Charlie Munger (1924–2023) was an American billionaire investor, philanthropist, and the long-time Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. While often characterized as Warren Buffett’s "right-hand man,” Warren credited him as the "architect" of the modern Berkshire Hathaway business philosophy. Munger met Buffett in 1959 and became his closest partner, credited with shifting Berkshire's focus from "cigar butts" (cheap, failing companies) to high-quality, enduring businesses, a core tenet of Berkshire's success.
Source: Wikipedia
Munger was also an intellectual giant in his own right. He was renowned for his wit, sharp mind, and transformative influence on Berkshire's investment strategy, shifting it towards "wonderful businesses at fair prices," emphasizing long-term value, mental models, and ethical conduct. Trained in law and meteorology, Munger integrated knowledge from diverse fields (psychology, physics, history) to form "mental models" for better decision-making, a unique approach to problem-solving. He left a legacy of wisdom through his writings and annual meetings before his passing at age 99.
Charlie was known as a voracious reader. Munger never stopped learning, even in his final years, applying his profound wisdom to new challenges. Today, I'm going to share Charlie Munger's quotes and pieces of wisdom that apply to why he and Warren Buffett emphasize the importance of reading. I will start with the following two:
“In my whole life, I have known no wise people (over a broad subject matter area) who didn’t read all the time – none, zero.”
“As long as I have a book in my hand, I don’t feel like I’m wasting time.”
Why am I sharing this with you today? Great question. Reading may be a lost and dying art, especially to our younger generations. If you recall reading books when you were a teenager, you’re probably glad you did. It makes a difference. Unfortunately, it appears that future generations may not have such memories. As evidence, I share with you the following chart.
As recently as the 1980s, regular daily readers outnumbered non-readers by a large margin. That group became a minority around 2005 and has continued to shrink. As Paul Graham said in sharing this chart, “It’s hard to imagine a change of that magnitude not having significant effects.”
From my earliest days, I always loved reading. When I wasn't outside playing sports with my friends, I almost always had a book in my hand. Whenever I was curious about a new subject, I would go to my elementary school library and check out books on that topic. I always felt a sense of accomplishment when I had finished reading every book that our library had on topics of interest, whether it was American Indians, dinosaurs, the solar system, or baseball.
This love of reading was fostered by my mom, who was an elementary school teacher. She always encouraged me to read and be curious. Luckily, shows like Sesame Street also encouraged me to love reading and learning new things. Sesame Street emphasized that reading helps children succeed in school and in life by opening doors to new and exciting worlds. Reading helps children develop early language and literacy skills, expand vocabulary, improve concentration, and build imagination and creativity. Nurturing a love of reading from an early age helps prepare children for academic achievement and overall success in life.
Source: YouTube
“Warren (Buffett) and I do more reading and thinking and less doing than most people in business. We do that because we like that kind of life. But we’ve turned that quirk into a positive outcome for ourselves. We both insist on a lot of time being available almost every day to just sit and think. That is very uncommon in American business. We read and think.”- Charlie Munger.
Like Charlie Munger, I spend a significant amount of time reading every week. As Rachel can attest, I generally spend 6 to 8 hours a week sitting in my office, reading economic and political content. I typically read at least 600 to 800 pages of this type of content each month. I recently had a client tell me they didn't know anyone else with such a strong understanding and narrative about economics, politics, and investments as I do. While I humbly thanked them for their comment, I reminded them that I have been reading like this every month since I entered the business 38 years ago. This has been combined with actual life experience of walking next to clients during economic and geopolitical uncertainty and volatility that have occurred over that time.
The CFPs of Impel Wealth Management refer to this as being “students of the business.” We not only love what we do, but we want to do it in the best way possible to serve you, our trusted friends and clients. As a result, we will continue to study and read as much as we can to be prepared to help you solve your financial issues.
I will close with a couple of additional quotes from Charlie Munger that sum up his philosophy, as well as my aspiration to read, learn, and always be a student of the business.
"Develop into a lifelong self-learner through voracious reading; cultivate curiosity and strive to become a little wiser every day.”
And my favorite…
“If it’s wisdom you are after, you are going to spend a lot of time sitting on your ass and reading.”
Based on the chart above, our younger generation would benefit significantly from Charlie Munger’s wisdom. If you have a child or grandchild that you want to set up for success in life, encourage them to read rather than click and watch YouTube or play video games. As we turn the corner into a new year, I thought this was an important message and recognition of what continues to set lifelong learners on a path toward future success. Please share this with someone you love as we continue “Moving Life Forward.”
© 2026 Jesse Hurst
Senior Wealth Manager
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