Warren Buffett has now been in the business of running Berkshire Hathaway for 53 years, and counting. In his newly released 2017 letter to shareholders, he reminds us why his name has grown over those years to be nearly synonymous with sound business practice here in America and as a master communicator of the money world.

As usual, his latest letter is filled with advice worth heeding. First, as we previewed in December 2017, Buffett shared the final results of the 10-year bet he placed against hedge funds. He won so dramatically that his opponent threw in the towel last May, before the decade was even through. Reflecting on his win, Buffett wrote (emphasis ours):

The bet illuminated another important investment lesson: Though markets are generally rational, they occasionally do crazy things. Seizing the opportunities then offered does not require great intelligence, a degree in economics or a familiarity with Wall Street jargon such as alpha and beta. What investors then need instead is an ability to both disregard mob fears or enthusiasms and to focus on a few simple fundamentals. A willingness to look unimaginative for a sustained period – or even to look foolish – is also essential.

The wager was all the more telling, in that Buffett often bills himself as a person who avoids unnecessary risks. In this year’s letter, for example, he reiterated:

Our aversion to leverage has dampened our returns over the years. But Charlie and I sleep well. Both of us believe it is insane to risk what you have and need in order to obtain what you don’t need. We held this view 50 years ago when we each ran an investment partnership, funded by a few friends and relatives who trusted us. We also hold it today after a million or so ‘partners’ have joined us at Berkshire.

Exactly. This is our perspective at HIG as well. Take care of your clients above all else. Help people focus on their own goals and the financial fundamentals – regardless of what’s hot and what’s not in trending techniques. Excel at these essentials, and the rest will likely take care of itself.

Like most people, we’re pretty busy here at Hill Investment Group. After dedicating ourselves to family, friends, community and career, it’s hard to find extra time for relaxing and reflecting before we find ourselves fast asleep.

Thank goodness for podcasts. They offer energizing food for thought during our morning commutes (Henry), dog walks (Matt), or while sweating it out on a jog (yours truly). We’ve each got our personal favorites, but Guy Raz’s “How I Built This”  podcast is a HIG-wide hit.

For investing, we typically encourage a steadfast – almost stodgy – buy, hold, and rebalance approach to managing the money you’ve made, emphasizing academic evidence over “lucky breaks.” But first, you’ve got to make some of that money, and sometimes that takes luck and skill alike. So we also love the edgy tales of how some of today’s best-known businesses came to be. To name a few:

Southwest Airlines: Can you believe this airline was initially a side hustle for founder Herb Kelleher?

Starbucks: Founder Howard Schultz tells an incredible story about Bill Gates, Sr. (“The” Bill Gates’ dad), and the role he played in saving Starbucks.

Patagonia: Founder Yves Chouinard became a successful businessman despite himself.

The Home Depot – Being fired may have been the best thing that ever happened to co-founder Arthur Blank.

Next time you’ve got a little downtime of your own, why not tune into “How I Built This”?

2016 Nobel laureate Bob Dylan once sang, “he not busy being born is busy dying.” Before him, Charles Darwin expressed similar sentiments. Thankfully, Hill Investment Group remains busy “being born,” and doing so harmoniously — not in spite of but because of our emphasis on putting clients’ interests ahead of our own. The strategy recently ranked us among the highest levels of client service and attention in Charles Schwab’s annual national benchmarking study (as measured by advisor-to-client ratios). 

The way we figure it, if we stay busy like that, the growth part will follow, with our clients, strategic partners, and friends leading the charge on our behalf.  Why? They know us better than anyone. They’ve experienced working with us, getting to know what we can do and what our core values mean … not just in words but in actions. Better to hear it from them than from us. 

Most importantly, the more introductions others make for us to their friends, family and loved ones, the more time we can spend on activities aimed at making our current clients’ lives better. Retaining our small and intimate feel even as we grow? That may seem counterintuitive, but that’s how personal referrals have helped our first decade play out nicely. 

The launch of Odds On has made it even easier to introduce HIG to those you care about. If you have a family member, friend, or friend-of-a-friend who may benefit from getting to know us, we believe you will be doing them and us a huge favor by bringing us together. To send someone a complimentary copy of Odds On (book, Kindle or audio), just let us know. We’ll send it out promptly, so you can then busy yourself with other things!