BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC. NEWS RELEASE 20251110

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC. NEWS RELEASE
波克夏·海瑟威公司新聞稿

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 10, 2025
即時發布 2025 年 11 月 10 日

Omaha, NE (BRK.A; BRK.B) –
內布拉斯加州奧馬哈（BRK.A; BRK.B）–

Today, Warren E. Buffett converted 1,800 A shares into 2,700,000 B shares in order to give these B shares to four family foundations: 1,500,000 shares to The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation and 400,000 shares to each of The Sherwood Foundation, The Howard G. Buffett Foundation and NoVo Foundation. These donations have been delivered today.
今天，華倫·E·巴菲特將 1,800 股 A 股轉換為 2,700,000 股 B 股，以便將這些 B 股捐贈給四個家族基金會：其中 1,500,000 股捐給蘇珊·湯普森·巴菲特基金會，其餘三個基金會——薛伍德基金會、霍華德·G·巴菲特基金會和諾沃基金會——各獲得 400,000 股。這些捐贈已於今日完成交付。

Mr. Buffett’s comments to his fellow shareholders follow:
巴菲特先生對股東夥伴們的評論如下：

* * * * * * * * * * * *

To My Fellow Shareholders:
致我的股東夥伴們：

I will no longer be writing Berkshire’s annual report or talking endlessly at the annual meeting. As the British would say, I’m “going quiet.”
我將不再撰寫波克夏的年報，也不會在年度股東大會上滔滔不絕地發言。用英國人的說法，我即將「保持沉默」。

Sort of.  算是吧。

Greg Abel will become the boss at yearend. He is a great manager, a tireless worker and an honest communicator. Wish him an extended tenure.
葛瑞格·阿貝爾將在年底接任掌舵者。他是一位優秀的管理者、勤奮不懈的工作者，更是誠實直率的溝通者。祝願他能長期領導公司。

I will continue talking to you and my children about Berkshire via my annual Thanksgiving message. Berkshire’s individual shareholders are a very special group who are unusually generous in sharing their gains with others less fortunate. I enjoy the chance to keep in touch with you. Indulge me this year as I first reminisce a bit. After that, I will discuss the plans for distribution of my Berkshire shares. Finally, I will offer a few business and personal observations.
我將透過年度感恩節訊息，持續與各位及我的子女分享關於波克夏的點滴。波克夏的個人股東是非常特別的群體，他們總是非凡慷慨地將獲益分享給較不幸的人們。我很珍惜能與各位保持聯繫的機會。今年請容我稍作懷舊回憶，之後將說明我對波克夏持股的分配計畫，最後則會提出一些商業與個人觀察。

* * * * * * * * * * * *

As Thanksgiving approaches, I’m grateful and surprised by my luck in being alive at 95.
感恩節將至，我滿懷感激且驚喜於自己以 95 歲高齡依然健在的幸運。

When I was young, this outcome did not look like a good bet. Early on, I nearly died.
在我年輕時，這樣的結果看起來並不像是個好賭注。早年，我差點喪命。

It was 1938 and Omaha hospitals were then thought of by its citizens as either Catholic or Protestant, a classification that seemed natural at the time.
那是 1938 年，當時奧馬哈的醫院被市民們視為天主教或新教醫院，這種分類在當時看來很自然。

Our family doctor, Harley Hotz, was a friendly Catholic who made house calls toting a black bag. Dr. Hotz called me Skipper and never charged much for his visits. When I experienced a bad bellyache in 1938, Dr. Hotz came by and, after probing a bit, told me I would be OK in the morning.
我們的家庭醫生哈雷·霍茲是個友善的天主教徒，總是拎著黑色醫藥包出診。霍茲醫生叫我「小船長」，而且看診收費向來不高。1938 年當我嚴重腹痛時，霍茲醫生來家裡診治，稍微檢查後告訴我明天早上就會好轉。

He then went home, had dinner and played a little bridge. Dr. Hotz couldn’t, however, get my somewhat peculiar symptoms out of his mind and later that night he dispatched me to St. Catherine’s Hospital for an emergency appendectomy. During the next three weeks, I felt like I was in a nunnery, and began enjoying my new “podium.” I liked to talk – yes, even then – and the nuns embraced me.
他隨後回家用餐，打了會兒橋牌。但霍茲醫生始終無法忘懷我那些有點奇特的症狀，當天深夜便將我緊急送往聖凱瑟琳醫院進行闌尾切除手術。接下來三週，我感覺自己彷彿置身修道院，並開始享受我的新「講台」。我喜歡說話——沒錯，即便在那時候——而修女們全都接納了我。

