We’ve got all these mops and brooms carrying water up the hill. And we just keep buying more.”
Feb. 11, 2002: The inside story of Warren Buffett
“During the two decades following the merger mania of the 1980s, CEOs did not tell their shareholders what was really happening.”
Dec. 23, 2002: Fortune’s investor of the century
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”
Nov. 22, 2004: A talk with Warren Buffett
“I’d have a simpler life if I’d just bought the S&P 500. But I wouldn’t have the fun of doing what I do.”
April 24, 2006: Buffett’s big bet
“I call investing the greatest business in the world … because you never have to swing. You stand at the plate, the pitcher throws you General Motors at 47! U.S. Steel at 39! And nobody calls a strike on you. There’s no penalty except opportunity lost.”
Sept. 29, 2008: Warren Buffett on the markets
“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.”
2010s
Dec. 9, 2010: Warren Buffett’s secret millionaires
“I don’t have a problem with guilt about money. The way I see it is that my money represents an enormous number of claim checks on society. It’s like I have these little pieces of paper that I can turn into consumption. If I wanted to, I could hire 10,000 people to do nothing but paint my picture every day for the rest of my life. And the GDP would go up. But the utility of the product would be zilch, and I would be keeping those 10,000 people from doing AIDS research, or teaching, or nursing. I don’t do that though. I don’t use very many of those claim checks. There’s nothing material I want very much. And I’m going to give virtually all of those claim checks to charity when my wife and I die.”
Feb. 27, 2012: Warren Buffett’s annual letter
“Though the preachers of pessimism prattle endlessly about America’s problems, I’ve never seen one who wishes to emigrate (though I can think of a few for whom I would happily buy a one-way ticket). The dynamism embedded in our market economy will continue to work its magic. Gains won’t come in a smooth or uninterrupted manner; they never have. And we will regularly grumble about our government. But ” Masalahnya adalah banjir air. Masalah kita adalah uang.”
“Untuk merujuk pada selera pribadi saya, saya akan membeli hamburger seumur hidup. Ketika harga hamburger turun, kami menyanyikan ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ di rumah tangga Buffett. Ketika harga hamburger naik, kami menangis. Bagi kebanyakan orang, hal yang sama terjadi dengan segala hal dalam hidup yang akan mereka beli – kecuali saham. Ketika saham turun dan Anda bisa mendapatkan lebih banyak untuk uang Anda, orang tidak lagi menyukainya.”
“Gelembung sudah pecah, namun saham masih belum murah…”
“Derivatif adalah senjata keuangan pemusnah massal, membawa bahaya yang, meskipun sekarang tersembunyi, berpotensi mematikan.”
“Saya memiliki $9,800 pada akhir tahun 1950 dan pada tahun 1956, saya memiliki $150,000. Saya pikir dengan itu saya bisa hidup seperti seorang raja.”
“Saya tahu apa yang ingin saya lakukan, dan itu masuk akal untuk memulainya.”
“Sepertinya semua orang mengatakan bahwa [resesi] akan singkat dan dangkal, tetapi terlihat sebaliknya. Anda tahu, deleveraging secara alamiah memerlukan banyak waktu, banyak rasa sakit.”
“Sejumlah orang pintar terlibat dalam menjalankan dana lindung nilai. Tetapi sampai batas tertentu, upaya mereka saling menetralkan, dan IQ mereka tidak akan mengatasi biaya yang mereka kenakan pada investor. Investor, rata-rata dan dari waktu ke waktu, akan melakukan lebih baik dengan dana indeks biaya rendah daripada dengan sekelompok dana-dana dana.”
“Kekayaan saya berasal dari kombinasi tinggal di Amerika, beberapa gen beruntung, dan bunga majemuk… Karena saya [lahir] laki-laki dan berkulit putih juga menghilangkan hambatan besar yang mayoritas warga Amerika saat itu hadapi… Distribusi jerami panjang takdir sangat sewenang-wenang.”