“我将安静下来”：巴菲特的最后一封信，是写给所有普通人的温柔告别

数字游民(digital nomad）是指在去中心化浪潮推动之下，依靠互联网完成工作和创收，而不受工作地点束缚的人群。

巴菲特告别信原文 To My Fellow Shareholders:

致我的股东们：

I will no longer be writing Berkshire's annual report or talking endlessly at the annual meeting. As the British would say, I'm "going quiet."

我将不再撰写伯克希尔的年度报告，也不会在股东大会上长篇大论。用英国人的说法，我要"安静下来了"。

    Sort of.

算是吧。

Greg Abel will become the boss at yearend. He is a great manager, a tireless worker and an honest communicator. Wish him an extended tenure.

格雷格·阿贝尔（Greg Abel）将在今年年底成为公司的负责人。他是一位出色的管理者、不知疲倦的工作者，也是一个坦诚的沟通者。祝他任期长久。

I will continue talking to you and my children about Berkshire via my annual Thanksgiving message. Berkshire's individual shareholders are a very special group who are unusually generous in sharing their gains with others less fortunate. I enjoy the chance to keep in touch with you. Indulge me this year as I first reminisce a bit. After that, I will discuss the plans for distribution of my Berkshire shares. Finally, I will offer a few business and personal observations.

我将通过每年的感恩节信继续与你们以及我的孩子们谈论伯克希尔。伯克希尔的个人股东是一群非常特别的人，他们慷慨地与那些不如自己幸运的人分享收益。我很享受与大家保持联系的机会。今年，请容我先回忆一点往事，然后谈谈我对伯克希尔股份分配的计划，最后再说一些关于商业与人生的想法。

As Thanksgiving approaches, I'm grateful and surprised by my luck in being alive at 95. When I was young, this outcome did not look like a good bet. Early on, I nearly died.

随着感恩节临近，我心怀感激，也惊讶于自己95岁还能健在的好运。在我年轻时，这种结果可不是个"好赔率"。事实上，我差点在很早的时候就死去。

It was 1938 and Omaha hospitals were then thought of by its citizens as either Catholic or Protestant, a classification that seemed natural at the time.

那是1938年，当时奥马哈的医院在人们眼里要么是天主教的，要么是新教的——这种划分在当时看来再自然不过。

Our family doctor, Harley Hotz, was a friendly Catholic who made house calls toting a black bag. Dr. Hotz called me Skipper and never charged much for his visits. When I experienced a bad bellyache in 1938, Dr. Hotz came by and, after probing a bit, told me I would be OK in the morning.

我们的家庭医生哈利·霍茨（Harley Hotz）是一位友善的天主教徒，他总是拎着个黑包上门出诊。霍茨医生叫我"小船长"，从不收太多诊费。1938年，我得了严重的腹痛，霍茨医生来看过后，摸了摸肚子，说我第二天早上就会没事。

He then went home, had dinner and played a little bridge. Dr. Hotz couldn't, however, get my somewhat peculiar symptoms out of his mind and later that night he dispatched me to St. Catherine's Hospital for an emergency appendectomy.

他回家吃了晚饭，还打了一会桥牌。但那晚，霍茨医生始终放心不下我那有点奇怪的症状，最终决定把我送去圣凯瑟琳医院（St. Catherine's Hospital）做紧急阑尾手术。

During the next three weeks, I felt like I was in a nunnery, and began enjoying my new "podium." I liked to talk – yes, even then – and the nuns embraced me.

接下来的三周，我就像住在修道院里一样，甚至开始享受起"讲坛"的感觉。我喜欢讲话——是的，即使那时候——修女们也很喜欢听我说。

To top things off, Miss Madsen, my third-grade teacher, told my 30 classmates to each write me a letter. I probably threw away the letters from the boys but read and reread those from the girls; hospitalization had its rewards.

更妙的是，我的三年级老师马德森小姐（Miss Madsen）让全班30个同学每人给我写一封信。我大概把男生的信都扔了，但把女生的信读了一遍又一遍；住院有时候也有"收获"。

The highlight of my recovery – which actually was dicey for much of the first week – was a gift from my wonderful Aunt Edie. She brought me a very professional-looking fingerprinting set, and I promptly fingerprinted all of my attending nuns. (I was probably the first Protestant kid they had seen at St. Catherine's and they didn't know what to expect.)

