THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK
DRIVEN BY MEANING
May 5, 2017
This weekend we’ll head to Omaha for the annual Berkshire Hathaway meeting. It’s part trade
show, part revival, and a little bit of circus. You can webcast it now, or read any of the
thousands of notes posted on the web. No “inside” information will be shared. And yet
~35,000 will probably make the trek to attend.
Why do they do it? Most annual meetings are dull and sparsely attended. And those are the
ones headed up by 50 and 60 year olds. Buffett is 86 and worth ~$75 billion. Munger is 93 and
worth ~$1.4 billion. Yet they sit on stage for about 6 hours, taking unscripted questions from 3
members of the media, 3 members of the analyst community, and meeting attendees, in a
round robin fashion. Munger does eat an enormous amount of See’s Candy Peanut Brittle
while on stage. Perhaps sitting up there is an excuse to down a few boxes (which we’re pretty
sure he does). But seriously, why?
This question came to mind while reading an article about long distance running. Not just any
long distance running, but a 3,100 miler known as the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence
Race. The article, “the Spiritual Life of the Long-Distance Runner,” by Adam Alter, looks at why
someone would do this? It caught our attention.
First, we’ll get this out of the way. Apparently Sri Chinmoy is an Indian spiritualist with some
controversial baggage. So we’re not advocating for him – his name is just attached to this
particular race.
The race itself is beyond grueling. Not only long (3,100 miles), but in the runner’s case who is
profiled, Ashprihanal Aalto, his course is literally around the block – 5,649 times. It took him 40
days. The race is deliberately unpleasant. So why do it?
The runners are “deeply committed to intrinsic motives.” In fact, they have to explain their
motives in an application. “We make sure runners who apply aren’t self-involved,” says one of
the race directors. “We’re looking for runners who want to test themselves, and run the race
for a sense of harmony and balance.”
“It becomes an extended form of meditation,” says Trishul Cherns, 3 time racer. Another ultralong distance runner, Michael Bielik, says, “Even as I’m suffering, I recognize that I’m lucky to be
putting this on myself voluntarily.”
Psychologists distinguish motivation as extrinsic, such as money or rewards, or intrinsic, such as
well-being. They also identify two types of well-being: happiness, which is positive but often
momentary, and meaningfulness, the sense that “life has broad value and purpose.” And they
are not always the same. A 2013 study of nearly 400 adults found that “people report negative
events and personal struggles that are unhappy moments but make life more meaningful. The
key difference is that, while happiness is present-focused, meaningfulness looks forward; it
drives people to persevere through unpleasantness in the hope of grander rewards in the
distant future.”
To Alter, the author, it’s also possible that people attracted to “run 3,100 mile races are
trapped in a feedback loop.” They’re fundamentally driven to achieve goals and do it “because
it’s there.” Psychologists even have a term for it, escalation trap, starting out with a 5 miler,
then 10, then a marathon, and just not being able to stop. Or maybe these people have
different dispositions, seeking “extreme sensation of elation, exhaustion, and suffering.”
So how is this analogous to the Berkshire meeting? Because we think Buffett and Munger have
built an organization over 52 years that is driven by meaning. Buffett reads something like 500
pages a day. Munger is referred to by his children as a, “book with legs.” With no psychological
training, Munger wrote one of the best pieces on psychology you may ever read, “Psychology of
Human Misjudgment.” Neither exhibit Montgomery Burns- like tendencies. They have taken
the long view, like an ultra-marathoner, and built a business that is ethical and rewarding, for
owners and employees alike. And they keep going, well after most people have gone off to do
something they really wanted to do. It’s not about the money.
And so they host the annual meeting, which would be grueling on a 30 year old let alone two
men with a combined age of 179. They host it to share some of the meaning they’ve been
after. And to help perpetuate that meaning once they are gone.
As usual we’ll report back with some of our own notes and thoughts from the meeting in a
couple of weeks.
Enjoy your reading and your weekend.
Mike, Scott, Zack, Cate, Marina, Julia
Mike Burbank, Managing Director
Private Wealth Advisor
Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management
555 California Street, 14th Floor | San Francisco, CA 94104
Office: 415 576 3131
[email protected]
Scott Hafeli, CFA
Private Wealth Advisor
Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management
th
555 California Street, 14 Floor | San Francisco, CA 94104
Office: 415 576 3132
[email protected]
Zack Schiller, CFP
Private Wealth Advisor
Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management
th
555 California Street, 14 Floor | San Francisco, CA 94104
Office: 415 576 3109
[email protected]
Source:
“The Spiritual Life of the Long-Distance Runner,” Adam Alter, The New Yorker, 12/14/2015
http://www.newyorker.com/news/sporting-scene/spiritual-life-long-distance-runner
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