Warren Buffett believes successful investing is like rolling a little snowball down a very long hill — the longer the hill, the bigger the snowball.
The key is the power of compound interest , something Buffett often credits as the driving force behind his unmatched investment legacy.
Compound interest describes the ability to earn not only interest on the principle but also reinvested interest on the interest.
"The trick is to have a very long hill, which means either starting very young or living ... to be very old."
For example, $10,000 with compound interest of 10% annually is worth almost $175,000 in 30 years, more than $450,000 in 40 years and $1.17 million in 50 years.
Persons:
Warren Buffett, Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway
Organizations:
Oracle, Cities Service, Berkshire, BNSF Railway, Burlington Northern, Apple
Locations:
Omaha, Burlington Northern Santa Fe