Andy's Reviews > Confusion de Confusiones [1688]: Portions Descriptive of the Amsterdam Stock Exchange

A brief and interesting dialogue-style read about the workings of the Dutch stock exchange in the 17th century. I enjoyed comparing and contrasting how the stock market is described back then, to how I think it works today. More than anything, I think the principles explicitly highlighted are extremely important for anyone who wants to invest:

1. Never give anyone the advice to buy or sell shares
2. Take every gain without showing remorse about missed profits
3. Profits on the exchange on the exchange are the treasures of goblins (This is elaborated on a little, but I take it to mean, exercise caution even when recognizing profits because they can quickly turn to losses)
4. Whoever wishes to win in this game must have patience and money