We Study Billionaires - The Investor’s Podcast Network

RWH061: How To Thrive No Matter What w/ Arnold Van Den Berg

128 snips
Oct 5, 2025
Arnold Van Den Berg, founder of Century Management and a WWII survivor, shares invaluable lessons from his 50-year investing career. He discusses the power of extreme focus and how it shaped both his life and investment strategies. Arnold delves into mental practices like breath work and self-hypnosis, enhancing performance and fostering optimism. He offers insights on navigating today's overvalued market, advocating for commodities over traditional stocks. His journey emphasizes character, learning, and the joy found in sharing knowledge.
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ANECDOTE

Focus Saved His Father's Life

  • Arnold's father survived a death march by focusing only on moving his legs and refusing to fall.
  • That intense one-pointed focus gave him energy and allowed him to keep going despite near-starvation and cold.
INSIGHT

Flow Releases A Potent Neurochemical Cocktail

  • One-pointedness (flow) releases a cocktail of neurochemicals that enhance focus, pleasure, and pain tolerance.
  • Yogis and flow researchers show you can access deep creative and performance states by slowing breath and stabilizing attention.
INSIGHT

Truthfulness Protects Judgment And Love

  • Dostoevsky taught Arnold that 'above all, do not lie' because lying blunts your ability to discern truth and love.
  • Losing honesty corrodes self-respect, relationships, and moral life more than intelligence does.
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