我康复期间最难忘的一刻——那第一周其实险象环生——是我亲爱的姨妈艾迪（Aunt Edie）送给我的礼物。那是一套看起来非常专业的指纹采集工具。我立刻给照顾我的所有修女都按上了指纹。（我可能是圣凯瑟琳医院见过的第一个新教小孩，她们对我也颇为好奇。）

My theory – totally nutty, of course – was that someday a nun would go bad and the FBI would find that they had neglected to fingerprint nuns. The FBI and its director, J. Edgar Hoover, had become revered by Americans in the 1930s, and I envisioned Mr. Hoover, himself, coming to Omaha to inspect my invaluable collection.

我当时的理论——当然非常荒唐——是：万一哪天有修女变坏了，而联邦调查局（FBI）发现他们竟然没采集修女的指纹，这时胡佛局长（J. Edgar Hoover）就会亲自来奥马哈查看我的珍贵收藏。

I further fantasized that J. Edgar and I would quickly identify and apprehend the wayward nun. National fame seemed certain.

我还幻想着胡佛和我会迅速破案，抓到那个误入歧途的修女。我将因此名扬全国。

Obviously, my fantasy never materialized. But, ironically, some years later it became clear that I should have fingerprinted J. Edgar himself as he became disgraced for misusing his post.

显然，这种幻想从未实现。但讽刺的是，几年后我才明白，我其实该给胡佛本人按指纹——他最终因滥用职权而身败名裂。

Well, that was Omaha in the 1930s, when a sled, a bicycle, a baseball glove and an electric train were coveted by me and my friends.

那就是上世纪三十年代的奥马哈——那时我和朋友们最渴望的东西，是雪橇、自行车、棒球手套，还有一列电动小火车。

Let's look at a few other kids from that era, who grew up very nearby and greatly influenced my life but of whom I was for long unaware.

接下来，让我讲讲那个年代几个也在附近长大的孩子——他们后来深刻影响了我的人生，而我当年对他们一无所知。

I'll begin with Charlie Munger, my best pal for 64 years. In the 1930s, Charlie lived a block away from the house I have owned and occupied since 1958.

先从查理·芒格（Charlie Munger）说起——我64年的挚友。上世纪三十年代，查理就住在离我现在这栋自1958年起居住的房子仅一个街区远的地方。

Early on, I missed befriending Charlie by a whisker. Charlie, 6⅔ years older than I, worked in the summer of 1940 at my grandfather's grocery store, earning $2 for a 10-hour day. (Thrift runs deep in Buffett blood.)

当年我几乎与他擦肩而过。查理比我大六岁多，1940年夏天，他在我祖父的杂货店打工，每天工作10小时赚2美元。（节俭的基因在巴菲特家族血液里流淌。）

The following year I did similar work at the store, but I never met Charlie until 1959 when he was 35 and I was 28.

第二年我也在那家店打过类似的工，但我们直到1959年才第一次见面，那时他35岁，我28岁。

After serving in World War II, Charlie graduated from Harvard Law and then moved permanently to California. Charlie, however, forever talked of his early years in Omaha as formative.

二战服役结束后，查理从哈佛法学院毕业，并永久定居加州。但他始终把早年在奥马哈的经历视作自己人生的成型期。

For more than 60 years, Charlie had a huge impact on me and could not have been a better teacher and protective "big brother." We had differences but never had an argument. "I told you so" was not in his vocabulary.

六十多年来，查理对我的影响极其深远，他是最好的老师，也是最保护人的"兄长"。我们有分歧，但从未吵过架。"我早就告诉你了"这句话从不在他的字典里。

In 1958, I bought my first and only home. Of course, it was in Omaha, located about two miles from where I grew up (loosely defined), less than two blocks from my in-laws, about six blocks from the Buffett grocery store and a 6–7-minute drive from the office building where I have worked for 64 years.

1958年，我买下了人生中第一套也是唯一一套房子。当然，它位于奥马哈，距离我成长的地方（大致范围）约两英里，离岳父母家不到两个街区，距巴菲特杂货店六个街区，离我工作了64年的办公室开车仅六七分钟。

Let's move on to another Omahan, Stan Lipsey. Stan sold the Omaha Sun Newspapers (weeklies) to Berkshire in 1968 and a decade later moved to Buffalo at my request.

