Li Lu's 2006 Columbia Business School lecture

About this work

The 2006 lecture works through Timberland and Hyundai Department Store as examples of investigating a business, its assets, and its management. Li Lu also asks whether the investor has the temperament and curiosity to do that work.

Why explore it

Best if you want David's concrete example of research effort and a test of whether patient business analysis suits you.

Evidence and original sources

Sources: official Founders episodes — #362, #363, #364, #365, #366

This record is supported by 5 public evidence rows linked to original Founders episodes.

• Li Lu — While covering Li Lu's early-life memoir, David identifies his 2006 Columbia lecture and describes watching the section where Li Lu challenges unprepared MBA students. He uses that contrast to explain Li Lu's work ethic and preview the investing episode.
• Li Lu and Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett — David works through Li Lu's 2006 Columbia lecture on investigating a business, matching the method to your temperament, and gathering accurate, complete information. The Timberland research and unprepared students make effort a concrete lesson within his multi-source Li Lu episode.
• Nick & Zak's Excellent Adventure: How Nick Sleep and Qais Zaharia Built Their Investment Partnership — David cites Li Lu chastising Columbia MBA students in the class lecture video, including the cover-to-cover Value Line reading, as the encyclopedic-knowledge example behind slow-then-fast compounding.
• Nick Sleep's Letters: The Full Collection of the Nomad Investment Partnership Letters to Partners — David returns to Li Lu's Columbia lecture while discussing Nick Sleep's preparation for rare opportunities. He uses the example of years studying a business before finding its counterpart to explain why the research must precede the chance to buy.
• Mr. Beast Leaked Memo — David recalls the roughly 17-minute excerpt in which Li Lu challenges Columbia students' effort and says he finds it easier to train employees without business-school habits. He connects it to MrBeast's preference for learning his production methods over importing Hollywood habits.