To top things off, Miss Madsen, my third-grade teacher, told my 30 classmates to each write me a letter. I probably threw away the letters from the boys but read and reread those from the girls; hospitalization had its rewards.
最棒的是，我的三年級老師瑪德森小姐讓班上 30 位同學每人寫一封信給我。我大概把男生寫的信都扔掉了，但女孩們的信卻讀了又讀；住院還是有好處的。

The highlight of my recovery – which actually was dicey for much of the first week – was a gift from my wonderful Aunt Edie. She brought me a very professional-looking fingerprinting set, and I promptly fingerprinted all of my attending nuns. (I was probably the first Protestant kid they had seen at St. Catherine’s and they didn’t know what to expect.)
我康復期間最精彩的部分——其實第一週大部分時間情況都很不穩定——來自親愛的艾迪阿姨送的禮物。她帶給我一套看起來非常專業的指紋採集工具，我立刻為所有照顧我的修女們採集了指紋。（我大概是聖凱瑟琳醫院第一個新教徒小孩，她們完全不知道該拿我怎麼辦。）

My theory – totally nutty, of course – was that someday a nun would go bad and the FBI would find that they had neglected to fingerprint nuns. The FBI and its director, J. Edgar Hoover, had become revered by Americans in the 1930s, and I envisioned Mr. Hoover, himself, coming to Omaha to inspect my invaluable collection. I further fantasized that J. Edgar and I would quickly identify and apprehend the wayward nun. National fame seemed certain.
我那套理論——當然完全異想天開——是覺得總有一天會有修女作奸犯科，而聯邦調查局會發現他們從未採集過修女的指紋。1930 年代美國人對聯邦調查局及其局長約翰·埃德加·胡佛崇敬有加，我幻想著胡佛先生親自來到奧馬哈檢視我珍貴的指紋收藏。更進一步幻想著我和胡佛能迅速指認並逮捕那名走入歧途的修女。全國性的聲望似乎唾手可得。

Obviously, my fantasy never materialized. But, ironically, some years later it became clear that I should have fingerprinted J. Edgar himself as he became disgraced for misusing his post.
顯然，我的幻想從未實現。但諷刺的是，幾年後事實證明我當初真該採集胡佛本人的指紋——他後來因濫用職權而身敗名裂。

Well, that was Omaha in the 1930s, when a sled, a bicycle, a baseball glove and an electric train were coveted by me and my friends. Let’s look at a few other kids from that era, who grew up very nearby and greatly influenced my life but of whom I was for long unaware.
嗯，那正是 1930 年代的奧馬哈，當時雪橇、腳踏車、棒球手套和電動火車是我和朋友們夢寐以求的東西。讓我們來看看那個時代的其他幾個孩子，他們在附近長大，對我的生活產生了深遠影響，但我卻長期對他們一無所知。

I’ll begin with Charlie Munger, my best pal for 64 years. In the 1930s, Charlie lived a block away from the house I have owned and occupied since 1958.
首先，我要談談查理·蒙格，這位與我相知 64 年的摯友。早在 1930 年代，查理就住在我自 1958 年起擁有並居住的房子附近，僅相隔一個街區。

Early on, I missed befriending Charlie by a whisker. Charlie, 6 ⅔ years older than I, worked in the summer of 1940 at my grandfather’s grocery store, earning $2 for a 10-hour day. (Thrift runs deep in Buffett blood.) The following year I did similar work at the store, but I never met Charlie until 1959 when he was 35 and I was 28.
早年間，我與查理的友誼僅差一步之遙。查理比我年長六又三分之二歲，1940 年夏天曾在我祖父的雜貨店工作，每天工作 10 小時賺取 2 美元（節儉可說是巴菲特家族的血脈）。隔年我也在店裡做類似的工作，但直到 1959 年，當他 35 歲、我 28 歲時，我們才初次見面。

