Warren Buffett and his lifelong investing partner Charlie Munger are rarely interviewed together except in front of 30,000-plus shareholders at the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting in Omaha each spring.
So, my recent sit-down with the two investing legends was a special event.
The new issue of
Fortune
features Buffett, 83, and Munger, 89 and other super-successful duos who have thrived by sharing advice with one another over the years. Here’s an expanded piece of my interview that didn’t make it into the magazine. You don’t have to be a billionaire to understand that following this advice can lead to a truly successful life.
Buffett (about Munger): He’s given me a lot more advice than I’ve given him. He lives a very rational life. I’ve never heard him say a word that expressed envy of anyone. He doesn’t waste time on senseless emotions.
Munger: There’s an old saying, “What good is envy? It’s the one sin you can’t have any fun at.” It’s 100% destructive. Resentment is crazy. Revenge is crazy. Envy is crazy. If you get those things out of your life early, life works a lot better.
Buffett: It so clearly makes sense.
Munger: We’ve learned how to outsmart people who are clearly smarter [than we are.]
Buffett: Temperament is more important than IQ. You need reasonable intelligence, but you absolutely have to have the right temperament. Otherwise, something will snap you.
Munger: The other big secret is that we’re good at lifelong learning. Warren is better in his 70s and 80s, in many ways, that he was when he was younger. If you keep learning all the time, you have a wonderful advantage.
Watch Buffett sharing more wisdom–on investing, the economy, and life—here at the recent Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit in Washington, D.C.
And here’s the playlist of all the Fortune MPW Summit main-stage interviews, including IBM CEO Ginni Rometty, Lockheed Martin chief Marillyn Hewson, Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg–and my conversations with Tory Burch, Chelsea Clinton, Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, tennis legend Martina Navratilova, and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer.