TTU22: The Most Important Question Investors Should be Asking ft. Nigol Koulajian of Quest Partners – 2of2

Did you know that a meditation practice can help you be a better investor?

In this episode we discuss our common lessons that we ask all Top Traders, but we dive deep into why Nigol thinks differently about CTA issues. Growing up in war-torn Lebanon shifts the filters he uses to see the markets. We all have filters but in this episode you will learn what perspective he takes on the markets that may, or may not, support his market philosophy.

Welcome back to the second half of our interview with Nigol Koulajian.

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In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How growing up in war torn Lebanon influences the way Nigol filters market decisions
• The challenging nature of a market injected with federal liquidity
• Nigol’s strategies for selecting position sizing
• Drawdown expectations of Quest Partners
• How Quest works to maintain a balance in the working environment and how busy the team stays
• How Nigol manages emotional turmoil of drawdowns and how he projects this calmness upon his investors
• The few things that Nigol predicts would shake their strategy
• How to listen to clients and use their advice in a way that serves them, even if you don’t implement exactly what they’re saying
• Why mathematician optimization can adversely effect the strength of your CTA strategy
• How Nigol expects to know if a model is working or not
• The importance of using math as little as possible despite the systematic approach to trading
• A fascinating perspective on why the CTA industry AUM has shifted to Europe
• The most important question investors should be asking: “How to price tail risk.”
• What it takes to build a firm and become the next Quest
• Learn all about Nigol’s daily meditation practice which he credits as his top personal attribute to becoming a great trader
• The most challenging thing about being a CTA for Nigol (A: Fishing in a very small pond)
• Nigol’s biggest failure which occurred in 2009

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Follow Niels on Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube or via the TTU website.

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