Top 15 Books Recommended by Warren Buffett
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With a daily reading time of up to six hours, Warren Buffett has a reputation for being an avid reader. "I basically sit in my office and read all day," he said. For the majority of us, setting aside time during the day to read and reflect is not precisely a widespread practice. We just don't have the time to do either since we have Zoom meeting after Zoom meeting, numerous duties to manage, and deadlines to meet.
It goes without saying that Warren Buffett's love of reading has profoundly shaped him as a human since he was a small kid and that this favourite pastime of his must have contributed to the vibrant and successful, for that matter - outlook he has on life.
According to Buffett, your thought process is perhaps your most valuable commodity as an investment. Therefore, it's crucial to spend time each day developing your intellect by reading and reflecting. Consequently, it's crucial to spend time each day developing your intellect by reading and reflecting.
Therefore, we've put together a list of 15 books Warren Buffett has read himself and would recommend to others.
Best Books Recommended by Warren Buffett
- Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
- The Intelligent Investor
- How To Win Friends and Influence People
- One Thousand Ways to Make $1,000
- The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
- Essays in Persuasion
- Investing Between the Lines
- The Making of the President 1960
- Limping on Water
- The Science Of Hitting
- The Farmer from Merna
- The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
- The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron
- Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger
- Where Are the Customers' Yachts? : Or a Good Hard Look at Wall Street
Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
Author: Phil Knight
Goodreads Rating: 4.47
In this candid biography, the Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight reveal for the first time ever the back story of his business' inception as an experimental startup and how it evolved into one of the world's most iconic, prosperous, game-changing companies.
After receiving his degree in business in 1962, Phil Knight borrowed $50 from his father and founded a startup with the simple objective of importing excellent quality, cost-effective sports shoes from Japan. Knight sold the shoes from the backseat of his car. He started off earning $8,000 in his first year and currently generates about $30 billion in revenue annually. One of the most widespread and very well-known logos in use right now, the swoosh (Nike's logo) has evolved into a revolutionary worldwide icon in the start-up age.
In this book, which is transparent, truthful, daring, and humorous, Phil; Knight offers his experiences and journey for the very first time. At the age of 24, after backpacking throughout the globe, he took the unconventional decision to create his own firm, something that would be original and full of life.
Knight discusses his early triumphs as well as the many dangers and frightful setbacks he faced in order to accomplish his goal. Above all things, he recalls the early ties and the very first collaborations and employees, a disparate group of dropouts and adventurers who eventually became a close-knit family. Together, they created a business that used the enormous power of a shared goal and a firm belief in the beauty of athletics to reshape everything.
The Intelligent Investor
Author: Benjamin Graham
Goodreads Rating: 4.25
This book updates Graham's timeless advice for the current state of the market.
The finest financial advisor of the 20th century, Benjamin Graham, served as an inspiration to individuals all over the world and a teacher. Graham's "quality investing" approach, which shields traders from costly errors and assists them in creating and improving goals, has made The Intelligent Investor the share market classic since the book was first published in 1949.
Market shifts over time have confirmed Graham's strategies as sound. This updated edition preserves the integrity of Graham's original text while adding the most recent commentary by famous financial writer Jason Zweig. Zweig's perspective takes into account the reality of the present market, compares Graham's examples to recent financial news, and helps readers comprehend how to put Graham's concepts into practice.
The Intelligent Investor, published by HarperBusiness Essentials, is the most crucial guide you will ever read for achieving your financial objectives.
How To Win Friends and Influence People
Author: Dale Carnegie
Goodreads Rating: 4.21
You could work for and be successful in obtaining your ideal profession. The career you now have may be improved! If you are able to communicate with others and have their support, you can make any situation and things better working for your side.
More than 16 million copies of How to Win Friends and Influence People have been sold since its 1936 publication. The first book by Dale Carnegie is a classic bestseller that has helped hundreds of now-famous individuals climb the success ladder in both their personal and professional life. It is jam-packed with sound advice.
How to Win Friends and Influence People, one of the all-time greatest books, will instruct you in:
- There are six techniques to win someone over.
- 12 strategies for persuading others to adopt your viewpoint
- Nine techniques to influence people without offending them.
With more than 15 million copies sold, this book is a must-read for the twenty-first century!
Sarika Anand
One Thousand Ways to Make $1,000
Author: F.C. Minaker
Goodreads Rating: 4.02
The long out-of-print book One Thousand Ways to Make $1000, which was first released in 1936, is credited by Warren Buffett's biographers with developing the famed investor's business savvy and giving him his recognisable understanding of compound interest. Buffett predicted he would be a millionaire by the age of 35 after grabbing a copy of One Thousand Ways from a library shelf at the age of eleven and digesting F.C. Minaker's tenacious and useful business counsel.
