Safal Niveshak

Wit. Wisdom. Value Investing.

The Rules We Choose to Break

Two Books. One Purpose. A Better Life.

“Template on how to lead a happier and fuller life.”

—Ramesh Damani, Member, BSE

“Teaches you how to think, judge, and behave…”

—Arnold V. D. Berg, Century Mgt.

It was early afternoon on 10th May 1996. Rob Hall was leading a group of climbers toward the summit of Mt. Everest.

Hall had climbed Everest several times and built a successful business taking paying clients to the summit. He was considered among the most experienced guides on the mountain. 

He also had a rule.

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Fighting the Last War

Two Books. One Purpose. A Better Life.

“Template on how to lead a happier and fuller life.”

—Ramesh Damani, Member, BSE

“Teaches you how to think, judge, and behave…”

—Arnold V. D. Berg, Century Mgt.

Hiroo Onoda was a 22-year-old Japanese soldier who, in December 1944, was sent to Lubang, a small island in the Philippines. The Second World War was nearing its end, although nobody knew exactly when it would finish.

Onoda was an intelligence officer, assigned to disrupt enemy operations and continue fighting, even if the Japanese forces on the island were defeated. He was specifically ordered not to surrender or take his own life. Whatever happened, he had to carry on his mission.

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The High Price of Feeling Safe

Two Books. One Purpose. A Better Life.

“Template on how to lead a happier and fuller life.”

—Ramesh Damani, Member, BSE

“Teaches you how to think, judge, and behave…”

—Arnold V. D. Berg, Century Mgt.

It’s really hard to disagree with much of the financial advice that’s available these days. 

Save more. Borrow less. Keep enough cash. Be prepared for a job loss. Don’t assume your salary will keep rising. Don’t stretch yourself to buy a house. Build a large emergency fund.

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Overpaying for Greatness: A Base-Rate Check

Two Books. One Purpose. A Better Life.

“Template on how to lead a happier and fuller life.”

—Ramesh Damani, Member, BSE

“Teaches you how to think, judge, and behave…”

—Arnold V. D. Berg, Century Mgt.

On Christmas morning of 2025, a passenger flight from Bengaluru landed at the new Navi Mumbai airport (NMI). It was the first commercial landing there, and so it got the water cannon salute that airports give their first commercial arrival.

The airport isn’t far from where I have lived the past 23 years of my life. And so, when I saw the pictures, I thought about all the dates this place had been given over the years.

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Making of a Great Stock Picker: Ian Cassel on The Long Game

New Book Alert: The Long Game is Available

My new book, The Long Game, is available now. The book contains reflections from 30 investors who’ve survived decades of market cycles. You’ll learn how to tune out the noise that makes you second-guess yourself, handle the fear and greed that hurt your decisions, and stick to principles that actually compound wealth over time. Click here to get your copy.

Click Here to Order Now

I first interviewed Ian Cassel in 2015, and then again in 2021. This is our third conversation, and it may be the one I have thought about most since we stopped recording.

Ian runs MicroCapClub and manages money through Intelligent Fanatics Capital Management. And for more than 20 years of microcap investing, he has done it from a quiet corner of rural Pennsylvania, living off his own capital since the age of 28.

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How to Lose Money on a Wonderful Business

Value Investing Workshop in Bengaluru (20th Sep.): I wrapped up the Chennai session of my full-day Value Investing Workshop last Sunday, and Mumbai is now sold out.

Which leaves Bengaluru as the one city where the last few seats are still available.

Click here for details and registration.

Now, on to today’s letter.

You buy a business you “like”. It fits the classic description of a “wonderful business.” It earns a return on capital comfortably above its cost of capital, has a clean balance sheet, and the management has a good track record of capital allocation and treating shareholders well.

Now, because we live in a world where everyone and their grandmother also has this same information about the business, you don’t get it cheap and so you pay up to get in.

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The Cost of Being Warren Buffett

Value Investing Workshop in Chennai, Bengaluru, Mumbai: Before we begin, a quick personal note. I’m bringing my full-day offline Value Investing Workshop to three cities this September:

  • Chennai — Sunday, 6th September
  • Bengaluru — Sunday, 20th September
  • Mumbai — Sunday, 27th September

Very few seats remain in each city. Once those go, that’s it until next year.

