David F. Swensen Quotes

• David F. Swensen

Never underestimate the gullibility of large pools of money.

• David F. Swensen

Don't let what other people say disturb your mind. Be happy.

• David F. Swensen

I believe that the greatest teachers create thinking students.

• David F. Swensen

I've always viewed high-frequency trading as a tax on the rest of us.

• David F. Swensen

A yogi is one who leaves a place a little nicer than when they arrived.

• David F. Swensen

The real riches of yoga cannot be seen; they are felt and experienced from the inside out.

• David F. Swensen

Most active mutual funds are more interested in collecting fees than in boosting returns for investors.

• David F. Swensen

The true depth of understanding and maturity as a practitioner is how we apply what we've learned to our lives.

• David F. Swensen

I've worked many jobs throughout my life, which has ultimately enhanced my appreciation for the opportunity to teach yoga and share something so positive.

• David F. Swensen

I think regular Iowans are cynical of this whole idea of corporate welfare, with the biggest awards going to the most profitable companies. It doesn't make sense.

• David F. Swensen

I've tried many other styles of yoga, but nothing has ever given me the same centeredness, energy, and internal balance that I feel when practicing Ashtanga Yoga.

• David F. Swensen

When you look at the results on an after-fee, after-tax basis over reasonably long periods of time, there's almost no chance that you end up beating the index fund.

• David F. Swensen

Unless an investor has access to “incredibly high-qualified professionals,” they “should be 100 percent passive - that includes almost all individual investors and most institutional investors.

• David F. Swensen

That which works is authentic. It's a practical truth. What really matters is that we find benefit, regardless of whether it's an ancient traditional approach or some new version, popular or obscure.

• David F. Swensen

I think nobody is in a position to react to these big macro-issues. Where is the dollar going to be or what is G.D.P. growth going to be in China? For every smart person on one side of the question, there is another smart person on the other side.

• David F. Swensen

I encourage students to check out different styles of yoga and different teachers even within one system. Seek the teacher that inspires you, and practice the yoga that makes you feel the best. You'll then find the authentic practice for your life and path.

• David F. Swensen

A minuscule 4 percent of funds produce market-beating after-tax results with a scant 0.6 percent (annual) margin of gain. The 96 percent of funds that fail to meet or beat the Vanguard 500 Index Fund lose by a wealth-destroying margin of 4.8 percent per annum.

• David F. Swensen

My attitude about teaching has always been the same. From early on, I wanted to make yoga accessible so that anyone, regardless of ability, could experience its wonder, joy, and power. I encourage students to question, learn, and develop their own personal practice.

• David F. Swensen

Practicing yoga is a constant evolution. The Ashtanga system can appear very rigid, with its predetermined sequences, but actually there's great freedom within its structure. From the repetition, we learn to find depth in the minutiae of the actions and the wonder of breath and prana.

• David F. Swensen

Active management strategies demand uninstitutional behavior from institutions, creating a paradox that few can unravel. Establishing and maintaining an unconventional investment profile requires acceptance of uncomfortably idiosyncratic portfolios, which frequently appear downright imprudent in the eyes of conventional wisdom.

• David F. Swensen

My first encounter with yoga was in 1969 with my older brother Doug. I was thirteen years old, and he was eighteen. He'd learned about yoga in California on a surfing trip, and when he came back to Houston, Texas, he introduced me to this new stuff he'd learned. I'll always be grateful for that positive influence at an early age.

• David F. Swensen

Millions of mutual-fund investors sleep well at night, serene in the belief that superior outcomes result from pooling funds with like-minded investors and engaging high-quality investment managers to provide professional insight. The conventional wisdom ends up hopelessly unwise, as evidence shows an overwhelming rate of failure by mutual funds to deliver on promises.

• David F. Swensen

Maybe the yogi is a parent who's a little more patient with their child, or a more compassionate coworker, or an understanding boss. Perhaps, they pick up a piece of trash that wasn't theirs, turn off a light when they're not in the room, or turn off the water while they brush their teeth, sensitive to the finite nature of our worldly resources. When we become mindful this way, there's a ripple effect. We inspire others to do the same.

• David F. Swensen

Jack Bogle's passionate cry of Enough! contains a thought-provoking litany of life lessons regarding our individual roles in commerce and society. Employing a seamless mix of personal anecdotes, hard evidence and all-too-often-underrated subjective admonitions, Bogle challenges each of us to aspire to become better members of our families, our professions and our communities. Rarely do so few pages provoke so much thought. Read this book.

• David F. Swensen

Invest in low-turnover, passively managed index funds... and stay away from profit-driven investment management organizations... The mutual fund industry is a colossal failure... resulting from its systematic exploitation of individual investors... as funds extract enormous sums from investors in exchange for providing a shocking disservice... Excessive management fees take their toll, and manager profits dominate fiduciary responsibility.

• David F. Swensen

The simple index fund solution has been adopted as a cornerstone of investment strategy for many of the nation's pension plans operated by our giant corporations and state and local governments. Indexing is also the predominant strategy for the largest of them all, the retirement plan for federal government employees, the Federal Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). The plan has been a remarkable success, and now holds some $173 billion of assets for the benefit of our public servants and members of armed services.