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Table of Contents
They all spring from one idea:
“Make the most of your strengths and weaknesses“.
TIPS: 1. Admit what you don’t know.
2. Don’t get distracted from achieving your Goals.
3. Don’t do something, just because others are doing it.
4. Make the most of the things you can control.
5. Learn from frugal experiments.
6. Keep learning your whole life.
7. You don’t have to outrun the bear — just your peers.
8. Help other people learn more.
9. Make time to think.
10. Know and use the best BiG Ideas.
Can business leaders learn anything useful from a successful person’s list of success tips? I certainly don’t think that trying to apply such tips will enable a leader to achieve the same level of success.
That’s because a successful person has skills that society values. And you may simply lack that same level of talent. But it’s possible that following some of their tips could make your life better.
This comes to mind in considering 10 success tips from Warren Buffett’s colleague Charlie Munger. According to LinkedIn, Buffett considers Munger “the smartest man he knows” — helping Buffett build Berkshire Hathaway into a company worth $695 billion on Dec 1.
Here are my takes on Munger’s 10 “best ideas to help you win at business and life,” as LinkedIn described them.
1. Admit what you don’t know.
For years I thought that if I did not know all the answers I would fail. That was probably a valid fear before I took tests in school. When I became a professor, I initially thought knowing all the answers was even more important.
In recent years, I have found it incredibly liberating to be asked a question, to think about whether I know the answer, and if not, to admit I don’t know. From there, I might suggest the name of someone who might know — or even better — describe a process I would follow to get the answer.
2. Don’t get distracted from achieving your Goals.
Many things can distract you from achieving your goals. These days I am happy to say I have shed one of them — Twitter.
Years ago I learned the critical importance of setting and meeting deadlines. I have written 16 books, and I have delivered each manuscript to the publisher by the deadline. To do that, I write a book proposal that maps out the vision for the book and how I will write it. This locks me in to a discipline that gets me to my goal.
3. Don’t do something, just because others are doing it.
When I was a child, I asked my mother why I could not do what the other kids were doing. She said, “If the other kids jumped off the Empire State Building, would you follow them?”
This launched me on a lifelong process of thinking independently. Most times, that has led to better outcomes.
4. Make the most of the things you can control.
People should not fret about things that are outside their control. As Munger said, you can control your character, your work ethic, and your willingness to learn. If you fulfill your commitments, work hard, and keep learning, you can aim for a goal and achieve it.
5. Learn from frugal experiments.
I believe in the scientific method: Identify a barrier to success, develop a hypothesis about what might overcome the barrier, do a frugal experiment to test the hypothesis, and analyze the results. If the experiment proves your hypothesis, repeat the successful action. Otherwise, learn from the failure and try again.
6. Keep learning your whole life.
Munger says that most people stop learning at 18. One reason I like teaching is that you have to keep learning in order to have something relevant to say to college students. What might have worked a decade ago could become outdated quickly.
7. You don’t have to outrun the bear — just your peers.
A classic consulting story: Two men are sleeping in a tent. One hears a bear, wakes up, and laces on his running shoes. The other wakes up and asks, “How are we going to outrun the bear?” His response: “I don’t have to outrun the bear; I just have to outrun you.” Buffett and Munger outrun the bear through “rationality and patience,” noted LinkedIn.
8. Help other people learn more.
Munger says that the best thing a person can do is to help other people keep learning. I share that value and it’s why I help students master tools that will let them find answers to problems they will encounter in the future.
9. Make time to think !!!
Don’t fill your schedule so much that you don’t have time to think. I get the best solutions during a midday walk or run.
10. Know & use the best BiG Ideas.
Munger regularly uses big ideas from math, physics, biology, philosophy, and engineering. He believes that you should “study mental models, build a tool kit, and treat your mind like your greatest asset,” concluded LinkedIn.
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