Meet with PWL Capital: https://pages.pwlcapital.com/en-ca/contact-us?utm_source=content&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=rationalreminder_yt Avoid Online Scams https://pwlcapital.com/stay-safe-online/ Ben Felix or any PWL employee will never reach out to you on social media platforms or WhatsApp to give financial advice. These are scammers trying to commit fraud. Barry Ritholtz returns to the Rational Reminder podcast to discuss the biggest mistakes investors make—and why avoiding them may matter more than finding the next great investment. Drawing on decades of experience in markets, wealth management, and financial media, Barry explains why forecasting consistently fails, how investors can distinguish good advice from noise, and why humility, probabilistic thinking, and disciplined behavior are among the most valuable investing skills. Throughout the conversation, Barry shares lessons from his new book, How Not to Invest, covering everything from media consumption and behavioral biases to index investing, portfolio concentration, market cycles, and choosing a financial advisor. He explains why experts are often better at providing context than making predictions, why social media amplifies poor financial advice, and how investors can build processes that help them stay disciplined through uncertainty. The discussion blends academic research, practical experience, and memorable stories into a comprehensive guide for becoming a better long-term investor. Timestamps: 0:00:00 Intro 0:05:18 What happens when billionaires go on TV to make economic forecasts 0:06:35 How well this phenomenon extends to other domains like film and music 0:08:02 How well experts forecast future stock market returns 0:09:03 What experts are useful for 0:10:13 The tells people can look for to spot bad advice 0:13:06 The role 24/7 media plays in the dissemination of bad advice 0:14:06 How useful paying attention to the new is to investors 0:15:51 How bad short-forn media has been for investors 0:17:31 How Gell-Mann amnesia affects the way people perceive the news 0:20:22 The best ways for people to get more signal and less noise from the media 0:23:00 Barry defines investing 0:25:44 How good investors think about the world 0:27:49 Why NOT knowing is valuable as an investor 0:29:40 How people can get better at admitting they don't know 0:30:35 The best ideas that shaped Barry's own investment philosophy 0:35:38 The worst offenders of economic innumeracy that lead people to make bad decisions 0:40:31 How useful is knowing whether we are in a bull market or a bear market 0:44:02 Why investors should care about secular cycles 0:45:52 How useful stock market valuations are to investment decisions 0:50:20 The effects externalities have on secular market cycles 0:51:45 The biggest investment lessons from the COVID crash 0:55:13 Why index investing makes so much sense 0:57:14 The secret to making perfect market forecasts 0:58:45 What traders lie to themselves about 1:03:28 What someone who chooses to pursue active management needs to do to be successful 1:04:50 The biggest behavioural mistakes that investors make 1:07:32 How dangerous a portfolio concentration is in a single asset 1:10:42 How sudden cash windfalls can go wrong 1:13:42 How should someone identify good sources of advice 1:18:19 Barry's top teachings for becoming a better investor 1:20:47 Who should own bonds 1:23:26 Who should allocate to alternatives, like hedge funds and private assets 1:26:47 Whether or not people should buy new cars 1:33:46 Barry defines success in his investment portfolio Links From Today’s Episode: Rational Reminder on iTunes — https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-rational-reminder-podcast/id1426530582. Rational Reminder on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/rationalreminder/ Rational Reminder on YouTube — https://www.youtube.com/channel/ Benjamin Felix — https://pwlcapital.com/our-team/ Benjamin on X — https://x.com/benjaminwfelix Benjamin on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminwfelix/