Over the very long term, history shows that the chances of any business surviving in a manner agreeable to a company's owners… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
We have found in a long life that one competitor is frequently enough to ruin a business. — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
I've been associated with Warren ( Buffett) so long, I thought I'd be just a footnote. — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
It is remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
You don't have to be brilliant, only a little bit wiser than the other guys, on average, for a long, long, time. — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Cicero's words also increased my personal satisfaction by supporting my long-standing rejection of a conventional point of view. — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
You don't have to have perfect wisdom to get very rich - just a bit better than average over a long period… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Black-Scholes works for short-term options, but if it's a long-term option and you think you know something [about the underlying asset], it's… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
A lot of opportunities in life tend to last a short while, due to some temporary inefficiency... For each of us, really… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
You need to have a passionate interest in why things are happening. That cast of mind, kept over long periods, gradually improves… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
I constantly see people rise in life who are not the smartest -- sometimes not even the most diligent. But they are… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Our experience tends to confirm a long-held notion that being prepared, on a few occasions in a lifetime, to act promptly in… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
If you, like me, lived through 1973-74 or even the early 1990s... There was a waiting list to get OUT of the… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
People have always had this craving to have someone tell them the future. Long ago, kings would hire people to read sheep… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Wesco had a market capitalization of $40 million when we bought it [in the early 1970s]. It's $2 billion now. It's been… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Anytime anybody offers you anything with a big commission and a 200-page prospectus, don't buy it. Occasionally, you'll be wrong if you… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
If you're going to buy something which compounds for 30 years at 15% per annum and you pay one 35% tax at… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
I think democracies are prone to inflation because politicians will naturally spend [excessively] - they have the power to print money and… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
The lawyers have escaped most criticism [and undeservedly so]. The tax shelters [were approved by lawyers, who got paid huge commissions to… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
I also want to raise the possibility that there are, in the very long term, "virtue effects" in economics- for instance that… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
The interesting thing about it to me is the mindset. With all these "helpers" running around, they talk about doing deals. We… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
The hedge fund known as "Long Term Capital Management" collapsed last fall through overconfidence in its highly leveraged methods, despite I.Q.'s of… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
We get these questions a lot from the enterprising young. It's a very intelligent question: You look at some old guy who's… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Over the long term, the eclipse rate of great civilizations being overtaken is 100%. So you know how it's going to end.… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
I did not succeed in life by intelligence. I succeeded because I have a long attention span. — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
The normal expectancy of the average investor - for example, the pension funds of AT&T or IBM - is 6% for a… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
If you don't keep learning, other people will pass you by. Temperament alone won't do it - you need a lot of… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
I love when I think we're taking territory - if it makes sense in the long term, we just don't give a… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Those of us who have been very fortunate have a duty to give back. Whether one gives a lot as one goes… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Over the long term, it's hard for a stock to earn a much better return that the business which underlies it earns.… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
...in terms of business mistakes that I've seen over a long lifetime, I would say that trying to minimize taxes too much… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Creative accounting is an absolute curse to a civilization. One could argue that double-entry bookkeeping was one of history's great advances. Using… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Our standard prescription for the know-nothing investor with a long-term time horizon is a no-load index fund. I think that works better… — Charlie Munger Copy Share Image
Almost all good businesses engage in 'pain today, gain tomorrow' activities. — Charlie Munger Copy Share
If you want good behavior, don't pay on a commission basis. Our judges aren't paid so much a case. We keep them pretty well… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
Acquire worldly wisdom and adjust your behavior accordingly. If your new behavior gives you a little temporary unpopularity with your peer group then to… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
I think time and time again, in reality, psychological notions and economic notions interplay, and the man who doesn't understand both is a damned… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
I have what I call an iron prescription that helps me keep sane when I naturally drift toward preferring one ideology over another and… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
The tax code gives you an enormous advantage if you can find some things you can just sit with. — Charlie Munger Copy Share
The great lesson in microeconomics is to discriminate between when technology is going to help you and when it's going to kill you. And… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
Some years ago one oil company bought a fertilizer company, and every other major oil company practically ran out and bought a fertilizer company.… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
They [Mc Donalds] take people and give them a first job, which enables them to get a second job. They do a very good… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
We believe that almost all really good investment records will involve relatively little diversification. The basic idea that it was hard to find good… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
It is way less certain to be a wonderful business in the future. The threat is alternative mediums of information. Every newspaper is scrambling… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
In the corporate world, if you have analysts, due diligence, and no horse sense, you've just described hell. — Charlie Munger Copy Share
We have to have a special insight, or we'll put it in the 'too tough' basket. All of you have to look for a… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
I've heard that one-half of the students at elite schools want to go into private equity or hedge funds. They want to keep up… — Charlie Munger Copy Share
![“Black-Scholes works for short-term options, but if it's a long-term option and you think you know something [about the underlying asset], it's insane to use Black-Scholes.” quote by Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/491/charlie-munger-458_assets_black-scholes-works-for-short-term-optio_947554.jpg)
![“Wesco had a market capitalization of $40 million when we bought it [in the early 1970s]. It's $2 billion now. It's been a long slog to a perfectly respectable outcome - not as good as Berkshire Hathaway or Microsoft, but there's always someone in life who's done better.” quote by Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1e/charlie-munger-458_billions_wesco-had-a-market-capitalization-of-40_2073813.jpg)
![“I think democracies are prone to inflation because politicians will naturally spend [excessively] - they have the power to print money and will use money to get votes. If you look at inflation under the Roman Empire, with absolute rulers, they had much greater inflation, so we don't set the…” quote by Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d6/charlie-munger-458_absolutes_i-think-democracies-are-prone-to-inflati_1006251.jpg)
![“The lawyers have escaped most criticism [and undeservedly so]. The tax shelters [were approved by lawyers, who got paid huge commissions to do so] and every miscreant had a high-falutin' lawyer at his side. Why don't more law firms vote with their feet and not take clients who have signs on them…” quote by Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18b/charlie-munger-458_approved_the-lawyers-have-escaped-most-criticism_2142390.jpg)
![“Those of us who have been very fortunate have a duty to give back. Whether one gives a lot as one goes along as I do or a little and then a lot [when one dies] as Warrendoes is a matter of personal preference. I would hate to have people ask me for money all day long.” quote by Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f7/charlie-munger-458_ask-me_those-of-us-who-have-been-very-fortunate_971586.jpg)
