60 Warren Buffett Quotes (On Life, Success, Investing)

By Maxime Lagacé

Maxime is the founder of WisdomQuotes. He has been collecting quotes since 2004. His goal? To help you develop a calm and peaceful mind. Learn more about him on his about page.

Life Quotes – Success Quotes – Investing Quotes – Takeaways – Further Readings

warren buffett quotes life success investing wisdom
I’ve collected 60 of the best Warren Buffett quotes so you don’t have to.

Why?

Because we can all learn a ton from him.

He’s one of the richest people in the world
He started his first business at the age of 6
He was born in 1930 in Nebraska, USA (he’s full of wisdom)
He still lives in the same house he bought in 1958
He still uses coupons to buy stuff
He’s a generous philanthropist (has given more than $50.7 billion, source 1 and source 2)

But most importantly, he’s a humble and down-to-earth man.

He enjoys a good laugh, doesn’t take himself seriously, plays bridge, and even sometimes plays the ukulele.

In sum,

he’s an amazing, surprising, and inspiring character.

I hope you’ll learn as much as I did from him.

Enjoy!

P.S. You can also learn more about him on his Wikipedia page.

Warren Buffett Quotes About Life

Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing. Warren Buffett

Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. Warren Buffett

No matter how great the talent or efforts, some things just take time. You can’t produce a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant. Warren Buffett

The most important thing to do if you find yourself in a hole is to stop digging. Warren Buffett

Honesty is a very expensive gift. Don’t expect it from cheap people. Warren Buffett

If you’re in the luckiest one per cent of humanity, you owe it to the rest of humanity to think about the other 99 per cent. Warren Buffett

Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks. Warren Buffett

warren buffett quotes rich invest time poor invest money wisdom

The rich invest in time, the poor invest in money. Warren Buffett

It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minuted to ruin it. If you think about that you’ll do things differently. Warren Buffett

You only have to do a very few things right in your life so long as you don’t do too many things wrong. Warren Buffett

Never ask a barber if you need a haircut. Warren Buffett

Look for 3 things in a person. Intelligence, energy, and integrity. If they don’t have the last one, don’t even bother with the first two. Warren Buffett

There are three kinds of people: 1. Innovators. 2. Imitators. 3. Idiots. Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett Quotes About Success, Business

The most important investment you can make is in yourself. Warren Buffett

I don’t look to jump over 7-foot bars: I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over. Warren Buffett

I insist on a lot of time being spent, almost every day, to just sit and think. Warren Buffett

A public-opinion poll is no substitute for thought. Warren Buffett

The business schools reward difficult complex behaviour more than simple behaviour, but simple behaviour is more effective. Warren Buffett

I do more reading and thinking, and make less impulse decisions than most people in business. Warren Buffett

The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything. Warren Buffett

warren buffett quotes more learn earn wisdom

The more you learn, the more you earn. Warren Buffett

You have to be able to think independently, and when you come to a conclusion you have to really not care what other people say. Just follow the facts and your reasoning. Warren Buffett (Source)

There’s a whole bunch of things I don’t know a thing about. I just stay away from those. I stay within what I call my circle of competence. Warren Buffett

It’s better to hang out with people better than you. Pick out associates whose behavior is better than yours and you’ll drift in that direction. Warren Buffett

In the world of business, the people who are most successful are those who are doing what they love. Warren Buffett

Games are won by players who focus on the playing field – not by those whose eyes are glued to the scoreboard. Warren Buffett

We don’t have to be smarter than the rest. We have to be more disciplined than the rest. Warren Buffett

You don’t need to have extraordinary effort to achieve extraordinary results. You just need to do the ordinary, everyday things exceptionally well. Warren Buffett

Never test the depth of river with both the feet. Warren Buffett

The key to success is emotional stability. Warren Buffett

Related

Warren Buffett Quotes About Investing, Money

Our favorite holding period is forever. Warren Buffett

If you buy things you do not need, soon you will have to sell things you need. Warren Buffett

Market fluctuations are your friend, not enemy. Warren Buffett

It is not greed that drives the world, but envy. Warren Buffett

I always knew I was going to be rich. I don’t think I ever doubted it for a minute. Warren Buffett

Never depend on a single income. Make an investment to create a second source. Warren Buffett

I will tell you how to become rich. Close the doors. Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful. Warren Buffett

Price is what you pay. Value is what you get. Warren Buffett

Money will not change how healthy you are or how many people love you. Warren Buffett

Rule No. 1 is never lose money. Rule No. 2 is never forget Rule No. 1. Warren Buffett

The key to investing is not assessing how much an industry is going to affect society, or how much it will grow, but rather determining the competitive advantage of any given company and, above all, the durability of that advantage. Warren Buffett

If you aren’t willing to own a stock for ten years, don’t even think about owning it for ten minutes. Warren Buffett

The three most important words in investing are ‘margin of safety.’ Warren Buffett

Uncertainty actually is the friend of the buyer of long-term values. Warren Buffett

It’s far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price, than a fair company at a wonderful price. Warren Buffett

warren buffett quotes much having brilliant decisions terrible wisdom

It isn’t so much having a lot of brilliant decisions, it’s just not having some terrible ones. Warren Buffett

Never invest in a business you cannot understand. Warren Buffett

An investor should act as though he had a lifetime decision card with just twenty punches on it. Warren Buffett (More on that quote at jamesclear.com )

Beware the investment activity that produces applause; the great moves are usually greeted by yawns. Warren Buffett

Diversification is a protection against ignorance. It makes very little sense for those who know what they’re doing. Warren Buffett

Most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can’t buy what is popular and do well. Warren Buffett

Remember that the stock market is a manic depressive. Warren Buffett

The most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect. Warren Buffett

Do not take yearly results too seriously. Instead, focus on four or five-year averages. Warren Buffett

The best chance to deploy capital is when things are going down. Warren Buffett

Just buy something for less than it’s worth. Warren Buffett

Whether we’re talking about socks or stocks, I like buying quality merchandise when it is marked down. Warren Buffett

Every decade or so, dark clouds will fill the economic skies, and they will briefly rain gold. Warren Buffett

If you don’t find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die. Warren Buffett

Do not save what is left after spending, but spend what is left after saving. Warren Buffett

If you cannot control your emotions, you cannot control your money. Warren Buffett

Key Takeaways

Read and learn. Warren Buffett loves to read. He estimates he reads 5-6 hours per day. As he says, “The more you learn, the more you earn.”
Think. Warren Buffett doesn’t try to impress others with his investment decisions. He simply invests in what he understands after careful analysis. He follows facts and reason. As he says, “Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing.”
Please keep it simple. Warren Buffett focuses on making simple and impactful investments. He’s not trying to outsmart anybody. As his friend Charlie Munger says, “It is remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be very intelligent.”
Say no. Warren Buffett says no a lot (to buying businesses he doesn’t understand). And he stays focused on his circle of competence. He’s also a master at ignoring unimportant things.
Stay calm. Warren Buffett doesn’t care about hype. He doesn’t mind market fluctuations. He’s greedy when others are fearful, and fearful when others are greedy. So stay calm, be stoic, and do the right thing like Warren.