Recognize Reality
One should recognize reality even when one doesn’t like it.
Related Topics: like, reality, recognize Elementary Probability
If you don’t get this elementary, but mildly unnatural, mathematics of elementary probability into your repertoire, then you go through...
Related Topics: ass-kicking, ass-kicking contest, contest, elementary, life, long, long life, mathematics, mildly, one-legged man, probability, repertoire, unnatural 
Bullish on Berkshire Hathaway
I’m a bull on Berkshire Hathaway. There may be some considerable waiting, but I think there are some good days...
Related Topics: Berkshire Hathaway, bull, bullish, considerable, days, good, waiting Where I’m Going to Die
All I want to know is where I’m going to die so I’ll never go there.
Related Topics: die, go, never Leaders vs. Followers
Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.
Related Topics: distinguishes, follower, innovation, leader Be Proud of What You Haven’t Done
I’m as proud of many of the things we haven’t done as the things we have done. Innovation is saying...
Related Topics: done, proud, things Consistently Outperforming the Market
It’s not possible for investors to consistently outperform the market. Therefore you’re best served investing in a diversified portfolio of...
Related Topics: best, consistently, diversified, ETFs, exchange traded funds, index funds, investing, investors, low-cost, market, outperform, portfolio, possible Expressing Itself
Design is the fundamental soul of a man-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the...
Related Topics: creation, design, fundamental, itself, layers, man-made, outer, product, service, soul, successive Own Stocks without Fretting
I think there’s something to be said for developing the disposition to own stocks without fretting.
Related Topics: developing, disposition, fretting, own, said, something, stocks, think, without The Heart and Soul of Business
All we are is our ideas or people. That’s what keeps us going to work in the morning, to hang...
Related Topics: bright people, going to work, great people, hang around, heart and soul, ideas, morning, people, recruiting You Don’t Need PowerPoint
People who know what they are talking about don’t need PowerPoint.
Related Topics: need, now, people, PowerPoint, talking 
Be Optimistic of Others
“I’m an optimist in the sense that I believe humans are noble and honorable, and some of them are really...
Related Topics: believe, honorable, humans, individuals, noble, optimism, optimist, optimistic, smart Public Hangings
A few public hangings will really change behavior. One of our presidents said if he could execute three people each...
Related Topics: behavior, change, easier, execute, govern, hangings, presidents, public, public hangings, three, year How to Keep Rising in Life
Those who keep learning, will keep rising in life.
Related Topics: keep learning, keep rising, learning, life, rising 
Alcoholism Is a Disease
Alcoholism is a disease, but it’s the only one you can get yelled at for having. Goddamn it Otto, you...
Related Topics: alcoholism, disease, Lupus, yelled at 
Taking Care of Fake Plants
My fake plants died because I did not pretend to water them.
Related Topics: fake, plants, pretend, water Architecting a Company
More important than building a product, we are in the process of architecting a company that will hopefully be much...
Related Topics: architecting, building, company, incredible, process, product, sum of its parts, total Explore Your Options
Why would I ever want to run Disney? Wouldn’t it make more sense just to sell them Pixar and retire?
Related Topics: Disney, more, more sense, Pixar, retire, run, sell, sense LSD from Stanford
You could get LSD fresh made from Stanford. You could sleep on the beach at night with your girlfriend. California...
Related Topics: beach, California, experimentation, fresh, get, girlfriend, LSD, new, new possibilities, night, openness, possibilities, sense, sleep, Stanford University Reinvent Something
So, we’re going to reinvent the phone.
Related Topics: innovation, invent, phone, reinvent Delegate When You Can
Warren and I avoid doing anything that someone else at Berkshire can do better.
Related Topics: anything, avoid, Berkshire Hathaway, better, someone, Warren Buffett 
Tightrope Walking
If you had a friend who was a tightrope walker, and you were walking down a sidewalk, and he fell,...
Related Topics: completely, fell, friend, sidewalk, tightrope walker, unacceptable 
Working in Mental Models
I think it is undeniably true that the human brain must work in models.
Related Topics: brain, human, mental models, models, think, true, undeniably, work Getting It Done
Because I’m the CEO, and I think it can be done.
Related Topics: because, CEO, think Being a Corporate Exemplar
But if you rise high in a corporation or elsewhere in life, you have a duty to be an exemplar...
Related Topics: corporation, deserve, duty, elsewhere, example, exemplar, high, life, rise, set an example, take less Character-Building Losses
I’m the only person I know that’s lost a quarter of a billion dollars in one year…. It’s very character-building.
Related Topics: billion dollars, character, character-building, lost, person, year Reading All the Time
In my whole life, I have known no wise people over a broad subject matter area who didn’t read all...
Related Topics: all the time, broad, known, life, none, read, subject matter, whole, wise people, zero Know the Edge of Your Competency
We know the edge of our competency better than most. That’s a very worthwhile thing.
Related Topics: better, competency, edge, know, most, worthwhile Throw It All Away
If you want to live your life in a creative way, as an artist, you have to not look back...
Related Topics: artist, creative, if, live, looking back, take, throw away, willing 
Float Your Boat
Basically my wife was immature. I’d be in my bath and she’d come in and sink my boats.
Related Topics: boats, immaturity, wife 
Listen Carefully
The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said.
Related Topics: communication, hearing, listening Relatively Rich
We’re rich in relation to the business that we’re doing.
Related Topics: business, relation, rich, wealthy 
Knowledge About Cars
I know a lot about cars, man. I can look at any car’s headlights and tell you exactly which way...
Related Topics: cars, direction, headlights Acquire Worldly Wisdom
Acquire worldly wisdom and adjust your behavior accordingly. If your new behavior gives you a little temporary unpopularity with your...
Related Topics: accordingly, acquire, adjust, behavior, group, hell, new, peer, peer group, temporary, to hell with them, unpopularity, wisdom, worldly 
Underwater Camera Use
I have an underwater camera just in case I crash my car into a river, and at the last minute...
Related Topics: camera, car, crash, minute, opportunity, photo, photo opportunity, river, underwater Corporations’ Annual Meetings
A lot of [corporations’ annual] meetings are set up to avoid groups like you — they’re in inconvenient locations and...
Related Topics: annual meetings, avoid, groups, hope, inconvenient, locations, people 
