1) His first job was delivering newspapers.
Riding on his bicycle, he made $175 a month by delivering copies of The Washington Post to his Omaha neighbors.
2) He bought his first stock in 1941, the same year that Pearl Harbor was bombed.
He was 11 years old when he bought six shares of Cities Service stocks — three for himself and three for his sister, Doris. He paid $38 for each share, waited for the price to go up to $40, then sold. Some months later, the stock soared to $200 per share.
3) He became a millionaire when he was 32 years old.
That was in 1962. Twenty eight years later, in 1990, he became a billionaire.
4) He earned 99% of his wealth after he turned 50.
On his 50th birthday, he was worth around $300 million. Today, he is worth over $70 billion. You do the math.
5) In 2013, he made about $1.5 million per hour.
That’s $37 million per day. And after 2013 ended, his net worth had risen from $46.4 billion (in 2012) to $59.1 billion.
6) In 1993, he topped the list of Forbes 400 richest people in America.
His net worth then was $8.3 billion. He did it again in 2008 when he had a net worth of around $62 billion. This year, he’s number two on the list. Bill Gates is number one.
7) He is known as the ‘Oracle of Omaha’.
It’s because of his uncanny prowess in business. He isn’t called an investment guru for nothing.
8) He has sent only one email in his entire life.
The only recipient of an email from Warren Buffet is Jeff Raikes of Microsoft.
9) He remains a loyal Nokia flip phone user.
So what if smartphones are getting smarter by the minute? Buffet still prefers his trusty flip phone. He says it’s part of his frugality — he doesn’t throw away anything until he’s had it for about 20 – 25 years.
10) He spends 80% of his days reading.
“I just sit in my office and read all day.” He says that it’s his job to acquire as much facts and information as he can, then occasionally take action as he sees fit.
11) He plays bridge online to unwind.
He does it at least four times a week under the name ‘T-Bone’ and has even competed against Bill Gates — playing under the name ‘Challenger’ — in a tournament.
12)He’s been living in the same home since 1956.
It’s a modest five-bedroom house he purchased in Omaha, Nebraska for $31,500.
13) He doesn’t have a driver.
He drives his own car wherever he goes. He does have his own private jet company, though.
14) He loves junk food.
His favorite meal is a cheeseburger with a Cherry Coke.
15) He is a cancer survivor.
It was in April 2012 when he got diagnosed with prostate cancer. After 44 days of radiation treatment, he has completely recovered.
16) He would rather give to charity than pass down his fortune as inheritance.
So far, he has donated a total of $25 billion to charities — mostly to his children’s foundations and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He has likewise pledged 99% of his wealth to charity.
