Warren Buffett is a firm believer that successful investing doesn’t require predicting the stock market’s next move. In fact, he openly admits he has no idea what the market will do in the short term. “We haven’t the faintest idea what the stock market is going to do when it opens on Monday,” he once said.
Speaking at Berkshire Hathaway’s 2022 Annual Meeting, Buffett reflected on how he missed opportunities during the COVID-19 market crash in March 2020. “We have not been good at timing,” he acknowledged. “We’ve been reasonably good at figuring out when we were getting enough for our money.”
For Buffett, the key isn’t timing—it’s value. He focuses on buying stocks when they’re undervalued and holding them for the long term. “That’s stuff you can learn in fourth grade,” he said. “But it’s not what’s taught in school.”
His approach is simple but powerful: don’t try to guess the market. Instead, look for businesses you understand, assess their true worth, and buy when the price is right.
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© 2025 David Mazor
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.