After serving in World War II, Charlie graduated from Harvard Law and then moved permanently to California. Charlie, however, forever talked of his early years in Omaha as formative. For more than 60 years, Charlie had a huge impact on me and could not have been a better teacher and protective “big brother.” We had differences but never had an argument. “I told you so” was not in his vocabulary.
二戰服役結束後，查理從哈佛法學院畢業，隨後永久移居加州。然而，查理始終將他在奧馬哈的早年歲月視為形塑人生的關鍵時期。六十多年來，查理對我產生了深遠影響，他無疑是最出色的導師與守護我的「大哥」。我們雖有分歧，但從未爭吵。「我早就告訴過你了」這句話從未出現在他的詞彙中。

In 1958, I bought my first and only home. Of course, it was in Omaha, located about two miles from where I grew up (loosely defined), less than two blocks from my in-laws, about six blocks from the Buffett grocery store and a 6-7-minute drive from the office building where I have worked for 64 years.
1958 年，我買下了人生中第一棟也是唯一一棟房子。當然，它位於奧馬哈，距離我成長的地方（廣義而言）約兩英里，離岳父母家不到兩個街區，距巴菲特雜貨店約六個街區，而離我工作 64 年的辦公大樓僅需 6 到 7 分鐘車程。

Let’s move on to another Omahan, Stan Lipsey. Stan sold the Omaha Sun Newspapers (weeklies) to Berkshire in 1968 and a decade later moved to Buffalo at my request. The Buffalo Evening News, owned by a Berkshire affiliate, was then locked in a battle to the death with its morning competitor who published Buffalo’s only Sunday paper. And we were losing.
讓我們接著談談另一位奧馬哈人——史丹·利普西。史丹在 1968 年將《奧馬哈太陽報》（週報）賣給波克夏，十年後應我的要求搬到水牛城。當時由波克夏子公司持有的《水牛城晚報》正與其晨報競爭對手展開殊死搏鬥，對方發行著水牛城唯一的週日報紙，而我們正節節敗退。

Stan eventually built our new Sunday product, and for some years our paper – formerly hemorrhaging cash – earned over 100% annually (pre-tax) on our $33 million investment. This was important money to Berkshire in the early 1980s.
史丹最終為我們打造出全新的週日報刊，這份原本嚴重虧損的報紙在數年期間，每年為我們 3,300 萬美元的投資創造超過 100%（稅前）的報酬率。對 1980 年代初的波克夏而言，這筆收益至關重要。

Stan grew up about five blocks from my home. One of Stan’s neighbors was Walter Scott, Jr. Walter, you will remember, brought MidAmerican Energy to Berkshire in 1999. He was also a valued Berkshire director until his death in 2021 and a very close friend. Walter was Nebraska’s philanthropic leader for decades and both Omaha and the state carries his imprint.
史丹從小在我家約五個街區外長大。他的鄰居之一正是沃爾特·斯科特二世。各位應該記得，沃爾特在 1999 年將中美能源帶入波克夏體系。他直至 2021 年逝世前始終是波克夏不可或缺的董事，更是我的摯友。沃爾特數十年來始終是內布拉斯加州的慈善領袖，奧馬哈與整個州都深深烙印著他的貢獻。

Walter attended Benson High School, which I was scheduled to attend as well – until my dad surprised everyone in 1942 by beating a four-term incumbent in a Congressional race. Life is full of surprises.
沃爾特就讀於班森高中，我原本也預計要進入這所學校就讀——直到 1942 年我父親在國會選舉中擊敗一位連任四屆的現任議員，讓所有人都大吃一驚。人生總是充滿意外。

Wait, there’s more.  等等，還有後續。

In 1959, Don Keough and his young family lived in a home located directly across the street from my house and about 100 yards away from where the Munger family had lived. Don was then a coffee salesman but was destined to become president of Coca-Cola as well as a devoted director of Berkshire.
1959 年，唐·基奧和他年輕的家人住在與我家僅隔一條街的對面，距離蒙格家族舊居約 100 碼處。當時唐還只是個咖啡銷售員，但後來不僅成為可口可樂公司總裁，更是波克夏盡心盡力的董事。

When I met Don, he was earning $12,000 a year while he and his wife Mickie were raising five children, all destined for Catholic schools (with tuition requirements).
我認識唐的時候，他年薪僅 12,000 美元，當時他和妻子米琪要撫養五個孩子，所有孩子都注定要上天主教學校（需要支付學費）。

