Reflections on Greatness: An Encounter at Berkshire Hathaway

In this special celebratory episode, William Green spotlights some of the most important lessons from the greatest investor of all time: Warren Buffett. In honor of Buffett’s historic decision to retire after 60 years as Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO, William offers his thoughts on Buffett’s legacy & Berkshire’s future; he also shares powerful highlights from his conversations about Buffett with Joel Greenblatt, Nick Sleep, Thomas Russo, Chris Davis, Chuck Akre & Christopher Bloomstran.

IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

00:00 - Intro

04:20 - What makes Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting a joyous experience.

06:13 - How Warren Buffett’s virtues & values shone through at this year’s AGM.

14:51 - How he & Charlie Munger made most of their money off 8 or 9 big bets.

22:41 - What Buffett taught Joel Greenblatt about buying great businesses.

27:24 - What stunned Greenblatt when he finally met Buffett.

33:45 - Why Chuck Akre attributes his enormous success to Buffett’s teachings.

38:18 - What Thomas Russo learned from Buffett about reducing “agency risk.”

46:17 - How Buffett inspired Nick Sleep to do what he already knew was right.

52:34 - Why Christopher Bloomstran thinks all CEOs should study Berkshire. 1:19:54 - Why Buffett focuses relentlessly on resilience in the face of extreme risks.

1:22:48 - What principles guide Greg Abel’s philosophy of asset allocation.

1:26:00 - Why Berkshire directors like Chris Davis vow to protect its unique culture.

1:33:39 - How he achieved staggering success without making enemies.

Disclaimer: Slight discrepancies in the timestamps may occur due to podcast platform differences.

BOOKS AND RESOURCES

• Join Clay and a select group of passionate value investors for a retreat in Big Sky, Montana. Learn more ⁠here⁠.
• Join the exclusive ⁠TIP Mastermind Community⁠ to engage in meaningful stock investing discussions with Stig, Clay, Kyle, and the other community members.
• Berkshire Hathaway’s annual reports since 1995.
• Robert Hagstrom’s book The Warren Buffett Way.
• Dale Carnegie’s book How to Win Friends & Influence People.
• William Green’s podcast episode with Joel Greenblatt.
• William Green’s podcast episode with Thomas Russo.
• William Green’s podcast episode with Christopher Bloomstran.
• William Green’s podcast episode with Chris Davis.
• William Green’s book, “Richer, Wiser, Happier” – ⁠read the reviews of this book⁠.
• Follow William Green on ⁠X⁠.
• Check out all the books mentioned and discussed in our podcast episodes ⁠here⁠.
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