Ten quotes on volatility from the masters of the market

In light of the notable market volatility this week, it is timely to review what the masters of the market have said on the subject. These quotes from some of the most successful investors illustrate how investing in stock markets can be a challenging yet rewarding venture, requiring strong research skills, a rational, dispassionate mindset, a long-term horizon and patience in equal measure.

Sir John Templeton

“The first rule of investment is ‘buy low and sell high’, but many people fear to buy low because of the fear of the stock dropping even lower. Then you may ask: ‘When is the time to buy low?’ The answer is: When there is maximum pessimism.” 

Warren Buffett

"You pay a very high price for a cheery consensus. It won't be the economy that will do in investors; it will be the investors themselves. Uncertainty is actually the friend of the buyer of long-term values." 

Peter Lynch

"Everyone has the brainpower to make money in stocks. Not everyone has the stomach. If you are susceptible to selling everything in a panic, you ought to avoid stocks and mutual funds altogether."

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

“When an investor focuses on short-term investments, he or she is observing the variability of the portfolio, not the returns – in short, being fooled by randomness." 

Seth Klarman

“The stock market is the story of cycles and of the human behaviour that is responsible for overreactions in both directions.” 

Benjamin Graham

“In the short run, the market is a voting machine, but in the long run it is a weighing machine.” 

Warren Buffett

“Unless you can watch your stock holding decline by 50% without becoming panic-stricken, you should not be in the stock market.” 

George Soros

“If investing is entertaining, if you’re having fun, you’re probably not making any money. Good investing is boring.” 

Peter Lynch

“More money has been lost trying to anticipate and protect from corrections than actually in them.” 

Sir John Templeton

“Bull markets are born on pessimism, grow on scepticism, mature on optimism and die of euphoria.” 

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