"I Don't Know" - 3 Simple Words

How many times have you heard investment professionals say that? Not many and yet it is the three most important words right now to keep you safe. Good little write up in the UK Telgraph making that point. The points the author tries to make about other known knowns is less than insightful but the first part is very good. Thanks goes to Pete.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/tom-stevenson/4310487/You-know-what-I-know-Ive-got-to-do-something-about-known-knowns.html

In a culture that rewards expertise no one owns up to ignorance. Politicians, professionals, even columnists, know it is better to be confidently wrong than honestly to admit to being in the dark.

But who, hand on heart, can say they are not confused and a bit scared by today's unfolding financial and economic crisis? I am sure the only really honest response to the current situation is "I don't know".

and

I'm reminded of another deceptively profound comment about uncertainty from former US secretary of defence, Donald Rumsfeld. In an unfairly derided remark in 2002, he said: "There are known knowns; things that we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know." Every investor should clip this quotation and put it on their desk