My #1 Youtube Talk – Charlie Munger

When I was 19 years old I took an internship at one of the biggest endowments in the world. At the time, I thought I understood what I was doing. Looking back though, I truly had no idea about what I would learn, see, and grow from that moment onward.

I was in Boston, commuting daily to the Federal Reserve’s headquarters, taking an elevator several floors up, and then walking into a whole new world. I think as interns people often forget just how new that experience is. You literally have just gone one or two years lounging around campus in sweats, learning the ways of cold beer, and just maybe, if you had the confidence, going after your first girl without the typical high school structure.

At my internship podcasts weren’t really a thing. Actually looking back on it, I love the ingenuity I had. I knew I didn’t want to listen to music, that felt like a waste of time. I also did not want to distract my coworkers. So I did something else. I put one earbud in, opened up YouTube, and started browsing talks related to my interest. I would then press play and minimize the window. At that moment I would continue my work listening to the video recorded talk without really watching it. I mean in a way it was a podcast.

On one fine day I found myself browsing through a variety of commencing speeches. I watched some amazing ones. Will Ferrell in Cambridge is pure gold. Then there’s also joe blah at Columbia. As I searched this path I came across a Charlie Munger video at Michigan. This is 2010. I would wager no one really knew Charlie back then as they know him now. I had known some of his story but I hadn’t fully explored his wisdom. I pressed play. And I got back to work.

At 19 years old, my life changed. My entire outlook. Also as myself as a person morally and ethically. His words spoke. He reminded me of my grandparents. Both who I considered wise and brilliant. It was almost as if they had come together and delivered something magical. I am lucky to have lived when this was possible. Listening to a brilliant investor.

Notes from the chat:

He and Warren never bet on economics

They swim the best they can. Competently, They play the game for a long time. They know the tides go different directions. They’re ready to swim best when it’s with them and will keep swimming when it’s against them.

Just keep working hard, coping, and in due time all succesful benefits flow your way. Of course, you must deserve it. The world is not crazy enough to reward people who do not deserve it.

Story of his uncle Fred doing drafting work after the Great Depression.

Never feel sorry for yourself. Never have envy. It’s the only deadly signs you’ll never have any fun at.

If you go through life just working hard, it’ll work out. Think of the Kipling poem. Go through life, treat good and bad times the same. He says good message.

No where near the 30s, the GFC. He lived in the 30s. They had no social safety net. But the people who just kept going did fine. It does not matter as much as you think though if you’re going to live a long life. Having a little trouble may be a good thing.

Are there bad guys on Wall Street? He says Wall Street attracts competitive people, then through them in a ring “miasma” of course you’re going to have bad behavior and decisions. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts. Easy money corrupts and really easy money corrupts absolutely. He does not think the easy money is ever good for Wall Street.

He talks about accountants who approved the accounting standards, even going back to Enron, and that people who approve this stuff are potentially captured or just not rationla and smart. You can’t give the average CEO of Wall Street really lenienat standards of accounting and expect the standards to be good. Accountants are suppossed to be the adults who stop the mania. They just don’t do it. It’s their duty under god and they fail us. The mortgage trading was really messy from accounting standards, just fake revenue and profits. Regulators dropped the ball as well – “set a new record in missing this.” “The politicians are never so bad you don’t live to want them back”

Modern CEO culture is built to promote people who are super competitive and potentially sneaky to bring in more and more. The incentives are setup this way. But the problem is the psychology and human behavior. If your neighbor makes a ton of money, just let him. Don’t let that sway you.

Speaks about why green energy from the sun is interesting. Don’t need to get rid of cars. Just use your brain more often. Don’t get dogmatic. We put corn oil in a car before just looking into EV tech and batters and solar.

Speaks about short-term rewards and quarterly earnings. Not a bad thing. It’s done everywhere. Just don’t let is happen to you. He remembers his father going bird hunting, everyone who signed up and said they are from South Dakota would get $5 off. Everyone was doing it. His father explained to him he almost did it. But he stopped himself. Why? He’s a lawyer. He should not do that. Stay sharp. His father explained how the crowd mania can drive people to do things they don’t believe in.