STREET DOGS: Five prerequisites for being a contrarian investor
Michel Pireu: The contrarian investor has a specific skills set. Here are the top five
Five prerequisites for being a contrarian investor: An inherent scepticism — the ability to question everything. Including articles like this. You should be asking, "How would this writer know how to be a contrarian investor?" In other words, the ability to think analytically about why everything could be wrong. The ability to understand history including its bubbles and mania. This requires research and reading. Have you heard of the South Sea Trading Company? Are you familiar with the 1636 Tulip Bubble? If not, it’s time to begin reading. Understanding that simply saying something is a bubble does not make you a contrarian. By some estimates, the real bubble is in the use of the word bubble. There are too many people who see bubbles all around them. The real contrarian is often the one who thinks there isn’t a bubble. The ability to spot the direction of the herd. There are a lot of fake contrarians who think just because they are going against the herd with an investment makes th...
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