Book Review: "Stay the Course" by John Bogle — Understand Passive Investing and Avoid 90% of Common Retail Investor Mistakes

If you invest in ETFs, you really should get to know this guy: Bogle. I finally finished this book after chewing on it for a while. The title is “Stay the Course: The Story of Vanguard and the Index Revolution by John Bogle.” This book isn’t really about investing itself — it’s about how the index ETFs we see everywhere today came to exist.

Who is John Bogle? He’s known as the “Father of Index Funds” and the founder of The Vanguard Group. Never heard of Vanguard? No worries — but you’ve definitely heard of “buying index funds,” right? Yep, that investing gospel was started by Bogle!

This Is a Story About Bogle’s Life

Bogle came from a humble background, but through hard work and perseverance, he made a name for himself at Princeton University, laying the foundation for his life’s work. After entering the investment industry, driven by his own convictions, he created low-fee index ETFs that closely track the market. At the time, the entire American investment industry laughed at him — until the value of his approach was recognized by the world!

It’s like how I’ve always believed that “financial planning” will become the foundation of everyone’s money management in the future, and will eventually be widely embraced. Especially insurance — I hope more people can come to appreciate it. And I also hope Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) would think a bit more about the public’s interests.

Money Is Just a Tool — Unwavering Belief Is Priceless

When Bogle founded Vanguard, his philosophy was simple: return more money to investors! Even with the temptation of riches, he stuck to his mission of putting investors first — lowering fund management fees and passing the majority of returns back to investors. This kind of integrity and commitment is one of the main reasons why Vanguard’s ETFs are so highly respected today.

Index Funds Let Time Make Money for You

Bogle championed a long-term, low-cost, diversified investment philosophy — arguing that index funds can deliver market-matching returns. The logic is straightforward: instead of chasing so-called “star funds,” let index funds help you sleep well at night and work worry-free during the day. Index funds truly turn money into our ally, working for us around the clock in the market — kind of like Bitcoin mining rigs back in the day, running 24/7. And time is the greatest ally of index funds.

Given enough time, the market will rise.
— Lazy Da —

Character Matters More Than Titles

The book mentions many times how Bogle was humble and down-to-earth, yet possessed an indomitable will and leadership charisma. He showed us that a person’s character is far more important than fame or status. Be honest in who you are, and persistent in what you do — respect will naturally follow.

Ordinary People Can Change the World

The Vanguard Group holds an incredibly important position in the global investment world, and it was all built step by step by Bogle — just an ordinary person. He used his own life to embody what it means to “stay true to your original purpose and never waver.” Everyone can write their own extraordinary story in their own way.

Further Reading

Lazy Da’s Conclusion

懶大

金融科技新創 CEO | 獨立財務顧問

With biographies, honestly you don’t always remember much after reading them. But I think everyone who’s had a biography written about them shares one thing in common: they did something truly great.

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