I accidentally bought a copy of The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham when I was a student. It came as a £2 bonus in my shopping cart.

But I never read it. In fact I think I sold it off for £1.50 after it collected dust for a year, at a loss of 50p.

Clearly I knew nothing about investing!

Benjamin Graham for those of you who don’t know, was Warren Buffett’s mentor. They have very similar investment strategies based on value investing. Coincidentally I came across a presentation years after selling The Intelligent Investor that Buffett made to a bunch of MBA grads.

I became fascinated with Buffett’s investment strategies behind Coca Cola and Wrigley. More than anything else were the simplicity behind his strategies, and Warren’s philosophies and approach to life itself.

For the world’s richest man, Warren Buffet is a simple man. He never flies in a private jet — even though he owns the largest private jet company in the world. He also lives in a small three-bedroom house he bought 50 years ago, and keeps himself occupied by playing online bridge (mostly with Bill Gates).

As a side note, it may also interest you that Warren Buffett is Bill Gates mentor. Yep. The world’s richest man mentors the world’s second richest man!

One advice I recall most vividly from Warren Buffett was when he talks about never to do anything that you would not want on the frontpage of a newspaper.

That’s stuck with me. I’m sure we have all done things we’re not proud of in our lives.  You only live and learn.  But ever since I heard his advice, I’ve tried to live by this.

More than anything else, it is refreshing, and inspiring, to hear of a man with all the wealth in the world who still believes that happiness lies not with riches but within yourself. Bill Gates is trying to live up to that now, having quit Microsoft, to focus on the Gates foundation and give his wealth away. But the difference with Warren and Bill Gates is that Gates is still trying to win the Nobel Peace Prize! And I bet you it’ll happen eventually or else he’ll probably throw a tantrum and hit some blue screen death button. lol.

I want to share 7 of Warren Buffett’s secrets with you that I have been applying to my own life. Simply integrating some of the following wisdom I learned from Warrent Buffett into your own life could radically change your life. It has certainly changed mine in some ways.

Secret #1: Happiness comes from within.

“In my adult business life I have never had to make a choice of trading between professional and personal. I tap-dance to work, and when I get there it’s tremendous fun.” — Warren Buffett

If you do what you love and love what you do, you’ll naturally be productive.

When I used to work in hospitals, I found most days a bit of a drag, and having to drag myself out of bed, drag myself to the hospital, and by the time I got home, I felt like dead man walking. But now, I wake up most mornings loving what I do. I can’t wait to get started with the day. There just doesn’t seem to be enough time! I wish days were longer, even though what I do technically could be considered more draining for some people. But I enjoy it.

So find what excites you. And no matter what, that should be your goal.

Secret #2: Find happiness in simple pleasures.

“I have simple pleasures. I play bridge online for 12 hours a week.” — Warren Buffett

There are certain things in my life that make me very happy, and most of them are pretty simple pleasures. e.g. I love strolling by the seafront. I like to sit in cafes to people watch. I love filming silly videos and editing photos. I used to eat at a mosque when I was a student that served one of the best dishes of my life for just £3.  All of these things, in my opinion, are simple pleasures. They be done for close to nothing, in fact, except for the £3 meal, the rest can be done for free.

So perhaps happiness is closer to you beyond the $500k fancy car, the expensive clothes, or the big million dollar beach house.  And if the world’s richest man says so, I’d listen.

Secret #3: Live a simple life.

“I just naturally want to do things that make sense. In my personal life too, I don’t care what other rich people are doing. I don’t want a 405 foot boat just because someone else has a 400 foot boat.” — Warren Buffett

I recently purchased a book called Affluenza by Oliver James. The idea of the book is that an epidemic of ‘Affluenza’ is spreading throughout the world. Keeping up with the Joneses is the worst epidemic among those who should never contemplate that notion in the first place. Less is more.

Oliver James spent 9 months travelling through different cities and cultures, including Sydney, Singapore, Moscow, Copenhagen, New York and Shanghai. In each place he interviewed several groups of people to discover why do so many more people want what they haven’t got and want to be someone they’re not, despite being richer and freer from traditional restraints. And, in so doing, James uncovers the answer to how to reconnect with what really matters and learn to value what you’ve already got. In other words, how to be successful and stay sane.

I never finished the book, because it does get dry and repetitive (only 3 stars on Amazon) but it explains and captures the Affluenza phenomena really well, and definitely changed my perspective alot in recent months about what would really make me happy.

Secret #4: Think Simply.

“I want to be able to explain my mistakes. This means I do only the things I completely understand.” — Warren Buffett

I have found that sometimes I do overcomplicate matters, and make things alot more complex than they really are. Sometimes the solutions are so simple and right in front of us, but we go about things in such a roundabout way. Keep your thoughts simple and it will keep your life simple.

If you apply this rule in your life, you can develop clarity and sanity in your thoughts. Life is about simple yet profound choices.

Secret #5: Invest Simply.

