Education – Page 200 – Take off with Natarajan

“இப்போ போட்டோ எடுத்துக்கோ ” !!!….சொன்னார் மகாபெரியவர் !!!

June 4, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

மூலம் : மஹா பெரியவா தரிசன அனுபவங்கள் – ஐந்தாம் பாகம்
நினைவு கூர்ந்தவர் : எஸ். சீதாராமன், சென்னை – 28.

புகைப்படம் எடுப்பது எனக்குப் பிடித்தமான பொழுதுபோக்கு.

பெரியவாள் முன்னிலையில், slide viewer –ல் ஸ்லைடுகளைப் போட்டுக் காண்பித்துக் கொண்டிருந்தேன். அது, ஸ்லைடில் உள்ள படங்களை நான்கு மடங்கு பெரிதாகக் காட்டும். படங்களைப் பார்த்துக் கொண்டிருந்த பெரியவாள், “இதில் ஸ்லைடு வைக்குமிடத்தில் நெகடிவ் பிலிமைப் போட்டால், நன்றாகத் தெரியுமா?” என்று கேட்டார்.

(பெரியவாளுக்குப் புகைப்படக் கலையின் ஒவ்வொரு நுட்பமும் தெரியும். ஆனால், தனக்குத் தெரிந்ததாகக் காட்டிக் கொள்ள மாட்டார்கள் என்பதும் எனக்குத் தெரியும்! ஆனால், என்னுடைய அக்ஞானம் என்னை விட்டுப் போய்விடுமா என்ன?)

”நெகடிவ் போட்டால், திரைப்படத்தில், கறுப்பு வெள்ளையாகவும், வெள்ளை கறுப்பாகவும் தெரியும்..”

பெரியவாள் உடனே, “அதுதான் எனக்கு வேணும்.. நரைத்துப் போன என் தலைமுடி, கறுப்பாகத் தெரியும்! நான் இன்னும் இளைமையாக இருப்பேனோல்லியோ…”

அருகிலிருந்து கேட்டுக் கொண்டிருந்தவர்கள் அட்டகாசமாகச் சிரித்து மகிழ்ந்தார்கள்.

பெரியவாளுடைய நகைச்சுவை உணர்வு, எவரெஸ்டுக்கு மேலே பத்து அங்குலம்!

ஜெய ஜெய சங்கர! ஹர ஹர சங்கர!!

***********

வானகரத்தில் ஒரு சவுக்குத் தோப்பில் உட்கார்ந்திருந்தார் பெரியவா. முன்னர் எடுத்திருந்த புகைப்பட ஆல்பத்தைக் கொடுத்தேன். அப்போது, பல்வேறு காரணங்களால் புகைப்படங்களில் குறைகள் ஏற்பட்டிருந்தன.

இந்தத் தோப்பில் எவ்விதக் குறைகளுமில்லாமல் புகைப்படம் எடுக்க முடியும் என்பது என்னுடைய துணிபு.

பெரியவா, ஒரு சிஷ்யரைக் கூப்பிட்டு, ஒரு தாழங்குடை கொண்டுவரச் சொல்லி, அதைத் தன் தலைக்கு மேல் பிடிக்கச் சொன்னார்.

“இப்போ போட்டோ எடுத்துக்கோ…”

அப்போது நான் எடுத்த புகைப்படம் மிக அருமையாக வந்திருந்தது. (பின்னால் கல்கி தீபாவளி மலர் ஒன்றில் ஸ்ரீருத்ர வாக்கியமான, ‘நமோ வன்யாய ச கக்ஷ்யாய ச’ என்ற விளக்கத்துடன் முகப்புப் படமாக வெளியாயிற்று).

பெரியவாள் தாழங்குடையைப் பிடிக்கச் சொன்னதற்கும் காரணம் இருந்தது. மரங்கள் வழியே வந்த ஒளி, அவர்கள் மேல் திட்டுத் திட்டாக விழுந்து கொண்டிருந்தது. அந்த நிலையில் படம் எடுத்தால் நன்றாக வராது என்பதால், அந்த ஷாட் நன்றாக அமைய வேண்டும் என்பதற்கான சூழ்நிலையை உண்டாக்கிக் கொடுத்தார்கள்.

