wearing glasses sits at his desk and works on his ASX shares portfolio on his laptop.
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Are 15% of home borrowers really going to default?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Predictions – from anyone – should be taken with a large dose of salt.

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RBA influence on asx shares represented by yellow wall with reserve bank of australia sign on it
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The RBA's job just got harder

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

You might be surprised that Phil Lowe doesn’t consult me on rates decisions.

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A man sits bolt upright watching something intently on his television.
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Bitcoin: The reality TV of the investing world?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Will someone pay more for Bitcoin at some point in the future? You’re welcome to speculate on that outcome, if…

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A worried woman looks at her phone and laptop, seeking ways to tighten her belt against inflation.
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Another day, another bank in trouble

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I'm calling for much more, and better, regulation for our nation’s and the world’s banks.

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Young ASX share investor excitedly throwing hands up in front of savings jar.
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So close, Premier. Let me fix it.

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I really like this idea… with two exceptions.

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A couple sits on a sofa, each clutching their heads in horror and disbelief, while looking at a laptop screen.
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Understanding the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I will tell you what I’m doing as a result of this.

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A young woman sits with her hand to her chin staring off to the side thinking about her investments.
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Warren Buffett could have saved us from ourselves

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

A lesson in defending the indefensible, some good oil and a nod to the wisdom of one of the world's…

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man and woman discussing superannuation
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Unscrambling the Superannuation mess

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

I’m going to quickly propose a better alternative.

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Woman on her laptop thinking to herself.
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What would Warren Buffett do?

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Warren Buffett's been very, very generous, for years, in sharing his expertise with anyone who cares to read or listen…

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Kid pouring out coins from the money jar.
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Investing lessons from a 10 year old

| Scott Phillips (TMFGilla)

Will you read a better rationale for investing this week?

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