Image credit: “The S.S. Princess May Wrecked on Sentinel Island, Alaska, August 5, 1910,” photograph by William Howard . Case, Library of Congress
By Jason Zweig | June 8, 2018 11:18 am ET
Companies are notorious for burying their blunders. “You can understand why the people who made the mistake want to make sure it gets forgotten before it makes an impact on their pay,” says Charles Munger, Warren Buffett’s business partner.
“It’s in the nature of humans and organizations, after they succeed mightily, to get very pompous and complacent,” says Mr. Munger when asked about Wells Fargo & Co., which has had repeated failures of risk management. “Lots of mistakes can then ensue….”
To read the rest of the article:
The Wall Street Journal, https://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2018/06/08/how-corporate-america-tries-to-forget-its-mistakes/
For further reading:
Books:
Jason Zweig, Your Money and Your Brain
Peter D. Kaufman (ed.), Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger
Jason Zweig, The Devil’s Financial Dictionary
Max H. Bazerman and Ann E. Tenbrunsel, Blind Spots: Why We Fail to Do What’s Right and What to Do About It
Benjamin Graham, The Intelligent Investor
Richard S. Tedlow, Denial: Why Business Leaders Fail to Look Facts in the Face — and What to Do About It
Jason Zweig, The Little Book of Safe Money
Articles and research:
Warren Buffett’s annual letters to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Charlie Munger about Mistakes
Everyone Makes Investing Mistakes — Even Warren Buffett
To Be a Great Investor, Worry More About Being Wrong Than Right
Behavioral Finance: What Can Investors Learn From Their Mistakes?