In the realm of wise investors and business moguls, Charlie Munger, the billionaire business partner of Warren Buffett, is a source of valuable advice. His interests span wide, but they all converge on a singular focus: the pursuit of wealth, happiness and the avoidance of making dumb mistakes.

During the 2023 Berkshire Hathaway Inc. annual meeting, Buffett expressed his desire to be born in the present day, considering it a superior world compared to any before. He acknowledged that modern communication may sometimes make it seem worse than it is.

Nonetheless, he emphasized that, despite its challenges, the world is a remarkable place.

In response, Munger shared a slightly less optimistic view than Buffett. He stated, "I think the best road ahead to human happiness is to expect less. I think it's going to get tougher."

Munger cautioned against an influx of young, brilliant minds into wealth management, deeming it a perilous trend for American society.

"We don’t need as many wealth managers as we have," he said.

Buffett, adding his perspective, remarked on Munger's birth year of 1924, to which Munger replied with a chuckle, "Yes, I would hate to go back to that. I like more wealth managers who are merely reflecting the fact that there's more wealth. But I don't like everybody going into wealth management. I think the world's a little crazy now."

This comes at a time when it’s easier than ever for investors to manage their own wealth. Companies like Aries and Robinhood Markets Inc. allow anyone to be their own money manager and invest in public markets. Aries, despite being a private startup, is also open for anyone to invest in the startup itself.

Together, Buffett and Munger have transformed Berkshire Hathaway into a financial powerhouse worth over $500 billion. They invest in exceptional companies they have no intention of selling, which has reaped immense rewards. Their steadfast trust in enterprises like The Coca-Cola Co. has generated billions in profit over the decades.

For Munger, "old values" such as honor, trust, hard work and frugality are the cornerstones of a fulfilling life. He often mentions the significance of choosing the right spouse as life's most crucial decision and insists that financial prosperity necessitates living within one's means. Both partners firmly believe that taking the high road in capitalism yields greater rewards because there is less competition on that path. Over the years, they have emphasized that while the company can afford to lose a lot of money, it cannot afford to lose even a fraction of trust. Reputation is everything.

Munger has also distilled two essential life guidelines. First, he champions lifelong learning as the key to happiness and wealth. He dedicates the majority of his time to reading and contemplation, finding immense satisfaction in it. His goal? To absorb the grand ideas from various academic fields and apply them judiciously to his thinking. He believes that appropriating great ideas is relatively simple, and the real challenge lies in avoiding foolishness. This commitment to lifelong learning has only become more valuable as Munger, at age 99, continues his investment journey.

  • Rom [he/him]
    ·
    10 months ago

    I think the best road ahead to human happiness is to expect billionaire fucks to have less heads attached to their shoulders.

    • Tachanka [comrade/them]
      ·
      10 months ago

      ah, so the man who designed a building to create stampede deaths, amazing

    • Galli [comrade/them]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Young people are so entitled these days expecting to just be handed luxuries like air and natural light.

  • Utter_Karate [he/him, comrade/them]
    ·
    10 months ago

    Ok, I'll start by expecting 50 % less billionaires. By which I don't mean we should have half as many, I mean that we should take every individual billionaire and make there be 50 % less of him.

  • SorosFootSoldier [he/him, they/them]
    ·
    10 months ago

    I think it's going to get tougher."

    No shit Bozo we're like a couple decades out from the water wars on a planet that's rapidly being gutted.

    • Magician [he/him, they/them]
      ·
      10 months ago

      "I think it's going to get tougher," says man who spent immense wealth and resources making life tougher.

  • Rojo27 [he/him]
    ·
    edit-2
    10 months ago

    Hoping for less billionaires in the futuregui-better inshallah

  • Tachanka [comrade/them]
    ·
    10 months ago

    2000 year old Man actively having his ass wiped by a 2 trillion dollar robot thoughtfully asks "are young people expecting too much out of life?"

  • christiansocialist [none/use name]
    ·
    10 months ago

    I think the best road ahead to human happiness is to expect less.

    Cool so then you have no problem with us expropriating 100% of your wealth then?

  • BodyBySisyphus [he/him]
    ·
    10 months ago

    "Hey, turns out the secret to happiness is to not do the thing that I'm going to the grave doing. No questions at this time, thank you."

    I expect less cephalized billionaires.

  • FortifiedAttack [he/him]
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    10 months ago

    meat > "I think the best road ahead to human happiness is to expect less. I think it's going to get tougher."

    Gee, I wonder who we young people have to thank for that?

    • zifnab25 [he/him, any]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Obviously not them, because look at how much nicer everything has become since 1924. That must be due to their hard wealth management work.

    • NailBunny [she/her]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Seems like we don't have long to find real democracy before he turns to dust anyways.

  • Meh [comrade/them]
    ·
    10 months ago

    Fun fact: 99-years-old is still a viable age at which to be drawn and quartered