The Art & Science Behind Building Diversified Portfolios [Chills 260]

Markets are volatile. Headlines are everywhere.

Oil prices are rising, geopolitics is heating up, and investors everywhere are trying to predict what happens next.

But what if trying to predict the market is the biggest mistake investors make?

How should you actually invest in a world that feels unpredictable?

Sit with Wei Dai, Global Head of Research, Dimensional Fund Advisors, to break down the science behind investing and why long-term strategies often beat trying to outguess the market.

Wei Dai leads a global research team studying how markets behave and how academic insights translate into real investment portfolios. In this conversation, she explains why disciplined, research-driven investing may matter more than reacting to headlines.

We discuss:

• Why market prices already contain more information than most investors realise
• The difference between active investing, passive investing, and systematic investing
• The real drivers of long-term stock returns: size, value, and profitability
• How professionals avoid value traps and falling knives
• Whether geopolitics and oil prices should affect your portfolio
• The truth about global diversification (and why many investors aren’t truly diversified)
• Why predicting markets is far harder than people think

Whether you're a beginner investor or someone building a long-term portfolio, this conversation offers a deeper look into how markets work and how disciplined investors navigate uncertainty.

What We Discuss:

• 03:02 - What are the responsibilities of a Global Head of Research?
• 05:19 - What are the core investment philosophies behind Dimensional?
• 08:44 - What core drivers sit behind your investment universe?
• 15:34 - How do you evaluate undervalued markets like China today?
• 19:00 - Have the key systematic drivers evolved over time?
• 23:38 - How do you factor unexpected events into investment decisions?
• 29:07 - What should investors keep in mind in today’s market climate?
• 30:50 - How do you view the future of the US dollar in markets?
• 36:27 - How should portfolios adapt to sustained high oil prices?
• 45:45 - How has your strategy managed to outperform the market? 

Episode Resources:

• Spotify
• YouTube
• Apple podcast

New episodes every Thursday