The Ground Rules:

1.    We don’t know what the stock market will do from one day to the next. We have neither the premonition nor the expertise. 

2.   We buy into listed securities with the same mindset as if we were buying a business wholly. We do not speculate in the expectation that the next day if a higher quotation came along, we will sell. However, we will buy more of a good thing at depressed prices.

3.   We will be willing to sit patiently on the sidelines, and not participate in markets where greed is the order of the day. In saying this, from time to time there will be excess ‘cash’ with no home. We are comfortable with this.

4.   Excessive leverage and debt makes no sense to us. We will not compromise on this and seek prudence when allocating capital.

5.   In buying businesses whole, we like to partner with like-minded individuals who will continue to operate and run the place for longevity. We cannot provide the management nor do we want to.

6.   We consider risk not in terms of volatility. The day to day, month to month, and even year to year highs and lows do not bother us. We will allocate capital to those businesses where earnings will be far superior in the longer term.