Legendary Investor Sam Zell on Which Risks Are Worth Taking
If you've got a low downside and a big upside, you go for it. If you've got a big downside and a small upside, you run away.
— Sam Zell
Sam Zell turned distressed assets into billion-dollar payoffs. Dubbed “the Grave Dancer,” he specialized in buying undervalued properties and companies during downturns, restructuring them, and selling at massive gains when markets recovered.
But as Zell makes clear in today's quote, he always sought to protect himself from possible loss. He walked away from many deals that didn’t offer a sufficient margin of safety, and he structured those he did pursue to limit his potential downside. He ultimately amassed a fortune worth $5.2 billion.
Zell's famous aversion to risk may have roots in his family history. The son of Polish refugees, his family barely escaped the Nazis.
Read more about Sam Zell in his best-selling autobiography, Am I Being Too Subtle?
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