接下来讲另一位奥马哈人——斯坦·利普西（Stan Lipsey）。1968年，斯坦将《奥马哈太阳报》（周刊）卖给伯克希尔。十年后，他应我的请求搬到了布法罗。

The Buffalo Evening News, owned by a Berkshire affiliate, was then locked in a battle to the death with its morning competitor who published Buffalo's only Sunday paper. And we were losing.

当时伯克希尔旗下的《布法罗晚报》（Buffalo Evening News）正与它的晨报竞争对手展开"你死我活"的报业大战——而我们正处于下风。

Stan eventually built our new Sunday product, and for some years our paper – formerly hemorrhaging cash – earned over 100% annually (pre-tax) on our $33 million investment. This was important money to Berkshire in the early 1980s.

最终，斯坦打造出我们的新周日报版，让那份原本血亏的报纸，在随后的几年中为我们3300万美元的投资带来年化超过100%的税前回报。这在上世纪80年代初对伯克希尔来说是一笔关键资金。

Stan grew up about five blocks from my home. One of Stan's neighbors was Walter Scott, Jr. Walter, you will remember, brought MidAmerican Energy to Berkshire in 1999.

斯坦从小住在离我家约五个街区的地方。他的邻居之一是沃尔特·斯科特二世（Walter Scott, Jr.）。你们应该记得，是他在1999年将中美能源公司（MidAmerican Energy）带入了伯克希尔。

He was also a valued Berkshire director until his death in 2021 and a very close friend. Walter was Nebraska's philanthropic leader for decades and both Omaha and the state carries his imprint.

他一直是伯克希尔的重要董事，直至2021年去世，也是我非常亲近的朋友。沃尔特几十年来都是内布拉斯加州慈善事业的领军人物，他的印记留在奥马哈，也留在整个州。

Walter attended Benson High School, which I was scheduled to attend as well – until my dad surprised everyone in 1942 by beating a four-term incumbent in a Congressional race. Life is full of surprises.

沃尔特就读于本森高中（Benson High School），我原本也该上那所学校——直到我父亲在1942年意外击败一位连任四届的国会议员，赢得选举。人生充满惊喜。

Wait, there's more.

等等，还有更多故事。

In 1959, Don Keough and his young family lived in a home located directly across the street from my house and about 100 yards away from where the Munger family had lived.

1959年，唐·基欧（Don Keough）和他年轻的家人住在我家对面，离芒格一家住过的地方不到100码。

Don was then a coffee salesman but was destined to become president of Coca-Cola as well as a devoted director of Berkshire.

那时，唐还是个卖咖啡的推销员，却注定后来会成为可口可乐（Coca-Cola）的总裁，以及伯克希尔最忠诚的董事之一。

When I met Don, he was earning $12,000 a year while he and his wife Mickie were raising five children, all destined for Catholic schools (with tuition requirements).

我认识唐时，他年薪1.2万美元，他和妻子米奇（Mickie）正在抚养五个孩子——都得上天主教学校，还要交学费。

Our families became fast friends. Don came from a farm in northwest Iowa and graduated from Omaha's Creighton University. Early on, he married Mickie, an Omaha girl. After joining Coke, Don went on to become legendary around the globe.

我们两家很快成了朋友。唐来自爱荷华州西北部的一个农场，毕业于奥马哈的克瑞顿大学（Creighton University）。他早早娶了奥马哈女孩米奇，后来加入可口可乐公司，成为享誉全球的传奇人物。

In 1985, when Don was president of Coke, the company launched its ill-fated New Coke.

1985年，当唐·基欧（Don Keough）担任可口可乐总裁时，公司推出了命运多舛的"新可乐"（New Coke）。

Don made a famous speech in which he apologized to the public and reinstated "Old" Coke.

唐发表了一场著名的演讲，向公众道歉并宣布恢复"原版可口可乐"。

This change of heart took place after Don explained that Coke incoming mail addressed to "Supreme Idiot" was promptly delivered to his desk.

他的"改口"源于一件趣事：当时公司收到了大量寄给"超级白痴"的信件，而这些信全被送到了他的办公桌上。

His "withdrawal" speech is a classic and can be viewed on YouTube. He cheerfully acknowledged that, in truth, the Coca-Cola product belonged to the public and not to the company. Sales subsequently soared.

那场"撤回声明"的演讲如今已成经典，可在 YouTube 上观看。唐坦然承认：可口可乐真正属于公众，而不是公司。随后，销量迅速飙升。

You can watch Don on CharlieRose.com in a wonderful interview. (Tom Murphy and Kay Graham have a couple of gems as well.)

