We’ve just been watching Charlie Munger at the latest Daily Journal meeting in which he recounts the most important investing trick he learnt from his grandfather, saying: I had a grandfather who was very useful to me. My mother’s grandfather. He was a pioneer. He came out to Iowa with … Read More
Charles Munger: EMT – The Stock Market Ain’t Like Physics, It’s Like A Mob At A Football Game
Here’s a great short video with Charles Munger talking about The Efficient Market Theory saying: “Well I think we’ve had some effect, but they’re still teaching The Efficient Market Theory. Remember the old ideas die hard. And by the way it’s roughly right. It’s just the very hard form which … Read More
Charles Munger: Munger’s Rule!
Every time we listen to Charles Mungers’ famous speech titled – The Psychology of Human Misjudgement, we learn something new. One example is Munger’s example of the problem with having a ‘Board of Directors’ in American companies, saying: Finally the institution of the board of directors of a major human … Read More
Charles Munger: If Mozart Can’t Get By With This Kind Of Asinine Conduct I Don’t Think You Should Try
Here’s some more classic Munger. During his USC Law Commencement Speech, Munger provides some insights into counteracting the self serving bias, which includes overspending ones income, saying: (6:38) “Another thing of course that does one in is the self-serving bias to which we’re all subject.” “You think that your ‘little me’ is entitled … Read More
Charles Munger: One Filter That’s Very Useful For Investors
During the 1997 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Meeting, Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger were asked their thoughts on calculating intrinsic value. Here’s Munger’s response: I would argue that one filter that’s useful in investing is the simple idea of opportunity cost. If you have one opportunity that you already have available … Read More
Charles Munger: Civilized People Don’t Buy Gold
Here’s some classic Munger wisdom on ‘gold’ as an investment: “I think gold is a great thing to sow into your garments if you’re a Jewish family in Vienna in 1939 but, I think civilized people don’t buy gold, they invest in productive businesses.” (Source: YouTube)
Charles Munger – I Frequently Sit In A Room And Converse With Dead People While The People Around Me Are Irritated
Here’s a great compilation on reading habits and books by Warren Buffett and Charles Munger. Our favorite quote from the video is when Munger is asked how he was able to concentrate and balance his reading with so many children around when his family was younger. His response is: “I … Read More
Charles Munger: Investing In Shares Is Much Easier Than Investing In Real Estate, Here’s Why
Here’s a great little video in which Charles Munger is discussing why investing in shares is better than investing in real estate. Munger says: “The trouble with real estate is that everybody else understands it, and the people who you’re dealing with and competed with, they’ve specialized in a little … Read More
Charlie Munger: I Made Four Or Five Hundred Million Dollars From Two Decisions, With Almost No Risk
In this short interview Charles Munger explains how he made four or five hundred million dollars from just two decisions: “I talked about patience. I read Barron’s for fifty years. In fifty years I found one investment opportunity in Barron’s. I made about $80 Million, with almost no risk. I … Read More
Charles Munger: A Parody About The Great Recession
One of the best articles ever written about the ‘Great Recession’ is Charles Munger’s – Parody Describing The Contributions of Wantmore, Tweakmore, Totalscum, Countwrong, and Obvilious To The Tragic ‘Great Recession’ in Boneheadia and The Thoughts of Some People Relating To The Disaster. While the entire article is six pages … Read More
Charles Munger: The Trouble With Economists & Economics
Some years ago Shane Parrish at Farnam Street did a podcast in which he read the full text of Charlie Munger’s presentation – Academic Economics: Strengths and Weaknesses, after Considering Interdisciplinary Needs. It’s a must listen to for all investors. Here’s an excerpt from Munger’s presentation: 3) Physics Envy The third … Read More
Charlie Munger: Moral Investing – We Could See It Was Like Putting $100 Million In A Bushel Basket And Setting It On Fire As We Walked Away
Here’s a great video with Charles Munger and Warren Buffett at the 2005 Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting in which they discuss the moral distinction between buying a stock and a company. Here’s an excerpt from the video: CHARLIE MUNGER: Yeah. I think he’s asking in part, are there some businesses … Read More
Charlie Munger: That Decision Has Cost Me Now About $5 Billion
Here’s a great recent interview with Charlie Munger & Li Lui in which Munger recalls one of his greatest investment mistakes that cost him $5 Billion. Here’s his recollection: Munger: Let’s take a simple question. As I said in that book. They offered me three hundred shares in Belridge Oil, which … Read More
Charlie Munger On Telsa and Elon Musk
We’ve just been watching a great recent interview with Charlie Munger in which he was asked his thoughts on Telsa and Elon Musk. Here’s his response: Munger: Well it’s already created more significance than anybody would have predicted and its founder is bold and brilliant and swings for the fences. … Read More
Charlie Munger: Look For Businesses Using The Cancer Surgery Formula
In a 1995 edition of The Outstanding Investor Digest, Charlie Munger recounted the types of business models that he and Warren Buffett like to invest in. Most noteworthy is what he calls the ‘cancer surgery formula’ model saying: “I’ve had many friends in the sick-business-fix-up-game over a long lifetime. And … Read More
Charles Munger: “If You Won’t Attack A Problem While It’s Solvable And Wait Until It’s Unfixable, You Can Argue That You’re So Damn Foolish That You Deserve The Problem”
While not specifically an investing book, The Art of the Good Life: Clear Thinking for Business and a Better Life, by Rolf Dobelli provides some great lessons for investors. There’s one passage in particular titled – Reality Doesn’t Care About Your Feelings; or, Why Every False Step Improves Your Life – which basically says … Read More
Charles Munger: The Secret Ingredients That Make Berkshire, And The Daily Journal, So Successful
We’ve just been watching the 2017 Daily Journal Annual Meeting in which Charlie Munger, at 12:18 on the video below, discloses some of the secret ingredients that have made Berkshire and The Daily Journal successful. Here’s an excerpt from the meeting where Munger is speaking about DJCO’s software business: When … Read More
Charlie Munger: The First Rule Of Value Investing
Here’s a great interview with Charlie Munger and Yahoo Finance Editor-In-Chief Andy Serwer. During the interview Munger discusses the first rule of value investing: Value investing has changed over the years, but the fundamental way its disciples think about it hasn’t, according to Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) vice chair Charlie Munger. … Read More
Charlie Munger: The Stock Picking Industry Is Four Or Five Percent Super-Rational, Disciplined People, And The Rest Of Them Are Sort Of Like Faith-Healers Or Shamans
One of the best resources for investors are the Daily Journal Annual Meetings chaired by Charles Munger. During the 2015 Annual Meeting Munger was asked the following question regarding indexing and what it might lead to: “Indexing has grown a lot in the last thirty years or so as a form … Read More
Charlie Munger: The Parable Of Basicland
Several years ago, Charles Munger wrote a great piece called – Basically, It’s Over – A parable about how one nation came to financial ruin. Munger provides a cautionary warning through the story of a fictional place called ‘Basicland’. A large, unpopulated island in the Pacific Ocean that is rich in … Read More