Collection: Warren Buffett - #169 'We Don't Sugarcoat Things'

[Transcript]

WARREN BUFFETT 00:08

I very much appreciate what you said about the annual reports, though. We may disappoint you in how the business performs over time. I mean, that is not totally within our control. We’ll try hard, but we can make no promises.

But we shouldn’t ever disappoint you in either our accounting or in the candor of the reporting. I mean, that is in our control. We may not like what we have to tell you, but there’s no reason for failure — there can be no reason for failure in the accounting or candor.

I mean, that is — there’s — if we fail there it’s because we set out to fail.

We can fail in terms of operating performance for a lot of reasons, some within our control and some without our control. But — and that can happen. And if so, we’ll tell you about it.

But we’re going to try very hard to make sure that you see the business in a form exactly like we see the business, and that we don’t sugarcoat things, and we don’t put spin on things.

And we’ll judge ourselves in a — to a significant degree by how we handle that particular part of the problem. We’ll also try to do a good job in operations.

Charlie, do you have anything to add on that?

CHARLIE MUNGER 01:27

No.

WARREN BUFFETT 01:28

It's 3:30pm, I thank you all for coming, I hope every one of you come next year. Thanks. (Applause)

(Source: https://buffett.cnbc.com/1999-berkshire-hathaway-annual-meeting/)

~ Please visit the site above for full video of Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting.

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[YAPSS Takeaway]

Watch out if a company sugarcoat their accounting & business; Red Flag Signal.