Comments on: Mistakes that Warren Buffett Made in the First 25 Years http://www.intelligentinvestorclub.com/mistakes/mistakes-that-warren-buffett-made-in-the-first-25-years Value Investing Strategies of Warren Buffett and Benjamin Graham Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:26:44 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2 By: Martin Lee http://www.intelligentinvestorclub.com/mistakes/mistakes-that-warren-buffett-made-in-the-first-25-years#comment-21 Martin Lee Tue, 17 Oct 2006 06:29:53 +0000 http://www.intelligentinvestorclub.com/mistakes/mistakes-that-warren-buffett-made-in-the-first-25-years#comment-21 What happened to Pets.com? Excessive valuation? What happened to Pets.com? Excessive valuation?

]]> By: Warren Buffett Watcher http://www.intelligentinvestorclub.com/mistakes/mistakes-that-warren-buffett-made-in-the-first-25-years#comment-20 Warren Buffett Watcher Tue, 17 Oct 2006 03:21:49 +0000 http://www.intelligentinvestorclub.com/mistakes/mistakes-that-warren-buffett-made-in-the-first-25-years#comment-20 Some very good points here. One thing I take away from just about every Buffett speech is that shareholders are much better at steering a company towards profits than executives. <br/><br/>Execs just want to expand, expand, expand... and then spin-off some of those expansions. I think this is a form of business evolution, as the spin-offs create more executives. It's natural reproduction. It also tends to create a lot of businesses that have trouble making any "real" money. The real money has always been important for Buffett, not projected profits, which leads to wild speculation and things like Pets.com (I always pick on them, because they show how the markets can become irrational). Some very good points here. One thing I take away from just about every Buffett speech is that shareholders are much better at steering a company towards profits than executives.

Execs just want to expand, expand, expand… and then spin-off some of those expansions. I think this is a form of business evolution, as the spin-offs create more executives. It’s natural reproduction. It also tends to create a lot of businesses that have trouble making any “real” money. The real money has always been important for Buffett, not projected profits, which leads to wild speculation and things like Pets.com (I always pick on them, because they show how the markets can become irrational).

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