Avoid second-quality issues in making up a portfolio unless they are demonstrable bargains.

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

It is no difficult trick to bring a great deal of energy, study, and native ability into Wall Street and to end up with losses instead of profits. These virtues, if channeled in the wrong directions, become indistinguishable from handicaps.

Speculators often prosper through ignorance; it is a cliché that in a roaring bull market knowledge is superfluous and experience is a handicap. But the typical experience of the speculator is one of temporary profit and ultimate loss

The only thing you should do with pro forma earnings is ignore them.

A defensive investor can always prosper by looking patiently and calmly through the wreckage of a bear market.

Avoid second-quality issues in making up a portfolio unless they are demonstrable bargains.