When the Toughest Get Going

First Julian Robertson. Now Stanley Druckenmiller? And you think running money is easy? This morning we learned of the departure of Stanley Druckenmiller from the Soros Fund, where he was the chief investment strategist. The departure comes after Soros suffered some heavyweight losses in this market.

Druckenmiller is no ordinary fund manager. I met Stanley 14 years ago when he was the star at Dreyfus, when that fund family was hot as a pistol.

He is one of the greats of this business, perceptive, intelligent, honest and ahead of the game at all times. When he spoke, you listened. All he did in the intervening years was get better and better and better. He is someone my wife, skeptical beyond belief, always felt had a fabulous call on the tape. If she heard that he liked the tape, and she didn't, she might change her mind.

He came on Ron Insana's great show a few years back and talked about something he did wrong. I sat there in awe that he would have the confidence to tell the truth like that. He's an awesome money manager. The fact that Druckenmiller's near-term results have been subpar is a sharp reminder of how hard this market has gotten.

It is a wake-up call for those who would beat themselves up over the vicissitudes of this tape. It the tape itself and not you that is so confused. It would not surprise me if some of the craziness lately in the Nasdaq is related to the unwinding of some Soros' positions in that market.

As shook up as I was about the losses Julian Robetson experienced, I am even more sobered by what has happened at Soros. The takeaway here is that the game has gotten tougher for the professionals running billions than it has ever been.

Please, please be careful out there. When the toughest get going, you can't be too sure or cocky or arrogant about anything.

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