This book is full of creative suggestions on how to generate money via good salesmanship, hard effort, and ingenuity. It is written in the direct, conversational manner of Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People.
While some of the business concepts presented in these pages may seem quaint to us today—dairying goats, producing motor-driven chairs, and renting out billiard tables to local businesses are just a few examples—the underlying principles of business are still as sound today as they were more than seventy years ago.
One Thousand Ways to Make $1000 is a timeless business classic that covers a wide range of issues, including investment, marketing, merchandising, sales, customer relations, and charity fundraising.
The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
Author: John C. Bogle
Goodreads Rating: 4.16
"Naturally, there are a few excellent investment managers; yet, in the short term, it can be challenging to tell whether a successful track record is the result of ability or fate. Nevertheless, the majority of advisers are much more adept at raising high fees than they are at creating big profits. In actuality, their primary skill is sales.
The Little Book of Common Sense Investing by Jack Bogle (John C. Bogle) is a book that investors of all sizes should study rather than succumb to their siren sings." — Warren Buffett's 2014 Annual Shareholder Letter to Shareholders, Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway.
Employing common sense while investing is the secret. The long-term holding of a varied assortment of stocks is a successful approach. Although winning the stock market is a zero-sum game in theory (there must be winners and losers), it really becomes a loser's game when the high costs of investing are taken into consideration. According to logic and history, the most simple and successful investment strategy is to buy and hold all of the publicly listed firms in the nation at incredibly low prices. The classic index fund that owns this market portfolio is the only investment that guarantees you'll get your fair share of stock market gains.
The real key to successful investment is to own the whole market while drastically lowering the costs of financial intermediation. That is index investing's primary objective. And it serves as the focus of this book. The Little Book of Common Sense Investment will show you how to incorporate this tried-and-true investing technique into your plan while also offering in-depth analysis and practical advice. It will also change the way you think about investing in general. Making profitable investments is challenging. (It demands self-control and patience.) But it's simple. After all, common sense is the key.
The Little Book of Common Sense Investing will demonstrate how to transform investments into profitable activity.
Essays in Persuasion
Author: John Maynard Keynes
Goodreads Rating: 4.01
Without a question, John Maynard Keynes was one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century. His contributions fundamentally altered modern economics' theory and application. It has had a significant influence on economic policy, as well as how economics is taught and written, globally.
Essays in Persuasion is a remarkable predictive book that covers a wide variety of political economics concerns, especially in light of future events. The reader may see concepts that would later form the basis of Keynes's most well-known work, The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money, in his writings on inflation and deflation (1936).
Keynes predicted the economic turbulence that would afflict the economies of Europe and the United States with astonishing precision, and he even suggested policies that, had they been adopted at the time, may have prevented a period of global depression. Keynes' opinions on Soviet Russia, the demise of laissez-faire, and the potential for economic development are still pertinent now as they were then.
Investing Between the Lines
Author: L.J. Rittenhouse
Goodreads Rating: 3.42
In Investing Between the Lines, a ground-breaking approach for determining a company's financial integrity is presented. To figure it out, you don't need to have a degree in accounting or unique access to "insider" knowledge. In reality, the secret is plainly stated in every shareholder letter, annual report, and business correspondence you get, in black and white.
Investing Between the Lines teaches you how to:
- Understand the "FOG" of perplexing corporate communications
- Understand corporate jargon and platitudes for what they mean when it comes to yearly reports and quarterly earnings calls, and separate the truth from the hype
- Invest in firms that manage investor capital to protect your money.
Corporate leaders and financial experts are frequently expected to produce quick results. To achieve these expectations, they are thus forced to use ambiguous language and accounting procedures.
In Investing Between the Lines, L.J. Rittenhouse outlines her tried-and-true method for identifying at-risk companies before catastrophe arises. She employed the same technique to foresee the demise of Enron and Lehman.
The book Investing Between the Lines demonstrates the effectiveness of Rittenhouse's approach as one of the most useful resources for investors and business leaders, comparing the financial statements of Ford, GM, and Toyota and explaining why FedEx and Wells Fargo have been so successful. You will be able to read between the lines and determine exactly what a company's CEO is or isn't saying to you after you discover the hints to decode CEO communications.
The Making of the President 1960
Author: Theodore H. White
Goodreads Rating: 4.15
Describe the presidential election process. "The most incredible transfer of power in the world—the capacity to marshal and mobilise, the power to send men to kill or be killed, the power to tax and destroy, the power to create and the obligation to do so, the power to lead and the responsibility to heal—all committed to one man." These words, which Theodore H. White penned in the book's first chapter, still ring true today just as they did when they were first said more than 50 years ago.
