5 things from behavioural science that are working for me
I have been an avid reader of behavioural science (finance, economics, psychology etc.). Some of my favourite writers are Daniel Kahneman, Dan Ariely, Dan Gilbert, Jonah Lehrer, James Montier, Richard Thaler, Robert Schiller, William Bernstein, Geoff Colvin, Chip & Dan Heath. These books make great reading and could be of great help if one could […]
Investment Mindset
A question that I am most frequently asked and one of the most difficult one is “what do you think will happen in the market tomorrow?” My family has a lot of doctors, they say one the most difficult question they face is “what is the prognosis in my case?” This is a tough question […]
5 things about money that should be taught in school
I remember learning about the sum of the angles in a triangle, how to solve quadratic equations, calculus, principles of heat, types of soil, nomenclature of species etc. in my school. I hardly use any of it in my day to day life. Most of us spend our life times in the pursuit of health, […]
House – Buy or Wait
Our recent article House – Buy vs Rent received a very good response and one of the often asked questions was “when should one buy a house?”. In this article we will explore the decision to Buy now or Wait. Let’s look at a story of 2 friends who have very similar profiles – Harish […]
What should we ask the experts?
Suraj was having a major surgery and he was meeting with Dr Ajay, one of the most experienced and well regarded doctor, for a consultation. Suraj asked Dr Ajay about the chances of success in his case. Dr Ajay was very reassuring and told him that his chances were very good. Pavan was fighting a […]
Investing is not collecting – Patience is the key
Many treat the markets as a collection engine – i.e., they expect that the moment they invest the universe with contrive to make sure that their investment value will immediately appreciate and they will make a lot of money. They don’t feel they are investing but feel that they are putting money in the market […]
House – Buy vs Rent
For many buying a house is one of the most important goals. Lot of people have a significant portion of their wealth in their house. There are many reasons to buy a house – the sense of security, being able to build memories in a house where one lives, price appreciation, etc. In this article […]
Real cost of your loan
All of us intuitively understand that if we borrow to purchase something we are paying more than if we paid fully up front, but we may not look into the actual numbers. This article is an attempt to present a case to do so. When we borrow, we have the convenience of enjoying something we […]
Source of Value
When I teach valuation in a B-School, I ask them how they would value the business of the tea vendor who is operating just outside their school. I always start the course with this example as most students are familiar with it (based on the number of hours they spend at that tea shop). Initially […]
Life stages and asset allocation
I have been catching up with a few friends who have been working for a couple of decades, earning good incomes and are now considering starting their own businesses or becoming consultants in their fields of expertise. One common theme for all of them has been that they have invested a large part of their […]
Fire drill for your portfolio
Fire drills help everyone be aware of steps to be taken in the event of a fire. Preparation for extreme events is best done when one is able to calmly consider various options and figure out the next steps. Unforeseen events happen, but planning for extreme events will help one think through various scenarios and will […]
To drive or not to drive…
I was catching up with a friend who has been using cabs (OLA, Uber etc.) for his commute and was wondering if he should buy a car instead of using cabs. We did some back of the envelope calculations to look at the economics of the decision. Calculations .. One interesting thing that comes out […]