Before you invest, you must ensure that you have realistically assessed your probability of being right and how you will react to the consequences of being wrong.

As in roulette, same is true of the stock trader, who will find that the expense of trading weights the dice heavily against him.

Those with the enterprise lack the money and those with the money lack the enterprise to buy stocks when they are cheap.

Only in the exceptional case, where the integrity and competence of the advisers have been thoroughly demonstrated, should the investor act upon the advice of others without understanding and approving the decision made.

To be an investor you must be a believer in a better tomorrow.

There is no reason to feel any shame in hiring someone to pick stocks or mutual funds for you. But there's one responsibility that you must never delegate. You, and no one but you, must investigate whether an adviser is trustworthy and charges reasonable fees.

The qualitative factors upon which most stress is laid are the nature of the business and the character of the management. These elements are exceedingly important, but they are also exceedingly difficult to deal with intelligently.