Warren Buffett's Timeless Advice Is To Invest In Stocks That 'You'd Be Perfectly Happy To Hold If The Market Shut Down For 10 Years'

Warren Buffett has been one of the most quoted people in finance for decades. His straightforward yet insightful advice is remarkably sought after. His often simple yet very effective ideas have helped countless investors better understand the market’s complexities, and all thanks to his decades of expertise and remarkable success.

Don't Miss:

One of Buffett's core pieces of advice to investors is this: "Only buy something that you'd be perfectly happy to hold if the market shut down for 10 years." This mantra emphasizes the importance of investing with a long-term perspective. This philosophy has helped him generate annualized returns of nearly 20% for Berkshire Hathaway shareholders from 1965 to 2023, compared to 10.2% for the S&P 500, according to Bankrate.

Trending: The global games market is projected to generate $272B by the end of the year — for $0.55/share, this VC-backed startup with a 7M+ userbase gives investors easy access to this asset market.

"I love it when the things we buy go down," Buffett once said. Why? Because then he can buy more of it, but this time, at a discount. Seeing red is a time to panic for everyone else, but for Buffett, it’s an opportunity. To him, a stock’s price action doesn’t determine whether it's worth owning – what matters is the company's future potential relative to its current price.

Buffett argues that investors today have a significant advantage over past business magnates like Andrew Carnegie or John Rockefeller. Unlike industry-locked tycoons, investors can quickly respond to emerging opportunities by rearranging their portfolios at essentially no expense. This flexibility is a huge advantage that allows investors to capitalize on changing market conditions and reallocate funds to the best opportunities available.

Trending: This Adobe-backed AI marketing startup went from a $5 to $85 million valuation working with brands like L'Oréal, Hasbro, and Sweetgreen in just three years – here's how there's an opportunity to invest at $1,000 for only $0.50/share today.

Buffett's investment philosophy, known as value investing , revolves around buying stocks trading for less than their intrinsic value. In reality, this simply means spotting great undervalued businesses and sticking with them until their real value becomes clear, i.e., the market finally recognizes them or they release a (new) service or product that puts them on the investor map.