The events of this week, at least in the slice of the world I inhabit, have been nothing short of epic.
Charlie Munger died, four weeks shy of his 100th birthday. Best known as Warren Buffett’s pithy sidekick at Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meetings, Charlie is on the shortlist of the greatest investors of all time. He was also a philosopher on how to live a great life, to many of us who admired him. His advice to simply, ‘lower your expectations’, and set yourself up for a lifetime of joyful upside surprises, is a mantra I strive to live by. Charlie and Warren were the perfect investing partners, alike in so many ways, but different where it mattered. Warren credits Charlie with forcing him to shift from purchasing mediocre companies at rock-bottom prices, to investing in great companies at reasonable prices. This is how we get See’s Candy, Coca-Cola, GEICO, and Apple in the portfolio of legendary winners. The end of Charlie’s obit in the Wall Street Journal is pure perfection.
Written by Jason Zweig and Justin Baer for the Wall Street Journal
Josh Brown retired The Reformed Broker blog. This one hit me hard. This blog literally changed the trajectory of my career. I wouldn’t be a Senior Advisor and shareholder of Ritholtz Wealth Management if not for this post that Josh wrote in 2018, where he admitted that he was failing to hire enough female advisors. He announced the launch of this blog on TRB. Every financial advisor read Josh’s blog in the wake of the Great Financial Crisis. He was our prophet, our muse, our voices personified in digital form. Clients were attracted to his frank depictions of life inside the brokerage world. In addition to his constant market and industry updates, there were frequently masterpiece diatribes from Josh. They were filled with so much truth it hurt, while simultaneously making you laugh out loud. He had his finger on the pulse of humanity. He still does. I look forward to following Josh’s writing in a new form, soon to be released.
Here are some of my favorite TRB posts. RIP to one of the greatest blogs of all time. I’ll be pouring one out for you this weekend.
When Everything That Counts Can’t Be Counted
Why They Clapped for Sam Bankman-Fried
Henry Kissinger died at age 100. He shaped American foreign policy for decades, possibly forever.
Every living former First Lady attended the funeral of Rosalynn Carter. I found this show of unity beautiful and appropriate. Leave it to the ladies to lead by example.
Dozens of Israeli hostages have been returned from Gaza. I pray that every single hostage will soon be returned and that the end of the conflict will come soon. I stand with Israel. I’m not sure why that should be controversial. The world feels upside-down right now.
I can’t wait to hear the rest of the story behind the OpenAI saga of CEO Sam Altman’s ouster, employee revolt, and return to lead the company under a new board.
There’s more, but I’ll stop here. It’s as if all at once, the world shifted this week. Someone check the astrological charts and figure out what is happening.
