How to Find a Partner like Charlie Munger

“You should ask yourself who you’d want to spend the last day of your life with, and then figure out how to meet them, like tomorrow.” - Warren Buffett

Charlie Munger’s legacy loomed large at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting. With his death, perhaps the most prominent and enduring of business partnerships came to an end. Shareholders gave a standing ovation, Buffett accidentally called Greg Abel “Charlie”, and answered a poignant question about how he would spend one more day with his dear departed friend.

Investing is a lonely path and having a friend and intellectual sparring partner is invaluable. I’ve been reflecting on how he influenced Buffett and Berkshire (for Munger’s take on Berkshire, see his 50-year analysis) — and how we can each find our version of someone like him.

New York Times

Munger of course influenced many of Buffett’s decisions, most notably the pivot to business quality starting with the acquisition of See’s Candy. As Buffett recalled in 2013, “Charlie was the one that said, ‘For God’s sakes, Warren, write the check.’”

But, as I explored in Warren E. Buffett, An Alternate History, Munger also helped Buffett early on, when the latter’s big bet on Dempster Mill was failing. “We were going to dinner with the Grahams and the Mungers,” Buffett recounted. “I’m telling Charlie, ‘I’m in this mess with this company; I’ve got this jerk running Dempster, and the inventories keep going up and up.’”

“Well, I know this guy that used to bring around tough situations,” Munger responded and connected Buffett with turnaround specialist Harry Bottle. Buffett had made Dempster a large position in his fund and later called Bottle perhaps “the most important management decision” he had ever made. “If Dempster had gone down,” he noted, “my life and fortunes would have been a lot different.” Without help from Munger, Buffett might have sworn off taking control of challenging businesses — perhaps he would never have touched an ailing textile mill called Berkshire Hathaway…

At Berkshire, Munger became the “abominable no-man” for pushing back on Buffett’s investment ideas. Buffett could be “pretty rigid,” his biographer Alice Schoeder pointed out, “and doesn't really listen. He has incredibly firm convictions and is often right, to say the least.” Munger was one of the few who could meet Buffett intellectually and was neither afraid to voice his opinion nor incentivized not to. Munger’s role was crucial because even the masters have their strengths and weaknesses, their biases and blind spots.

But that’s just the tangible “return on relationship” if you will. What is at least as important are the decades of shared friendship, learning, and joy. As Buffett recalled, he and Munger had fun together, especially when digging themselves out of the occasional hole of a mistake.

“We’re old-fashioned. We’re boringly trite,” Munger once said. “We think you ought to keep plugging along and stay rational and stay energetic. All the old virtues still work.” And what could be a better example of the ‘old virtues’ than this lifelong friendship rooted in mutual admiration and respect?

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So, how do you find a partner like Munger?

Know yourself. Be clear about who you are, what you offer, what you are lacking, and what you look for. Examine your past partnerships: what (or who) worked, what didn’t, why?

Put yourself out there. How is your future partner going to find you? Where do you share your story, philosophy, and work? Increase your luck surface by writing online, going on podcasts, or being active in the community.

Say yes to the dinner. Buffett and Munger met when the latter was in Omaha for his father’s funeral. Imagine if Buffett had declined to go out because he’d rather … read another annual report, watch TV, or simply because he didn’t feel like being social that night. You have to make space in your life for meeting new people.

Deserve one. Put yourself in your prospective partner’s shoes — do you have a reputation and track record for being a great partner? Do you embody what you are looking for?

Assemble one. Let’s be honest, Munger was one of a kind. You might have to replicate his mind, Moneyball-style, by creating a council of valuable friends.

Be Charlie Munger. I wrote about this in a note about Amos Tversky and Danny Kahneman. Imagine if Munger had been looking for his own sidekick, another Munger. Imagine if his ego had prevented him from becoming number two at the world’s most successful investment enterprise. Maybe don’t look for a Munger but for a Buffett.

In 2022, Todd Combs asked Charlie Munger to imagine what would have happened if he had never met Buffett. Well, I’m very glad they met and that they became best friends and partners, offering us all an inspiring example of what is possible in life.