We do not have, nor have had, and never will have an opinion about where the stock market, interest rates, or business activity will be a year from now.
Warren BuffettPeople always should know better. People don't get - they don't get smarter about things that get as basic as greed.
Warren BuffettCharlie [Munger] and I are not big fans of resumes. Instead, we focus on brains, passion and integrity.
Warren BuffettInvestors should remember that their scorecard is not computed using Olympic-diving methods: Degree-of-difficulty doesn't count. If you are right about a business whose value is largely dependent on a single key factor that is both easy to understand and enduring, the payoff is the same as if you had correctly analyzed an investment alternative characterized by many constantly shifting and complex variables.
Warren BuffettWe can afford to lose money - even a lot of money. But we can't afford to lose reputation - even a shred of reputation.
Warren BuffettNone of this means, however, that a business or stock is an intelligent purchase simply because it is unpopular; a contrarian approach is just as foolish as a follow-the-crowd strategy. What's required is thinking rather than polling. Unfortunately, Bertrand Russell's observation about life in general applies with unusual force in the financial world: "Most men would rather die than think. Many do."
Warren Buffett