Charlie Munger's discussions on 'patience' throughout his life are very classic, concise, and sharp. Below are his representative remarks and core ideas on 'patience in investing,' organized in the form of 'original quote + background + meaning' for your reference or study:
🧠 1. Representative quote (original sentence)
“The big money is not in the buying or the selling, but in the waiting.”
“The real big money is not in the action of buying or selling, but in holding and waiting.”
📍Source: Munger mentioned this multiple times at Berkshire's shareholder meetings (especially in the 1990s and 2000s).
📘Meaning:
The market often rewards those who hold quality assets for the long term, rather than those who trade frequently. Most investors 'know' to buy good companies, but few can resist the urge to 'act.'
“It’s waiting that helps you as an investor, and a lot of people just can’t stand to wait.”
“Waiting is the investor's friend, yet many people just can't stand to wait.”
📍Source: 2003 USC Speech.
📘Meaning:
Most people know that 'time compounding' is key, yet they give up prematurely during emotional fluctuations. Munger believes patience is a combination of IQ and emotional control.
“You don’t make money when you buy stocks. And you don’t make money when you sell them. You make money by waiting.”
“You don’t make money when you buy stocks, nor do you make money when you sell them, but you make money during the holding period.”
📘Meaning:
The core is about 'business value growth' during this period, not the fluctuations of market quotes. Munger emphasizes that time is a friend of value realization.
“The world is full of foolish gamblers, and they will not do as well as the patient investor.”
“The world is full of foolish gamblers, and they will not do as well as the patient investor.”
📍Source: 2021 (Daily Journal) Shareholder Meeting.
📘Meaning:
Most people in the market are tempted by 'quick money.' Munger believes that investment success is more like a practice of countering human nature—maintaining restraint and not being driven by greed.
“Waiting helps you as an investor if you wait for the right deal.”
“If you can wait for the truly right opportunity, then waiting is the best weapon for an investor.”
📍Source: 2000 Berkshire Shareholder Meeting.
📘Meaning:
Not only is 'holding requires patience,' but it also emphasizes 'buying requires patience'—Munger and Buffett often say 'when opportunities arise, pounce like a hungry tiger, but most of the time, you need to sit on your hands.'
“A great business at a fair price is superior to a fair business at a great price.”
“Buying great companies at a reasonable price is better than buying mediocre companies at a very low price.”
（Although it doesn't directly talk about 'patience', it reflects the idea of 'waiting for quality opportunities.'）
📘Meaning:
Be patient and wait for 'great companies' to appear, rather than being tempted by 'cheap goods' in the market.
🪴 II. Summary of Munger's Patience Philosophy
Munger's perspective reveals that time compounding relies on time, not on actions. 'Less action, long-term' is the core strategy. Emotional patience comes from emotional control. Investment success is more of a psychological battle. Choose quality over quantity, wait for the 'fat pitch,' and don't act frequently. Understand the growth cycle of businesses and how they realize their potential. Stay unaffected by market emotions, detach from noise, and befriend time.
💡 Munger's 'Patience Quotes' Selected (Short Version in Chinese)
“The market transfers money from the impatient to the patient.”
“Less action leads to wealth.”
“Waiting is the hardest skill to learn in investing, yet it is the most rewarding.”
“Investing is not a game of daily actions, but a game of making a few significant decisions when the timing is right.”
“We earn money by waiting, not by being busy.”