This past week saw the release of Berkshire Hathaway’s 2020 annual meeting. Along with the financial results of the company famously headed by Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger came some commentary from the widely recognized Warren Buffett.
While the annual meeting was over 5 hours, there were a few snippets that come as timely words of wisdom from one of the world’s wealthiest people.
Never bet against America.
Throughout the years, America has proved its resiliency and ability to overcome tough times. This commentary can be more broadly applied with the simple yet powerful statement, bet on humanity.
While we might be currently facing one of the most challenging periods of our lives, one thing is true. We will survive.
While I would caution the mentality of investing as any form of gambling, there is one hand that I would undoubtedly go all-in on. That hand is that we will not just go through this, we will grow through it. We will become better, faster, stronger from the challenges that we as a species are facing right now.
Buy America, And Forget About It.
As with the first piece of sage advice, Buffett also makes some commentary on the ability of the average investor. Most people are better off taking that bet on human progress and investing in a total market ETF.
When saying this, Buffett recognizes that some people like him have careers in investing, and as such devote an above average level of time and attention into investing. These dedicated investors are the ones making individual stock picks based on years of research and experience. For most of us who are not combing through annual reports on a daily basis, taking a broad stance is better suited to our needs and our experience levels.
These total market ETFs allow us to place a bet that some of the best companies will survive and thrive. And that bet on human progress hasn’t been wrong, in the long run, ever.
What can one of the world’s most successful investors teach us? Bet on humanity. Together we will not just survive, but we will thrive.