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My First MillionInside Warren Buffett’s Inner Circle: How The Elite Think
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CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 5:41
The Posse: A Buffett-Obsessed Investor Study Group
Shaan Puri asks Guy Spier about The Posse. Spier explains how Whitney Tilson brought together a small group of Buffett-fascinated investors who met regularly to present written stock ideas. He says the unstructured conversations, like Bill Ackman talking about MBIA, were as valuable as the structured parts.
- •Whitney Tilson, a master networker, assembled five or six investors fascinated by Warren Buffett
- •Each meeting featured one member presenting a written stock idea that was handed out and discussed in depth
- •Members shared notes from conference calls, since transcripts weren't available then
- •The unstructured remarks, like Ackman on the asymmetry of MBIA credit default swaps, were the real value
- •Spier hadn't grasped the power of such groups until Mohnish Pabrai talked about forums
- 5:41 – 15:21
The Farmer Mac Story: Bill Ackman Challenges Spier's Thesis
Spier explains how he reasoned from Buffett's Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae holdings to Farmer Mac and presented it to the Posse. Bill Ackman, who had taken a large short, showed him the filings Spier hadn't read. Spier sold the same day and describes the management meeting that followed.
- •Spier reverse-engineered successful investors, looking for businesses similar to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae
- •Ackman argued Farmer Mac's securities held few, large loans, making it business lending rather than true mortgage-backed securities
- •Spier admits he took the company at its word and hadn't downloaded the filings
- •He sold by the end of the day and later shorted the stock, one of three shorts in his life
- •At the management meeting, the CEO answered Ackman's questions weakly by suggesting it might not be the right investment for him
- 15:21 – 18:30
Going Deep and the Generosity of the Best
Shaan shares a story of a mentor who audited his e-commerce site by using it as a customer before their meeting. Spier responds that this was a remarkable act of generosity, and Shaan lists the lessons that top people go straight to the source.
- •Shaan's mentor used the product as a customer and produced a two-page tactical doc before the call
- •The best people drill into the actual product mechanism instead of discussing in the abstract
- •Spier calls it an extraordinary act of generosity, giving the best of his brain with no agenda
- •Spier notes many people who know a lot don't have or make the time to help
- 18:30 – 29:40
Tony Robbins Seminars and Rewiring Himself
Shaan asks about Tony Robbins, and the two compare how many seminars they've attended. Spier describes his first seminar, the fire walk, and how it pushed him to change at a time when his earlier routines weren't working. He gives examples of rewiring, such as dropping his arrogance and learning Dale Carnegie's lesson about names.
- •Spier has done eight or nine Robbins seminars; Shaan has done two or three UPWs and devoured older material
- •The fire walk metaphor of psychology and physiology made Spier stay for the rest of the weekend
- •He says he was bitter and stuck in his ways, and needed a powerful kick to change
- •He had to unlearn thinking he was smarter than others and dismissing people
- •He learned Dale Carnegie's point about remembering names and practiced reciprocation, like handing out sweets
- 29:40 – 37:26
Handwritten Notes and Doing Before Feeling
Shaan recounts Spier's Gordon Gekko-wannabe past and asks about the handwritten notes. Spier explains he committed to writing three notes a day after reading Cialdini's car salesman story. Writing the notes made him care more, and Shaan ties this to Robbins' red-and-blue exercise and his own gratitude practice.
- •Spier's Cialdini-inspired goal of about 1,000 notes a year came from desperation and a willingness to look foolish
- •He says that if you're going to fail, you should fail by showing up fully
- •Writing notes made him genuinely care about the recipients: do it and you'll feel it later
- •Shaan explains the reticular activating system with the red-and-blue exercise and a nightly three-gratitudes habit
- •Spier says interns he asked to try it never followed through
- 37:26 – 42:46
Buffett's Holiday Card and Small Gestures from Kobe
Spier shows a framed holiday card from Warren Buffett personalized with a note about his 2010 report. He explains how it shows Buffett understanding reciprocation. Shaan responds with Kobe Bryant stories about remembering small details about people.
