The Art of Boring™ was created for curious and passionate investors. We share strategies, frameworks, and insights to help readers and listeners make better investment decisions. Our aim? To provide some bottom-up, long-term investing signal to cut through the short-term noise.

  • On modern monetary theory

    We explore the evolution of Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) and the notable economic ideas on which it is based. We highlight some notable criticisms and discuss implications of MMT for economic policy and financial markets. Our purpose is less focused on opining whether MMT is fundamentally sound, but rather aimed at understanding its development and how the ground may shift if indeed MMT-based policies are more widely embraced.

    June 30, 2021

  • Where I’m seeing value in emerging markets

    I’ve been revisiting Philip Fisher’s Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits recently. Scanning the opportunity set in emerging markets, I’ve been trying to imagine what Fisher would have made of the current investment landscape.

    May 26, 2021

  • 'Twas the week before Christmas

    ‘Twas the week before Christmas, (and you know it’s true), COVID looms large in our annual review.

    December 18, 2020


  • (Not) boring finds for June 2020

    Howard Marks sent a memo; Ray Dalio explained the last 500 years as they related to empires and reserve currencies; we learned a new word, “shoshin”; and scanned a lot of charts about U.S. advertising revenue trends.

    June 30, 2020

  • The enemy is us: Mitigating confirmation bias

    Back in March, as physical distancing practices were being implemented globally, I was bemused by contrasting provocatively titled articles published within a day of one another. 

    June 10, 2020

  • (Not) boring finds for May 2020

    A podcast about decision-making theory, a global fiscal policy tracker, a blog about market assumptions, and an infinite monkey theorem experiment. The ideas springs have sprung.

    May 27, 2020

  • Mawer Market Update—March 20, 2020

    Over the last week, the world has seen a continued increase in COVID-19 cases and, consequently, a greater effort to contain the virus. 

    March 20, 2020

  • Market Update – March 13, 2020

    Throughout the week, governments around the world have continued to take more significant measures to contain the spread of COVID-19.

    March 13, 2020

  • Market Update – March 10, 2020

    Considering the significant market volatility resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as the plunge in oil prices reflecting Saudi Arabia’s decision to accelerate output, we wanted to provide you with an update on Mawer’s strategy in this challenging environment.

    March 10, 2020

  • (Not) boring finds for February 2020

    Why, in investing, it is better to ‘avoid the zeros’; what 700 years of falling interest rates looks like; how mathematics can be a study in wonder (i.e., fun); and the way spices spurred on empires.

    February 26, 2020