你可以在 CharlieRose.com 上看到他精彩的访谈。（汤姆·墨菲 和 凯·格雷厄姆 也各有几段珠玉。）

Like Charlie Munger, Don forever remained a Midwestern boy, enthusiastic, friendly and American to the core.

与查理·芒格一样，唐永远保持着中西部男孩的热情、友善与纯正的美国气质。

Finally, Ajit Jain, born and raised in India, as well as Greg Abel, our Canadian CEO-to-be, each lived in Omaha for several years late in the 20th Century.

最后，出生并成长于印度的 阿吉特·贾因（Ajit Jain） 以及我们的未来首席执行官 格雷格·阿贝尔（Greg Abel），都在 20 世纪末在 奥马哈 生活过几年。

Indeed, in the 1990s, Greg lived only a few blocks away from me on Farnam Street, though we never met at the time.

事实上，在 1990 年代，格雷格就住在离我家几个街区之外的 法纳姆街（Farnam Street），但当时我们从未见过。

Can it be that there is some magic ingredient in Omaha's water?

难道奥马哈的水里真的有某种神奇成分？

I lived a few teenage years in Washington, DC (when my dad was in Congress) and in 1954 I took what I thought would be a permanent job in Manhattan.

我在少年时期曾在华盛顿 DC 生活过几年（当时父亲是国会议员），1954 年我在曼哈顿找到了一份我以为会干一辈子的工作。

There I was treated wonderfully by Ben Graham and Jerry Newman and made many life-long friends. New York had unique assets – and still does.

在那里，我得到了 本·格雷厄姆 （Ben Graham）和 杰瑞·纽曼 （Jerry Newman） 的悉心指导，也结识了许多终生好友。纽约的独特魅力当时如此，如今亦然。

Nevertheless, in 1956, after only 1½ years, I returned to Omaha, never to wander again.

然而，1956 年，仅工作一年半后，我决定回到奥马哈，从此再未离开。

Subsequently, my three children, as well as several grandchildren, were raised in Omaha. My children always attended public schools (graduating from the same high school that educated my dad, my first wife Susie, as well as Charlie, Stan Lipsey, Irv and Ron Blumkin, and Jack Ringwalt, who founded National Indemnity and sold it to Berkshire in 1967).

此后，我的三个孩子和几个孙辈都在奥马哈长大。我的孩子们都上公立学校——那所学校也培养了我父亲（1921 届）、我已故妻子 苏茜 （1950 届）、查理·芒格、斯坦·利普西，以及 布鲁姆金兄弟（Nebraska Furniture Mart 的功臣），还有 杰克·林格沃尔特（Jack Ringwalt）——他创立了 National Indemnity，并在 1967 年卖给伯克希尔，成为我们保险帝国的基石。

Our country has many great companies, great schools, great medical facilities and each definitely has its own special advantages along with talented people.

这个国家有许多伟大的公司、学校和医疗机构，每一个都有自己的独特优势和杰出人才。

But I feel very lucky to have had the good fortune to make many lifelong friends, to meet both of my wives, to receive a great start in education at public schools, to meet many interesting and friendly adult Omahans when I was very young, and to make a wide variety of friends in the Nebraska National Guard. In short, Nebraska has been home.

但我觉得自己更幸运：能结识一生挚友，遇到两任妻子，从公立教育中打下良好基础；年幼时就接触到奥马哈那些有趣又友善的成年人，还在内布拉斯加国民警卫队结识了许多朋友。总而言之，内布拉斯加就是我的家。

Looking back I feel that both Berkshire and I did better because of our base in Omaha than if I had resided anywhere else. The center of the United States was a very good place to be born, to raise a family, and to build a business. Through dumb luck, I drew a ridiculously long straw at birth.

回首看来，我与伯克希尔都因扎根奥马哈而走得更好。如果我生在别处、活在别处、创业在别处，都不会如此幸运。美国的地理中心是个极好的地方——生于此、家在此、业起此。而我出生时抽到了那根"超长的幸运签"。

Now let's move on to my advanced age.

现在，说说我已步入的高龄。

My genes haven't been particularly helpful – the family's all-time record for longevity (admittedly family records get fuzzy as you work backwards) was 92 until I came along.

我的基因并不算特别给力——在我之前，我们家族最长寿的记录是 92 岁（虽然越往上追溯，记录就越模糊）。

But I have had wise, friendly and dedicated Omaha doctors, starting with Harley Hotz, and continuing to this day.

