At the 1999 Berkshire meeting, someone asked him directly: "How do I make $30 billion?" His answer was like a summary of his entire investment philosophy. Three rules that remain valid 25 years later:

1. Circle of Competence (Stick to What You Know)

Buffett doesn't chase every opportunity; he only invests in businesses where he can assess the long-term future. He likes the quote by IBM founder Watson: "I'm no genius; I'm smart in spots—but I stay around those spots." However, understanding a business doesn't eliminate risk. He warned in 2020: when you buy a stock, you must be prepared for it to drop 50% or more, and if you are comfortable with the position, you must be at peace with that volatility.

2. Start Early (The Snowball Effect)

Buffett bought his first stock at age 11. The secret to his wealth is this long runway: "We started rolling this little snowball at the top of a very long hill. Compound interest acts just like a snowball." The numbers speak for themselves: in 1999, at around age 70, his net worth was $30 billion. Today, it is roughly five times that—$150 billion. The lesson isn't just to start as a child; it's that the earlier you put your money to work, the more time you give compounding to do its magic.

3. Look at Small Companies

He is surprisingly clear about where he would look if he were starting with $10,000: "I would probably focus on small companies, because I’d be working with small amounts of capital, and there’s a higher likelihood of finding something overlooked in that space." His own history confirms this: he acquired Nebraska Furniture Mart in 1983, just as it was beginning to expand beyond the state. He had purchased See's Candies a decade earlier, when the company was generating $4 million in annual profit. Of course, spotting a missed opportunity is easy in hindsight. Today, anyone looking at the same business still has to research the company and decide whether the price is justified by its future prospects.