Warren Buffett, the famed investor and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, is often seen as a money legend. But according to his children, especially his daughter Susie, Buffett’s incredible fortune was not the result of a grand plan to become the richest man in the world. It was more about doing what he loved – and doing it very, very well.
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In 2017, Susie Buffett shared insight into her father’s life with People, describing him as a man whose love of investing drove his success, rather than the pursuit of wealth itself.
“He kind of made the money by accident because he was really good at doing what he loved,” Susie said. “If you do that particular thing really well, you make a lot of money. But it’s really true that he doesn’t care about having a lot of money.’
Buffett, now 94 and worth $145 billion according to Bloomberg, has always remained true to his humble roots in the Midwest, raising his children in a household where wealth did not define their lives.
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Despite its enormous fortune, the Buffett family lived like any other upper-middle class family in Omaha, Nebraska. Susie and her siblings, Howard and Peter, didn’t realize how rich their father was until they were in their 20s — and not because Warren told them. Susie only discovered the extent of her father’s wealth after reading about it in the newspaper.
“We lived pretty much like everyone else,” Susie explained. Warren still lives in the same house he bought in 1958 for $31,500. Growing up, the Buffett children were regularly given pocket money, and even that would often disappear into a slot machine Warren had in the house – only so he could eventually open the back and take the money right back out.
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Buffett’s careful handling of money even extended to his family’s personal requests. Susie once asked her father for a $41,000 loan to expand her kitchen after having a baby. She wasn’t looking for a handout; she just needed the space. Warren’s response? “Go to the bank like everyone else.” Although it may have sounded harsh, Susie didn’t blame him. Instead, she respected his approach, saying, “I never felt he was cheap… Whatever we are, we are and it’s not that bad.”
