Becoming Warren Buffett is an HBO documentary on Warren Buffett. The documentary is inspiring to say the least. It is a biography of Buffett full of life lessons from the Oracle of Omaha. The documentary focuses on how Buffett’s background shaped his future and leadership skills. Buffett is an influential leader in business and beyond; entrepreneurs seek business guidance from him. Buffett founded Berkshire Hathaway with his business partner in 1965, and the company has made massive fortunes making Buffett one of the wealthiest men today. Buffett’s vast wealth comes with a wealth of experience making him one of the most influential people in business today.
The documentary covers all aspects of Buffett’s life. Buffett was born in 1930 in Omaha Nebraska. Buffett has two siblings, and he had a close relationship with his father. Buffett’s father lost his job in 1931 during the depression; he started a successful business using his savings (Kunhardt & Oakes, 2017). As a kid, Buffett loved numbers, and he enjoyed reading. He read the book 100 ways to make a thousand dollars, which sparked his entrepreneurial spirit. He started small businesses such as selling coca cola and delivering newspapers. He saved the proceeds and invested in more businesses. In the documentary, Buffett’s sister confesses that when they were kids, Buffett told her he would be a millionaire by the age of 30.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Aside from his father, Buffett was influenced by Ben Graham, a lecturer in Columbia University Business School. Buffett got his two rules of investment from Ben Graham as well as some aspect of his leadership style. He is guided by logical mathematic intelligence and rational temperament. Buffett prides himself as an ethical leader; he does not involve himself in shady deals or relationships. He treats his employees well to inspire them to work hard.
According to Kelly (2013), Buffett’s leadership has changed over the years making him a transformational leader. Kelly (2018) refers to Torbert’s model made up of the seven stages of a transformation. The seven steps include opportunist, diplomat, expert, achiever, individualist, strategist, and alchemist. Buffet exercises most aspects of the Torbert’s model. For example, in the early days, he identified as an opportunist by buying companies that were near bankrupt and selling them for profit. Over the years, Buffett changed his way of doing business and leadership as the company grew (Kelly, 2018). In the documentary, Buffett admits that Munger changed his perspective to investment and leadership as well as the fate of Berkshire Hathaway.
Buffett is an influential leader. He is a master in communication and inspiring others to do better as seen in the documentary. Buffett has many fans across the globe, and many of them go to great lengths to follow his footsteps. Mejia (2017) adds that Buffett is so influential such that he has motivated other billionaires to give to charity more than half of their wealth. Buffett inspired a $ 1 million bid during charity to have lunch with him, and this shows the extent of his influence. Buffett is a positive person, and his lifestyle inspires many. Despite making billions; he still lives in the same house he bought in1950s, he drives his old car and relates to everyone in a friendly manner. The documentary shows that his typical breakfast is McDonald’s, which he picks it himself at a drive through for $2.95 on his way to work. Buffett takes time to engage with drive-through workers and everyone positively.
Buffett is not only influential because of his ability to multiply revenue and be charitable, but he is a great communicator. Buffett has mastered the art of communicating with his shareholders even when things are not going well. In 2008 when everything was falling apart; Buffett spoke/wrote regularly to his shareholders to remind them that things are not always perfect and to inspire confidence.
As Buffett adopted transformational leadership, he also changed his use of power. Leaders are in a position of power, and the way they use their power is aligned with their leadership strategy. Most leaders often resort to coercion and manipulative power when others do not agree with them. However, Buffett uses his power inclusively and mutually. He does not act without taking into consideration the input of others. Being the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett has legitimate power, but he chooses to involve others. Buffett is an expert in investment, and he relies on referent and expert power more than other sources of power. According to Klein (2017) referent power is the ability to influence others because they respect and admire you. Buffett is not the kind of leader who inspires fear and resentment from employees. Employees are more likely to listen to him because they respect his judgment. Alternatively, expert power comes from recognized talent, abilities, and knowledge. Buffett has worked tirelessly to achieve the company’s vision. The company has grown beyond his wildest imagination making him an expert in investment. He uses expert power to guide his decision making because his skills have led to the massive growth at Berkshire.
In conclusion, Buffett’s positivity and wisdom radiate as he speaks in the documentary. Berkshire Hathaway is a reflection of Buffett; he describes it as a business that fits him. Buffett had worked tirelessly for years with the same people he worked with when he started his business. Ethics, openness, and honesty guide him, and these characteristics apply beyond the world of investment and finance. His social conscience and down to earth personality makes him one of the most respected people in the world. It is no surprise that everyone loves Warren Buffett, even young millennials who are not in the investment and finance sector.
References
Kelly, E. J. (2018). Transformation in leadership, part 1: A developmental study of Warren Buffett. Integral Leadership Review.
Klein, G. A. (2017). Sources of power: How people make decisions . MIT press.
Kunhardt, P. & Oakes, B. (2017). Becoming Warren Buffett. [Video File]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB5krSvFAPY
Mejia, Z. (2017, Jun. 6). Why Warren Buffett is such an influential leader, according to data. CNBC. Retrieved from: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/06/why-warren-buffett-is-such- an-influential-leader-according-to-data.html
