“Nothing has served me better in my long life than continuous learning.” Charlie Munger
[timeless]
Q2 hedge fund letters, conference, scoops etc
If there is one common trait that links the world’s greatest investors, it’s a desire to learn. And to keep learning.
When I was younger, the available learning sources were much fewer than we have available to us today. We had newspapers and magazines, libraries and universities, but none of it was instantaneous; we had to travel somewhere else to grab the latest information. Nowadays its much different – Enter the Internet. These days there’s an incredible volume of high quality, free material available to us to supplement our learning experiences.
Of course, one of the downsides to having all this information is that we don’t always have the time to review it. Our lives are so busy with work and family, there’s usually not much spare time to devote to learning. Enter the humble Podcast.
Podcasts are like audio-blogs. When stuck in traffic, sitting on a plane or waiting for a bus, a podcast is a great way to better utilize that downtime and keep learning.
Over the last few years I’ve taken to regularly listening to podcasts, and have enjoyed many which have challenged my thought processes, provided numerous investment insights and added to my knowledge base. If I’m reading a book recommended by one of the Investment Masters, I’ll often search the Apple podcast App to see if I can catch a quick podcast with the author first. I also often subscribe to a series and save individual podcasts to come back to.
Below are some of my favorite Podcast series along with some great episodes worth listening to [click on the images to access] …
Masters in Business – Barry Ritholtz
When it comes to great Podcasts, it’s hard to go past Barry Ritholtz’s ‘Masters in Business’ series. Mr Ritholtz has a fantastic line up of interesting guests across a broad spectrum of disciplines and his broad knowledge of all-things-investing ensures the interviews are insightful and engaging.
Some of my favourites have included Leon Cooperman [Omega], John Carreyrou [Theranos reporter], Jim Chanos [Kykonis], Dr Raife Giovinazzo [Fuller & Thaler], Ed Thorp [Beat the Dealer], Yuval Noah Harari [Sapiens], Daniel Kahneman [Thinking Fast & Slow] and Jeffrey Sherman [DoubleLine].
If you want to learn about what makes a successful business, Guy Raz’s NPR podcast series, ‘How I Built This’, is a must. Raz delves into the characteristics of both great businesses and their CEOs. He gets a great line-up of high quality guests.
Some of my favorite podcasts include Chip Wilson [Lulumon], Ron Shaich [Panera Bread], Brian Scudamore [1-800-GOT-JUNK], James Dyson [Dyson], Arthur Blank [Home Depot], Herb Kelleher [Southwest Airlines], Sara Blakely [Spanx], Miguel McKelvey [WeWork] and Howard Schultz [Starbucks].
Consuelo Mack’s Wealthtrack video interviews are available as audio recordings in podcast form. Consuelo has a great line up of interesting guests including many of the Investment Masters themselves. Mack’s focus on long term investing and her experience with financial markets ensures the interviews are insightful and entertaining.
Some of my favourite interviews have included Chuck Akre [Akre Capital], Cliff Asness [AQR], Ed Yardeni [Yardeni Research], Thomas Russo [Semper Vic Partners] and Chuck Royce [Royce Funds].
Capital Allocators – Ted Seides
Ted Seides of Protégé Partners is probably more famous for his ill-fated hedge fund bet against Warren Buffett than his podcast series. Notwithstanding, Mr Seides’ interviews are an excellent resource for investment knowledge.
Some of the interviews I have enjoyed on Ted’s podcast series include Paul Black [WCM], Andy Redleaf [WhiteBox], James Aitken [Aitken Advisers], and Thomas Russo [Semper Vic Partners].
The Forbes Interview – Steven Bertoni
I stumbled across Steven Bertoni’s podcast series when I was searching for a podcast on a blog post I was writing. Mr Bertoni’s interviews are always interesting and he gets a solid line-up of guests across a broad array of disciplines.
I’ve enjoyed interviews with Paul Tudor Jones [Tudor Corporation], Adam Neumann [WeWork], Ray Dalio [Bridgewater], Ron Shaich Panera Bread], Captain ‘Sully’ Sullenberger [Sully] and Danny Meyer [ShakeShack].
We Study Billionaires – Preston Pysh/Stig Broderson
Preston and Stig get a diverse line up of great investors and business people on their podcast series. They’ll also often review interesting books, investors, investing styles, authors and business success stories.
Some interesting interviews include Robert Cialdini [Influence], Guy Spier [Aqua Marine Fund], Roger Lowenstein [Author], Jim Rogers [ex Quantum] and Ed Thorp [Beat the Dealer].
The series that I’ve included above are those I regularly enjoy, however you’ll find there are plenty of other great podcasts available to you. To date, despite listening to copious amounts of these wonderful audio blogs, I’ve barely scratched the surface when it comes to those devoted to great businesses and investing.
Others I’ve also enjoyed listening to include episodes from FT’s Alphachat, McKinsey on Finance, The Tim Ferris Show, Invest Like the Best, Knowledge@Wharton, Inquiring Minds and Value Investing Podcast to name but a few.
If you’re embarking on a new book, studying a new discipline or learning about a favourite investor, take a trip to the App store to see what you can find. You might be surprised. And whether you’re driving, about to travel on a plane or are stuck in traffic on the way to a meeting, throw on those headphones and listen to a podcast. Its one of the best ways I know to keep learning!
Article by Investment Masters Class
