The Marshmallow experiment is famous for judging people's wiliness to defer gratification. This is an important aspect of investing in a down market. Most people want to cash in to hold onto that one Marshmallow. The few are willing to wait to get two (or more).
People always question (criticize) Buffett for holding so much in liquid assets and not optimizing his portfolio holdings. He has (had) over 100 billion in “dry powder” recently. Well...the events of the last week provide a clear example of why he does so.