但我一生都有聪明、友善、敬业的奥马哈医生照顾我——从哈利·霍茨（Harley Hotz）开始，一直到今天。

At least three times, my life has been saved, each with doctors based within a few miles from my home. (I have given up fingerprinting nurses, however. You can get away with many eccentricities at 95 . . . . . but there are limits.)

至少有三次，是几英里内的医生救了我的命。（不过，我早已放弃给护士按指纹的习惯。在 95 岁，你可以被原谅很多古怪的举动……但总有界限。）

Those who reach old age need a huge dose of good luck, daily escaping banana peels, natural disasters, drunk or distracted drivers, lightning strikes, you name it.

能活到老年的人，都需要巨大的好运——每天都要躲过香蕉皮、天灾、酒驾、分心司机、雷击……各种意外。

But Lady Luck is fickle and – no other term fits – wildly unfair.

但"幸运女神"反复无常——没有更贴切的词——她极不公平。

In many cases, our leaders and the rich have received far more than their share of luck – which, too often, the recipients prefer not to acknowledge.

很多时候，权贵与富人分得了远超应有份额的好运——而他们往往并不愿承认。

Dynastic inheritors have achieved lifetime financial independence the moment they emerged from the womb, while others have arrived, facing a hell-hole during their early life or, worse, disabling physical or mental infirmities that rob them of what I have taken for granted.

那些生于富贵之家的人，一出生就终身财务自由；而另一些人一开始就面对地狱般的处境，甚至被身体或精神的残缺剥夺了我视为理所当然的一切。

In many heavily-populated parts of the world, I would likely have had a miserable life and my sisters would have had one even worse.

在世界上许多人口稠密的地区，如果我生在那里，我的人生可能极为悲惨，而我姐妹们的处境会更糟。

I was born in 1930 healthy, reasonably intelligent, white, male and in America. Wow! Thank you, Lady Luck.

我生于 1930 年——身体健康，智商尚可，是个白人男性，还生在美国。哇！谢谢你，幸运女神。

My sisters had equal intelligence and better personalities than I but faced a much different outlook. Lady Luck continued to drop by during much of my life, but she has better things to do than work with those in their 90s. Luck has its limits.

我的姐妹们同样聪明，性格比我更好，但她们面对的世界截然不同。幸运女神在我人生的大部分时间里眷顾过我，但她不会永远守在九十多岁的老人身边。运气，总有极限。

Father Time, to the contrary, now finds me more interesting as I age. And he is undefeated; for him, everyone ends up on his score card as "wins."

而"时间之父"恰恰相反——我越老，他越感兴趣。他从未输过；对他而言，每个人最终都记在他的"胜场"里。

When balance, sight, hearing and memory are all on a persistently downward slope, you know Father Time is in the neighborhood.

当平衡、视力、听力、记忆都在持续下滑时，你就知道，"时间老人"已经走到你家门口了。

I was late in becoming old – its onset materially varies – but once it appears, it is not to be denied.

我"变老"得比多数人晚——衰老的来临因人而异——但一旦它出现，就无法拒绝。

To my surprise, I generally feel good. Though I move slowly and read with increasing difficulty, I am at the office five days a week where I work with wonderful people.

出乎意料地，我总体感觉还不错。虽然走得慢、看书也越来越吃力，但我依然每周五天在办公室，与一群出色的人共事。

Occasionally, I get a useful idea or am approached with an offer we might not otherwise have received. Because of Berkshire's size and because of market levels, ideas are few – but not zero.

偶尔，我还能有些有用的想法，或者有人带来我们本不会遇到的机会。鉴于伯克希尔的规模和市场的环境，这样的机会虽不多——但也不是零。

My unexpected longevity, however, has unavoidable consequences of major importance to my family and the achievement of my charitable objectives. Let's explore them.

然而，我出乎意料的长寿，带来了对家族与慈善目标都极为重要、不可回避的后果。让我们来谈谈这些。

What Comes Next

接下来会发生什么

My children are all above normal retirement age, having reached 72, 70 and 67.

我的三个孩子如今都已超过一般的退休年龄——分别是 72 岁、70 岁和 67 岁。

It would be a mistake to wager that all three – now at their peak in many respects – will enjoy my exceptional luck in delayed aging.

