Bernard Baruch’s 10 Rules of Investing

You want someone to emulate?

Bernard Baruch (August 19, 1870 – June 20, 1965) was the son of a South Carolina physician whose family moved to New York City when he was eleven year old. By his mid-twenties, he is able to buy an $18,000 seat on the exchange with his winnings and commissions from being a broker. By age 30, he is a millionaire and is known all over The Street as “The Lone Wolf”.

In his two-volume 1957 memoirs, My Own Story, Baruch left us with the following timeless rules for playing the game:

“Being so skeptical about the usefulness of advice, I have been reluctant to lay down any ‘rules’ or guidelines on how to invest or speculate wisely. Still, there are a number of things I have learned from my own experience which might be worth listing for those who are able to muster the necessary self-discipline:”

1. Don’t speculate unless you can make it a full-time job.

2. Beware of barbers, beauticians, waiters — of anyone — bringing gifts of “inside” information or “tips.”

3. Before you buy a security, find out everything you can about the company, its management and competitors, its earnings and possibilities for growth.

4. Don’t try to buy at the bottom and sell at the top. This can’t be done — except by liars.

5. Learn how to take your losses quickly and cleanly. Don’t expect to be right all the time. If you have made a mistake, cut your losses as quickly as possible.

6. Don’t buy too many different securities. Better have only a few investments which can be watched.

7. Make a periodic reappraisal of all your investments to see whether changing developments have altered their prospects.

8. Study your tax position to know when you can sell to greatest advantage.

9. Always keep a good part of your capital in a cash reserve. Never invest all your funds.

10. Don’t try to be a jack of all investments. Stick to the field you know best.

Baruch would later go on from Wall Street to Washington DC as an advisor to both Woodrow Wilson and to FDR during World War II.

Later, he became known as the Park Bench Statesman, owing to his fondness for discussing policy and politics with his acquaintances outdoors.

He lived til a few days shy of his 95th birthday in 1965. You could do worse than to invest and live based on these simple truths.

***

This post originally appeared here on February 17th, 2013

This content, which contains security-related opinions and/or information, is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon in any manner as professional advice, or an endorsement of any practices, products or services. There can be no guarantees or assurances that the views expressed here will be applicable for any particular facts or circumstances, and should not be relied upon in any manner. You should consult your own advisers as to legal, business, tax, and other related matters concerning any investment.

The commentary in this “post” (including any related blog, podcasts, videos, and social media) reflects the personal opinions, viewpoints, and analyses of the Ritholtz Wealth Management employees providing such comments, and should not be regarded the views of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC. or its respective affiliates or as a description of advisory services provided by Ritholtz Wealth Management or performance returns of any Ritholtz Wealth Management Investments client.

References to any securities or digital assets, or performance data, are for illustrative purposes only and do not constitute an investment recommendation or offer to provide investment advisory services. Charts and graphs provided within are for informational purposes solely and should not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The content speaks only as of the date indicated. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others.

Wealthcast Media, an affiliate of Ritholtz Wealth Management, receives payment from various entities for advertisements in affiliated podcasts, blogs and emails. Inclusion of such advertisements does not constitute or imply endorsement, sponsorship or recommendation thereof, or any affiliation therewith, by the Content Creator or by Ritholtz Wealth Management or any of its employees. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. For additional advertisement disclaimers see here: https://www.ritholtzwealth.com/advertising-disclaimers

Please see disclosures here.

What's been said:

Discussions found on the web
  1. vibrating butt plug commented on Nov 02

    vibrating butt plug

    […]always a big fan of linking to bloggers that I enjoy but really don’t get a good deal of link appreciate from[…]

  2. strap on penis commented on Nov 02

    strap on penis

    […]Sites of interest we’ve a link to[…]

  3. suction dildo base commented on Nov 02

    suction dildo base

    […]always a significant fan of linking to bloggers that I enjoy but do not get a lot of link appreciate from[…]

  4. MSP AIRPORT CAR SERVICE commented on Nov 03

    MSP AIRPORT CAR SERVICE

    […]here are some links to websites that we link to because we assume they’re really worth visiting[…]

  5. power stud vibrator commented on Nov 04

    power stud vibrator

    […]that is the finish of this write-up. Right here you will uncover some web sites that we think you’ll value, just click the links over[…]

  6. slim g-spot vibrator commented on Nov 04

    slim g-spot vibrator

    […]just beneath, are a lot of completely not connected web pages to ours, on the other hand, they’re surely really worth going over[…]

  7. kona coffee commented on Nov 04

    kona coffee

    Kona coffee is so good you’ll be tempted to drive to the Hawaii. Shop our high quality selections of Kona Coffee beans shipped fresh from Kona to your doorstep, no splash required.

  8. احتيال البيتكوين commented on Nov 04

    احتيال البيتكوين

    […]check below, are some totally unrelated internet sites to ours, nonetheless, they’re most trustworthy sources that we use[…]

  9. Minneapolis airport limousine service commented on Nov 05

    Minneapolis airport limousine service

    […]usually posts some incredibly fascinating stuff like this. If you are new to this site[…]

  10. como mantener una buena ereccion commented on Nov 06

    como mantener una buena ereccion

    […]The details talked about within the post are a few of the top offered […]

  11. best penis vibrator commented on Nov 08

    best penis vibrator

    […]please check out the internet sites we adhere to, like this a single, because it represents our picks through the web[…]

  12. buy female vibrator commented on Nov 09

    buy female vibrator

    […]always a large fan of linking to bloggers that I appreciate but do not get quite a bit of link adore from[…]

  13. hotels west palm beach fl commented on Nov 10

    hotels west palm beach fl

    […]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they may be worth visiting[…]

  14. real life sex dolls commented on Nov 11

    real life sex dolls

    […]just beneath, are many totally not associated web-sites to ours, nonetheless, they’re certainly really worth going over[…]