Richer, Wiser, Happier: How the World’s Greatest Investors Win in Markets and Life by William Green.

4/5 rating. 252 pages.

Book #19 of 2023. Read June 4, 2023.

This book talks about how some of the “titans of the investment world…win both in markets and life by finding countless ways to optimize the odds of success.”

This is a beautiful blend of investment book with advice for living a worthwhile life. I really think that anyone who is investing in any capacity should read this as William does a beautiful job of highlighting the tenets of value investing with consistent, smart choices.

This book had a plethora of amazing quotes, so I’m just going to let William and the investors that he interviewed sell this gem to you:

“It’s all probabilities. There is no certainty.”

“The important thing is to find an attractive idea and invest in a company that’s cheap.”

“People have to be told they have something in them.”

“All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” – Blaise Pascal

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

“It pays to remember the simple fact that there are two sides in every investment transaction:”

“After all, [Templeton] had often cautioned that the four most expensive words in the English language are ‘This time is different.’”

“Any asset, however ugly, can be worth buying if the price is low enough.”

“It’s frightening to think that you might not know something, but more frightening to think that, by and large, the world is run by people who have faith that they know exactly what’s going on.”

“In essence, ‘it’s winning by not losing.’”

“Simplicity, indeed, is the master key to financial success.” – Jack Bogle

“We each need a simple and consistent investment strategy that works well over time – one that we understand and believe in strongly enough that we’ll adhere to it faithfully through good times and bad.”

“First, you don’t need the optimal strategy. You need a sensible strategy that’s good enough to achieve your financial goals.”

“The paradox here is that the slower road almost always proves to be faster in the end.”

“Our performance doesn’t come from what we buy or sell. It comes from what we hold.” – Howard Marks

“I think that people underestimate – until they get older – they underestimate just how important habits are, and how difficult they are to change when you’re forty-five or fifty, and how important it is that you form the right ones when you’re young.” – Warren Buffett 

“The key, [Tom Gayner] says, is that he is ‘radically moderate’ about everything he does.”

“To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, subtract things every day.” – Lao-tzu 

“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.”

“‘If people can’t tell you how they do it’ and ‘you can’t understand what they do,’ says Martin, ‘that’s probably not the best spot to be in.’”

“Why might I be wrong?”

“If you want to have a good partner, be a good partner. It’s a very simple system, and it’s worked very well.” – Munger

“If you want a good spouse, deserve one.” – Munger

“‘It is within you, [Epictetus] declared, ‘that both your destruction and deliverance lie.’”

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”

“‘I’ve never forgotten her,’ said Van Den Berg. ‘That woman touched my heart….When someone touches your heart, you’re never going to be the same.’”

“Never compromise what you believe in. Never be satisfied with what you are, only with what you can be. And never give up.”

“‘I’m the richest guy in the world because I’m content with what I have,’ says Van Den Berg. ‘I feel wealthier not because I have more money but because I’ve got health, good friendships, I’ve got a great family. Prosperity takes all of these things into consideration: health, wealth, happiness, peace of mind. That’s what a prosperous person is, not just a lot of money.”

“‘The pleasure you get out of knowing you’ve made a difference in people’s lives – that’s something that nobody can take away from you,’ [Van Den Berg] says. ‘I could lose all my money, and I could still go to these files and say, ‘Well, it’s not like I lived my life for nothing. Look at the people whose lives I’ve changed.’”

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