若认为他们三人也能像我一样幸运地延缓衰老，那就错了。

To improve the probability that they will dispose of what will essentially be my entire estate before alternate trustees replace them, I need to step up the pace of lifetime gifts to their three foundations.

为了让他们能在备用受托人接任前处理完我几乎全部的遗产，我必须加快向他们三家基金会的生前捐赠。

My children are now at their prime in respect to experience and wisdom but have yet to enter old age. That "honeymoon" period will not last forever.

他们现在正处于经验与智慧最成熟的时期，但还未进入老年。这段"蜜月期"不会永远持续。

Fortunately, a course correction is easy to execute. There is, however, one additional factor to consider: I would like to keep a significant amount of "A" shares until Berkshire shareholders develop the comfort with Greg that Charlie and I long enjoyed.

幸运的是，这个调整并不难执行。不过还有一个因素要考虑：我希望继续持有相当数量的伯克希尔 A 股，直到股东们对格雷格（Greg Abel）的信任能达到当年他们对我和查理的程度。

That level of confidence shouldn't take long. My children are already 100% behind Greg as are the Berkshire directors.

这种信任的建立不会太久。我的孩子们和伯克希尔董事们一样，已完全支持格雷格。

All three children now have the maturity, brains, energy and instincts to disburse a large fortune.

我的三个孩子现在都有足够的成熟、智慧、精力与直觉去管理并捐赠巨额财富。

They will also have the advantage of being above ground when I am long gone and, if necessary, can adopt policies both anticipatory and reactive to federal tax policies or other developments affecting philanthropy.

等我离世后，他们仍活着，能更灵活地应对税收政策或慈善环境的变化。

Ruling from the grave does not have a great record, and I have never had an urge to do so.

"坟墓里执政"的做法从来没有好下场，我也从未有过这种冲动。

Fortunately, all three children received a dominant dosage of their genes from their mother. As the decades have passed, I have also become a better model for their thinking and behavior. I will never, however, achieve parity with their mother.

幸运的是，三个孩子主要继承了他们母亲的基因。几十年来，我也在不断成为他们思想与行为上的更好榜样，但我永远赶不上他们母亲。

My children have three alternate trustees in case of any premature deaths or disabilities. The alternates are not ranked or tied to a specific child. All three are exceptional humans and wise in the ways of the world. They have no conflicting motives.

我还为他们指定了三位备用受托人，以防意外。三人不分先后，也不隶属于哪一个孩子。他们都是杰出的人，通达世事，没有利益冲突。

I have assured my children that they do not need to perform miracles nor fear failures or disappointments.

我告诉孩子们，他们不必创造奇迹，也不必害怕失败与失望。

These are inevitable, and I have made my share.

这些都是人生常态，我自己也经历过不少。

They simply need to improve somewhat upon what generally is achieved by government activities and/or private philanthropy, recognizing these other methods of redistribution of wealth have shortcomings as well.

他们只需做得比政府或一般私人慈善更好一点——毕竟，那些财富再分配机制本身也并不完美。

If my children simply do a decent job, they can be certain that their mother and I would be pleased.

只要他们做得像样一些，他们母亲和我都会感到欣慰。

Their instincts are good and they each have had years of practice with very small sums initially that have been irregularly increased to more than $500 million annually.

他们的直觉很好，从小额资金开始，逐步积累经验，如今每年已能管理超过 5 亿美元的捐赠。

All three like working long hours to help others, each in their own way.

他们都喜欢长时间为他人努力——方式各不相同，但精神一致。

The acceleration of my lifetime gifts to my children's foundations in no way reflects any change in my views about Berkshire's prospects.

我加快对孩子基金会的生前捐赠，并不代表我对伯克希尔前景的看法有任何改变。

Greg Abel has more than met the high expectations I had for him when I first thought he should be Berkshire's next CEO.

格雷格·阿贝尔完全兑现了我当初对他作为伯克希尔下一任 CEO 的高期望。

He understands many of our businesses and personnel far better than I now do, and he is a very fast learner about matters many CEOs don't even consider.

他对我们许多业务和员工的了解，已超过现在的我，而且对其他 CEO 甚至不会注意的领域，他学习得极快。

I can't think of a CEO, consultant, academic, or government official I'd choose over Greg to handle your savings and mine.

我想不出有哪位 CEO、顾问、学者或政府官员，比格雷格更适合管理你我的财富。

In aggregate, Berkshire's businesses have moderately better-than-average prospects, led by a few non-correlated and sizable gems.