His groundbreaking analysis of a pivotal campaign, in which the young, charismatic John F. Kennedy faced off against the seasoned vice president, Richard M. Nixon, is both an engaging story of character and significance and a fascinating historical document.
In our current age of sound bites, relentless chattering punditry, and the all-consuming influence of television, the reporter's detailed appreciation of the instinct and experience that shape the political process is a revelation. This influence was first felt in the Kennedy-Nixon debates, which proved to be a crucial factor in the 1960 election.
White offers a useful education in the ways and means of our political life by following seven candidates from the earliest stirrings of aspiration through the rigours of the primaries, the drama of the conventions, and the gruelling campaigning that culminated in one of the closest electoral contests in history.
The Making of the President 1960 is a remarkable book that celebrates the brilliance of American democracy and provides an anatomy of the ambition, cunning, and bravery required of those who wish to hold the country's highest office. It is a must-read today because of what it can tell us about the factors that decide the fate of presidential contenders.
Limping on Water
Author: Philip Beuth
Goodreads Rating: 3.91
Phil Beuth worked for the same organisation his whole radio career. Over 40 years old, Phil worked his way up from being the first employee of a small media business in 1955 as Capital Cities expanded to become one of America's most significant and prosperous media organisations. Limping on Water is a Dickensian rags-to-riches story about a disadvantaged boy with cerebral palsy who, thanks to luck, grit, character, talent, persistence, and loyalty, rose to the position of a top executive at Capital Cities Communications, one of the country's most prestigious and prosperous media companies; "The minnow that swallowed the whale."
In his book, Phil's kindness, self-deprecating humour, boundless creativity, and warm-hearted cordial talent come through in his very personal account, which is peppered with amusing anecdotes about his partners and famous people like Ted Knight, Lowell Thomas, Charlie Gibson, Sir Paul McCartney, Frank Sinatra, Cher, Jackie Robinson, Red Barber, Nelson Rockefeller, Barbara Walters, Warren Buffett, Sammy Davis Jr., Burt Reynolds, Red Skelton. Â
More than just memories of a successful career at a renowned firm and the famous people he met along the way, Phil's account is a perceptive insider's history of that "Mad Men" golden period of television, a time when broadcasting as we know it began.
It is also a potent lesson in building a successful profession that is moral; in "doing well and doing good."
The Science Of Hitting
Author: Ted Williams
Goodreads Rating: 4.30
The best pure hitter who ever lived was possibly Ted Williams. He was a lifetime student of hitting and asked every great hitter—and pitcher—for tips. Williams wrote the all-time hitting masterpiece The Science of Hitting using this guidance as well as his remarkable baseball career. Players of all skill levels will learn how to strengthen their foundations and obtain acute insights into the finer nuances of striking by using its thorough visuals, stories, and succinct instruction, including:
- The Three Cardinal Rules for Creating a Smooth Line
- The Three Cardinal Rules for Creating a Smooth Line
- Secrets of Hip and Wrist Action
- Pitch selection
- Bunting
Every baseball player who wants to get better at the plate, as well as all coaches and parents who are teaching the game, must read The Science of Hitting.
The Farmer from Merna
Author: Karl Schriftgiesser
Goodreads Rating: 3.41
A compelling, motivational story of George J. Mercherle that describes his battle—and eventual victory—to provide honest, low-cost vehicle insurance to Illinois' rural community
A Farmer from Merna tells the inspiring tale of an Illinois farmer who had a brilliant plan to assist his fellow Illinoisans by launching a business that would offer countless individuals low-cost and reliable vehicle insurance.
Mecherle struggled to establish his business and would never have foreseen its explosive growth. His local auto insurance company, the State Farm Insurance Companies of Bloomington, Illinois, evolved into a sizable business with offices around the nation.
The story of a man who committed his life to an ideal and lived to see the full development of the benefits of his pioneering efforts is told in the incredibly engrossing book, A Farmer from Merna. He fought tirelessly to give a growing number of people access to inexpensive and economical insurance.
The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
Author: William N. Thorndike Jr.
Goodreads Rating: 4.19
“It is impossible to produce superior performance unless you do something different.” — John Templeton
What characteristics characterise a successful CEO? The term that most people immediately think of is "a seasoned manager with considerable industry understanding." Others may mention the charm, superb communicative skills, and assured managerial style of today's so-called celebrity CEOs. But what counts most when running a business? What distinguishes exemplary CEO performance? Simply said, it refers to the long-term profits for the company's stockholders.
Author Will Thorndike uses his analytical expertise from a successful career in investment to analyse the performance of businesses and their executives in this energising, surprising book.
