Jim Rogers: Bill Gates is a terrible investor

Jim Rogers: Everybody should pursue their own passions. Guys like [Bill] Gates was – and I presume still is – a terrible investor. He didn’t even try to be an investor. Instead he pursued something he was very good and he stuck with it. A guy named Tyson down in Arkansas was spectacular at raising chickens. [NS: A chicken in every pot?] That’s what he should have done, and what he did do. Don’t try to do what other people tell you to do. If you like investing, are passionate about investing, and love it, then by all means become an investor. But as we have ascertained from the facts most people are not good investors. It’s wonderful to see the cover of magazines about Joe and Sally that have made fortunes from investing and you read the articles and it sounds so easy. Well, it isn’t easy, but it attracted staggering numbers of people because we had the long bull market. That’s in the process of changing.
- in The Motley Fool

Jim Rogers started trading the stock market with $600 in 1968.In 1973 he formed the Quantum Fund with the legendary investor George Soros before retiring, a multi millionaire at the age of 37. Rogers and Soros helped steer the fund to a miraculous 4,200% return over the 10 year span of the fund while the S&P 500 returned just 47%.

Sell Lamborghinis to the Farmers

Jim Rogers : It’s up to the person. If you know nothing about farming, I would suggest you start small. I would not suggest that you borrow $50 million and start a gigantic farming operation. But if you already know about farming, then sure, go ahead and start big. It’s not just about farming. If you don’t want to go into the fields every day, open up a Lamborghini dealership in an agricultural area. Or open a chain of restaurants or a chain of retail stores. It depends on what you know a lot about. The agricultural belts are going to where the money is. Open a fertilizer store, open a tractor distributorship. Arrange to participate in the boom in Myanmar, and the boom in agriculture.
- in The Motley Fool




Jim Rogers started trading the stock market with $600 in 1968.In 1973 he formed the Quantum Fund with the legendary investor George Soros before retiring, a multi millionaire at the age of 37. Rogers and Soros helped steer the fund to a miraculous 4,200% return over the 10 year span of the fund while the S&P 500 returned just 47%.

Jim Rogers : Agriculture in Myanmar is the most certain way to make a fortune right now

Jim Rogers: Well, I doubt I said “the” most certain, but I probably said “a” certain. (There’s no such thing as “the” most certain.) Right now, agriculture in Myanmar is probably “the” most certain way to make a fortune – if one can execute. I am sure many people opened schools in China and didn’t do well, just like I am sure plenty of people are going to open farms in Myanmar and aren’t going to do well. You have to be able to execute, no matter how good your idea is. - in The Motley Fool




Jim Rogers started trading the stock market with $600 in 1968.In 1973 he formed the Quantum Fund with the legendary investor George Soros before retiring, a multi millionaire at the age of 37. Rogers and Soros helped steer the fund to a miraculous 4,200% return over the 10 year span of the fund while the S&P 500 returned just 47%.

Extremely optimistic about Agriculture going forward

Jim Rogers: The Rogers Agricultural Index [line 66] is actually down at this time, which is the reason why I am so extremely optimistic about agriculture going forward. The situation is getting dire. There are no farmers in the world. Things are getting serious, largely because agricultural prices have been so depressed for thirty years that it has not attracted capital, labor, management, or anything else. People want to build golf courses and become stock brokers. In my view, the money is going to be in agriculture going forward because the economics have become so horrible..- in The Motley Fool

Jim Rogers started trading the stock market with $600 in 1968.In 1973 he formed the Quantum Fund with the legendary investor George Soros before retiring, a multi millionaire at the age of 37. Rogers and Soros helped steer the fund to a miraculous 4,200% return over the 10 year span of the fund while the S&P 500 returned just 47%.