As Fool aficionados know, we have a weekly speaker series here at Fool HQ. Recently, Fool co-founder and CEO Tom Gardner paid it forward by sitting down with Steve Forbes on Forbes.com. What followed was a motley conversation spanning topics both serious and comical:

  • Why Tom was bullish earlier in the year
  • Whether Wall Street compensation is out of hand
  • Tangentially, why Tom wouldn’t date a Wall Streeter
  • Business leaders he admires, including Jim Sinegal of Costco (NASDAQ:COST) and Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN)
  • Why he would break up Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)
  • One of Tom’s biggest investing mistakes. And one of his brother David’s, too. (Hint: They rhyme with Select Comfort (NASDAQ:SCSS) and Krispy Kreme Donuts (NYSE:KKD).)
  • Why Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ:BWLD) kind of reminds Steve Forbes of Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX)
  • How to measure management

You can see the video footage by clicking here and the transcript by clicking here.

You've heard Tom's thoughts. Now it's time to talk back. How do you judge a good company? Have you dated a Wall Streeter? Would you break up Microsoft? Chime in through the comments box below.