整体而言，伯克希尔的业务前景略优于平均水平，由几颗不相关的"大宝石"领衔。

However, a decade or two from now, there will be many companies that have done better than Berkshire; our size takes its toll.

但十年、二十年后，会有不少公司表现超越伯克希尔——规模的庞大本身是一种负担。

Berkshire has less chance of a devastating disaster than any business I know.

伯克希尔遭遇毁灭性打击的概率，比我所知任何公司都低。

And Berkshire has a more shareholder-conscious management and board than almost any company I've seen.

而伯克希尔的管理层与董事会对股东的意识之强，也胜过我所见的几乎所有公司。

Finally, Berkshire will always be managed in a manner that will make its existence an asset to the United States and eschew activities that would lead it to become a supplicant.

最后，伯克希尔永远会以一种方式经营，使它的存在成为美国的资产，而非成为乞怜于政府的企业。

Over time, our managers should grow quite wealthy – they have important responsibilities – but they do not crave dynastic or ostentatious wealth.

我们的经理们终将相当富有——那是责任的回报——但他们不会沉迷于炫耀或世袭的财富。

Our stock price will move capriciously, occasionally falling 50% or so as has happened three times in 60 years under present management.

伯克希尔的股价会随意波动——在现任管理层的 60 年里，曾三次下跌约 50%。

Don't despair; America will come back and so will Berkshire shares.

别绝望——美国会复苏，伯克希尔的股价也会回升。

A Few Final Thoughts

一些最后的感想

One perhaps self-serving observation. I'm happy to say I feel better about the second half of my life than the first.

也许这话听起来有些自恋，但我很高兴地说，我对人生后半段的感觉，比前半段更好。

My advice: Don't beat yourself up over past mistakes – learn at least a little from them and move on. It is never too late to improve.

我的建议是：不要为过去的错误苛责自己——从中学到一点，然后继续前行。提升永远不嫌晚。

Get the right heroes and copy them. You can start with Tom Murphy; he was the best.

找到正确的榜样并效仿他们。可以从汤姆·墨菲（Tom Murphy）开始——他是最出色的。

Remember Alfred Nobel, later of Nobel Prize fame, who – reportedly – read his own obituary that was mistakenly printed when his brother died and a newspaper got mixed up.

记得阿尔弗雷德·诺贝尔（Alfred Nobel）吗？据说当他兄弟去世时，报纸误登了他的讣告，他亲眼读到了那篇文章。

He was horrified at what he read and realized he should change his behavior.

他对自己在报纸上看到的"名声"感到震惊，意识到必须改变自己。

Don't count on a newsroom mix-up: Decide what you would like your obituary to say and live the life to deserve it.

不要指望有这样的巧合。想想你希望讣告上写些什么，然后过一种配得上那篇文字的生活。

Greatness does not come about through accumulating great amounts of money, publicity or power. When you help someone in any of thousands of ways, you help the world.

伟大不是通过积累财富、名气或权力得来的。只要你以无数种方式帮助他人，就是在帮助这个世界。

Kindness is costless but also priceless. Whether you are religious or not, it's hard to beat The Golden Rule as a guide to behavior.

善良无须成本，却无价。无论你是否信仰宗教，"己所不欲，勿施于人"的黄金法则，永远是最好的行为准则。

I write this as one who has been thoughtless countless times and made many mistakes but also became very lucky in learning from some wonderful friends how to behave better (still a long way from perfect, however).

我写下这些话时，心知自己曾无数次犯错、欠缺体恤，但我也幸运地从一些了不起的朋友身上学会了如何做得更好（离完美还差得远）。

Keep in mind that the cleaning lady is as much a human being as the Chairman.

永远记住，清洁工与董事长一样，都是值得尊重的人。

I wish all who read this a very happy Thanksgiving. Yes, even the jerks; it's never too late to change.

祝所有读到这封信的人感恩节快乐。是的，连那些"混蛋"也一样——改变永远不嫌晚。

Remember to thank America for maximizing your opportunities. But it is – inevitably – capricious and sometimes venal in distributing its rewards.

记得感谢美国——它给了你最大的机会。但它在分配回报时，也难免任性与功利。

Choose your heroes very carefully and then emulate them. You will never be perfect, but you can always be better.

慎选你的英雄，然后效法他们。你永远不会完美，但永远可以变得更好。