You’ve probably never heard the story of Edward James ‘Jim’ Corbett. Jim Corbett (b. 1875 – d. 1955) was an author, naturalist, conservationist, and hunter of man eating tigers and leopards. Born and raised to a large Irish Family in Colonial India, among a landscape of jungles and mountains, in the shadows of the Himalayas. He spent his youth learning bush craft, hunting and conservation, living with the local Kumaoni population, who influenced his views on the natural world.

A railway manager and clerk, he was recruited by the local colonial government to hunt and kill the Chamapawat Tiger – A man eater who for several years in the early 1900s was terrorizing villagers in Nepal and India, and who claimed a recorded 436 victims (the count was likely far higher).

The Champawat Tiger was the first of many man eaters Jim agreed to hunt. He sought neither fame (though it came to him) nor payment. He did this duty as he cared deeply for the local populations whom he sought to protect. He was called upon when local hunters, trappers, military units and townsfolk couldn’t or wouldn’t get the job done. His stories (which he recorded in his books) are fascinating, informative and highly entertaining. Titles include Man Eaters of Kumaon, and The Man-eating Leopard of Rudraprayag. Also, there is a great book about The Chamapawat TIger, Corbett and Colonial India entitled ‘No Beast So Fierce’ written by Dane Hucklebridge which I highly recommend.

Aside from his competence in bushcraft, Jim was recruited to hunt the man eaters because of his knowledge and respect of local customs, language and culture. To agree to hunt the Champawat Tiger, Jim had two conditions. One, that all bounties on the tiger be rescinded. He did not want to kill the animal for profit, he viewed it as his duty, and respected the animals such that he did not want to make it a commercial transaction. And Two – That all other hunters, including the army, would withdraw from the hunt. Jim was wise – he understood that the although the Tiger would be a risk to his life, a larger risk was being in the Jungle with armed, jumpy and inexperienced others. He wanted to stack the odds in his favour of emerging alive from this venture.

He also cared deeply about the environment and although he dispatched several great cats, he understood how and why they became man eaters and the conflicts that humankind’s expansion into their world were causing. Over his lifetime, he became the worlds greatest advocate for the preservation of Indian wilderness, conservation, and the protection of Tigers in particular – So much so that one of India’s great national parks is named after him.

And why do I write of Mr Corbett? Well, I think some of the attributes he possessed would have made him a great investor.

Lets take a look at a few.

Patience

Jim spent many months, and in a couple cases years – pursing man individual man-eaters. His strategies often included laying in wait, in a tree, over a tiger or leopard’s kill….which were the remains of a human victim. Not merely for a few hours, but oftentimes for days or weeks at time. In other words, Jim would deploy his best strategies, against a cunning and vigilant opponent, and understand that the result could and would take time. To exhibit this level of patience, knowing that each hour passed could bring another victim, or perhaps his own demise, required a certain mind set and fortitude that in my opinion is rare. Each animal was a project, with an undetermined timeframe attached.

This may sound familiar to investors. When investing, we want something to happen sooner…….and we put a high degree of importance on ‘time’. But at what cost? It could cause us to lose sight of our goals, and to lose belief in our process. Probably a better way is the ‘Corbett Way’. Each investment viewed as a project, of unknown duration but to be attended to with great focus.

That is where Corbett shined. He was skilled, understanding and principled. He had a deep conviction in his competence, born from experience. When things didn’t work out, he never gave up. In writing about hunting The Man-Eating Leopard of Rudraprayag unsuccessfully for many weeks, he said “Our failure to bag the man-eater up to that date was not due to our having done anything we should not have done, or left undone anything we should have done. It could only be attributed to sheer bad luck.”

Patience is easier to possess when one has the skill, experience and knowledge to give it fortitude.

Knowledge

To become an expert at hunting man eating apex predators, one has to have a very specific knowledge base. In Corbett’s case, his knowledge was acquired through growing up with the wilderness that would become his ‘office’. He had a decade or two of studying the natural world before he undertook his hunting Man-Eaters, acquiring the skills and experience that would uniquely position him to become an effective hunter.

How many investors possess the same? How many investors have spent time in the field (working) in industries in which they invest? Or any industry? How many investors can see the ‘signs’ of what may be coming based on actual experience? Many investors are well versed in academic knowledge, or the chitter chatter of opinions, but have never really spent time in the field. I get the sense that most investors are like the hunters and army that Corbett wanted out of his way before he started his hunt. They were unlikely to succeed, and potentially could really mess things up.

Corbett remained a life long student of learning. One of his most famous quotes is as follows:

“The book of nature has no beginning, as it has no end. Open this book where you will, and at any period of your life, and if you have the desire to acquire knowledge you will find it of intense interest, and no matter how long or how intently you study the pages, your interest will not flag, for in nature there is no finality.”

Nerve

“The word ‘Terror‘ is so generally and universally used in connection with everyday trivial matters that it is apt to fail to convey, when intended to do so, its real meaning.” ~ Jim Corbett in describing living in the region of an operating Man-Eater.

Terror indeed. Resonating through Corbett’s writing is a real sense of humanity. In a thoughtful fashion, he describes the many occasions where he had to speak with, manage and console the families of the victims of these man-eaters. Often, Corbett would have use the bodies of the victims as bait, seeking out where the tiger or leopard had hidden their prey, and setting up an ambush nearby. Disturbing stuff.

His hunts lasted days, sometimes weeks and months. Although he had assistance, by necessity he had to mainly work alone when it came to stalking or attempting to ambush these creatures. Imagine, being alone, following the blood and hair trail of a child victim who was being carried by a 500 lb tiger who had killed over 400 people. Following that trail for hours on end….Getting so close as to disturb the cat feeding, and be menaced by its growling, and in return stalked by the creature….then, unsuccessful, having to stage a cautious retreat as darkness fell.

Nerve is defined in the dictionary as “a person’s steadiness, courage, and sense of purpose when facing a demanding situation.”

Corbett routinely put himself into situations which required nerves of steel. He had doubts, and experienced fear. Importantly, he was well aware of the risks he was taking (another attribute that would have made him a great investor). But in all circumstances he maintained clarity of mind, and, I think, a detachment that allowed him to see things objectively to tilt the odds in his favour as much as possible.

Patience. Knowledge. Nerve. Three attributes that can make us more successful investors, possessed aplenty by the legendary Jim Corbett.