I often see interviews with the well-known value investors out there. Usually they get asked the same old questions, including “What do you look for in an investment?” Can any of you really remember, recite and have implemented what they said? Sure, their views are interesting, but for me, value investing is a philosophy (the fundamental nature of knowledge), not a science.
This is exactly my point: we all know what the criteria is, but the special sauce is the ability to recognize when the stars align, spot something different, and only then execute with conviction. I’m sure many of you have read books by Graham and Buffet and tried to copy their process, and then wondered why you’ve executed everything that they have said and it doesn’t work. Right?