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Risk & ruin

Big Mistakes

Michael Batnick

Even the greatest investors blew up spectacularly - if they can be humbled, so can you, so size and diversify for it.

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Chapters

16
  1. Chapter 01There Are No Iron-Clad LawsEven the father of value investing was nearly wiped out in 1929 - no rule works in every market.Read this chapter →
  2. Chapter 02Manage Your RiskA brilliant trader made and lost several fortunes and died broke - because he never controlled risk.Read this chapter →
  3. Chapter 03Don't Get AttachedTwain fell in love with a speculative machine and kept pouring money in until it ruined him.Read this chapter →
  4. Chapter 04Genius's LimitsA fund run by Nobel laureates blew up because huge leverage met a rare event their models ignored.Read this chapter →
  5. Chapter 05Find What Works for YouBogle chased hot managers, got burned and fired - then invented low-cost indexing and stuck with it.Read this chapter →
  6. Chapter 06Stay in Your LaneA great trader lost a fortune the moment he strayed into markets where he had no edge.Read this chapter →
  7. Chapter 07You're Not as Smart as You ThinkThe go-go star looked like a genius until the bull market that made him ended.Read this chapter →
  8. Chapter 08Beware of OverconfidenceBuffett bought a dying textile mill out of spite, calling it his costliest mistake.Read this chapter →
  9. Chapter 09Get Off Your SoapboxA famous investor turned a short into a public crusade, then couldn't back down without humiliation.Read this chapter →
  10. Chapter 10Hard Lessons Can Be NecessaryEven a disciplined pro caved to FOMO and piled into tech at the 2000 top, giving back billions in weeks.Read this chapter →
  11. Chapter 11The Risks of Concentrated InvestingA legendary fund let one stock grow to a third of the portfolio - and that stock's collapse sank it.Read this chapter →
  12. Chapter 12The Most Addictive GameKeynes was repeatedly wiped out forecasting currencies before he switched to owning good businesses.Read this chapter →
  13. Chapter 13You Only Need to Win OnceHe made 'the greatest trade ever' shorting subprime, then lost badly chasing another one.Read this chapter →
  14. Chapter 14Handling Big LossesMunger's fund fell roughly 50% in 1973–74 before recovering - even the best endure gut-wrenching drawdowns.Read this chapter →
  15. Chapter 15Dealing with RegretHe sold or passed on early stakes in giant winners - you will always miss some.Read this chapter →
  16. Chapter 16Looking in the MirrorThe author's own losses taught him that knowing yourself is the real edge.Read this chapter →

This is my own plain-English understanding of the book’s ideas, in my own words with my own ₹ examples, laid out against the book’s real chapters so you can relate the two. It is not the book and reproduces none of its text - if it helps, please buy the book. Not affiliated with the author or publisher. The author is not SEBI-registered; nothing here is investment advice.