The Investor With Joel Palathinkal

Episode: Aaron Kirchoff : 1180 Partners

Host: Dr. Joel Palathinkal
Guest: Aaron Kirchoff (1180 Partners)
Date: November 19, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features Aaron Kirchoff, founding partner at 1180 Partners, whose career spans a decade as a US Air Force officer followed by another decade at Earnest Partners, a global asset management firm. Host Joel Palathinkal and Aaron explore Aaron’s journey into institutional investing, his transition from military finance to asset management, and the skills and mindset needed to build both a career and an investment fund. The discussion covers the challenges of starting a fund, the nuances of building investor relationships, the changing landscape of asset allocation, and actionable advice for aspiring allocators.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Aaron’s Early Influences and Military to Asset Management Journey

• Interest in Investing: Aaron’s curiosity in the stock market began at the Air Force Academy, where he prioritized finance electives and began investing young, even using his “starter loan” for a Roth IRA.
  • “Most people go out and buy cars and, you know, go on Euro trips. But what I did was I funded my IRA for 2007 and 2008.” (03:51, Aaron)
• First Market Lessons: Early investments faced the 2008 financial crisis, teaching Aaron about risk, volatility, and the importance of time in the market.
  • “If listeners…know what happened seven, eight months after I put all my money in the Roth IRA, it got basically cut in half.” (05:27, Aaron)

2. Investment Philosophy: Handling Risk and Volatility

• All-Weather Portfolios: Joel and Aaron discuss products designed to weather market volatility and the value of long-term thinking.
  • “It’s not really timing the market…what you want to think about is your time in the market.” (06:45, Joel)
• Role of Uncorrelated Assets: Aaron emphasizes diversifying portfolios with uncorrelated strategies, especially during periods when traditional assets move together.
  • “Markets become correlated during times of stress. You want something in your portfolio that is truly uncorrelated with no beta.” (07:40, Aaron)

3. Career Development and Planning for the Long-Term

• Decade Horizons: Aaron bases career moves on 10-year timeframes, urging listeners to adopt a similar long-view approach.
  • “A lot of times you have people that are making, you know, one year or two year decisions, think about where you want to be in 10 years and make that decision and go for it.” (09:05, Aaron)
• Mentorship: Mentors have significantly shaped Aaron’s path, guiding strategic decisions and helping him identify growth areas in asset management, namely alternatives and private wealth.

4. Transitioning to Asset Management: Skills & Strategies

• Transferable Skills: Much of asset management relies on core financial and project management abilities; technical nuances can be learned on the job.
  • “75 to 80% of those skills are transferable. It’s just kind of like those technical specific acronyms.” (13:18, Joel)
• The CFA and Other Designations: Industry certifications helped Aaron rapidly upskill and gain credibility.
  • “You’re never going to go into a meeting and be totally bewildered with what they’re talking about. CFA is, you know, an inch deep and a mile wide.” (15:36, Aaron)

5. Building a Fund: Grit, Relationships, and the Fundraising Gap

• Entrepreneurial Spirit Required: Beyond investment acumen, building a fund demands sales skills, relationship-building, and clear communication of value.
  • “If you just wanted to run portfolios and pick stocks behind a computer, don’t start a fund…Starting a business is going out, meeting people, having conversations, convincing people that your edge is real.” (18:38, Aaron)
• From Network to Checks: Aaron outlines the gap between having industry connections and actually securing investment—relationships must translate into trust in your strategy and execution.
  • “There is a wide gap between people who you can call and who you can go to lunch with…and someone writing a check.” (19:43, Aaron)
• Compelling Value Proposition: Critical for crossing from acquaintances to capital; the decision-maker must be convinced you offer true differentiation.
  • “You have to continually pound on what your edge is. What’s your value proposition? Why would I…put in your fund or in your investment vehicle?” (22:05, Aaron)

6. Industry Trends: The Media Savvy Manager & Relationship Building

• Conferences and Own Media: The traditional conference circuit is now complemented—and sometimes replaced—by fund managers building their own platforms and audiences.
  • “The new private equity or venture capitalist is going to have their own distribution…they have a podcast, they get a community…people that own the distribution…can leverage that to get everybody in the room.” (24:05, Joel)
• The Importance of Authentic Relationships: The “airport test”—choosing managers based partly on who one wants to work with long-term—is becoming more relevant.
  • “Who do you want to be laid over at an airport with?...You should be having a lot of interactions. And if you’re hard to work with or hard to find information or data, you need to make that really easy.” (28:02, Aaron)

7. Rapid Fire Advice: Qualities for Success & The Power of Grit

• Key Attributes of Great Hedge Fund Managers:
  1. Conviction—You must believe deeply in your own approach.
  2. A Real Edge—Show genuine, repeatable alpha; don’t rely on manipulated back-tests.
  • “No one sends you a bad back test…Have conviction and have an edge.” (29:46, Aaron)
• People Invest in People: Ultimately, after meeting the table stakes, personality and mission alignment carry huge weight.
  • “They’re not investing in Black Box Capital, they’re investing in Joel, right? Because they like what Joel is doing or what that other person is doing.” (27:15, Joel)
• Resilience and Work Ethic: Aaron shares a powerful piece of advice from Alex Hormozi:
  • “Outwork self doubt. For every no I get, I’m going to have 15 more conversations…eventually those are going to turn into yeses.” (31:49, Aaron)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Career advice on time frames:
  • “I try to make decisions in decade long time horizons and I would really echo that.” (09:05, Aaron)
• Fundraising reality check:
  • “It’s a three-year road just to get a serious look [from institutions].” (22:33, Aaron)
• On building relationships:
  • “Who do you want to be laid over at an airport with?” (28:02, Aaron)
• Enduring advice:
  • “Outwork self doubt…for every no I get, I’m going to have 15 more conversations.” (31:49, Aaron)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Early Investing Lessons & Military Experience: 02:52 – 05:49
• Volatility & All-Weather Portfolios: 05:49 – 07:40
• Career Planning & Pivot to Asset Management: 08:50 – 10:18
• Skills, CFA, and Breaking In: 11:23 – 16:56
• Building a Fund & Fundraising Challenges: 17:54 – 22:17
• Conferences, Distribution, and Media: 23:41 – 25:18
• Relationships & the ‘Airport Test’: 27:54 – 28:48
• Rapid Fire: Attributes of Hedge Fund Managers & Advice: 28:48 – 33:41

Closing Notes

Aaron Kirchoff’s story is a testament to the power of grit, strategic thinking, and the willingness to learn and adapt in the world of institutional investing. Key takeaways: seek mentors, plan with a long horizon, differentiate your offering, cultivate real relationships, and always outwork self-doubt. This conversation is invaluable for anyone aspiring to progress in asset management or contemplating launching their own fund.