Maserati wrote:
A different way of saying what agip said is that the markets historically have not rewarded primarily intelligence, they have rewarded primarily compliant, and largely passive, participation.
sorta. I get your point and it's fine, but
I'd change it around to say that markets historically have rewarded those smart enough not to pretend they can make the right short term moves.
Meaning, smart enough to be humble. To see the full picture.
When I was in my 20s and 30s I f'd around with the markets, tried to be smart, followed 'smart' guys who seemed to have unlocked the secrets of the market. Or at least tilted the odds toward them .
But that cost me hundreds of thousands of dollars. If I had just indexed and not tried so hard I would be a lot richer now.