“The best way to own common stocks is through an index fund.” — Warren Buffett

I hate investing. I never considered myself a very good investor when it comes to stocks and shares. I am pretty good at investing in businesses and my own ventures, but when it comes to investing in stocks and shares, I often result in massive losses.

The truth is, I probably overcomplicated things. For example, about a year ago, I was recommended to a professional investment manager. I thought I’d give it a try, with very small amount per month. The following is a sample of the portfolio which I invested in: UK Growth Fund C, UK Equity Income Fund C, UK FTSE All Share Index Tracking Fund C, European Fund C, Smaller Companies Fund C… split into something like 20%, 15%, 15%, 25%, 25% or something retarded like that.

In all that time, when I lost over 50% of my investments, if I had just studied the market, Gold and Oil would have been easily spotted as winners. And those 2 simple investments alone, I would have made a nice bunch.

So I guess the lesson is: Often, the simplest route to investing will bring you the most riches, and the most happiness.

Secret #6: Have the right friends and mentors in life.

“I was lucky to have the right heroes. Tell me who your heroes are and I’ll tell you how you’ll turn out to be. The qualities of the one you admire are the traits that you, with a little practice, can make your own, and that, if practiced, will become habit-forming.” — Warren Buffett

One of my favorite sayings this year is ‘The top people you surround yourself with define who you are’. This has probably been the biggest lesson to me. It took a long time to drill into my head. My social circle have changed drastically in the past couple of years. I came to realise that having the right friends and mentors are as important as having purpose in your life. Having the wrong influences and mentors are as devasting as having a wrong purpose in your life. I owe alot of changes and transformations in both my mindset and
skillset in recent months to some people that I truly consider as my heroes.

But it was not always like this. For a while in my life, I was surrounded by the ‘wrong’ people and I didn’t even know it. In the process, I unfortunately was so emotionally invested and somewhat codependent on these relationships that I kept trying to grasp onto them. The truth was, actions speak for themselves. It’s a waste of my time to even delve into this any further. All I know is that if I don’t let go, history will just keep repeating itself. Loyalty to friends is a big deal to me, and in this case, I could not justify it anymore.

Secret #7: Making money isn’t the backbone of your guiding purpose; making money is the by-product of your guiding purpose.

“If you’re doing something you love, you’re more likely to put your all into it, and that generally equates to making money.” — Warren Buffett

I’m still really defining my ‘purpose’. I have a pretty good idea now, and the motivation surprisingly isn’t purely money. I must admit that at one point, it was strongly so. I truly believe in what I am about to do is going to change the world, and for the better. And that in itself drives me. I find myself almost talking about it on a daily basis now and I think people around me, especially my inner circle, can see how strongly it’s motivated me in the last year.

Also, when money is the main motivator, it makes it hard to find the courage, determination, and patience to push through. The truth is, making money is NEVER easy at the start. Its brutally difficult and requires will power, risk taking, courage and determination. And alot of patience.

Hence don’t focus on the money, but on enjoying the process. I love what I do now, and actually enjoy it. I get paid in return for my knowledge, skills and ideas. I hope it stays that way, and money never become the object and end all of your motivation.

If you like this post, please leave a comment, digg it, twitter it or stumbleupon it! :)

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Not only is Jared a great guy and a mentor of sorts, but he’s a very successful one at that with a very varied life.

I look up to Jared as a great role model, both in terms of his success with business, and as both  a great husband and father.

In fact, beyond our similar interests in business ventures, Jared inspires me in many ways to be a better man.

So we were recently talking about spending money, when he said something that really stuck with me.

‘I invest in myself,’ Jared said.

I thought about this for a while, and ended up thinking about it for days on end.

“Do I invest in myself?” I pondered.

Of course I do, I thought.

I spend money on stuff that I think improves my quality of life.

But as I thought more and more about what I’ve spent my money on in the last year, I must admit…. it was not pretty.

5 Things I’ve Spent most of my money on in 2008

1. A 37″ Samsung Widescreen LCD TV
2. Multiple flights for trip abroad, including one business class ticket to Asia
3. A holiday to the Carribean
4. Minimally 4 star hotels
5. Other hobbies and vices that yield very little return in the long term

As I wrote them down (now), I am sat here, shaking my head.

Talk about countless hours wasted on watching movies and TV shows on my huge TV, which I could have spent to develop my business instead, or in building relationships.

And business class flights? I know at least 3 multi-millionaires who fly economy.

And expensive hotels… for the 8 hours I sleep in it, is it really worth it?  And of course, we all have vices, but not alot in return for the initial ‘investment’.

All this cash spent could have instead been used to invest in my business and in growing it.

But I don’t do it.

In fact, when I start spending money on things that yields me good long term returns, I even occasionally get ANGRY or FRUSTRATED.

Why We Don’t Like To Invest In Ourselves

My suspicion is that I am simply too focused on looking for INSTANT GRATIFICATION.

For example, I spent over $500 in meals in 5 days recently in the USA.

I was pretty pissed off about it.   I mean, $500 in 5 days on FOOD?  That’s retarded.

