On Fridays, we’ll put together a round-up of different financial news and quotes to give you something to think about over the weekend. Consider it your financial vitamin C.

• The Intelligent Investor; Benjamin Graham, Jason Zweig, ed.
  “First, though, it’s worth repeating that for most investors, selecting individual stocks is unnecessary, if not inadvisable. The fact that most professionals do a poor job stock picking does not mean that most amateurs can do better. The vast majority of people who try to pick stocks learn that they are not as good at it as they though; the luckiest ones discover this early on, while the less fortunate take years to learn it. A small percentage of investors can excel at picking their own stocks. Everyone else would be better off getting help, ideally through an index fund.”

• Study: Consumer Debt Saps Retiree Savings
  One of the things they found was individuals who identified themselves as investors saved more in 2007:

“42 percent of people who considered themselves investors raised their contributions in 2007, compared with 30 percent of savers and 25 percent of spenders, the study found.”

• Warren Buffett summing up the teaching’s of Benjamin Graham
  “When proper temperament joins with proper intellectual framework, then you get rational behavior.”

• Unconventional Success; David Swenson
  “John Maynard Keynes wrote, “Worldly wisdom teaches that it is better for reputation to fail conventionally than to succeed unconventionally.” The profound wisdom of Keynes’s statement reaches into every nook and cranny of the investment world. Slavishly following conventional wisdom proves unwise, as the frequently trod path often leads to disappointment. Taking a well-considered unconventional approach generally proves sensible, as the less-traveled route provides greater opportunity for success.”