Question 149: Are my friends going in the
direction I would like to go?

Sunday, October 11th, 2026

In 1959, Warren Buffett was already a successful investor. He had learned to search for deeply discounted companies—businesses he later compared to discarded cigar butts with one profitable puff left in them.

That year, an Omaha doctor introduced him to Charlie Munger. The two had grown up only a few hundred feet apart and had both worked at Buffett’s grandfather’s grocery store, yet they had never met. They immediately connected. But Munger did more than affirm Buffett’s thinking. He challenged it.

Munger kept pushing Buffett away from buying mediocre businesses simply because they were cheap. He believed the better path was to buy exceptional businesses at sensible prices. Buffett resisted. His existing strategy had already made him successful, and changing a proven approach is rarely comfortable.

Then came See’s Candies in 1972. Buffett hesitated at the $25 million price, but Munger recognized the value of its brand, loyal customers, and pricing power. They made the purchase. Decades later, Buffett credited See’s with teaching him lessons that opened the door to many of Berkshire Hathaway’s most successful investments. He also credited Munger with helping design the company Berkshire ultimately became.

The people closest to us do more than share our time. They influence what feels normal, what seems possible, and which weaknesses we are willing to confront.

Our friends do not need to share our exact destination. But their direction matters. Are they moving toward discipline, courage, generosity, and growth? Do they merely support who we are, or do they challenge us to become who we could be?

Sometimes the right friendship does more than accompany our journey. It changes our trajectory and expands the possibility of where we can go together.