Warren Buffett Quotes on Life, Money, Investing & Success

Warren Buffett, a business prodigy and investment inspiration, has inspired many investors. Buffett bought his first stock at the age of 11 and ventured into installing slot machines in local stores during his teenage years. He became one of the world's best-known and wealthiest value investors. He currently serves as the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a former textile company that turned into the world's highest-priced stock at $316,700 per share as of August 2020.

Widely referred to as the "Oracle of Omaha," Buffett's market insights are highly regarded. ‘Warren Buffett quote’ is the most searched phrase in the online wealth management industry. His quotes are sought after for being entertaining, concise and easy to digest.

Who is Warren Buffett?

Warren Buffett, known as the "Oracle of Omaha", is a highly successful investor and the head of Berkshire Hathaway, a conglomerate that owns many companies such as Geico, Duracell and Dairy Queen. The son of a US congressman, Buffett began his investment journey at the age of 11, filing his first tax return at the age of 13. 

With a commitment to philanthropy, he has pledged to give away more than 99% of his wealth and has already contributed roughly $55 billion through foundations, such as the Gates Foundation and his children's foundations. In 2010, Buffett and Bill Gates initiated the Giving Pledge, calling on their fellow billionaires to donate at least half of their wealth to charitable causes.

How did Warren Buffett become Rich?

Buffett follows Benjamin Graham's principles of value investing and looks for securities that are priced below their intrinsic value. While intrinsic value lacks a universally accepted method of determination, it is often measured by fundamental analysis. Unlike many value investors, Buffett goes further and challenges the efficient market hypothesis, which assumes that stocks always reflect their fair value. Regardless of the complexity of the market, he prioritises the company's overall potential and selects stocks based on their intrinsic capabilities rather than short-term market fluctuations. 

For Buffett, the market is a voting machine in the short term but a weight in the long term, highlighting his focus on a company's continued ability to generate profit rather than its immediate market recognition.

Warren Buffett Net Worth

Buffett’s wealth grew a lot because of the power of compounding over the past 20 years. He got interested in money when he was young and started investing seriously in his 20s by forming a partnership. One of his smart moves was buying undervalued stocks in Sanborn Map, which made him good profits. Over 13 years, his partnership made an average yearly return of 23.8%, turning $10,000 in 1957 into over $160,000 by 1969.

After the partnership, Buffett's net worth reached $26.5 million. He chose Berkshire Hathaway as his long-term investment vehicle, acquired during the early years of the partnership, and guided its financial success for more than 50 years. As of December 2023, Buffet’s net worth is $120 billion, which makes him the seventh richest person in the world.

How have Warren Buffett's Ideas and Actions Influenced the World?

Warren Buffett’s ideas and actions have greatly impacted people all over the world. In a letter to his shareholders in 2019, Buffett explained in simple terms the criteria he looks for while investing in a business or stock. The approaches introduced by Buffett have a significant influence. Some are as follows: 

• On Business 

Buffett's first investment criterion is to find businesses with strong economics, meaning these businesses need to generate good returns on capital and have a good cash flow. This emphasises understanding the business, considering its durability and competitive advantage. He will move on to the next potential investment if he cannot understand these aspects.

• On Management 

In his investment approach, Buffett emphasises the evaluation of business leadership and recognises the key role of CEOs in effective management. In his annual letters, he praises exceptional CEOs, citing examples of people such as Jeff Bezos and Jamie Dimon. Buffett values ​​outstanding CEOs and said in 2005 that they are difficult to overpay at large companies, although he acknowledges their rarity.

• On Value 

Buffett's ultimate investment criterion is price. His investment criteria adhere to value investing, which aims to get more value than the price paid. Initially, he used a "cigar" approach, looking for low-priced, unsettled investments. As Berkshire expanded, it shifted to paying fair prices for excellent businesses, emphasising returns from the business itself rather than a low initial price.

