I’ve known Dean Pernas for a while through the Puerto Rico investing community, and through Dean I learned that his brother, Deiya Pernas, lives in Mexico City and is also part of Pernas Research. Since I was already planning a trip there, it was the perfect opportunity to meet Deiya in person instead of doing another virtual Skull Session. I quickly learned that while Dean and Deiya share a lot of the same investing philosophy, Deiya has his own way of thinking about markets that’s heavily influenced by probability, psychology, and years of experience at the poker table.
Deiya made a compelling argument that poker may be one of the best training grounds for becoming a better investor because both require making decisions with incomplete information. You’re never going to have perfect certainty. Instead, you learn to think in probabilities, control emotions, and avoid becoming attached to any single outcome. It’s a skill set that translates surprisingly well to investing, especially in a world where investors constantly battle overconfidence and recency bias.
We also spent time discussing an idea that’s become increasingly popular online: concentrated investing. Deiya offered a balanced perspective here. While concentration can absolutely create outsized returns, he cautioned against turning it into a religion. Sometimes investors become so focused on finding one massive winner that they overlook the value of repeatedly stacking smaller successful investments over time. Building wealth doesn’t always require home runs. A long career filled with disciplined decisions and consistent winners can be just as powerful.
Another area we explored was how rapidly research itself is changing. AI, alternative data, and better access to information are creating opportunities that simply didn’t exist a few years ago. But technology alone isn’t an edge anymore because everyone has access to many of the same tools. The real advantage comes from asking better questions, connecting information faster, and understanding where the market may be missing something.
The conversation eventually circled back to something I think all investors can relate to: adaptability. Markets evolve, industries evolve, and investing frameworks need to evolve too. Is there really a permanent playbook that works forever? Whether we were talking about software businesses, information arbitrage, or portfolio construction, Deiya kept coming back to the same principle: stay curious, stay humble, and continuously refine your process.
This ended up being one of those Skull Sessions that wasn’t necessarily about finding the next stock idea. It was more about understanding how a great investor thinks. I also enjoy these because the lessons are transferable no matter what part of the market you’re investing in.
Skull Sessions is a collaboration with Geoinvesting.com, a full-stack microcap research platform and MS Microcaps LLC , home of the Microcap Quality Index (MSMqi)
Key Topics Discussed:
Broad diversification (even hundreds of names) can work when the investor’s “hunting universe” is high quality and structurally tilted toward favorable outcomes.
Portfolio breadth can compensate for lower per-name conviction by relying on statistical hit rate rather than deep fundamental certainty in every position.
The main edge is often the selection of the opportunity set itself, where quality filtering upfront matters more than intense monitoring of every holding.
Diversification benefits tend to plateau quickly around ~15–20 holdings, with additional names adding limited risk reduction but increasing complexity.
Risk control is driven more by position sizing than by continuous surveillance of all holdings in detail.
Micro/nano-cap markets can create inefficiencies where liquidity constraints, attention gaps, and slow information diffusion generate mispricing.
The highest returns often come from misunderstood or temporarily impaired businesses where downside is sized, not eliminated, and catalysts unlock re-rating.
Stocks Discussed:
GetBusy (LSE: GETB): A UK software company mentioned as an example of gradually expanding the research universe beyond North America.
Dell (NYSE: DELL): Discussed not as an investment idea itself, but as a critical customer relationship that underpinned TSI’s growth story.
Salesforce (NYSE: CRM): Used to illustrate that TSI’s apparent customer concentration risk was actually diversified across Dell’s end customers.
BlueLinx Holdings (NYSE: BXC): A billion-dollar revenue company trading like a microcap that became a multi-bagger after debt reduction and ownership changes.
Firan Technology Group (TSE: FTG): Mentioned as an aerospace and defense beneficiary positioned to capitalize on long-term industry tailwinds.
CPI Aero (NYSE: CVU): A beaten-down aerospace supplier with backlog concerns that may be interesting if operational execution improves.
LinkedIn (former LNKD): Used as an example that even large-cap stocks can suffer massive one-day declines, proving liquidity alone doesn’t eliminate risk.
Capstone Energy Inc (OTCMKTS: CGEH): Discussed as a high-conviction nanocap investment, explaining how its post-Chapter 11 refinancing, insider support, and reduced balance-sheet risk created an overlooked opportunity.
