We owe a debt of gratitude to those financial market founding fathers from whom we've learned so much from over the years. In response to overwhelming subscriber demand for our favorite book suggestions we've put together a collection of reading lists for you to check-out.
First things first. We want to highlight three excellent books which come highly recommended by our CEO Keith McCullough. We call these our "Must-Read Process Books."
MUST-READ PROCESS BOOKS
1. The Misbehavior of Markets
By Benoit Mandelbrot
If you're looking for a thoughtful and rewarding read about how to simplify the complexities of financial markets, look no further. We highly recommend you read "The Misbehavior of Markets" by mathematics legend Benoit Mandelbrot.
"This is somewhat of a Bible to me," says Hedgeye CEO Keith McCullough. "I learned a ton from this guy, if only what not to do. It's an alternative to establishment economics. It's certainly an alternative to how people think about markets relative to economic data." Click here to watch Keith's entire book review on "The Misbehavior of Markets."
2. Thinking Fast & Slow
By Daniel Kahneman
Hedgeye CEO Keith McCullough discusses Daniel Kahneman's seminal book, Thinking Fast and Slow. According to McCullough, this must-read book written by the Nobel laureate and founder of behavioral economics has been an invaluable resource in enhancing his approach to investing.
"This book provides a real baseline for understanding, 'What is behavioral finance?'" McCullough says. "What this book does is it teaches why human beings should embrace uncertainty." Click here to watch Keith's entire book review on "Thinking Fast & Slow."
3. Models of My Life
By Herb Simon
Hedgeye CEO Keith McCullough discusses Nobel laureate Herb Simon's autobiography, Models of My Life. "I'd like to thank Mr. Simon for being not only a revolutionary in this space, but for challenging the status quo," McCullough says. "That's a really important component of this book. It contextualizes where we were in economics back in the 1970s and outlines a better path forward." Click here to watch Keith's entire book review on "Models of My Life."
Below is a "Top-10 Reading List" – featuring a collection of our favorite ten books covering markets, investing and hard work.
TOP-10 READING LIST
1. A Man For All Markets – by Edward Thorp: The card-counting mathematics professor turned hedge fund manager who taught the world how to beat the dealer and, as one of the first great quantitative investors, beat the market.
2. Principles – by Ray Dalio: The world’s largest hedge fund manager shares the unconventional principles he’s developed, refined, and used over the past forty years to create unique results in both life and business.
3. Deep Work – by Cal Newport: A valuable skill that's becoming increasingly rare, Deep Work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It's a skill that allows you to master complicated information and produce better results in less time.
4. The Undoing Project – by Michael Lewis: Forty years ago, Israeli psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky invented the field of behavioral economics. Michael Lewis shows how their Nobel Prize–winning theory altered our perception of reality.
5. The Most Important Thing – by Howard Marks: The co-founder of Oaktree Capital Management is renowned for his insightful assessments of market opportunity and risk. In The Most Important Thing, Marks breaks down his time-tested, fundamental investing philosophy.
6. The Runaway Species – by Anthony Brandt and David Eagleman: What lies at the heart of humanity’s ability―and drive―to create? But where does our creativity come from, how does it work, and how can we harness it to improve our lives, schools, businesses, and institutions?
7. Scale – by Geoffrey West: A pioneer in the field of complexity science, explains the science of emergent systems and networks. West discusses the underlying simplicity that unites the seemingly complex and diverse phenomena of living systems (in our bodies, cities and businesses).
8. Mastering Fear – by Brandon Webb: A former Navy SEAL turned media CEO, draws on his experiences in combat and business to show how people from all walks of life can stretch and transcend their boundaries, by learning to use their fears as fuel to achieve more than they ever thought possible.
9. Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War – by Robert Coram: John Boyd may be the most remarkable unsung hero in all of American military history. Some remember him as the greatest U.S. fighter pilot ever -- the man who, in simulated air-to-air combat, defeated every challenger in less than forty seconds. Some recall him as the father of our country's most legendary fighter aircraft -- the F-15 and F-16. Still others think of Boyd as the most influential military theorist since Sun Tzu.
10. Superforecasting – by Philip Tetlock and Dan Gardner: Tetlock and Gardner explain how ordinary people—including a filmmaker, a retired pipe installer, and former ballroom dancer—turned out to be astonishingly good forecasters beating prediction markets and the collective judgment of intelligence analysts with access to classified information.
(There are a ton of great books that didn't make our top-10 list but still come highly recommended by our team. Check out our "Hedgeye's Bookshelf" below to see all of the books CEO Keith McCullough has listed since 2018.)
We encourage you to check out these reading lists to help you dive deeper into how we approach financial markets.
