One hour with a top brain...

If you have one hour with an investment legend…how will you spend it? What will you ask?

Paul Volcker. What would you have done monetary policy wise since December 2008?

Interesting…more please.

Normally, I would have “tell me your product” to fall back to…but this one is purely just get to pick his brain…

I’d tell Jessie Livermore that if he holds on, he won’t have to fear losing his fortune again. The guy hit his peak after blowing up 3 times, and on the 4th time, he just couldn’t handle the thought that he might lose it again… so he ‘offed’ himself with a pistol.

I’m a huge Buffett fanboy, but I don’t think that I would want to waste a theoretical hour with one of the most widely quoted and regularly interviewed investment minds of our time.

I’d probably pick one of the following:

David Einhorn (Greenlight)

Bruce Berkowitz (Fairholme)

Seth Klarman (Baupost)

Charlie Munger (BRK.A, but way way way less widely quoted and regularly interviewed than Buffett)

Claire Barnes (Apollo Asia)

Edwin Schloss (Schloss & Assoc.)

What I’d ask:

  1. What’s the best way for a value investor to hone their valuation skills? To develop the right personality?

  2. How do you size positions?

  3. How do you determine when, and how much, to sell?

  4. Are you in need of an analyst? OK, what about a paid internship? Unpaid internship? What if I paid you?

Last one isn’t at all a joke. If you’re gonna meet an investing great, might as well go for broke.

At least he left on top. Costanza would be proud.

It’s kinda like having an hour with Buffett. You won’t ask him about his book because it’s all out in the public. You won’t ask him about how he picks stocks because you only have an hour. That’s why I’m having trouble… and people would pay $50,000 for that…

Ask him/her about an individual stock or sector which you’re both familar with and try to direct the convesation to a friendly argument where you’re on opposing sides of an issue.

JDV. I’ll ask him if he thinks the Obama economic plan is a failure.

Hey ssf, can i contact you online? I have a couple of questions…(interview)

Probably Gunlach. He loves the sound of his voice so much I wouldn’t have to say a thing.

JDV who?

I’d pick Buffett anyway, and ask him to explain his valuation process. He has said a lot of words in public, but none that I know that pin down exactly how he chooses or passes over stocks. Only vague hints like “I can do it in 5 seconds” (just for the preliminary screen, I assume). Others have speculated that he discounts by bond yield + some premium.

JDV = JoeyDVivre

Check on the right side of the page, he has the second most posts on this site. He used to be a grader for the CFA and also ran a multi billion dollar hedge fund. In 2009 he joined the economic team of President Obama.

Kyle Bass

Grundlach is a good choice also.

Do we know that JDV actually went to work for the Obama team? I thought somebody just said that as wistful imagination. I’d be interested in his thoughts on that experience too if it’s true.

(edit, nevermind)

Look at the 2009 economic team, I’d be willing to bet a ton of money he wasn’t on it. JDV is definitely a badass but I’m also 99% sure he’s not one of those people. The legend has definitely taken a life of its own, lol.

That said, if I could spend an hour with a legend and actually get straight answers to my questions I’d probably want to talk to Jim Simons, or maybe even Madoff.

…also, like the new name bchad.

Yes, I was wondering if JDV was on the Rennaisance team. He certainly talked like it. Or possibly AQR. He may of course just done his own thing, but I get the sense that he was with one of the biggies.

Anyone who could read between the lines (especially his last few posts) could figure out he is part, whether directly or indirectly, to the recovery team. He even mentioned some sort of past dealings with Timothy Geithner (years before he became Treasury secretary) and knew his network.

Maybe I missed those posts… do you have a link to them? I’m curious…

I only believe this is true because I disagreed with 100% of what he said.