மெய்ப் படங்களைக் கற்றுத் தேர்ந்தவர்கள் அவர்கள். நிழற் படங்களின் நுட்பங்களை எந்தக் குருகுலத்தில் கற்றுத் தெளிந்தார்கள்?
ஆயிரம் படம் படைத்த ஆதிசேஷ்னே அறிவார்!

ஜெய ஜெய சங்கர! ஹர ஹர சங்கர!!

source::::periva.proboards.com

“ஞான சூர்யனக்கு முன் சந்தேகப் பனி நிற்க முடியுமா ” !!!

June 3, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

எனக்கு விபரம் தெரிந்த நாள்களிலிருந்து ஒரு சந்தேகம் இருந்து வந்தது. வாழ்க்கையில் நாம் எத்தனையோ பாவ-புண்ணியச் செயல்களைச் செய்கிறோம். உடலை உகுத்தபின் மேலுலகம் சென்று பாவ-புண்ணியத்துக்கேற்ப சொர்க்கம் – நரகம் முதலியவற்றில் இன்ப-துன்பங்களை அனுபவிக்க வேண்டியிருக்கும் என்று சாஸ்திரங்கள் கூறுவதாக அறிஞர்கள் கூறுகிறார்கள். பிறகு, (வீடு பேறு அடையாத வரையில்) அடுத்த பிறவியில், முன் பிறவிகளில் செய்த பாவ – புண்ணிய மூட்டைகளுடன் பிறக்கிறோம் என்றும் சொல்கிறார்கள்.அப்படிப் பார்த்தால், ஒரே காரியத்துக்காக இரண்டு தடவை தண்டனை அல்லது பரிசு பெறுகிறோம் என்றாகிறது.

இப்போது நடைமுறையிலிருக்கும் நமது சட்டங்களிலேயே கூட, ‘ஒருவன், ஒரு குற்றத்துக்காக இரண்டு தடவை தண்டனை அனுபவிக்கக்கூடாது’ என்ற நியாயமான விதி இருக்கும்போது, நம்முடைய முன்னோர்கள், இப்படி (மேலே நரகவாசம், கீழே இழிபிறப்பு என்று) இரண்டு தடவை தண்டனை அனுபவிக்க வேண்டும் என்று எழுதி வைத்திருப்பார்களா? (புண்ணிய பலனும் இரண்டு தடவைதான் – மேலே சொர்க்கம்; கீழே மறுபிறவியில் செழுமையான பரம்பரையில் பிறப்பு.) இது பொருத்தமாக இல்லை என்று எனக்குச் சந்தேகம்.

பல பண்டிதர்களைக் கேட்டேன். ஏதோ சமாதானம் சொன்னார்கள். என் மனம் ஏற்கவில்லை.

ஒருநாள், பெரியவாள் அருளுரையின் போது கூறினார்கள் :

“தண்ணீரின் தன்மை நமக்கெல்லாம் தெரியும். அதை அடுப்பில் வைத்து சூடு படுத்தினால் வெந்நீர் ஆகிறது. ஆனால், அதன் திரவத்தன்மை மறைந்து விடுவதில்லை. அதேபோல், ரெப்ரிஜரேட்டரில் கொஞ்ச நேரம் வைத்தால், ஜில்லென்று ஆகிறது. அப்படியும் அதன் திரவத்தன்மை போவதில்லை.
ஆனால், வெப்பம் அதிகமாக அதிகமாக, நீர், ஆவியாகப் போய்விடுகிறது, குளிர்ச்சி, ஓர் அளவுக்கு மேல் சென்றதும், தண்ணீர் ஐஸ்கட்டியாகிவிடுகிறது.

அதுபோல்தான் நாம் செய்யும் பாவமும் புண்ணியமும்! இவை இரண்டும், கட்டுப் பாடான ஓர் அளவில் இருக்கும்போது, நம்முடைய அடுத்த பிறவிக்கு வந்து சேர்கின்றன. அதை நாம் அனுபவிக்கிறோம்.. சுக-துக்கம் என்பதாக.ஆனால் அவை இரண்டும் – உஷ்ணமும் குளிர்ச்சியும் – ஓர் அளவைத் தாண்டியதும், அதிகமாக இருக்கும் பகுதியை, மேலே சொர்க்கம் – நரகம் என்று அனுபவித்துவிட்டு, மீதி மூட்டையுடன் பூமிக்கு வந்து அனுபவிக்கிறோம்.