Our families became fast friends. Don came from a farm in northwest Iowa and graduated from Omaha’s Creighton University. Early on, he married Mickie, an Omaha girl. After joining Coke, Don went on to become legendary around the globe.
我們的家庭很快就成了摯友。唐來自愛荷華州西北部的一個農場，畢業於奧馬哈的克瑞頓大學。他早年就娶了奧馬哈女孩米琪為妻。加入可口可樂公司後，唐逐漸成為全球傳奇人物。

In 1985, when Don was president of Coke, the company launched its ill-fated New Coke. Don made a famous speech in which he apologized to the public and reinstated “Old” Coke. This change of heart took place after Don explained that Coke incoming mail addressed to “Supreme Idiot” was promptly delivered to his desk. His “withdrawal” speech is a classic and can be viewed on YouTube. He cheerfully acknowledged that, in truth, the Coca-Cola product belonged to the public and not to the company. Sales subsequently soared.
1985 年，唐擔任可口可樂總裁期間，公司推出了命運多舛的「新可樂」。唐發表了一場著名演說，向公眾致歉並重新推出「經典」可樂。這個轉變發生在唐解釋說，寄給「頭號白痴」的可口可樂來信都會迅速送到他的辦公桌上。他的「撤銷決策」演說堪稱經典，可以在 YouTube 上觀看。他欣然承認，事實上可口可樂產品屬於公眾而非公司所有。此後銷售量急遽攀升。

You can watch Don on CharlieRose.com in a wonderful interview. (Tom Murphy and Kay Graham have a couple of gems as well.) Like Charlie Munger, Don forever remained a Midwestern boy, enthusiastic, friendly and American to the core.
您可以在 CharlieRose.com 上觀看唐的精彩訪談。（湯姆·墨菲和凱·葛拉漢也有幾段珍貴訪談。）就像查理·蒙格一樣，唐始終保持著中西部男孩的特質，充滿熱情、友善且徹頭徹尾體現美國精神。

Finally, Ajit Jain, born and raised in India, as well as Greg Abel, our Canadian CEO-to-be, each lived in Omaha for several years late in the 20th Century. Indeed, in the 1990s, Greg lived only a few blocks away from me on Farnam Street, though we never met at the time.
最後，出生並在印度長大的阿吉特·賈恩，以及我們即將上任的加拿大籍執行長格雷格·阿貝爾，兩人均在 20 世紀末於奧馬哈居住數年。事實上，在 1990 年代，格雷格曾與我僅相隔幾個街區，同樣住在法納姆街上，不過當時我們從未相遇。

Can it be that there is some magic ingredient in Omaha’s water?
難道奧馬哈的水裡有什麼神奇的成分嗎？

* * * * * * * * * * * *

I lived a few teenage years in Washington, DC (when my dad was in Congress) and in 1954 I took what I thought would be a permanent job in Manhattan. There I was treated wonderfully by Ben Graham and Jerry Newman and made many life-long friends. New York had unique assets – and still does. Nevertheless, in 1956, after only 1½ years, I returned to Omaha, never to wander again.
我青少年時期曾在華盛頓特區住過幾年（當時我父親在國會任職），並於 1954 年在曼哈頓找到了一份我以為會是永久性的工作。在那裡，班·葛拉漢和傑瑞·紐曼對我非常好，我也結交了許多終身摯友。紐約擁有獨特的優勢——至今依然如此。然而，在僅僅一年半後的 1956 年，我回到了奧馬哈，從此再也沒有離開過。

Subsequently, my three children, as well as several grandchildren, were raised in Omaha. My children always attended public schools (graduating from the same high school that educated my dad (class of 1921), my first wife, Susie (class of 1950) as well as Charlie, Stan Lipsey, Irv and Ron Blumkin, who were key to growing Nebraska Furniture Mart, and Jack Ringwalt (class of 1923), who founded National Indemnity and sold it to Berkshire in 1967 where it became the base upon which our huge P/C operation was constructed.
後來，我的三個孩子以及幾個孫輩都在奧馬哈長大。我的孩子們一直就讀公立學校（畢業於同一所高中，這所學校也曾培養了我的父親（1921 屆）、我的第一任妻子蘇西（1950 屆），以及查理、史丹·利普西、艾爾夫和榮恩·布魯姆金（他們對內布拉斯加家具城的發展至關重要），還有傑克·林沃特（1923 屆，他創辦了國家賠償公司並於 1967 年將其出售給波克夏，這家公司後來成為我們龐大的產險業務的基礎）。

