Warren Buffett, Elon Musk or Mark Cuban: Here's Who Americans Would Trust Most To Invest Their Money
A survey by Benzinga asked which of a handful of high-profile entrepreneurs the public would trust most to invest their life savings.
The results weren’t even close:
Warren Buffett: 58%
Mark Cuban: 11%
Elon Musk: 11%
Ray Dalio: 9%
Jamie Dimon: 6%
Cathie Wood: 3%
Bill Ackman: 2%
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For You: 11 Subtly Genius Things All Wealthy People Do With Their Money — That You Should Do, Too
Elon Musk is in many ways Buffett’s opposite, making huge bets on his own companies’ disruptive innovations and (literal) moonshots. "Shark Tank" investor Mark Cuban swims between Musk’s and Buffett’s two extremes, often investing relatively small amounts in startups while still keeping plenty of money in more stable companies.
But for many decades, Buffett has related simple, conservative investing wisdom to those aspiring to build wealth. Here’s a healthy dollop of that investing wisdom — which explains why the famously modest billionaire has resonated so well with so many for so long.
Prioritize Savings First
Robert Johnson, finance professor at Creighton University, referenced a simple Buffett quote about how most people get saving wrong: “Do not save what is left after spending; instead spend what is left after saving.”
Simple, but not necessarily easy. Most people would rather spend whatever they feel like, rather than only spending what’s leftover after they save and invest. Which is one reason why most people don’t build much wealth.
Invest In Yourself
Buffett pointed out that the economy can (and will) crash, that inflation will devalue your savings — but no one can take away your marketable skills: “Investing in yourself is the best thing you can do. Anything that improves your own talents; nobody can tax it or take it away from you.”
In fact, Inc. highlighted not just this Buffett quote but also quotes from Mark Cuban to the same effect. Both billionaires agree: Invest in yourself so you can confidently navigate whatever comes next.
Think and Invest Long Term
Buffett has made countless comments on the power of compounding, often using the analogy of rolling a snowball down a steep hill. Again, the advice is simple — start young, save and invest more, leave it invested to compound.
But most people don’t want to hear that. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos shared a story on Facebook about a time he asked Buffett why more people don’t copy his investment strategy. “He said ‘That’s easy. My approach is a get-rich-slowly scheme, and people don’t like those.’”
Don’t Time the Market
When the average investor reads headlines about how well the market is doing, they want to buy. When the market crashes, they want to sell. They let emotion drive them into trying to time the market, which is a fool’s strategy.
“We’ve long felt that the only value of stock forecasters is to make fortune tellers look good,” Buffett wrote in a 1992 letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders.
Instead, the Oracle of Omaha recommended dollar-cost averaging, investing steadily with every paycheck.
Don’t Pick Stocks or Chase Trends
That raises the question: What does Buffett recommend investing in with that money you pull out of each paycheck?
As usual, he offers simple advice for that too. Writing in a 2014 letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, he wrote about his instructions for managing his money if he dies before his wife: "My advice to the trustee could not be more simple: Put 10% of the cash in short-term government bonds and 90% in a very low-cost S&P 500 index fund.”
Simple — and in this case, also easy.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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