From Alabama to Wall Street: A Journey of Serendipity

This chapter explores the personal history of a notable investor, detailing their humble beginnings in Alabama and their academic evolution at prestigious institutions like Yale and Oxford. It captures the serendipitous moments that led to a successful career in finance, including a summer job on Wall Street that ignited their passion for investing. Additionally, it reflects on the evolution of entrepreneurship and the modern impact of the internet on global business opportunities.

Transcript

chevron_right

Play full episode

chevron_right

Transcript

Episode notes

Welcome to The Business Method Podcast listeners and today do we have a treat for you. One of the most iconic investors & entrepreneurs in modern history is joining us on the podcast. Jim Rogers is his name & we actually had him on the show a few years ago & are fortunate enough to get him back for another episode. If you don’t know who Jim is I suggest you Google him right now & you will start to see why I am so excited to chat with him again. Jim is one of the most seasoned international investors on the planet & I’ll give you a brief outline to give you an idea about his expertise.

Jim was born in Alabama in 1942 & attended Yale in the mid-60’s, then headed to Oxford to get another degree in Politics & Economics. Next Jim began his Wall Street career. In 1970 Jim apprenticed with Arnhold & S.Bleichroeder, which is where he met George Soros. In 1973, Jim started together with George Soros the Quantum Fund with only $600 in his pocket, one of the first truly international hedge funds. Over the next 10 years their fund went up 4,200% when the S&P500 only rose less than 50%. In 1980, Jim retired & traveled by motorcycle through China. Continuing to manage his own portfolio. Jim served as a guest professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business. In 1990, Jim set out to fulfill a lifelong dream: motorcycling 100,000 miles across six continents – an achievement that landed him in the Guinness Book of World Records. In 1995, he wrote his first book Investment Biker: Around the World with Jim Rogers. As a private investor, he constantly analyzed the countries through which he traveled in search of investment ideas. He recorded his unique journey in that book. In 1998, Jim founded the Rogers International Commodities Index, predicting that the next commodity bull run had just begun. The index measures 35 different commodities from 11 different international exchanges & was up 170% over the first decade. In 1999, Jim embarked on a Millennium Adventure, traveling around the world for 3 years, passing through 116 countries & covering more than 152,000 miles – setting yet another Guinness World Record & giving him the title by Time Magazine as, The Indiana Jones of Investing. He recounted this journey in his book “Adventure Capitalist: The Ultimate Road Trip”. In 2005, Jim wrote Hot Commodities & the book A Bull in China. Also in 2007 Jim moved his family to Singapore to be closer to the hottest market in the history of the world saying, “In my view, China is going to be the most important country in the 21st century,”He is regularly featured in leading international media outlets, including Time, The Washington Post, The New York Times, Barron’s, Forbes, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The Business Times

03:53 Who is Jim Rogers?

07:03 Crisis & Opportunity Are the Same Thing

12:33 Jim Meets George Soros & Investment History Shift Begins

14:43 Jim Rogers’ Money Philosophy

15:53 Why Jim Traveled Around the World via Motorcycle

18:53 What Jim Thinks of Location Independent Entrepreneurs

23:00 Jim Invested in All the Stocks in One Entire Country

25:23 Communist China Are the Best Capitalists in the World

28:03 Looking for New Investment Opportunities Since COVID-19

30:13 The Central Bankers Controlling a Correction

33:38 Positioning Yourself to End Up on the Winning Side of Modern Monetary Theory

35:28 CryptoCurrency Taking the Market from Gold & Silver

39:48 Jim on Focus & What He Would Tell His Past Self

42:08 Do Central Banks Know What They’re Doing Today?

45:18 Jim on Getting Kids to Listen About Business & Money

48:08 Getting Commodities from Space

51:03 Short-Term Gold Prices

54:43 What Kind of Macro Economics Indicators is Jim Using When He is Vetting a Country Before He Even Starts Looking at the Broader Market? 1:00:23 Jim’s Worst Investment Ever

1:02:48 Would Jim Go Back Into Investment Management?

1:04:33 Who Should We Keep Our Eyes On

1:06:08 Is it a Good Time to Invest in Travel & Tourism?

1:08:28 Where We Should Be Thinking About Living in the Next Decade?

1:13:00 What Jim Wants for His Legacy

Contact Info:

https://www.jimrogers.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/iamjimrogers

BlliBili: https://space.bilibili.com/560909197

Subscribe to the Podcast:

🎧 Website:

https://www.thebusinessmethod.com/