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Our country has many great companies, great schools, great medical facilities and each definitely has its own special advantages along with talented people. But I feel very lucky to have had the good fortune to make many lifelong friends, to meet both of my wives, to receive a great start in education at public schools, to meet many interesting and friendly adult Omahans when I was very young, and to make a wide variety of friends in the Nebraska National Guard. In short, Nebraska has been home.
我們的國家擁有許多優秀的公司、卓越的學校、頂尖的醫療設施，每個領域都具備獨特的優勢與人才。但我深感慶幸能有幸結交許多終生摯友、遇見我的兩任妻子、在公立學校獲得優質的啟蒙教育、年幼時結識眾多風趣友善的奧馬哈成年人，並在內布拉斯加州國民警衛隊結交形形色色的夥伴。簡而言之，內布拉斯加始終是我的歸屬。

Looking back I feel that both Berkshire and I did better because of our base in Omaha than if I had resided anywhere else. The center of the United States was a very good place to be born, to raise a family, and to build a business. Through dumb luck, I drew a ridiculously long straw at birth.
回顧過往，我認為無論是波克夏或我個人，正因為扎根於奧馬哈，才能取得比定居他處更卓越的成就。美國中部這片土地，是孕育生命、建立家庭、開創事業的絕佳所在。憑藉著純粹的幸運，我出生時便抽中了一支超乎常理的長籤。

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Now let’s move on to my advanced age. My genes haven’t been particularly helpful – the family’s all-time record for longevity (admittedly family records get fuzzy as you work backwards) was 92 until I came along. But I have had wise, friendly and dedicated Omaha doctors, starting with Harley Hotz, and continuing to this day. At least three times, my life has been saved, each with doctors based within a few miles from my home. (I have given up fingerprinting nurses, however.
現在讓我們來談談我的高齡。我的基因並沒有特別幫忙——在我之前，家族的長壽紀錄（老實說，隨著追溯年代越久遠，家族紀錄就越模糊）是 92 歲。但我有幸遇到奧馬哈那些睿智、友善且盡責的醫生，從哈雷·霍茲開始，一直到現在都是如此。至少有三次，我的生命被拯救了，每次都是由離我家幾英里內的醫生所救。（不過，我已經放棄對護士們指手畫腳了。）

You can get away with many eccentricities at 95 . . . . . but there are limits.)
到了 95 歲，你可以有許多古怪行為......但還是有底線的。）

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Those who reach old age need a huge dose of good luck, daily escaping banana peels, natural disasters, drunk or distracted drivers, lightning strikes, you name it.
那些活到高齡的人需要大量的好運，每天都要避開香蕉皮、自然災害、酒駕或分心的駕駛、雷擊，你能想到的各種危險。

But Lady Luck is fickle and – no other term fits – wildly unfair. In many cases, our leaders and the rich have received far more than their share of luck – which, too often, the recipients prefer not to acknowledge. Dynastic inheritors have achieved lifetime financial independence the moment they emerged from the womb, while others have arrived, facing a hell-hole during their early life or, worse, disabling physical or mental infirmities that rob them of what I have taken for granted. In many heavily-populated parts of the world, I would likely have had a miserable life and my sisters would have had one even worse.
幸運女神是反覆無常的——用另一個詞來說——極度不公平。在許多情況下，我們的領導人和富人獲得了遠超過他們應得的幸運——而這些幸運的受惠者往往不願承認。世襲繼承者從出生那一刻起就實現了終身財務自由，而另一些人卻在早年面臨地獄般的困境，甚至更糟的是，遭受身體或精神上的殘疾，剝奪了我視為理所當然的一切。在世界上許多人口稠密的地區，我可能過著悲慘的生活，而我的姐妹們處境會更加艱難。

I was born in 1930 healthy, reasonably intelligent, white, male and in America. Wow! Thank you, Lady Luck. My sisters had equal intelligence and better personalities than I but faced a much different outlook. Lady Luck continued to drop by during much of my life, but she has better things to do than work with those in their 90s. Luck has its limits.
我出生於 1930 年，健康、智力正常、身為白人男性且在美國。哇！感謝幸運女神。我的姐妹們擁有與我相當的智慧，性格也比我更好，卻面臨截然不同的命運。在我人生的大部分時光裡，幸運女神持續眷顧，但她有比照顧九十多歲老人更重要的事要做。幸運終有盡頭。

