The Minutes

On the record about

contrarian

5 people · 16 quotes · 2 Jul 2019 to 26 May 2026

Who is on this subjectordered by the date of their first quote here

4 of 5 lanes rest on fewer than 5 quotes and are marked thin. Offsets are days from the middle first-quote date, 13 Mar 2025 — a date, and nothing else. It is not a claim about who reached a view first.

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The chronologysourced and dated, oldest first

    1. Bill Gurley

      Gurley mocked a VC who said cheap capital enables going after new industries, calling it flawed logic.

      “I overheard a VC on a panel say that now that capital's become so cheap, we as venture capitalists get to go after all these new industries. And it really made me chuckle.”

      2 Jul 2019 · Invest Like the Best · 43:03 · source · permalink
    1. Howard Marks

      Marks quotes Swensen saying successful investing requires uncomfortably idiosyncratic positions against the crowd.

      “successful investing requires the adoption of uncomfortably idiosyncratic positions. Everybody has the same influences, everybody thinks pretty much the same,”

      30 Jun 2022 · Goldman Sachs · 19:43 · source · permalink
    2. Howard Marks

      Marks quotes Swenson that successful investing requires uncomfortably idiosyncratic positions; tomorrow's winners are today's losers.

      “Everybody has the same influences, everybody thinks pretty much the same, everybody anoints the same winners and criticizes the same losers, and obviously tomorrow's winners are usually found on the pile of today's losers,”

      30 Jun 2022 · Goldman Sachs · 19:52 · source · permalink
    1. Brad Gerstner

      Gerstner argues successful government austerity means short-term pain for markets by withdrawing liquidity from economy.

      “I think ironically, what people are not yet bracing for is that the success of austerity, the success of balancing the budget, the success of Doge, likely means short term pain for markets.”

      13 Mar 2025 · Upfront Ventures · 22:25 · source · permalink
    2. Howard Marks

      Marks shares trader's wisdom that when it's time to buy, psychological conditions make you not want to.

      “I came across a great quote within the last year from a guy who's a retired trader, When the time comes to buy, you won't want to.”

      22 Aug 2025 · My First Million · 20:39 · source · permalink
    3. Howard Marks

      Marks says it's generally bad to buy what everybody loves and good to look at what everybody hates.

      “in general, it's a bad idea to buy the things that everybody loves and it's a good idea to buy the things that everybody hates.”

      7 Sep 2025 · The Church Sag Harbor · 46:41 · source · permalink
    4. Howard Marks

      Marks cites Buffett principle that imprudent market behavior should increase investor caution and worry.

      “So when other people are acting imprudently and mindlessly and carefree, we should be worried.”

      11 Dec 2025 · Bloomberg Podcasts · 3:58 · source · permalink
    5. Howard Marks

      Marks reveals Bruce Karsh invested $450 million per week for fifteen weeks during the 2008 crisis.

      “Bruce and I figured out that we should spend the money. He ran the fund in question and he bravely invested an average of $450,000,000 a week for the next fifteen weeks.”

      13 Dec 2025 · The Investor’s Podcast · 28:17 · source · permalink
    1. Howard Marks

      Marks quotes Buffett: when others act less prudently, we must act more prudently in our own affairs.

      “Buffett says most things best. He says, the less prudence with which others conduct their affairs, the greater the prudence with which we must conduct our own affairs.”

      23 Feb 2026 · Brookfield · 12:28 · source · permalink
    2. Howard Marks

      Marks notes investors sell more when prices fall, opposite of normal behavior in every other walk of life.

      “In every other walk of life, we buy more when things go on sale. In the markets, we sell more when things go on sale.”

      23 Feb 2026 · Brookfield · 17:35 · source · permalink
    3. Howard Marks

      Marks quotes Swensen saying good investing requires adopting uncomfortably idiosyncratic positions.

      “Dave Swenson used my favorite two word phrase that good investing requires the adoption of uncomfortably idiosyncratic positions.”

      23 Feb 2026 · Brookfield · 23:55 · source · permalink
    4. Chamath Palihapitiya

      Palihapitiya says visceral negative reactions from others about investments are the best signal of asymmetric outcomes.

      “My best friends were up in arms. My wife at the time up in arms. Why are you doing this? This makes no sense.”

      2 Mar 2026 · Nikhil Kamath · 39:26 · source · permalink
    5. Howard Marks

      Marks quotes trader Wally Deemer: When the time comes to buy, you won't want to.

      “And there was a guy named Wally Deemer, was an old time trader, who had some great quotes and he turned them into”

      4 May 2026 · Nikhil Kamath · 1:13:35 · source · permalink
    6. Gavin Baker

      Baker admits he has been hanging on to memory stocks for dear life despite contrarian instincts.

      “I've been hanging on to the memory stocks for dear life. And yeah, but that's that's a that that's been a lifelong journey”

      15 May 2026 · Sohn Conference Foundation · 2:52 · source · permalink
    7. “I would say based on every memory cycle we have had for the last twenty five years, this is the time to be selling memory 100%.”

      15 May 2026 · Sohn Conference Foundation · 8:20 · source · permalink
    8. Howard Marks

      Marks wrote a memo titled The Limits to Negativism in October 2008 after Lehman's bankruptcy.

      “I wrote a memo in October of o eight, after the global financial after the bankruptcy of Lehman, with the title, the limits to negativism. And there is such a thing as being too negative.”

      26 May 2026 · Oaktree · 5:53 · source · permalink

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