In the midst of market turmoil, listening to Charlie Munger's teachings, there is one speech among his many wise sayings that I have listened to ten times and still can't get 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 don't work hard, but because they are too impatient, eager to make money, eager to prove themselves, eager to change their fate. As a result, they dig holes at every stage and ultimately fall into their own anxiety. You must understand that wealth is never a linear growth; it is more like a tree. You water it, fertilize it, and guard 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 the critical point of compound interest, waver before the right strategy takes root, and they want to see immediate returns, leading them to make immediate foolish decisions.

The rules of the game in this world are simple: the impatient hand their money to the patient. The investors I admired most in my youth were not those who became rich overnight, but those who did nothing yet kept living. They seem unremarkable, but decades later, they are richer than anyone else because they understand the language of time. Time is the only thing in the world that does not lie 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, tedious, and even makes one doubt whether it is worth it. But it is that slow rolling period that determines the fate of the snowball. Most people only see how big the snowball is; no one sees how long others have been pushing it. You must learn to accumulate in silence, persist when no one cheers, and continue to be rational, frugal, and thoughtful when the world ignores you. When everyone else is panicking and blind, your opportunity will come.

I do not believe in luck; I believe in waiting because luck is just the result, while 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 wanted it too fast. Meanwhile, those who are truly wealthy possess an almost religious patience, so patient that it makes people 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 look ordinary until all the smart people are defeated by their own impatience. You do not need to do too much; you just need to wait a little longer than others. That little extra wait is the entire secret of compound interest.

The greatest wealth in human history belongs to those who understand slowness. Slow is the highest form of fast because 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; they are not brainless, but they lack patience. They are too eager to prove they are smarter than the market, so they gamble with leverage, borrowing, and fantasies, thinking that is a strategy, but in reality, it is a dead end. The essence of wealth accumulation is a moral issue, testing your rationality, moderation, and tolerance for slowness. Throughout my life, I have never made genius-like decisions; I have just made fewer foolish mistakes and let time do the rest.

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

You do not need a genius mind; common sense and enough composure are sufficient. The success of Buffett and me has never been about precisely picking winners but about being good at avoiding losers. Most of the wealth we have earned comes from "doing nothing" for decades after finding good targets. At Berkshire Hathaway, there are some stocks we have held for decades, not out of loyalty, but because selling quality companies is truly foolish.

Many people have it wrong: making money does not rely on decisive frequent trading; big money is often made in waiting. The two hardest things in this world are to remain calm when others are going crazy and to persist when you cannot see returns—and this is the core test of patience.

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

Additionally, you must first save your first pot of wealth in life. It is not just money; it is the confidence that you can wait patiently. With this money, you will not panic when the market crashes, nor will you be greedy when the market is euphoric, allowing you to always make choices based on logic rather than being swept away by emotions.

I have lived for over ninety years, witnessing people win money but lose their lives, and I have seen ordinary people live soberly and steadily through patience. True financial freedom is not about having so much money that you can do anything you want, but finally being able to avoid doing what you do not want to do.

The philosophy of my life can be condensed into one sentence: get rich slowly, and be forever wealthy. Getting rich slowly is not laziness; it is absolute indifference to short-term stimuli, the only path that will not make you lose your soul. Those who can slow down deserve lasting wealth—because wealth is never a reward for running but an inevitable return for patience.

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

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