50 Years of Warren Buffett’s Wisdom
A couple weekends ago I joined Warren Buffett and 40,000 others in Omaha for Woodstock for Capitalists—a.k.a. the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway. As a shareholder and member of the board, I've been going for years and it’s always a blast. This time we had our usual fun, including a ping-pong match where Warren hit an impressive forehand winner against a former U.S. national champion. But the gathering had an extra resonance, because we had something special to celebrate: 50 years of Warren’s leadership at the company.
A lot has been written about Warren in the half-century since he took the reins at Berkshire. But I think the most interesting and insightful stuff is what Warren writes himself. Every year before the annual meeting, he puts together a letter to Berkshire’s shareholders in which he talks very honestly about what’s going well and what isn't. He also reflects on investing and the economy more broadly. If you want to be as smart about business as Warren is—and who doesn't?—you can’t beat those letters.
In this year’s letter, Warren takes a special look at the company’s past, present, and future. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It is the best and most important thing he has ever written. Warren’s partner, Charlie Munger, wrote his own letter and it is also excellent.
Warren and I took a break from the weekend’s events to spend a few minutes talking about his rules for smart investing, how he learned to explain complicated financial dealings so clearly, and how he got me into bridge and golf:
And here is a short slideshow featuring some of my favorite photos of Warren from over the years.
Warren isn't just a great friend. He is also an amazing mentor. I have been learning from him since the day we met in 1991. We discuss business, economics, politics, world events, and of course philanthropy—as a trustee of our foundation, he is a fantastic thought partner for Melinda and me.
Two years ago I wrote about three things I have learned from Warren. It boils down to this: He is always encouraging Melinda and me to tackle tough problems and have the courage to make mistakes. Luckily for Berkshire’s shareholders—and for everyone involved with the dozens of businesses in the Berkshire family—Warren follows this wisdom himself. For the better part of 50 years, he has been thinking big, and we are all better off for it.
This was originally posted www.gatesnotes.com.
凡森科技 - 首席外汇分析师
7y世界的进步离不开你们的推动，我们需要旗杆，为你们加油！会一直支持你们！
Executive Chairlady and Managing Director of Tigadonne' NPO (since 1999) and Chairlady of TITIAM NPO
7yDear Mr Gates Thank you for sharing this inspiring story with us. I am currently in the process of building a 'Mini Community City' in the JHB area in South Africa, a first in S.A. and possibly a first in the world and our main focus is to keep the youth off the streets and to teach them skills, to give them hope for the future. Most of the 605 000 children in our community have an education but I doubt that many of them had a teacher such as Mrs Blanche Caffiere to inspire them. As you mentioned if it wasn't for the guidance of this very special teacher you might have been "turned off by school". Most high school drop-outs turn to crime because there seems to be no future for them. There is no employment for these youngsters and even the few who were fortunate enough to graduate from University are devastated because after doing their best to succeed in life there is no employment for them as well. 71% of our community of 3.2 million people live below the poverty level. They have access to education and health care but they have no hope in their lives. The crime rate is escalating because of the high unemployment rate. Our organisation wants to be the 'Mrs Blanche Caffiere' in the lives of these youngsters. We want to give them hope and the opportunity to discover their talents and to find their place in society again. We have so many ways in which we can help them:- 1. There are three large skills workshops where they can learn a trade such as building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, carpentry skills etc. 2. There is a computer school for those who would rather study IT skills. 3. There is a Music, Art and Drama school for those who are more creative. 4. There is a 'School of Talent' where they can learn anything from bead work to hairdressing. We encourage these pupils to start their own businesses with the skills that are taught in this school. 5. All sports facilities are available to them in our Community Centre including a fully equipped Gym. 6. We have designed a 'State of the Art' Teen Coffee shop so that they have a special place to hang out. 7. There is a go-cart track, trick-bike course, skateboard-rink, Laser Quest, wave-pool and many more fun activities to keep them off the streets. These facilities and many more are available to our entire community and these youth are subsidized by those who can afford to pay to utilize these facilities. We would like our Community Centre to be an example to other Metropolitan areas in our country and even in the rest of the world. We are a team of skilled individuals who have decided to dedicate the rest of our lives to enrich the poor, giving them hope and dignity - their rightful place in society. I am aware that you must be inundated with requests for assistance from so many organizations but all that I am asking you to do is to find out more about our project so that our ideas can be spread around the world. I look forward to giving you more information. Kind regards Heather
Expert in Finance and Operations Mgt: MSc(pm), BBA (F&A), CPAK, Diploma (Bus Edu)
7yI am excited with your comments on finance. I would like to learn more from you
Beijing - Emperor
7yGood
A great exchange between two very successful individuals. Bill, for a billionaire philanthropist - you make for a great interviewer.