Posts Tagged ‘losses’
Daniel Kahneman: Owning Stocks
on Friday, July 2, 2021Daniel Kahneman Money Quote saying long-term investing requires ignoring short-term losses or it can make you miserable. Daniel Kahneman said:
“If owning stocks is a long-term project for you, following their changes constantly is a very, very bad idea. It’s the worst possible thing you can do, because people are so sensitive to short-term losses. If you count your money every day, you’ll be miserable” — Daniel Kahneman
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In this quote, Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman is offering advice on investing in stocks for the long run. He suggests that if owning stocks is a long-term goal, constantly checking their fluctuating prices in the short term will only cause misery, as people tend to fixate on and be overly sensitive to temporary losses.
Kahneman implies this type of frequent monitoring is psychologically unhealthy and counterproductive to the patient, big-picture approach required for successful long-term investment.
His message conveys that investing should be viewed as a marathon, not a series of sprints, and daily price swings should not distract from the long-term trend if one’s time horizon is measured in years rather than days or months.
Birthday: March 5, 1934 – Death: March 27, 2024
Thomas Jefferson: Pay War Losses
on Thursday, May 13, 2021Thomas Jefferson Money Quote saying that even those wars with good results can pay for itself and losses of war. Thomas Jefferson said:
“The most successful war seldom pays for its losses” — Thomas Jefferson
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This quote from Thomas Jefferson suggests that while military victories may be won on the battlefield, the overall costs of war often outweigh the gains. Jefferson appears to be acknowledging that while war can achieve political or territorial objectives, the financial burdens, loss of life, long-term healthcare for veterans, and other impacts rarely make war a worthwhile investment even for the victor.
The message seems to be that nations should enter armed conflict only as an absolute last resort, since the consequences of war tend to linger and undermine prosperity long after any fighting ends.
Overall, the quote conveys Jefferson’s view that war should not be glorified or seen as a path to enrichment, but rather understood as a tragic last option due to the severe toll it takes on societies regardless of victory.
Birthday: April 13, 1743 – Death: July 4, 1826
Smedley D. Butler: War is a Profitable Racket
on Friday, July 17, 2015Smedley D. Butler Money Quotation saying clearly that where money is to be made in war, business will seek that profit regardless of losses in lives. Smedley D. Butler said:
“War is a Racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives” — Smedley D. Butler
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In this quote, Smedley D. Butler is very critically assessing the true nature and motivations behind war. His interpretation is that war has essentially always been a “racket” or a means of profiteering and making money rather than a necessary act of self-defense or conflict resolution.
Butler argues that war is possibly the oldest and surely the most lucrative business or “racket” that exists, but that its costs are paid in human lives and suffering rather than dollars.
His view is that war is unique in how its profits are tallied financially while its losses are counted only in lives lost, with no accounting of the human cost. Overall, Butler presents war as being driven first and foremost by profit motives rather than higher purposes, in his strong condemnation of its exploitative nature.
Birthday: July 30, 1881 – June 21, 1940
Winston Churchill Political Profits
on Tuesday, March 19, 2013Winston Churchill Money Quotation saying losing money is a larger problem than the vice of making profit. Winston Churchill said:
“It is a socialist idea that making profits is a vice; I consider the real vice is making losses” — Winston Churchill
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Winston Churchill seems to be contrasting the socialist view of profits with his own perspective. He acknowledges that socialists often see earning profits as morally questionable or a vice of capitalism.
However, Churchill argues that the real issue is businesses and individuals making financial losses instead of gains. His view appears to be that profits are natural and even desirable in a free market as they signify economic success, whereas losses represent underperformance or potential failure that should rightfully be avoided if possible.
Overall, Churchill is challenging the socialist critique of profits by asserting that the greater vice from an economic standpoint is businesses and entrepreneurs incurring losses rather than profits.
Birthday: November 30, 1874 – Death: January 24, 1965
Jack D. Schwager: Losses
on Monday, August 8, 2011Jack D. Schwager Money Quotation saying Inability to accept small losses means that you will over-react to larger losses and may suffer complete devastation. Jack D. Schwager said:
“If you can’t take a small loss, sooner or later you will take the mother of all losses” — Jack D. Schwager
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In this quote, Jack D. Schwager is giving advice about risk management and losses. The best interpretation is:
- Schwager is saying that if someone is unable to accept or tolerate relatively minor losses as a normal part of investing or trading, they will eventually experience an enormous loss that they truly cannot afford.
- His point is that occasional, small losses are inevitable with any risky financial activity and should be seen as the cost of doing business.
- However, if one refuses to cut their losses at a manageable level, it can allow a small problem to cascade into an overwhelming loss that far exceeds what was intended or prudent to risk.
- Schwager’s message is that the inability to absorb or learn from modest losses sets traders up to be blindsided by a single massive loss that their capital cannot withstand.
The overall message is about the importance of having the discipline to accept small losses gracefully as a risk management strategy to prevent a situation where an investor is suddenly overwhelmed by a calamitous loss that causes severe financial harm. Schwager advocates for learning to minimize losses at any scale.