Laser-focused Ralph
Invest with him
From where I was sitting, I saw this person immersed and taking notes on his iPad, highlighting in yellow and underlining. I’ve been eyeing the iPad for a while, deciding whether to get one. I ask: “Is this the 11” or 12.9"?” He looks up, takes a second, and puts on the biggest smile. I recognized him. I can’t remember the name, but the face, for sure. My recollection is positive. Emotions are always the last to forget. I said: “I taught you. Didn’t I?”
“Yes. At AUB. Ralph Khattar. And I love it [the iPad].”
We hit it off and talked for a good hour. Listening to his story since I saw him last was such a pleasure. In summary, he is laser-focused on what he wants and where to go. He will become a safe and profitable investor.
What he does and what he’s passionate about
“I found a passion for finance, the stock market, and investing at an early age. It happened that I went to AUB right after the 2008 market crash. I was very interested in why this happened, what triggered it, its impact, and how you avoid it.”
He’s determined to learn about, experience, and become an investor. He loves the end-goal and anything in between that gets him there. He reads about it regularly and vigorously. The investment interest takes him a lot of time, yet he enjoys and loves everything about it. He calls it his hobby.
“Who reads a 500-page book on the Big Debt Crisis in his spare time? Probably, no one has read this entire book! Ray Dalio analyzed every worldwide debt crisis over the past 100 years.”
He speaks about it at a rate of 10 words per second and with such enthusiasm! Often, the problem of passion and work collide. Until they align as you strive for it, one has to work for a living. He’s also going through an MBA program at The Wharton School.
“Even though I’m not doing it [investing] full time as a career, I’m hoping one day I’ll practice it professionally.”
He considers investing to be his biggest hobby and loses the sense of time when practicing and pursuing it. He thinks the way you’re wired has a lot to do with what you’re passionate about. He sees the world with a finance lens. He used to carry stocks. Now, it’s bonds and currencies.
How he became a partner to Warren’s (Buffett, that is)
When he left his work at a hedge fund, he kept trading. He bought shares in Berkshire Hathaway and became a shareholder with Mr. Buffet, of whom he is a huge fan. Every year, the company organizes a shareholder meeting. Ralph makes sure not to miss the three-day event where 40,000 of Warren’s closest friends converge.
“I was in the midst of a big consulting project and had deliverables. I still found time to drive from Chicago to Omaha for eight hours to attend the meeting. I’ll show you [he flips through pictures on his iPad]. Warren and Charlie sit for eight hours; people ask them questions, and they answer.”
He bought his way into that exclusive club where he gets to learn from and network with the best. Smart. Very smart!
His approach to investing
He believes that the investment business can be learned by reading. For example, a great way to learn about investing is to read everything Warren Buffett has written. To watch every YouTube video he has ever appeared in.
But also, one of the most essential skills one needs as an investor is to understand businesses and develop the ability to distinguish between excellent, good, fair, and bad business. One way to develop that ability is to go work for one. There are lots of fascinating businesses being created. If you can be one of the early employees, you’ll learn a lot about how a business works. In his opinion, this would be the best experience one can get to be a fundamental investor, ultimately.
Building up his skill-set
He continues to build his skill set by continuously reading and by recently joining The Wharton School. Of the 800 graduate students at the School, he was the only one who expressed a keen interest in accounting. He believes that accounting is the language of business and is the most important to master. After all, financial statements come from a company’s accounting reports.
The one person who chose accounting.
“ I was very fortunate to have been admitted to Wharton.
He took advantage of the endless resources the School had to offer. He tested out of all the required introductory classes, allowing him to take many advanced courses in accounting, finance, law, and psychology.
I’ve learned much more than I thought I would.”
On studying in Lebanon before the US
“I recommend that Lebanese students stick to an undergrad in Lebanon.”
He studied business and engineering for his undergrad at AUB. It would have been very hard for him to jump from a situation where he was close to family, ate his mom’s food, spoke French at school, and had friends in a totally different place. A place with different weather, living alone, and on burgers and pizza. Going straight from a French system to an American one would have been more difficult.
“I think the ramp and the bridge that AUB provided me served my situation very well. It’s a smooth transition from high school to the US. I recommend it.”
I dug up my emails
I have this habit of keeping every shred of electronic data I can. In 1993, I lost everything and started all over again. Now, I back up and then back up the backup. I found a few exchanges from Ralph as of Dec 12, 2011.
Hello, Dr. Feghali. I’m interested in taking INFO 250 next semester. Could you share with me the syllabus? Could you also do the same for INFO 220? Thank you. Best, Ralph.
Dear Ralph, Why don’t you drop by to discuss both courses and your interests. Regards, Tony.
Thank you for your reply Doctor. Do you have office hours today? Best, Ralph.
Ralph, I can see you between 2 and 3 pm. Let me know. Tony.
Perfect, I’ll come to your office at 2. Thank you for your time. Best, Ralph.
He ended up taking the flagship Google Online Marketing course. Cordial, persistent, curious, and an astute shopper. Eight years later, he's still at it!
Ralph’s Starbucks drink: Short skinny latte. No flavors. Daily.
