Some wisdom from Charlie in time for the holiday season1:
“Do the best that you can do. Never tell a lie. If you say you’re going to get it done, get it done. Nobody gives a shit about an excuse. Leave early for the meeting. Don’t be late, but if you are late, don’t bother giving people excuses. Just apologize… Return your calls quickly. The other thing is the five-second no. You’ve got to make up your mind. You don’t leave people hanging.”
— Charlie Munger
Some additional commentary from me:
- “Do the best that you can do.”
What could be more obvious? But sometimes I get the feeling that many people don’t follow the same set of values that I do. Instead they eschew this virtue and instead “do the least to get by”. Obviously not something we should be striving for. - “Never tell a lie.”
I’ve always found lying difficult, too many “versions” of the truth to keep straight. Chalk it up to my like for keeping things simple. - “If you say you’re going to get it done, get it done. Nobody gives a shit about an excuse.”
This is another obvious one but somehow not everyone has internalized it. There’s something to be said about someone with a lot of assiduity (as Charlie puts it, “Sitting on your ass until it gets done”). - “Leave early for the meeting. Don’t be late, but if you are late, don’t bother giving people excuses. Just apologize…”
Punctuality is just another form of respect, definitely a virtue to strive for. - “The other thing is the five-second no. You’ve got to make up your mind. You don’t leave people hanging.”
This is another great one. If someone asks you to go out, just make up your mind. Don’t wait and see if something better comes along, just decide. Don’t be “that” guy.
Happy Holidays!
- Quote from Seeking Wisdom by Peter Bevelin p. 251 [↩]