Father Time, to the contrary, now finds me more interesting as I age. And he is undefeated; for him, everyone ends up on his score card as “wins.” When balance, sight, hearing and memory are all on a persistently downward slope, you know Father Time is in the neighborhood.
時光老人恰恰相反，如今隨著我年歲增長，他對我越發感興趣。而他從未嘗過敗績；對他而言，每個人都終將在他的記分卡上被標註為「勝場」。當平衡感、視力、聽力與記憶力皆持續走下坡時，你就知道時光老人正在附近徘徊。

I was late in becoming old – its onset materially varies – but once it appears, it is not to be denied.
我算是較晚步入老年——每個人的衰老進程大不相同——但一旦老態顯現，便是無可抗拒的事實。
 

To my surprise, I generally feel good. Though I move slowly and read with increasing difficulty, I am at the office five days a week where I work with wonderful people. Occasionally, I get a useful idea or am approached with an offer we might not otherwise have received. Because of Berkshire’s size and because of market levels, ideas are few – but not zero.
令我驚訝的是，我整體感覺還不錯。雖然行動變得緩慢，閱讀也越來越吃力，但我每週仍會到辦公室工作五天，與優秀的同事們共事。偶爾會冒出有用的點子，或是收到我們原本可能無緣接觸的合作提案。考量到波克夏的規模和當前市場水位，好點子確實不多——但絕非完全沒有。

* * * * * * * * * * * *

My unexpected longevity, however, has unavoidable consequences of major importance to my family and the achievement of my charitable objectives.
然而，我超出預期的長壽，無可避免地對我的家庭與慈善目標的實現產生了重大影響。

Let’s explore them.  讓我們來深入探討這些影響。

What Comes Next  接下來會發生什麼事

My children are all above normal retirement age, having reached 72, 70 and 67. It would be a mistake to wager that all three – now at their peak in many respects – will enjoy my exceptional luck in delayed aging. To improve the probability that they will dispose of what will essentially be my entire estate before alternate trustees replace them, I need to step up the pace of lifetime gifts to their three foundations. My children are now at their prime in respect to experience and wisdom but have yet to enter old age. That “honeymoon” period will not last forever.
我的孩子們都已超過正常退休年齡，分別達到 72 歲、70 歲和 67 歲。若押注他們三人——如今在許多方面都處於巔峰狀態——能像我一樣幸運地延緩衰老，那將是個錯誤。為了提高他們在繼任受託人接替前，能妥善處置我幾乎全部遺產的可能性，我需要加快對他們三個基金會的生前贈與進度。我的孩子們在經驗與智慧上正值黃金時期，但尚未步入老年。這段「蜜月期」不會永遠持續。

Fortunately, a course correction is easy to execute. There is, however, one additional factor to consider: I would like to keep a significant amount of “A” shares until Berkshire shareholders develop the comfort with Greg that Charlie and I long enjoyed. That level of confidence shouldn’t take long. My children are already 100% behind Greg as are the Berkshire directors.
幸運的是，調整方向很容易執行。然而還有一個額外因素需要考量：我希望保留大量「A」股，直到波克夏股東對葛瑞格建立起如同查理和我長期享有的信任感。這種信心層級應該不需太久。我的孩子們已百分之百支持葛瑞格，波克夏的董事們也是如此。

All three children now have the maturity, brains, energy and instincts to disburse a large fortune. They will also have the advantage of being above ground when I am long gone and, if necessary, can adopt policies both anticipatory and reactive to federal tax policies or other developments affecting philanthropy. They may well need to adapt to a significantly changing world around them. Ruling from the grave does not have a great record, and I have never had an urge to do so.
如今，這三位子女皆已具備足夠的成熟度、智慧、活力與直覺來管理龐大財富。在我離世後，他們還擁有身處現世的優勢，必要時能針對聯邦稅務政策或影響慈善事業的其他發展，採取預先規劃與即時應對的策略。他們很可能需要適應周遭急遽變遷的世界。從墳墓中發號施令向來成效不彰，而我從未有過如此行事的念頭。

