Last year, Pal, a former GLG fund manager, launched Real Vision Television-an on-demand, subscription video service providing a library of content on economics and investing. The reason he did it was because he wanted to have real, uninterrupted discussions with some of the brightest minds in the industry that you just can't get with a soundbite on financial television.
Pal's interview with Hayman Capital's Bass, which was filmed in October during the Barefoot Economic Summit, takes a deep dive into Bass' career and how thinks and feels about investing. The interview covers how Bass got into the hedge fund business, finds and structures his trades, constructs his portfolio, manages his team and how free diving/spear fishing has helped him in the office.
The interview also shows a side of Bass that we haven't seen before during his other interviews.
"I constantly feel inadequate, which may be what drives me," Bass told Pal.
Later on, he elaborated when Pal asked him how he deals with the negativity that comes with running a fund when things aren't going so great.
"I think, as you know, the people who are really really good at this are...how do I put it? They're not tremendous social people, right. They all have these crazy quirks and interesting lifestyles. They're generally all good people, the ones I've met...I live in constant fear. Again, I live with this constant feeling of inadequacy that drives me so hard to succeed and be a proven fiduciary...And that's what's always driven me. There are these two forces in life-positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement."
Bass explained that he's able to manage the negativity by having a network of folks in the business that he regularly communicates with.
"I think you internalize it [the negativity] to a certain extent. If you have a great team, you just talk it out with your team. I think communication is key. It's like in life that communication is key with anyone that you're close to. In this case we talk all the time. I have such a tremendous network of CIO friends...that I share thoughts, concerns, feelings with and bounce things off of. That friend network that's both intellectual and emotional from a support perspective is how I deal with it," Bass said.
Check out the full interview posted on Real Vision Television >>