- •The 2011 card had a handwritten note: 'I enjoyed your 2010 report'
- •Spier sees Buffett's card as a time-efficient equivalent of handing out sweets
- •Shaan mentions Jesse Itzler also writes thousands of cards
- •Kobe reportedly called a trainer's mom on her birthday and remembered a 'volume shooter' joke
- •Spier says to make such practices your own rather than follow his formula
- 42:46 – 45:59
Don't Study Lottery Winners: Avoiding Big Losses
Asked about his quote on investing being like a drunk in a bar, Spier uses a bowling analogy: keep the ball out of the gutters rather than aim for the strike. He argues that success is full of luck, citing Taleb's Fooled by Randomness and the coin-flip example.
- •Avoiding massive losses matters more than picking winners
- •Many celebrated winners were lottery winners in the right place at the right time
- •Even lottery winners believe they influenced their success, as in coin-flip studies
- •Spier asks how to set up your life so you do well no matter the randomness
- 45:59 – 1:00:04
Immersing in Buffett: Annual Reports, Modeling, and Pilgrimage
Spier explains that ordering Buffett's annual reports came from desperation at DH Blair, and that it showed him companies like Coca-Cola drowning in cash. He describes modeling a mentor, asking what Buffett would do in his shoes, the two gas stations parable, and his annual Berkshire pilgrimage and run-in with Buffett.
- •Reading annual reports of companies Buffett owned exposed him to outlier businesses
- •Modeling is deeply human; ask what a mentor would do in your shoes
- •The two gas stations story: the other guy sees what works and doesn't copy it
- •Spier took from Mohnish Pabrai the idea of building engines and not wasting time on prospects
- •He bumped into Buffett in a restroom at the annual meeting
- 1:00:04 – 1:02:22
Berkshire vs. the Index: Investing and Your Own Behavior
Shaan asks why anyone would buy anything other than Berkshire. Spier says owning Berkshire and attending the meeting keeps him connected for the long haul. He says the question is what an investment does to you as a person, and he calls the index impersonal.
- •Spier holds Berkshire B shares in his fund; Berkshire charges no management fee or carry
- •Connected shareholders are more likely to stay in for the long haul
- •Investments shape the environment and behavior of the investor
- •Shorting Farmer Mac left him feeling twisted inside, whereas Berkshire strengthens his internal wiring
- •He says the impersonal index can manipulate you into bad decisions
- 1:02:22 – 1:10:39
Underperformance and the Infinite Game
Shaan notes Spier's performance has beaten the S&P by about 80 basis points net over 25-plus years but lagged recently, and asks about managing psychology. Spier says he can't know it isn't luck and must focus on compounding. He explains finite versus infinite games and says investing and life are infinite games.
- •Spier's outperformance is about 80 basis points net since inception, with roughly seven or eight years of underperformance
- •A Google engineer asked how he knows it isn't luck; his answer was that he doesn't
- •He won't jeopardize compounding to beat the index
- •Finite games have rules and an end; infinite games like the Cold War have none
- •Fewer than 2% of funds from when he started still exist, many due to implosions
- 1:10:39 – 1:14:08
Playing Your Own Game: 'Just This Once' and a World of Watchmakers
Shaan describes how he stepped away from Silicon Valley's win-big mentality. Spier shares a decision filter: ask what happens if you did this every time, and what the world would look like if everyone did it. They discuss a world of craftspeople versus Zucks and Musks, and Shaan notes the world needs both.
- •Shaan says his life improved when he asked which game he wanted to play and deprogrammed from media
- •Spier's filter is to imagine repeating the same action in the same circumstances for the rest of his life
- •He calls 'never fall for just this once' part of Buffett's wisdom
- •Spier imagines a world where people are watchmakers or novelists instead of empire builders
- •Shaan says the ecosystem also needs people like Elon, and the key is finding a satisfying life for yourself
- 1:14:08 – 1:18:25
Reading Recommendations: Be a Promiscuous Reader
Asked for the best essays to read, Spier first names the Buffett letters, annual meeting transcripts, and Poor Charlie's Almanack. His more important answer is to sample about twenty books and drop whatever isn't working. Shaan closes with the cocktail party library metaphor and praise for Spier's reputation.
- •Spier points to Buffett letters, annual meeting recordings, and Poor Charlie's Almanack
- •He says he can't tell anyone what to read because everyone's brain is different
- •Sample around 20 books and put down those that aren't getting you somewhere
- •He treats his library like a cocktail party, moving on when it gets boring
- •Shaan says people hold Spier in high regard and that reputation is what people say when you're not in the room
