What Would Warren Buffett Do? 12 Quotes for Smarter Investing

Regardless of your age, there is one thing to keep in mind as you continue to navigate your life and try to figure out which direction you should go on different things (like investing!). This one thing you should keep in mind is the quote that has gotten me where I am today, that continues to help me decide who I should be listening to and who I should graciously tell to go jump off a cliff, and that simplifies my own navigation.

“Don’t take advice from someone you wouldn’t trade shoes with.”

Most of us are constantly fed people’s opinions on what we should be doing with our lives. Every time this happens to me—and even when it is people on BiggerPockets responding to my articles or my forum posts—I immediately ask myself if I would trade shoes with that person in terms of their lifestyle and success. If the answer is “no,” I thank them for their opinions and move on. If the answer is “yes,” I start listening very carefully.

Now, who is one person we can all probably agree is someone we might all consider taking advice from? How about the billionaire legend Warren Buffett? I don’t know about you, but if Mr. Buffett were sitting right in front of me dishing out real estate investing advice, I might be pretty keen to listen to it.

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Since it is unlikely Mr. Buffett himself will be sitting at your dinner table anytime soon offering you advice on your real estate investing career, I’ve compiled a list of what I have deemed to be some of his best pieces of advice. Take them or leave them as you wish.

Maybe they apply to your situation and maybe they don’t, but I’d venture to say they are certainly worth a quick consideration.

12 Warren Buffett Quotes for Better Investing

In no particular order, here are some of my favorite tips from Mr. Warren Buffett himself!

“Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful.” (One of his most famous!)
“A public opinion poll is no substitution for thought.” (Don’t just listen to everyone and their moms ranting off about stuff and take it for gold!)
“Think in terms of income, not appreciation.” (Always be cautious when speculating!)
“You ought to be able to explain why you’re taking the job you’re taking, why you’re making the investment you’re making, or whatever it may be. And if it can’t stand applying pencil to paper, you’d better think it through some more. And if you can’t write an intelligent answer to those questions, don’t do it.” (Yes!)
“Use partnerships to fill gaps in your expertise.” (Be willing to admit your weaknesses and be willing to bring in team members to fill those!)
“Minimize your mistakes and learn from those you make.” (Literally the key to successful real estate investing in my opinion!)
“I really like my life. I’ve arranged my life so that I can do what I want.” (The difference between investing and a job!)
“When you plan to buy, plan to hold.” (Buffett is huge on the idea of holding! Remember the importance of long-term plays.)
“The macro view is more important than the micro view.” (Look at the big picture!)
“Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing.” (Be educated!)
“Embrace the boring.” (Sometimes the boring long-term plays are the most successful!)
“I’d buy up a couple thousand single-family homes if it were practical to do so. Houses are better than stocks.” (Maybe a little biased on my part since this is what I do, but he has a point!)

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I could probably keep going, as there is no shortage of advice and ideas from the man himself. But use the ones I gave you as motivation to think bigger. Look to the guys who have done what you are trying to do. Do you want to become rich, do you want to become financially free, do you want to be able to choose your lifestyle? Or maybe you are just looking for security for your family.

Whatever it is, find the guys who have done it and follow in their footsteps. Nothing personal to people chiming in on the BiggerPockets Forums, but they are no Warren Buffett!

Always, always take into consideration who is behind the advice being offered you. I can pretty much promise that if you listen to the majority of people around you, you aren’t going to get where you really want to go.