Investing should be like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. If you want excitement… go to Las Vegas.

Paul A. Samuelson, a leading academic economist and popularizer of mainstream economic thinking, used this line in the context of advising ordinary investors against treating markets as a venue for thrills. The remark reflects a postwar, mid-to-late 20th-century shift toward viewing investing as a disciplined, long-horizon activity—closely aligned with diversification and low-cost, largely passive strategies—rather than frequent trading or speculation. The Las Vegas comparison underscores the boundary Samuelson drew between probabilistic entertainment (gambling) and prudent wealth-building (investing), warning that the desire for excitement can lead investors into excessive risk-taking and costly turnover.

The remark contrasts the proper temperament of investing—steady, methodical, and often boring—with the thrill-seeking mindset of gambling. By likening investing to watching paint dry or grass grow, Samuelson underscores that wealth accumulation usually comes from time, compounding, and disciplined risk management rather than frequent action. The punchline (“go to Las Vegas”) frames “excitement” as a separate consumer good: if you want entertainment, buy it explicitly, but don’t pay for it through higher fees, excessive turnover, or concentrated bets in your portfolio. The quote has become a shorthand defense of passive or low-turnover strategies and a critique of speculative market culture.

1) "Investing should be more like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. If you want excitement, take $800 and go to Las Vegas."
2) "Investing should be like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. If you want excitement, go to Las Vegas."