Through the book, eight CEOs will be introduced to you, and on average, their companies exceeded the S&P 500 by a factor of twenty. This means that an investment of $10,000 made with each of them would have been worth more than $1.5 million in 25 years. Though you might not be familiar with all of their names, you will be familiar with the brands they represent: General Cinema, Ralston Purina, The Washington Post Company, Berkshire Hathaway, General Dynamics, Capital Cities Broadcasting, TCI, and Teledyne. You'll discover the qualities and strategies—striking for their constancy and unwavering rationality—that enabled these great leaders to deliver such outstanding performances in The Outsiders.
Thorndike offers eye-opening experiences, draws lessons, and presents a compelling alternative model for anybody interested in running a business or investing in one—and earning amazing returns—by drawing on years of research and experience.
The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron
Author: Bethany McLean, Peter Elkind
Goodreads Rating: 4.20
There have been several books written on Watergate, but only All the President's Men gave people the entire story, with all the complexity, detail, and privileged information. Since Enron is presently the biggest business story of its time, Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind, senior journalists for Fortune, are the new Woodward and Bernstein.
Surprisingly, Enron was seen as the perfect example of a New Economy business just two years ago due to its rapidly rising earnings and stock price. But it was before McLean's story, which was published in Fortune and posed the seemingly harmless question, "How precisely does Enron earn money?"
The house of cards that was Enron started to fall apart after that. To provide a definitive book about the Enron crisis and the interesting characters behind it, McLean and Elkind have now conducted a far deeper investigation.
Smartest Guys in the Room immerses the reader in Enron's history and behind the closed doors of private meetings thanks to its meticulous research and focus on characters. The book recounts Enron's development from obscurity to the top of the corporate world to its devastating downfall, drawing on a broad variety of unusual sources.
It sheds new light on well-known figures like Cliff Baxter and Rebecca Mark as well as lesser-known ones like Ken Lay, Jeff Skilling, and Andy Fastow. The narrative of greed, haughtiness, and duplicity in Smartest Guys in the Room serves as a microcosm of everything that is wrong with American business today. Most importantly, it is an intriguing human tale that will serve as the definitive narrative of the Enron case.
Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger
Author: Charles T. Munger, Warren Buffett (Foreword), Peter D. Kaufman (Editor)
Goodreads Rating: 4.43
Peter D. Kaufman assembled Charlie Munger's lectures and talks into the book "Poor Charlie's Almanack" initially released in 2005. The long-time vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway is Charlie Munger. Beyond his infamous remark, "I have nothing to contribute," this book collects his investment ideas.
Munger advocates using "Multiple Mental Models" for making decisions. There is an iconoclastic decision-making checklist in this compilation of "Big Ideas from Big Disciplines."
The writing of the book is unorthodox. In keeping with Munger's theory of "making the mind reach out to the concept" helps increase the idea's retentiveness in mind. The ideas aren't presented in any particular sequence but are instead briefly discussed with visuals accompanying them. The illustrations enhance the reader's retention of the concept and give the book a touch of nerdy comedy.
The confluence of several biases is known by Munger as the "Lollapalooza Effect," and according to Munger, it is the effect of such confluences that leads to extremism.
Sarika Anand
Where Are the Customers' Yachts? : Or a Good Hard Look at Wall Street
Author: Fred Schwed Jr., Peter Arno (Illustrator), Jason Zweig (Introduction)
Goodreads Rating: 3.92
On Wall Street, the use of computers has essentially eliminated the use of pencils and graph paper. The fundamentals remain the same, though. The investor's need to trust in someone is mirrored by the financial advisor's desire to earn a good life. It is certain that the former will be dissatisfied if any of them must.
This book, which is amusing and humorous, exposes the foolishness and hypocrisy of Wall Street. The anecdote of the traveller to New York who liked the bankers' and brokers' boats is referenced in the title.
He innocently enquired as to the location of every customer's yacht. Naturally, none of the clients could afford yachts, despite the fact that they all obediently followed their bankers' and brokers' recommendations. This book keeps enlightening investors about the truth of Wall Street by delivering sage contrarian advice and a realistic view of the world of investing, where brokers prosper while their clients fail.
Conclusion
Warren Buffett is regarded as one of the world's most successful investors and is ranked among the world's wealthiest people. The above-mentioned books are some of the best among the recommendations made by him. All these books are sure to help you gain an understanding of aspects of business, investing, and more.
FAQs
What is Warren Buffett most famous for?
Warren Buffett is famous as the most successful investor of the 20th century and is also a big-time philanthropist. He is the Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
Which books are recommended by Warren Buffett?
Warren Buffett has recommended the following books:
- The Intelligent Investor
- Shoe Dog
- One Thousand Ways to Make $1000
- Essays in Persuasion
- Investing Between the Lines
- The Making of the President 1960
- Limping on Water
Is Warren Buffett still among the richest men in the world?
According to Forbes, Warren Buffett's net worth is $118 billion in November 2022, making him the fifth richest person in the world.
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