(Then another $300-$500 in gifts… but we won’t even go there.)

But the reality was…. it was a investment long term.

Mostly, taking people who have helped me better my life out for meals.  People who have invested in me, and my success and future.

And to me, the value I am getting from these relationships is worth alot more than the $500 or so I spent on taking them out for a nice meal or two.

On the other hand, I probably spent $1,000+ on my TV (even thought it was on sale!), and further ridiculous sums of money on other stuff that yield little return.  And I do so without blinking an eye.

Why?

I think the human brain evolved over decades, to look for a way that gives us INSTANT PLEASURE.

It doesn’t help that we live in an information age.

It must be some weird survival mechanism.

But truth is, I know it’s something I have to work on.  To change my habits and patterns, and to rewire my thinking.

Tony Robbins Says…

I was listening to Tony Robbins yesterday, and he said that WE create how we feel.

The idea is that we feel certain ways to protect our core identity.

Instead of blaming ourselves, we curse everything around us as the fault.

For example, I recently lost a $300+ camera.

I blamed it on the maid.  For stealing my camera with all my pics.  Because my roomie and I were certain it was still in the room.

I blamed it on the Sheraton LAX.  For being the worst hotel I’ve ever stayed in.  Let me underline that.  They gave us a room initially with a WET carpet, billed us 3x in the first 24 hours for internet access, lost an important package delivered to me, and of course… my camera!

See, I’m doing it again.

Truth is, it’s MY fault.  I LEFT the camera in the room.

Period.

(but I will add: the Sheraton LAX IS in fact the worst hotel I’ve ever stayed in.  I will underline that again!  Hotel management promised to get back to me on my camera despite numerous calls and leaving my email and they never did.  So I hope this post gets backlined to the top of Google.  How you like ‘em apples now, biatches?).

What I also discovered, was that when I had myself stuck to that mindset, all kinds of bad shit started happening.

I’m normally quite a happy, chilled out sort of guy, and things come pretty naturally to me.  I won’t go into the following 48 hours, but let’s just say it made me realise that I must in some way be responsible for causing all that was happening around me.

As soon as I STOPPED and interrupted my state, and immediately changed my PHYSIOLOGY and my THINKING, life was good again.

It’s still not going to make me feel any better, but at least by taking responsibility for something I did, and MOVING ON, it freed some weird ‘law of attraction’ type thing going on.

I digress.  Going back to the point of his post….

INVEST IN YOURSELF

Writing all this down, I realise there’s a few shifts in habits that will have to occur in order for me to change.

I’m getting there slowly.  Before I travelled out here, I’ve sold my LCD TV.  It was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done.  I mentioned this in my list of ‘25 things you may not know about me‘.

Right now, I’m here in Panama, on a ticket that costed under $280 round trip.  And while I’m having a good time, the trip is actually mostly work/business related, so I’m getting some stuff done, too.

I’m also going to start focusing on hobbies that actually give me better investment returns.  Skills and assets that no one else can take away from me.

And here’s a list of a few things that I think I can focus on redirecting my money, time  and energy towards this year.

5 Things I plan to invest in this 2009:

1. My health: I whine and complain about a $50 gym membership.  But the outcome is to have an amazing physique.  And I know it’s possible to achieve this in under 6 months.  It’ll be around a $1k investment, along with good food/diet, and a membership.  But more importantly, it’s diverting one hour a day which I previously spent watching TV or doing something pointless to this.

2. A new skill: I recently obtained NLP/Hypnosis certification, and that made me feel really good (train with the BEST in the world: conversational-hypnosis.com) I have also always wanted to Sky Dive, or learn Scuba Diving.  I also want to learn Hip Hop or Boxing.  I also thought about starting to sing again, or do magic again.  I could start taking weekly lessons.  In fact, if I aim to get a certificate that allows me to teach these one day, it would be a great investment.  That’s what Jared is doing, and I know it’s a very smart and wise thing to do for many reasons.  It will be a steep learning curve, but certainly more intellectually stimulating that stupid hobbies and vices that yield little in return.

3. My business:  I’m already well on my way to being a minimalist, and selling stuff.  I even changed my blog design to reflect that minimalist feel (if you haven’t noticed!).  In terms of my business, I will focus on long term growth vs short term cash.  However, the past few months have been pretty great, and I am excited by where this is all going.

4. Relationships:  I am lucky to have some amazing friends and mentors, and I should continue to embrace this and invest in the synergistic relationship.  My girlfriend has also been so amazing to support me through thick and thin.  I hope to continue to be able to contribute to these relationships for as long as they last, and return the value I have been given many times over.

5. A new language: I am well on my way to learning my 5th language now, Spanish.  I previously thought it would be expensive to have 1-1 lessons, but if I can locate a good teacher that can get me up to speed in 20-30 hours / week during my next 4 weeks here in Panama to being close to basic conversational fluency, then I think it would be worth every penny.

Feel free to share yours in the comments below.

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