மோட்சத்தைத் தவிர, மற்ற எல்லாவற்றிற்கும், சொர்க்கவாசம், நரகவாசம் – கால எல்லை உண்டு. ‘க்ஷீணே புண்யே மர்த்ய லோகம் விசந்தி.’ செய்த புண்ணியத்தை மேல் உலகங்களில் சௌக்கியமாக அனுபவித்துத் தீர்த்துவிட்டால், மறுபடியும் இங்கே வரவேண்டியதுதான். நரகவாசமும் அப்படித்தான். பாவச்சுமை குறைந்துவிட்டால், அங்கிருந்து வெளியே வரலாம். இங்கே வந்து, ஓர் அளவுக்குள் இருக்கும் மீதிப்பாவத்தை, எவ்வெப்படியோ பிறந்து, கஷ்டஜீவனம் செய்ய வேண்டியிருக்கிறது.அதனால்தான், தர்ம கார்யங்களையே செய்து புண்ணியத்தை சேர்த்துக் கொள்ள வேணும் என்று சாஸ்திரக்காரர்கள் சொல்லியிருக்கிறார்கள்…”

ஞான சூரியனுக்கு முன், சந்தேகப் பனி எப்படி நிற்க முடியும்?

பெரியவாளுடைய இந்தச் சொற்பொழிவை நான் தற்செயலாகத்தான் கேட்க நேரிட்டது! அது யார் செய்த புண்ணியமோ!!

ஜெய ஜெய சங்கர! ஹர ஹர சங்கர!!

மூலம் : மஹா பெரியவா தரிசன அனுபவங்கள் – ஐந்தாம் பாகம்
நினைவு கூர்ந்தவர் : எஸ்.சீதாராமன், சென்னை – 28.

source::::periva.proboards.com

Natarajan

Message For The Day…Education Has no Meaning without Viveka and Vinaya ….

June 1, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

Education must result in the development of wisdom (Viveka) and humility (Vinaya). The educated person must be able to distinguish between the momentary and the momentous, the lasting and the effervescent. As an educated person, you must not run after glitter and glamour but must seek the good and golden. Keep the body in good trim, the senses under strict control, the mind well within check, the intellect sharp and clear, unhampered by prejudices and hatreds, and the feelings untouched by egoism. You must know the Divine Self,Atma too, for that is the very core. That is the effulgence which illumines your inner and outer selves. You must also cultivate Vinaya(humility). As an educated person, you must be grateful to your parents, who with great sacrifice have given you all the facilities that you now enjoy.– Divine Discourse, Jul 25, 1958.

Sathya Sai Baba

Microsoft Was a Decade Ahead in Inventing a Tablet !!!!!

May 31, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

Apple’s iPad is a revolutionary product that is cratering the PC industry. But it wasn’t Steve Jobs’ idea.

A full decade before Jobs launched the iPad in 2010, Bill Gates launched Microsoft’s touch input tablet computer.

Here it is:
Bill Gates tablet 2000

Bill Gates with a Microsoft tablet in 2000

Two years later, Gates showed up with an improved model, a color tablet. It used the Windows XP Tablet operating system.

Here it is:
Bill Gates tablet 2002

Bill Gates in 2002

Unlike today, Microsoft didn’t manufacture the tablet itself. Lenovo produced the tablet in 2000 and other partners, like Fujitsu, made the XP tablet in 2002. Here’s a closer look at the Fujitsu tablet.

Fujitsu Windows XP Tablet from 2002

So if Microsoft was a decade ahead, why did Apple become the King of the Tablets?

Last July, during an interview with Charlie Rose, Bill Gates explained that Jobs “did some things better than I did. His timing in terms of when it came out, the engineering work, just the package that was put together. The tablets we had done before, weren’t as thin, they weren’t as attractive.
source:::: businessinsider.com
Natarajan

Indian -American Boy is The New Spelling Bee !!!

May 31, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

MARYLAND: The US-born son of immigrants from India overcame his longstanding problem with words of Germanic origin Thursday to win the 86th national spelling bee.

Arvind Mahankali, 13, from New York City, correctly spelled knaidel, a type of dumpling also known as a matzah ball, to become the sixth youth of south Asian heritage to win the coveted title in as many years.

He is also the first boy to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee since 2008.

Mahankali, the eldest son of an IT consultant father and a physician mother, had placed ninth in 2010, then third in 2011 and 2012. More often than not, it was words of Germanic words that denied him the championship.

