Is experience a better source of knowledge for the investor than book learning?

Investing is a skill. To develop this skill you need the concepts and practice. The former is what you call book learning. The latter is experience.

While I emphasize practice, without the concepts you will just be getting the wrong experience. You might as well invest blindly.

It is like asking whether the brain or heart is better for living. It is a misleading question as you need both.

Now if the question was whether to emphasize concepts or experience, the answer would be more relevant.

Do remember that the concepts were established based on someone's experience

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I.L.

01 Aug 2023

I feel you need to have some theoretical knowledge, then do get some small experience to start off. So do both basically.

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Anita Han

31 Jul 2023

Both help! Needing the knowledge and confidence to start then feeling confident with practise.

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J Ang

30 Jul 2023

Ask yourself the following questions: Do you become a renowned chef through reading a book? Or do you learn from doing and from others?

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JH L

30 Jul 2023

Experience is only as useful as the lessons and emotions you learn from it.

Book knowledge is helpful in framing the lessons into a way that you can use.

The only difference is that experience can be very costly in areas you don't expect. But you need one to reinforce the other and vice versa.

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Javier Tan Yan Kai

30 Jul 2023

Actuarial Analyst at AIA

Need both but don't be too fixated on concepts...

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