In the midst of market turmoil, I listen to the teachings of Charlie Munger. Among Munger's many wise remarks, there is one speech that I have listened to ten times and still haven't had enough of:

If I had to summarize a lifetime of wealth experience in one word, it would be patience, not talent, not opportunity, but that kind of patience that can endure and persist through the years.

I have seen too many people poor, not because they do not work hard, but because they are too anxious, eager to make money, eager to prove themselves, eager to change their fate. As a result, they dig pits at every stage and eventually fall into their own anxiety. You must understand that wealth never grows linearly; it is more like a tree. You water it and fertilize it, nurture it, and for the first few years, nothing happens. Then one day it suddenly skyrockets. The problem is that most people do not live to see that day; they give up before reaching the tipping point of compound interest, waver before the right strategy takes root, and they want to see immediate returns, so they make immediate foolish decisions.

The rules of the game in this world are simple: impatient people give their money to patient people. The investors I admired most when I was young were not those who got rich overnight, but those who did nothing yet kept living. They seemed to be nothing special, but after decades, they were richer than anyone else because they understood the language of time. Time is the only thing in the world that does not deceive and never owes a debt. You give it trust, and it gives you compound interest; you rush it, and it punishes you.

Buffett likes to talk about the snowball effect, but no one wants to hear about the rolling part, which is long and boring, even making one wonder if it’s all in vain. But it is precisely that slow rolling period that determines the fate of the snowball. Most people only see how big the snowball is, but no one sees how long others have been pushing it. You must learn to accumulate in silence, persist when no one cheers for you, and remain rational, frugal, and thoughtful when the world ignores you. When others are panicking and acting blindly, your opportunity will come.

I don't believe in luck; I believe in waiting, because luck is just the result, and waiting is the process. This world punishes impatience and rewards calmness. Look at those who have lost everything; they all have one thing in common: they want it too quickly. And those who are truly wealthy possess an almost religious patience, a patience that makes one think they are foolish. But precisely because they seem foolish, they are never swayed by the noise of the market. Patience is a strategic disguise; it makes you appear ordinary until all the smart people succumb to their own impatience. You don't need to do much; you just need to wait a little longer than others, and that little extra wait is the whole secret of compound interest.

The greatest wealth in human history belongs to those who understand the value of slowness. Slowness is the highest form of speed, as it is built on the alliance of reason, moderation, and time. So, if you ask me, "Charlie, what is the best investment?" I would answer, invest in your patience, because the market will deceive you, the news will deceive you, emotions will deceive you, but time never lies.

I have seen too many smart people go bankrupt; it’s not that they lack intelligence, but patience. They are too eager to prove that they are smarter than the market, thus using leverage, borrowing, and fantasies to gamble, thinking that it is a strategy, but in fact, it is a path to self-destruction. The essence of wealth accumulation is a moral issue, testing your rationality, restraint, and patience for the slow process. In my life, I have never made genius-like decisions; I have just made fewer foolish mistakes and let time take care of the rest.

People think I am a long-term investor, but in fact, I am just a chronic patient of patience. While others are busy sprinting, I am busy waiting. During the stock market crash in 1973, everyone was panicking and selling off, but I remained still. I knew the market would eventually recover, and those frantic people were merely discounting their own futures. Those who get rich quickly often lose quickly as well; refusing the temptation of speed is the prerequisite for wealth.

You don't need a genius mind; common sense and sufficient willpower are enough. My success and Buffett's success have never been about accurately picking winners, but rather about avoiding losers. Most of the wealth we accumulate comes from decades of "doing nothing" after finding good targets. At Berkshire Hathaway, there are some stocks we hold for decades, not out of loyalty, but because selling quality companies is truly foolish.

Many people get it wrong: making money doesn't rely on frequent and decisive buying and selling; big money is often made while waiting. The two hardest things in this world are to remain calm when others go crazy and to persist even when there are no visible returns - and this is the core test of patience.

Patience itself can also compound, just like interest and knowledge. In the beginning, waiting is a torment, but after witnessing how the impatient ruin themselves, patience will become instinctive. The more you practice, the easier it becomes, and the greater the rewards it brings you.

In addition, you need to save your first nest egg in life. It's not just money; it's the confidence that allows you to wait patiently—having this money means you won't panic when the market crashes, and you won't be greedy when the market is euphoric, enabling you to always make choices based on logic rather than being swept away by emotions.

I have lived for over ninety years and have seen people win money but lose their lives, as well as ordinary people live a clear and stable life through patience. True financial freedom is not about having so much money that you can do whatever you want, but rather finally being able to avoid doing what you don't want to do.

The philosophy of my life can be summed up in one sentence: become rich slowly and remain wealthy forever. Becoming rich slowly is not laziness, but an absolute indifference to short-term stimuli; it is the only path that will not cause you to lose your soul. Only those who can slow down deserve lasting wealth—because wealth is never a reward for running, but a necessary return for patience.

Knowledge is complex, but the truth is simple. The market is complex, but responding is simple. Let's encourage each other 🧐