“The German curse has turned into a German blessing,” he said after besting eight other finalists in a nail-biting finale to a three-day nationally televised competition that started with 281 contestants from eight nations.

Earlier in the evening, Mahankali had aced such words as tokonoma (a recess opening in a Japanese living room) and kaumographer (someone who transfers designs onto cloth with a hot iron).

The youngster plans to save the $30,000 cash prize — plus a $2,500 US savings bond — for college, where he hopes to eventually get a doctorate degree in science.

Second place went to Pranav Sivakumar, 13, from Illinois, while Sriram Hathwar, 13, from New York, came in third. Amber Born, 14, a crowd-pleaser with her tension-breaking jokes, was the best among the girls in fourth place.

Arvind Mahankali, 13, from New York City, correctly spelled knaidel, a type of dumpling also known as a matzah ball, to become the sixth youth of south Asian heritage.

source::::Economic Times..

Natarajan

What is Heaven and What is Hell !!!!

May 31, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

The old monk sat by the side of the road. With his eyes closed, his
legs crossed and his hands folded in his lap, he sat. In deep
meditation, he sat. Suddenly his zazen was interrupted by the harsh
and demanding voice of a samurai warrior. “Old man! Teach me about
heaven and hell!”

At first, as though he had not heard, there was no perceptible
response from the monk. But gradually he began to open his eyes, the
faintest hint of a smile playing around the corners of his mouth as
the samurai stood there, waiting impatiently, growing more and more
agitated with each passing second. “You wish to know the secrets of
heaven and hell?” replied the monk at last. “You who are so unkempt.
You whose hands and feet are covered with dirt. You whose hair is
uncombed, whose breath is foul, whose sword is all rusty and
neglected. You who are ugly and whose mother dresses you funny. You
would ask me of heaven and hell?”

The samurai uttered a vile curse. He drew his sword and raised it high
above his head. His face turned to crimson and the veins on his neck
stood out in bold relief as he prepared to sever the monk’s head from
its shoulders.

“That is hell,” said the old monk gently, just as the sword began its
descent.

In that fraction of a second, the samurai was overcome with amazement,
awe, compassion and love for this gentle being who had dared to risk
his very life to give him such a teaching. He stopped his sword in
mid-flight and his eyes filled with grateful tears.

“And that,” said the monk, “is heaven.”

source:::unknown

Natarajan

Carrot…Egg…Or Coffee !!!

May 31, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

WHICH ARE YOU?
(Author Unknown)

A daughter complained to her father about life and how things were so
hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted
to give up. She was tired of struggling. It seemed that as soon as one
problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with
water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In
one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and the last he
placed ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a
word.
The daughter sucked her teeth and impatiently waited, wondering what he
was doing. In about twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He fished
the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and
placed them a bowl. Then he ladled the coffee out and placed it in a
bowl.Turning to her he asked. “What do you see?”
“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.
He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and
noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break
it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.
Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled as she tasted its
rich aroma. She said, “What’s the point?”
He explained that each of the items had faced the same adversity –
boiling water – but each reacted differently.
The carrot went in strong and hard. But after being subjected to the
boiling water, it softened and became weak.
The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid
interior. But after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became
hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the
boiling water, they had changed the water.
“Which are you?” he asked his daughter. “When adversity knocks on your
door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?”

source:::: One of blogspots

Natarajan

Message For The Day…Hindu Means Dharma !!!

May 30, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

source::::periva.proboards.com

Natarajan

Watch Warren Buffett “s Interview in 1962 !!!!

May 29, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

Warren Buffett will tell you that his investment career began in the 1940s when he bought shares in a company as an 11-year.
However, there isn’t much footage of the Oracle of Omaha available before the 1980s.
Reformed Broker Josh Brown points us to this rare 1962 interview with Buffett on ValueWalk.com.
In this brief clip, Buffett discusses the predictive power of the stock market.
“The stock market has been a good forecaster from time to time in the past,” he said. It also has been a rather poor forecaster occasionally.”
He addressed an ongoing sell-off in the stock market.
“For example, the last four or five years, the stock market has been booming along presumably forecasting better business which has really not materialized,” he said. “So maybe the stock market is correcting a previously incorrect forecast this time.”
Watch the whole clip here:

source::::businessinsider.com

Natarajan

Best Quotes Of Warren Buffett On Investment Strategy !!!!

