Becoming The Next Warren Buffett: Three Must Have Skills & Competencies For Investing

Warren Buffett, to you or I as adults, is a name that means everything in the world of investing. 

He’s a man worth $109.5 billion dollars… likely more money than you, your child, your grandchildren and their children will see in a lifetime. Right? 

BUT WAIT. 

That doesn’t have to be the case! For just 4 easy payments of $99.95 USD….

We’re just kidding. This isn’t an infomercial disguised as a blog.

What we are serious about though, is the fact that by no means is it impossible for your child – even if your own moment has come and gone – to become one of the next great young investors of our lifetime.

Now, you might be asking yourself: what is the first step you need to take with your child to put them on the right path towards becoming the next Warren Buffett? 

Understanding some core competencies and must-have skills for investing like one of the richest people in the world… because becoming a great investor begins with learning how to invest, getting comfortable with how to act like a great investor and mastering how to think like one too.

The first area of focus we want to touch on here is persistence. Investing takes just that, a serious investment of time, research, resources and willingness to “stick to it”. The best investors, at any age, are the ones that spend a significant amount of time and energy on research and take the time to truly understand how to invest before actually doing it. Persistence, either as a young investor or a seasoned veteran in the field, allows those that put in the required time and effort to become true experts of their chosen investment vehicles (whether that is day-trading or more long-term investments). Going into the world of investing with an existing understanding of what you are doing because you have been persistent with the time and energy such a task requires is more likely to pay big dividends in the long-term.

The next skill we believe you and your child must hone-in on is the art of delayed gratification. Delayed gratification is defined by Britannica as the “act of resisting an impulse to take an immediately available reward in the hope of obtaining a more-valued reward in the future”. Learning how to invest and actually becoming a top-notch investor requires us all to realize that rarely, if ever, do the best returns come right away. In other words, delayed gratification is important as an investor because you learn to exercise patience in the short-term to experience the best rewards and success in the long-run. Patience is key in the world of investing, and delayed gratification is an important part of that process. 

The final core competency we want to address here is the general idea of becoming financially literate. Financial literacy is, in a few words, what makes anyone understand what to do with their money. The more financially literate you are and you become before you delve into the world of investing, the more likely you are to be successful. 

Now, you’re probably wondering how we could possibly close out this blog on something so ambiguous. You know and understand that what we’re saying about becoming financially literate is important, but you don’t know what to do with that desire for understanding – for you or your child. 

Not to worry… we’re here to help. Explorer Hop provides widely-acclaimed programs on the topics of how to invest and how to trade among many other financial literacy topics that you and your child can experience together if you believe it’s the right time to provide your child with a jump-start in their path towards becoming a successful young investor! 

That’s it and that’s all for this blog, folks!