I have just returned from a refreshing 10-day vacation in Colorado in which I didn't once Twitter or check my stock portfolio. Amazingly, the world didn't stop revolving. 
The first act was a self-imposed exercise in unlearning my own self-importance. As much as I am enamored of the concept of unlearning, the vacation was a useful reminder that the world can function just fine without me and my words of wisdom.
The second act was equally important because it reminded me of the importance of ignoring the daily financial news. This is not to say that there isn't useful information in newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal. Why just today there is an excellent article entitled "The Mistakes We Make — And Why We Make Them."
Three unlearning tips, in particular, jumped out at me. First, if you think you are an above average investor try this little exercise: Write down in permanent ink your forecast of tomorrow's stock prices. Do this for a month or a year. The result will likely be humbling because your foresight will not be as good as your hindsight.
Second, the article advises investors to look for contradictory evidence — as opposed to confirmatory evidence — for our favorite stocks. And third, the article reminds us that it is not our wealth alone which makes us happy, rather it the increase in our wealth that makes us happy.
To understand, just imagine two different people: Roger and Beth. Roger has $5 million but loses $2 million. Beth owns $20,000 but doubles her money to $40,000. Who is happier? Beth — even though Roger still has $1,960,000 or 49 times — as much money as Beth.
Why is this the case? Because wealth is relative. So, too, is the concept of learning. All too often we focus an inordinate amount of time acquiring new information and knowledge under the guise of "learning," when what we should be doing is stripping away old knowledge. It may "feel," like Roger, that we are losing information but, in reality, we are, like Beth, doubling our wisdom.
