The Real Warren Buffett: Managing Capital, Leading People

by James O'Loughlin

Book Overview

This book stands apart with its fresh look into how Buffet has become the richest man in America. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 185788308X
• ISBN13: 9781857883084
• Release Date: December 2002
• Publisher: Nicholas Brealey Publishing
• Length: 282 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Even though I heard most of the information, I still found it valuable

I read most of the books on Warren Buffett and structured my personal investment philosophy partially by studying this man. I say partially because I don't need to hold my investments as long as he does simply because I have less money, and can find more investment opportunities when the market fully values my positions. Even though I am very familiar with Buffett's investment style, I still found this book valuable. There is something special about hearing a concept a second or third time, but from someone else. It makes you understand it on a completely different level. This is what this book has done for me. I particularly liked the author's explanation of how Buffett used the insurance business for its free float that he used to make other investments. The insurance business was like a bank, but better because float is like deposits but at a much cheaper price. Some people might say that there is nothing new in this book, but I never get tired of hearing the same thing. It just reinforces to me that I am doing the right thing. I really enjoyed reading it. - Mariusz Skonieczny, author of Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market

Great Insight!

Mr. O'Loughlin provides a high quality analysis of Mr. Buffett's leadership style, rational behaviour and critical self-appraisal. The book is well-researched. Even more important, it is well thought out. There is truth here. The challenge for the reader is to look in the mirror and acknowledge how little he knows, then go forth and allocate capital on that limited basis.

Packed with Knowledge!

A sentence crafter happily at work, James O'Laughlin imparts clarity with literacy. On the rare occasion that his industrious research does not find just the right quote from Buffett or Munger (chapters average 90 footnotes), he uses their favorite metaphors from sports and life. This is excellent writing that falls short only on prophesy and damnation. Buffett must pass Berkshire on to an heir in the next decade, but exactly who might follow him is given short shrift. How this unknown magician might cope with Munger (too old to be an heir) is avoided carefully. The manuscript was begun before September 11, 2001, created insurance chaos, but O'Laughlin doesn't elaborate upon it, beyond suggesting that chaos benefits Buffett - whose main float derives from super catastrophic insurance and reinsurance. We from getAbstract recommend this volume highly - along with getting to know the Real Buffett, you will learn a tidy amount about economics.

A return on investment that even Buffett would value

I'm sure that like me your time is scarce and you are reading this review to determine which book to read next to improve your investment returns. Well I can save you some time and recommend that you read this one.O'Loughlin's book won't make you smarter. What it will do is help you to cut out the mistakes that prove so costly to capial accumulation. I've read most of the popular books about Buffett. All are interesting, because his tale is compelling, but unlike the others, this book is valuable too.Why does Tiger win all the majors rather than Phil Mickelson? Both can hit amazing shots, but Tiger has developed a series of mental processes that enables him to employ superior course management to the rest of us and so reduce the chance of dropping shots.So it is with Buffett. This book describes how Buffett has employed a series of mental models to circumvent the ways that our brains delude us into thinking we are making sound decisions when we are making poor ones.The take-away messages are clear and I have found it relatively straight-forward to employ them in my investment decision making process. I am making fewer decisions, but feeling much more comfortable with each one.There's much more to the book than this, but to be honest your time would be better spent learning from O'Loughlin and Buffett than from me.It took Buffett 40 years and billions of dollars to learn these processes. You can learn them in a couple of hours for under 20 bucks. Now, that really is a Buffett-esque bargain!