After decades of deal-making, iconic investor Warren Buffett is set to pass the baton to Vice Chairman Greg Abel as he prepares to retire as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Behind his razor-sharp decision-making skills lies a calm temperament rooted in simplicity and clarity. This also reflects in his balanced lifestyle choices. His day doesn’t just revolve around work, but also things that he enjoys doing. Work, sleep, eating, and reading, all find a place in his daily routine and the reason is simple. Buffett never believed in chasing extremes, but leading a well-balanced life.
During his television appearances, address to university students, and other interviews, ‘The Oracle of Omaha’ as he is fondly called, has offered a wealth of wisdom on balanced decision-making, lessons that also work well for protecting mental health and managing stress. Often, the most valuable insights on staying calm come not from the wellness manuals, but from those who have learned to sidestep stress despite carrying relentlessly demanding schedules.
Here are some simple rules of managing stress we have learnt from Warren Buffett over the years:
‘You only get one mind and one body’
In an address to young students nearly a decade ago, Buffett offered a simple thought experiment. Imagine, he said, that you were given just one car for your entire lifetime. You would care for it meticulously, knowing it had to last. He added that while one may own many cars over a lifetime, there is only one mind and one body, that deserves the same careful attention, highlighting the importance of self care. Buffett who always emphasized on long-term thinking smartly highlighted how self care is not a luxury but a quiet investment in durability.
Self care entails adopting behaviours, practices and routines that help ensure holistic well-being of oneself. Practicing self care, also means actively managing illness when it occurs and pausing when a mental health break is required.
Neglecting physical and mental health could lead to long-term consequences for health. Also one is connected to the other.
According to PubMed Central study, regular physical activity and maintaining overall health are linked to lower stress symptoms and better mental resilience.
‘Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken.’
In another address, Buffett highlights the importance of adopting the right habits early in life, as forming newer ones gets trickier with age. He says consciously picking healthy and productive habits from people around us is important. This could only be possible at the right age.
Science backs this up. Be it reading, exercising or the establishing the sleep hygiene, healthy habits go a long way in preserving emotional balance and managing stress. A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology notes that during stressful times, positive habits can come to the rescue as people tend to fall back on their habitual behaviours. So if you are reading regularly or exercising every day, a disease or a rough patch will not be able to shake you.
“The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
The famous Warren Buffett quote comes from James Clear’s popular book Atomic Habits, that highlights the importance of saying no, and being clear about what you want. This not improves efficiency, but also minimise stress to a great extent. Research studies have highlighted the importance of prioritising key tasks and setting healthy boundaries to reduce the mental burden that comes with trying to do everything. According to Annual Methodological Archive Research Review Journal (https://amresearchjournal.com/index.php/Journal/article/view/886), overloaded schedules and constant task switching increase cognitive strain and stress, as the heavy mental load of shifting attention repeatedly undermines focus and wellbeing.
Hours of reading
Buffett is known to be an avid reader and often dedicates 6-7 hours daily, reading almost 600-1000 pages a day. This doesn’t just help him to gain tonnes of information about his industry, and becoming more successful at his work, but also alleviate stress. A study from the University of Sussex found that just six minutes of reading can lower stress levels by up to 70%, slowing heart rate and easing muscle tension more than other common methods. Apart from stress relief, reading also improves focus, concentration and emotional wellbeing.