May 29, 2013NatarajanLeave a comment

Warren Buffett has just joined Twitter.

Hopefully this means we’ll hear from the Oracle of Omaha on a more regular and informal basis.

Buffett has established himself as the most successful investor in history.

And he has never kept his investing methods secret.

In fact, when he shares his tips, he often does so in an approachable and entertaining manner.

So, as we get ready for this week’s annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, we reflect on some of Buffett’s best investing quips.

We compiled a few of Buffett’s best quotes from his TV appearances, newspaper op-eds, magazine interviews, and of course his annual letters, which are always-must reads.

Investing novices and experts alike can learn from the advice that the he has articulated through the years.

If we’ve missed any of your favorites, let us know in the comments.

Buying a stock is about more than just the price.

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

“It’s far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 1989

You don’t have to be a genius to invest well.

ebravolosada / Flickr

“You don’t need to be a rocket scientist. Investing is not a game where the guy with the 160 IQ beats the guy with 130 IQ.”

Source: Warren Buffet Speaks, via msnbc.msn

But, master the basics.

North Carolina Digital Heritage

“To invest successfully, you need not understand beta, efficient markets, modern portfolio theory, option pricing or emerging markets. You may, in fact, be better off knowing nothing of these. That, of course, is not the prevailing view at most business schools, whose finance curriculum tends to be dominated by such subjects. In our view, though, investment students need only two well-taught courses – How to Value a Business, and How to Think About Market Prices.”

Source: Chairman’s Letter, 1996

Don’t buy a stock just because everyone hates it.

trix0r via Flickr

“None of this means, however, that a business or stock is an intelligent purchase simply because it is unpopular; a contrarian approach is just as foolish as a follow-the-crowd strategy. What’s required is thinking rather than polling. Unfortunately, Bertrand Russell’s observation about life in general applies with unusual force in the financial world: “Most men would rather die than think. Many do.”

Source: Chairman’s Letter, 1990

Bad things aren’t obvious when times are good.

tavopp / Flickr

“After all, you only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 2001

Always be liquid.

Flickr / noahwesley

“I have pledged – to you, the rating agencies and myself – to always run Berkshire with more than ample cash. We never want to count on the kindness of strangers in order to meet tomorrow’s obligations. When forced to choose, I will not trade even a night’s sleep for the chance of extra profits.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 2008

The best time to buy a company is when it’s in trouble.

Nightly Business News via YouTube

“The best thing that happens to us is when a great company gets into temporary trouble…We want to buy them when they’re on the operating table.”

Source: Businessweek, 1999

Stocks have always come out of crises.

A soup kitchen in 1936

Wikimedia Commons

“Over the long term, the stock market news will be good. In the 20th century, the United States endured two world wars and other traumatic and expensive military conflicts; the Depression; a dozen or so recessions and financial panics; oil shocks; a flu epidemic; and the resignation of a disgraced president. Yet the Dow rose from 66 to 11,497.”

Source: The New York Times, October 16, 2008

Don’t be fooled by that Cinderella feeling you get from great returns

Kent Freeman / Flickr

“The line separating investment and speculation, which is never bright and clear, becomes blurred still further when most market participants have recently enjoyed triumphs. Nothing sedates rationality like large doses of effortless money. After a heady experience of that kind, normally sensible people drift into behavior akin to that of Cinderella at the ball. They know that overstaying the festivities ¾ that is, continuing to speculate in companies that have gigantic valuations relative to the cash they are likely to generate in the future ¾ will eventually bring on pumpkins and mice. But they nevertheless hate to miss a single minute of what is one helluva party. Therefore, the giddy participants all plan to leave just seconds before midnight. There’s a problem, though: They are dancing in a room in which the clocks have no hands.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 2000

Think long-term.

JuditK / Flickr

“Your goal as an investor should simply be to purchase, at a rational price, a part interest in an easily-understandable business whose earnings are virtually certain to be materially higher five, ten and twenty years from now. Over time, you will find only a few companies that meet these standards – so when you see one that qualifies, you should buy a meaningful amount of stock. You must also resist the temptation to stray from your guidelines: If you aren’t willing to own a stock for ten years, don’t even think about owning it for ten minutes. Put together a portfolio of companies whose aggregate earnings march upward over the years, and so also will the portfolio’s market value.”

