Do you want to become financially secure? How about wealthy? Becoming a good investor is necessary to becoming wealthy unless you are just plain lucky and inherit a fortune or get that elusive Powerball jackpot. Arguably the world’s greatest investor is Warren Buffett and, as you can read in Notable Number four in this week’s Weekly Market Review, Warren will be celebrating a big birthday Sunday the 30th. Since 1970, Warren has been the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, a diversified conglomerate of successful businesses. I could write volumes about Warren Buffett and the inspiration and education he has provided for investors, but those volumes have actually already been written. Here is a LINK that will take you to an article from Investopedia that summarizes some of the more popular ones. In addition to reading books about Mr. Buffett, Warren has books he recommends you read to help you become a savvy investor. This ARTICLE from CNBC will take you to that recommended list.
Warren is famous for many things including his philanthropy, his annual letter to shareholders, the annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting, and his analysis of a corporation’s financials, which is what made him one of the wealthiest people in the world. Warren also has something else going for him, longevity. As you will read in Notable Number four, 84% of Warren’s current net worth has been accumulated since he turned age 65. The time value of money is an amazing thing and Warren has been blessed with a lot of time. This is the power of investing now vs. later, you create more time by not procrastinating, and just like Warren Buffett, the returns can get rather large once you get several years under your belt. Encourage those younger than you, who you have influence over, to begin investing at a young age. That advice will pay big “dividends” someday for that young investor.
I encourage you to spend some time reading about Warren and encouraging those younger folks to do the same. Even to this day, his interviews are terrific and you almost always learn something or gain additional perspective. He has a knack for common sense talk that is refreshing, especially coming from someone with his business acumen. I must admit, that on more than one occasion, I have reorganized my day so that I could catch a live interview with Mr. Buffett.
As always, we hope you find this WMR both interesting and informative. Have a nice day and Happy Birthday Warren!
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Trevor N. Coe, CFP®