Poor Charlie's Almanack

Poor Charlie's Almanack
Author Peter D. Kaufman
Country United States
Language English
Subject Investing
Publisher Donning Company
Publication date
 2005 (1st edition)
2008 (expanded 3rd edition)
Pages 480 (1st ed.),
532 (3rd ed.)
ISBN 1-57864-303-1
OCLC 250631679
332.6/02/07 22
LC Class HG4515 .M86 2005

Poor Charlie's Almanack is a collection of speeches and talks by Charlie Munger, compiled by Peter D. Kaufman. First published in 2005 ( ISBN 1-57864-303-1), it was released in an expanded edition ( ISBN 1-578-64501-8) three years later.

Overview

Charlie Munger is the long serving vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. This book brings together his investing thoughts beyond his famous statement "I have nothing to add."

Munger is an admirer of Benjamin Franklin, and the book's title is a tribute to Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanack.

Net proceeds from sales of the book go to the Munger Research Center at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California.[1]

Contents

Munger propounds the 'Multiple Mental Models'[2] approach to decision making. This collection of 'Big Ideas from Big Disciplines' contains an iconoclastic checklist for decision-making.

The book is written in an unconventional style. The ideas are not listed in an orderly fashion but just touched upon lightly, with pictures given alongside - in line with Munger's idea to "make the mind reach out to the idea" thereby increasing the idea's retentiveness in memory. The pictures serve to make the idea vivid, again increasing their retentiveness, and add a bit of geeky humour to the book.

The "Lollapalooza Effect" is Munger's term for the confluence of multiple biases; according to Munger, the tendency toward extremism results from such confluences. These biases often occur at either conscious or subconscious level, and at both microeconomic and macroeconomic scales.

Ten talks

The book includes some talks given by Munger:[3]

  • Harvard School Commencement June 13, 1986
  • "A Lesson in Elementary, Worldly Wisdom as It Relates to Investment Management and Business", University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, April 14, 1994
  • "A Lesson in Elementary, Worldly Wisdom, Revisited", Stanford Law School, April 19, 1996
  • "Practical Thought About Practical Thought", July 20, 1996
  • "The Need for More Multidisciplinary Skills from Professionals: Educational Implications Harvard Law School Class of 1948, April 24, 1998
  • "Investment Practices of Leading Charitable Foundations", Foundation Financial Officers Group, October 14, 1998
  • Breakfast Meeting of the Philanthropy Roundtable, November 10, 2000
  • "The Great Financial Scandal of 2003", Summer 2000
  • "Academic Economics: Strengths and Faults after Considering Interdisciplinary Needs", University of California, Santa Barbara, October 3, 2003
  • The Psychology of Human Misjudgment

Reviews

In November 2005, Kiplinger's Newsletter wrote "Munger, 81, has always been media shy. That changed when Peter Kaufman compiled Munger's writing and speeches in a new book, Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger "[4]

In August 2006, The Motley Fool wrote: "With 512 pages, there is something for everyone, and Poor Charlie's Almanack is an impressive and thorough tribute to one of the brightest, most pragmatic, and iconoclastic investment minds ever."[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Poor Charlie's Almanack and Seeking Wisdom - Official Website of PCA Publications". poorcharliesalmanack.com. Retrieved 2010-09-28.
  2. ↑ Poor Charlie's Almanack, p.46
  3. ↑ "Table of Contents". poorcharliesalmanack.com. Retrieved 2010-09-28.
  4. ↑ "The World According to "Poor Charlie". Kiplinger's Newsletter. November 2005. Archived from the original on March 21, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Book Review - Poor Charlie's Almanack". The Motley Fool. August 2006.
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