Source: Chairman’s Letter, 1996

Forever is a good holding period.

m.a.r.c. / flickr

“When we own portions of outstanding businesses with outstanding managements, our favorite holding period is forever.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 1988

Buy businesses that can be run by idiots.

“I try to buy stock in businesses that are so wonderful that an idiot can run them. Because sooner or later, one will.“

Source: Business Insider

Be greedy when others are fearful.

Flickr / martj

“Investors should remember that excitement and expenses are their enemies. And if they insist on trying to time their participation in equities, they should try to be fearful when others are greedy and greedy only when others are fearful.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 2004

You don’t have to move at every opportunity.

adwriter / Flickr

“The stock market is a no-called-strike game. You don’t have to swing at everything–you can wait for your pitch. The problem when you’re a money manager is that your fans keep yelling, ‘Swing, you bum!'”

Source: The Tao of Warren Buffett via Engineeringnews.com

Ignore politics and macroeconomics when picking stocks.

wikimedia

“We will continue to ignore political and economic forecasts, which are an expensive distraction for many investors and businessmen. Thirty years ago, no one could have foreseen the huge expansion of the Vietnam War, wage and price controls, two oil shocks, the resignation of a president, the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a one-day drop in the Dow of 508 points, or treasury bill yields fluctuating between 2.8% and 17.4%.

“But, surprise – none of these blockbuster events made the slightest dent in Ben Graham’s investment principles. Nor did they render unsound the negotiated purchases of fine businesses at sensible prices. Imagine the cost to us, then, if we had let a fear of unknowns cause us to defer or alter the deployment of capital. Indeed, we have usually made our best purchases when apprehensions about some macro event were at a peak. Fear is the foe of the faddist, but the friend of the fundamentalist.

Source: Chairman’s Letter, 1994

The more you trade, the more you underperform.

Public domain

“Long ago, Sir Isaac Newton gave us three laws of motion, which were the work of genius. But Sir Isaac’s talents didn’t extend to investing: He lost a bundle in the South Sea Bubble, explaining later, “I can calculate the movement of the stars, but not the madness of men.” If he had not been traumatized by this loss, Sir Isaac might well have gone on to discover the Fourth Law of Motion: For investors as a whole, returns decrease as motion increases.”

Source: Letters to shareholders, 2005

Price and value are not the same

Net Efekt / Flickr, CC

“Long ago, Ben Graham taught me that ‘Price is what you pay; value is what you get.’ Whether we’re talking about socks or stocks, I like buying quality merchandise when it is marked down.”

Source: Letter to shareholders, 2008

There are no bonus points for complicated investments.

stuartpilbrow via flickr

“Our investments continue to be few in number and simple in concept: The truly big investment idea can usually be explained in a short paragraph. We like a business with enduring competitive advantages that is run by able and owner-oriented people. When these attributes exist, and when we can make purchases at sensible prices, it is hard to go wrong (a challenge we periodically manage to overcome).

“Investors should remember that their scorecard is not computed using Olympic-diving methods: Degree-of-difficulty doesn’t count. If you are right about a business whole value is largely dependent on a single key factor that is both easy to understand and enduring, the payoff is the same as if you had correctly analyzed an investment alternative characterized by many constantly shifting and complex variables.”

Source: Chairman’s Letter, 1994

A good businessperson makes a good investor.

PYMNTS.com via Vimeo

“I am a better investor because I am a businessman, and a better businessman because I am no investor.”

Source: Forbes.com – Thoughts On The Business Life

Higher taxes aren’t a dealbreaker.

MoneyBlogNewz / Flickr

“SUPPOSE that an investor you admire and trust comes to you with an investment idea. “This is a good one,” he says enthusiastically. “I’m in it, and I think you should be, too.”

Would your reply possibly be this? “Well, it all depends on what my tax rate will be on the gain you’re saying we’re going to make. If the taxes are too high, I would rather leave the money in my savings account, earning a quarter of 1 percent.” Only in Grover Norquist’s imagination does such a response exist.”

Source: New York Times

Companies that don’t change can be great investments.

By Jono Haysom on Flickr

“Our approach is very much profiting from lack of change rather than from change. With Wrigley chewing gum, it’s the lack of change that appeals to me. I don’t think it is going to be hurt by the Internet. That’s the kind of business I like.”

Source: Businessweek, 1999