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Poor Charlie's Almanack

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On Character and Living a Good Life

In all, Charlie Munger is said to be a man of solid character—hard-working, humble, and always learning. In his speeches, he talks often about the traits leading to a happy and productive life. We’ve synthesized the main themes here.

Key Points of His Biography

The book has a brief biography of Charlie Munger. Here are bullet points:

• Charlie grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, sharing the hometown with Warren Buffett. He worked for Buffett’s grandfather in his grocery store; Warren worked there a few years later.
• Charlie liked raising hamsters and traded them with other kids. This was early practice in negotiating.
• In high school, Munger was captain of his high school’s varsity rifle team.
• He enrolled in University of Michigan to study math, but in 1943 left to serve in the military during World War II.
• He started his career as a lawyer. He was admitted to Harvard Law School without a bachelor’s degree and graduated in 1948.
• He had 3 kids with his first wife Nancy Huggins, whom he divorced in 1953. His son Teddy died of leukemia soon after at the age of 9. He met Nancy Barry and married in 1956.
• After law school, he joined a law firm, then founded a law firm in 1962, then built an investment firm called Wheeler, Munger, and Co. Over the years of 1962 to 1975, Munger’s firm generated annual returns of 19.8%, compared to 5% for the Dow.
• Charlie returned to Omaha when his father died and met Warren Buffett at a dinner party. Buffett convinced Munger that law was a bad use of his talent.
• Munger joined Berkshire Hathaway after deciding he didn’t want to manage funds directly for investors, and instead to build equity through a holding company. He liquidated Wheeler, Munger, and Co. in 1976. He had shares in Blue Chip Stamps and Diversified Retailing, which then converted into Berkshire Hathaway stock.

How to Live Happily