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The third pillar is the importance of a contrarian mindset. Mr Swensen had a chance early on to demonstrate his. Following the stockmarket crash in October 1987, he had loaded up on company shares, which had become much cheaper, by selling bonds, which had risen in price. This rebalancing was in line with the fund's agreed policy. But set against the prevailing market gloom, it looked rash. His investment committee was worried. One member warned that there would be "hell to pay" if Yale got it wrong. But Mr Swensen stuck to his guns. The decision stood—and paid off handsomely.
第三个支柱是逆向思维的重要性。斯文森先生早些时候有机会展示他的逆向思维。1987年10月股市崩盘后，他卖出了价格上涨的债券，买入了公司股票，而公司股票已经变得便宜得多。这种再平衡符合基金商定的政策。但与当前低迷的市场相比，这似乎有些鲁莽。他的投资委员会很担心。一位成员警告说，如果耶鲁错了，那将会有“地狱般的代价”。但斯文森先生坚持自己的观点。这一决定站稳了脚跟——并且得到了丰厚的回报。
These days, the Swensen model is often reduced to an asset-allocation decision: hold alternatives. But as money has flooded into private-equity funds, average returns have converged on the returns in public markets. There is no longer an obvious illiquidity premium. But Mr Swensen's point about information remains relevant. The dispersion of returns—the gap between the best and worst funds—is far higher in private than in public equity. Selecting the right private-equity manager takes expertise. Yale has some advantages: it can, say, tap into its alumni network for access to the better-run funds.
如今，斯文森模式常常被简化为一个资产配置决策：持有替代方案。但随着资金涌入私募股权基金，平均回报已经趋同于公开市场的回报。不再存在明显的非流动性溢价。但是斯文森关于信息的观点仍具有意义。回报的分散——最好的和最差的基金之间的差距——在私人股本中比在公共股本中要大得多。选择合适的私募基金经理需要专业知识。耶鲁也有一些优势：比如说，它可以利用校友网络来获得运行良好的基金。
Mr Swensen is given too much credit in one regard. Endowments had a history of innovation before his return to Yale. Harvard's was already changing. And endowments had previously been pioneers in asset allocation: the Ivy League funds shifted markedly from bonds into equities from the 1930s. In other respects Mr Swensen gets too little credit. Starinvestors are generally not good at mentoring others. But Swensen alumni have regularly turned up in senior jobs at other endowments. "He was a smart player but also an incredibly good coach," says a colleague. In this, as in other matters of investment practice, David Swensen was a true outlier.
斯文森先生在某一方面受到了过多的赞扬。在他回到耶鲁之前，捐赠基金有一段创新的历史。哈佛的捐赠基金已经发生了变化。捐赠基金曾是资产配置的先行者：常春藤联盟基金从上世纪30年代起明显从债券转向了股票。而斯文森在其他方面得到的赞扬太少。明星投资者通常不擅长指导他人。但斯文森校友也经常在其他捐赠机构担任高级职位。他的一位同事表示：“他是一名聪明的球员，也是一名出色的教练。”在这一方面，就像在其他投资实践中一样，大卫·斯文森是一个真正的异类。
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