If he had the time, that is.
Why do I say this? He has a conversational style.
Witness his style in the chairman’s letter of Berkshire Hathaway’s 2005 Annual Report, released last Friday.
Analysts and finacial types actually await his Annual Report with some glee, and I can understand why since most of these letters are usually pretty dry.
Not Buffett, you can always count on him for a zinger (this one about outrageous CEO pay):
Getting fired can produce a particularly bountiful payday for a CEO. Indeed, he can “earn” more in that single day, while cleaning out his desk, than an American worker earns in a lifetime of cleaning toilets.
The dispensation of unabashed compliments for those that deserve them:
Credit GEICO – and its brilliant CEO, Tony Nicely – for our stellar insurance results in a disasterridden year. […] When we drive unit costs down in such a dramatic manner, we can offer ever-greater value to our customers. The payoff: Last year, GEICO gained market-share, earned commendable profits and strengthened its brand. If you have a new son or grandson in 2006, name him Tony.
An admission of his failures:
When a management proudly acquires another company for stock, the shareholders of the acquirer are concurrently selling part of their interest in everything they own. I’ve made this kind of deal a few times myself – and, on balance, my actions have cost you money.
And sound investment advice for the average Joe:
A record portion of the earnings that would go in their entirety to owners – if they all just stayed in their rocking chairs – is now going to a swelling army of Helpers. […]In other words, the burden of paying Helpers may cause American equity investors, overall, to earn only 80% or so of what they would earn if they just sat still and listened to no one.
Read the whole letter if you have the time, it is a great lesson that you don’t have to be boring to be successful. And Buffett also talks about sex (the marital kind, p. 4), but this is a G-rated site, so you will have to read the report and get it from the horses mouth directly.
Oh, and Buffett is extremely loath to give interviews, I tried once and failed miserably when he acquired a company in the industry sector I work in (who he hails as a star in this report). So if you want to hear what he has to say, this is your chance.
