Motivation from Charlie Munger

Motivation from Charlie Munger

Charlie Munger, the vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and right-hand man to Warren Buffett, died last week at age 99.

Despite living for nearly a century, Charlie wasn't obsessed with achieving optimal health or trying to live for as long as possible. He didn't care for grueling fitness regimes or punishing diets. Munger was a fan of donuts (in moderation), peanut brittle, and Diet Coke, and he avoided exercise as best he could. "I've done almost no exercise on purpose in my life. If I enjoyed an activity like tennis, I would exercise, but for the first 99 years, I've gotten by without doing any exercise at all." Charlie said.

So how can Charlie, who earned billions and lived for 99 years by avoiding exercise, motivate us?

It turns out there are three main ways that Charlie’s life can serve as motivation for all of us.

1. Make exercise fun. Charlie didn't find exercise fun so he simply avoided it. Fun activities were a different story for him and something that he would do. When we make exercise fun, it is not only easier to get started but also easier to maintain a consistent exercise diet. Dawn Skelton, a professor of aging and health at Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland, has gone on the record saying that it was likely that Munger’s genetics played a large role in his longevity. Living to age 99 while avoiding exercise and physical activity is unusual.

2. Surround yourself with others who make you better. For Warren Buffet, Charlie Munger was someone who was willing to tell him what he needed to hear, not want he wanted to hear. Someone willing to embrace confrontation and let him know that he wasn't thinking straight or simply by always offering him sage advice and wisdom. We all need these friends to help us through life and on our running journeys. These friends push us when we think we're not good enough or our mind is telling us that we're in too much pain. Most of the time, we have more in the tank and just need a friend, coach or training partner to remind us that is the case.

3. Get better everyday. Despite avoiding exercise, Munger spent every day of his life acquiring knowledge and becoming a bit better than the day before. That knowledge compounded over his ten decades. He never stopped reading, learning, and applying.

Make exercise fun, surround yourself with the right people and focus on improving everyday.

Maybe you'll become a 99 year old billionaire who loves to exercise.