5 star review for University of Berkshire Hathaway: 30 Years of Lessons Learned from Warren Buffett & Charlie Munger at the Annual Shareholders Meeting via Goodreads:
I believe this book is well worth reading���for those involved in the world of investment. But I���m not an investor ��� ���never had the money to invest, for one thing. ���Never studied it, for another. And consequently, ���don���t understand many of the technical terms and concepts used here.
Is there a lot of repetition in what both Warren Buffett and Charles Munger have to say? Yes���the note to the contrary (in Appendix V) notwithstanding. That said, these gentlemen have valuable information to impart���and Daniel Pecaut has done an admirable job in imparting it. Imagine a bystander feverishly scribbling notes at The Sermon on the Mount, and you get the picture. The countless jokes may be more Nebraskan or Iowan in sound and sense than Aramaic, but no one will grow worse for the Cornhusker or Hawkeye wear.
As just one example of the value of this book, I���ll give you a brief section from pp. 188 ��� 189, which teaches a couple or three elementary things (out of the mouths of W. Buffett and C. Munger)���viz., that investment should be carefully watched and nurtured: (1) in oneself; (2) in good business managers; and (3) in companies with a sound business plan and policy. Unlike most of what is taught at the MBA level, Warren Buffet likes to keep it simple and direct. To wit:
���Warrenomics 101
���(Warren) Buffet loves to teach college students.
���Buffett noted that he had eight sessions last year with students from 49 different universities.
���His two courses, if he were to run a business school, would be 1) How to Value a Business, and 2) How to Think About Markets. That would be it.
���In valuing businesses, it is important to understand the language of accounting, to stay within your circle of competence, and to focus on what is meaningful and sustainable.
���In thinking about markets, it is important to remember that markets are there to serve you, not instruct you. The key here is emotional stability, to have an inner peace about your decisions. It is important to think for yourself and to make good decisions over time.���
���It is simple, but not easy.
���The key with markets is that you cannot allow yourself to be forced to sell (from using too much leverage) and that you must not sell in a panic mode, emotionally pulling the rug out from under yourself.
���(Charles) Munger added that there is so much that is false and nutty in modern banking, investing and academia that the most one can hope for is to reduce the nonsense. If someone has an IQ of 150 but thinks that it is 160, it leads to disaster.
���Buffet imagined himself an economics teacher, professing the efficient market hypothesis: ���Everything is priced properly.��� And mused, ���What do you do for the rest of the hour?��� And this is the stuff of Nobel Prizes!
���Buffett concluded with Max Plank���s observation of the inexorable evolution of science despite the strong resistance to new ideas by even the best and brightest of his peers: ���Science advances one funeral at a time.������
And speaking of (economic or business) crises, note this suggestion, note this word of advice Buffett had for Goldman Sachs���s CEO, Lloyd Blankfein: ���Get it right. Get it fast. Get it out. Get it over��� (p. 203). All other things being equal, we like Buffett���s pith.
Perhaps a good place to conclude this review is with a citation from p. 266 under the chapter subtitle ���Five Things You May Have Missed:
���We have long noticed the paradox of craziness that surrounds Warren Buffet: no investor gets more media attention, and yet so little understanding flows out of that attention.
���We suppose it���s a problem of the short attention span/instant gratification culture bouncing off the wisdom of the ages.���
Yes, the same could be said for University of Berkshire Hathaway. If readers will give it the full attention and concentration it deserves, there are, over time, nuggets to be mined���to use a Buffet/Munger-style metaphor.
RRB
Brooklyn, NY
26 December 2017
Is there a lot of repetition in what both Warren Buffett and Charles Munger have to say? Yes���the note to the contrary (in Appendix V) notwithstanding. That said, these gentlemen have valuable information to impart���and Daniel Pecaut has done an admirable job in imparting it. Imagine a bystander feverishly scribbling notes at The Sermon on the Mount, and you get the picture. The countless jokes may be more Nebraskan or Iowan in sound and sense than Aramaic, but no one will grow worse for the Cornhusker or Hawkeye wear.
As just one example of the value of this book, I���ll give you a brief section from pp. 188 ��� 189, which teaches a couple or three elementary things (out of the mouths of W. Buffett and C. Munger)���viz., that investment should be carefully watched and nurtured: (1) in oneself; (2) in good business managers; and (3) in companies with a sound business plan and policy. Unlike most of what is taught at the MBA level, Warren Buffet likes to keep it simple and direct. To wit:
���Warrenomics 101
���(Warren) Buffet loves to teach college students.
���Buffett noted that he had eight sessions last year with students from 49 different universities.
���His two courses, if he were to run a business school, would be 1) How to Value a Business, and 2) How to Think About Markets. That would be it.
���In valuing businesses, it is important to understand the language of accounting, to stay within your circle of competence, and to focus on what is meaningful and sustainable.
���In thinking about markets, it is important to remember that markets are there to serve you, not instruct you. The key here is emotional stability, to have an inner peace about your decisions. It is important to think for yourself and to make good decisions over time.���
���It is simple, but not easy.
���The key with markets is that you cannot allow yourself to be forced to sell (from using too much leverage) and that you must not sell in a panic mode, emotionally pulling the rug out from under yourself.
���(Charles) Munger added that there is so much that is false and nutty in modern banking, investing and academia that the most one can hope for is to reduce the nonsense. If someone has an IQ of 150 but thinks that it is 160, it leads to disaster.
���Buffet imagined himself an economics teacher, professing the efficient market hypothesis: ���Everything is priced properly.��� And mused, ���What do you do for the rest of the hour?��� And this is the stuff of Nobel Prizes!
���Buffett concluded with Max Plank���s observation of the inexorable evolution of science despite the strong resistance to new ideas by even the best and brightest of his peers: ���Science advances one funeral at a time.������
And speaking of (economic or business) crises, note this suggestion, note this word of advice Buffett had for Goldman Sachs���s CEO, Lloyd Blankfein: ���Get it right. Get it fast. Get it out. Get it over��� (p. 203). All other things being equal, we like Buffett���s pith.
Perhaps a good place to conclude this review is with a citation from p. 266 under the chapter subtitle ���Five Things You May Have Missed:
���We have long noticed the paradox of craziness that surrounds Warren Buffet: no investor gets more media attention, and yet so little understanding flows out of that attention.
���We suppose it���s a problem of the short attention span/instant gratification culture bouncing off the wisdom of the ages.���
Yes, the same could be said for University of Berkshire Hathaway. If readers will give it the full attention and concentration it deserves, there are, over time, nuggets to be mined���to use a Buffet/Munger-style metaphor.
RRB
Brooklyn, NY
26 December 2017
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