Famous Warren Buffett Quotes

People and investors all over the world have been influenced by Warren Buffett quotes. Here are some of the most well-known among them on different life aspects worth following: 

Warren Buffett Quotes on Life

Warren Buffett previously stated that he used to read 500 pages a day. He believes in continuous learning and self-improvement. Here are some of his pieces of advice on life, in general: 

• "The most important investment you can make is in yourself."
• "Read 500 pages like this every day. That's how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it."
• "I insist on a lot of time being spent, almost every day, to just sit and think. That is very uncommon in American business. I read and think. So, I do more reading and thinking, and make less impulse decisions than most people in business."
• "One can best prepare themselves for the economic future by investing in your own education. If you study hard and learn at a young age, you will be in the best circumstances to secure your future."
• "Imagine that you had a car and that was the only car you'd have for your entire lifetime. Of course, you'd care for it well, changing the oil more frequently than necessary, driving carefully, etc. Now, consider that you only have one mind and one body. Prepare them for life, care for them. You can enhance your mind over time. A person's main asset is themselves, so preserve and enhance yourself."

Warren Buffett Quotes on Success

Warren Buffett has always followed some really simple rules towards success and advises the same for everyone. Here are some of his simple yet not-so-ordinary life tips on success: 

• "It's better to hang out with people better than you. Pick out associates whose behaviour is better than yours and you’ll drift in that direction.”
• "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently."
• "If you get to my age in life and nobody thinks well of you, I don't care how big your bank account is, your life is a disaster."
• "Honesty is a very expensive gift. Don't expect it from cheap people."
• "Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago."

Warren Buffett Quotes on Investing

Among his innumerable talents, Warren Buffett has the ability to explain complex concepts in a simplified manner. Here are some of his excellent advice on investing: 

• "Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget Rule No.1."
• "Never invest in a business you can’t understand."
• "Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing."
• "Nobody buys a farm based on whether they think it's going to rain next year. They buy it because they think it's a good investment over 10 or 20 years."
• "The most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect. You need a temperament that neither derives great pleasure from being with the crowd or against the crowd."

Warren Buffett Quotes on Money

Here are some exceptional life lessons shared by Warren Buffett on money: 

• "You do things when the opportunities come along. I've had periods in my life when I've had a bundle of ideas come along, and I've had long, dry spells. If I get an idea next week, I’ll do something. If not, I won't do a damn thing.”
• "What we learn from history is that people don't learn from history."
• "The investor of today does not profit from yesterday’s growth."
• "Money is not everything. Make sure you earn a lot before speaking such nonsense."
• "We simply attempt to be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful."

Warren Buffett Stock Market Quotes

Buffett argues that despite the volatility of the stock market, active investors have an advantage over passive investors because there will always be buyers for market bids. Here are some of his tips regarding stock market: 

• "So smile when you read a headline that says 'Investors lose as market falls.' Edit it in your mind to 'Disinvestors lose as market falls—but investors gain.' Though writers often forget this truism, there is a buyer for every seller and what hurts one necessarily helps the other.”
• "Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked."
• "Predicting rain doesn't count, building the ark does."
• "The best chance to deploy capital is when things are going down."
• "It's been an ideal period for investors: A climate of fear is their best friend. Those who invest only when commentators are upbeat end up paying a heavy price for meaningless reassurance."

Warren Buffett Motivational Quotes

All the quotes mentioned above are inspirational already, however, in different aspects. Here are some more motivational quotes from the prodigy, investment or not: 

• “The most important investment you can make is in yourself.”
• “Never depend on a single income. Make an investment to create a second source.”
• “I will tell you how to become rich. Close the doors. Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful.”
• “No matter how great the talent or efforts, some things just take time. You can’t produce a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant.”
• “Don’t pass up something that’s attractive today because you think you will find something better tomorrow.”   

Warren Buffett's quotes are witty, humorous, and catchy. There are hundreds of them available. Even if some of them are followed, one can make significant changes in their lives. Learning from a prodigy like Warren Buffett is a crucial step towards succeeding.