The truth is, everything that has happened in my life... that I thought was a crushing event at the time, has turned out for the better.

I am a huge bull on this country. We will not have a double-dip recession at all. I see our businesses coming back almost across the board.

Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked.

Working with people who cause your stomach to churn seems much like marrying for money - probably a bad idea under any circumstances, but absolute madness if you are already rich.

Never invest in a business you can't understand

Bad terminology is the enemy of good thinking.

None of this means, however, that a business or stock is an intelligent purchase simply because it is unpopular; a contrarian approach is just as foolish as a follow-the-crowd strategy. What's required is thinking rather than polling. Unfortunately, Bertrand Russell's observation about life in general applies with unusual force in the financial world: "Most men would rather die than think. Many do."