Rarely do we get a glimpse of the life of the successful and
famous. To many in the business world
Warren Buffett is more like a god than a man. In his book Buffett: the making of an American Capitalist you won’t be
receiving insider investment tips but you will come to know a little of the man
that has been an inspiration to business students and investment gurus for a
number of decades. You will learn what made him the man he is today. Sometimes,
it is those little things in life that put on us on unique paths.
Of particular interest is the information about Buffett’s
life and his formation as a leading investor. He started as an odd but liked
child who seemed more like a fish out of water than the confident billionaire
he is today. A little socially awkward people came to accept him as he was. He
watched the stocks while other boys made modeled airplanes. A boy who loved to
play sports, talk of financial success, and attract other boys to him.
He loved to read and apply those concepts to his paper
route, pinball business, and future enterprises with passion. Warren was always learning and applying and made a life out of this
process. With a few good mentors he became the investor magnet he is today. It
was a long process of learning, adapting, and applying that seemed to meet with
the right personality. Something business students should consider as they
learn new knowledge and have a chance to use it.
When Warren met the professor Benjamin Graham he was able to
use his native talents in a systematic way based upon the principles and
philosophies of his mentor. The philosophy, “For stock speculation is largely a matter of A trying to decide what
B,C, and D are likely to think-with B,C and D trying to do the same” seemed
to stick. The precocious student learned quickly and developed his own methodologies.
Much of the rest of the book talks of Warren Buffett’s life,
loves, and business successes. It is more than a story of an emerging wealthy
person but the way of thinking of the boy who grew to be a man that made it all
possible. It is a story of financial strategy and pure diligence of a person that
became known as the Oracle of Omaha.
Warren’s story doesn’t end with this book. It is only a snap
shot into his process of development and growth that led to great fortune. As
recently as March of 2014 Warren is encouraging groups to become more engage in
social causes that help those in need. It is these philanthropic adventures
that help others to remember that wealth is not a source of happiness in and of
itself. Wealth is a tool that places greater responsibilities on the owner to
use money to enhance life.
Lowenstein, R. (2008). Buffett:
the making of an American Capitalist. NY: Random House