Click here for details and registration.

Now, on to today’s letter.

Warren Buffett turned 96 years old a few days ago, on 30th August 2026. He bought his first stock at the age of 11, which means he has now spent about 85 years at this game, and at 96 he is still the man most of us in this business measure ourselves against.

It felt like a good moment to sit down and think about him once more.

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The Price of Everything

Value Investing Workshop in Chennai, Bengaluru, Mumbai: Before we begin, a quick personal note. I’m bringing my full-day offline Value Investing Workshop to three cities this September:

  • Chennai — Sunday, 6th September
  • Bengaluru — Sunday, 20th September
  • Mumbai — Sunday, 27th September

Very few seats remain in each city. Once those go, that’s it until next year.

Click here for details and registration.

Now, on to today’s letter.

The Almanack of Good Life is where I share all that I am reading and reflecting upon about living a good life. In this age of constant information overload, I’ve found immense value in taking time to pause and reflect upon meaningful insights about life. This newsletter is my way of sharing that journey with you.

The Price of Everything

Someone recently asked me what was the single worst thing I bought with my money in the last few years. Being the careful spender that I am, I took some time to answer that question. And the answer was one of the cheaper things I own.

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“Buy Simple Businesses” Is Not a Simple Idea

Value Investing Workshop in Chennai, Bengaluru, Mumbai: Before we begin, a quick personal note. I’m bringing my full-day offline Value Investing Workshop to three cities this September. I run it in each city just once a year, so this is your window for 2026.

  • Chennai — Sunday, 6th September
  • Bengaluru — Sunday, 20th September
  • Mumbai — Sunday, 27th September

Each is a full day, 10 AM to 5 PM, kept to a small room of around 40 people so I can actually get to your questions. It’s a day on the principles, frameworks, and mental habits of sensible value investing, no tips, no jargon, just the thinking that helps ordinary investors build wealth slowly and stay calm through every market. Whether you’ve never bought a stock or have been at it for years, you’ll leave able to do the work yourself.

Very few seats remain in each city. Once those go, that’s it until next year.

Click here for details and registration.

Now, on to today’s letter.

The legendary fund manager Peter Lynch has been on record telling investors to buy businesses so simple “that any idiot can run.” Warren Buffett, by asking investors to stay within their circle of competence and invest only in simple businesses they understand, has said almost the same for decades. I’ve repeated this same advice in my own writing for years.

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The Usefulness of Uselessness

Value Investing Workshop in Chennai, Bengaluru, Mumbai: Before we begin, a quick personal note. I’m bringing my full-day offline Value Investing Workshop to three cities this September. I run it in each city just once a year, so this is your window for 2026.

  • Chennai — Sunday, 6th September
  • Bengaluru — Sunday, 20th September
  • Mumbai — Sunday, 27th September

Each is a full day, 10 AM to 5 PM, kept to a small room of around 40 people so I can actually get to your questions. It’s a day on the principles, frameworks, and mental habits of sensible value investing, no tips, no jargon, just the thinking that helps ordinary investors build wealth slowly and stay calm through every market. Whether you’ve never bought a stock or have been at it for years, you’ll leave able to do the work yourself.

The early-bird seats have now filled. The next 20 seats in each city are still open at discounted prices. Once those go, the price steps up, and once a city’s room is full, that’s it until next year.

Click here for details and registration.

Now, on to today’s letter.

The Almanack of Good Life is where I share all that I am reading and reflecting upon about living a good life. In this age of constant information overload, I’ve found immense value in taking time to pause and reflect upon meaningful insights about life. This newsletter is my way of sharing that journey with you.

The Usefulness of Uselessness

I recently read about Zhuangzi, a Chinese philosopher who lived around 3000 years ago, the same time as Confucius. While Confucius wrote about duty and doing things properly, Zhuangzi wrote stories of butterflies, cooks, and trees. And most of these stories were designed to dismantle whatever the reader was sure of.

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