“go to enough doctors and you will eventually get your tonsils removed”

Philip Paraveev via RIABiz:

I once read about an experiment where the researches had the tonsils of 1,000 healthy kids in New York examined by doctors. In about 50% of the cases, the doctors recommended removing of the tonsils. The researchers then took the “healthy” kids to another set of doctors. Again, 50% of the kids received the tonsillitis diagnosis, even though they had already been declared healthy by another doctor (notice the rate is not even dropping). Researchers then took the remaining 250 healthy kids and took them to a third set of doctors. Lo and behold — again 50% of them received the tonsillitis recommendation.

You can see where this is going — go to enough doctors and you will eventually get your tonsils removed. Same is true with consultants — talk to enough consultants and you will eventually get your strategy revised…

Regular readers know that I am from the Less is More school of thought on a great many topics, specifically with regards to how a portfolio ought to be managed. We are constantly looking for ways to reduce the volume of decision-making and activity for the sake of activity.

Sometimes, there are no better answers out there – just more answers, more opinions.

Source:

How I advise advisors to run an advisory business from my pulpit (RIABiz)