Fortunately, all three children received a dominant dosage of their genes from their mother. As the decades have passed, I have also become a better model for their thinking and behavior. I will never, however, achieve parity with their mother.
幸運的是，三個孩子都從母親那裡繼承了顯性基因優勢。隨著歲月流逝，我也逐漸成為他們思維與行為的更好典範。然而，我永遠無法達到他們母親的境界。

My children have three alternate trustees in case of any premature deaths or disabilities. The alternates are not ranked or tied to a specific child. All three are exceptional humans and wise in the ways of the world. They have no conflicting motives.
我的孩子們設有三名候補信託人，以應對任何意外身故或失能狀況。這些候補人選沒有優先順序，也不專屬於特定子女。三位都是出類拔萃的智者，深諳世道人心，且毫無利益衝突。

I have assured my children that they do not need to perform miracles nor fear failures or disappointments. These are inevitable, and I have made my share. They simply need to improve somewhat upon what generally is achieved by government activities and/or private philanthropy, recognizing these other methods of redistribution of wealth have shortcomings as well.
我已向孩子們保證，他們無需創造奇蹟，也不必畏懼失敗或挫折。這些本就在所難免，我自己也經歷過不少。他們只需在政府行動和私人慈善通常達成的基礎上稍作改善，同時認知到這些財富重分配方式同樣存在缺陷。

Early on, I contemplated various grand philanthropic plans. Though I was stubborn, these did not prove feasible. During my many years, I’ve also watched ill-conceived wealth transfers by political hacks, dynastic choices and, yes, inept or quirky philanthropists.
早年我曾構思過各種宏大的慈善計劃。雖然當時固執己見，但這些構想最終證實不可行。這些年來，我也目睹過政客操弄的荒謬財富轉移、世襲制度的選擇，以及確實存在的能力不足或標新立異的慈善家。

If my children simply do a decent job, they can be certain that their mother and I would be pleased. Their instincts are good and they each have had years of practice with very small sums initially that have been irregularly increased to more than $500 million annually.
只要我的孩子們表現得還不錯，他們就能確信他們的母親和我會感到欣慰。他們的本能良好，而且每個人最初都經過多年用小額資金操作的練習，後來逐漸增加到每年超過五億美元。

All three like working long hours to help others, each in their own way.
他們三個都喜歡長時間工作來幫助他人，每個人都有自己的方式。

* * * * * * * * * * * *

The acceleration of my lifetime gifts to my children’s foundations in no way reflects any change in my views about Berkshire’s prospects. Greg Abel has more than met the high expectations I had for him when I first thought he should be Berkshire’s next CEO. He understands many of our businesses and personnel far better than I now do, and he is a very fast learner about matters many CEOs don’t even consider. I can’t think of a CEO, a management consultant, an academic, a member of government – you name it – that I would select over Greg to handle your savings and mine.
我加快贈與子女基金會的終身禮物，絕不反映我對波克夏前景的看法有任何改變。葛瑞格・亞伯遠遠超出了我當初認為他應該成為波克夏下一任執行長時對他的高度期望。他對我們許多業務和人員的理解遠比我現在更深入，而且在許多執行長甚至不會考慮的事務上，他學習得非常快。我想不出有任何一位執行長、管理顧問、學者、政府官員——你能想到的任何人都算在內——能讓我選擇取代葛瑞格來處理你我的儲蓄。

Greg understands, for example, far more about both the upside potential and the dangers of our P/C insurance business than do a great many long-time P/C executives. My hope is that his health remains good for several decades. With a little luck, Berkshire should require only five or six CEOs over the next century. It should particularly avoid those whose goal is to retire at 65, to become look- at-me rich or to initiate a dynasty.
舉例來說，葛瑞格對我們產險業務的發展潛力與風險認知，遠勝過許多資深產險主管。我衷心期盼他能維持健康數十年。只要稍加幸運，波克夏在未來百年間可能僅需五到六位執行長，尤其要避開那些只想在 65 歲退休、追求個人名利或試圖建立家族王朝的人選。

One unpleasant reality: Occasionally, a wonderful and loyal CEO of the parent or a subsidiary will succumb to dementia, Alzheimer’s or another debilitating and long-term disease.
一個令人遺憾的現實是：偶爾會出現母公司或子公司中優秀且忠誠的執行長，不幸罹患失智症、阿茲海默症或其他長期衰弱疾病。

Charlie and I encountered this problem several times and failed to act. This failure can be a huge mistake. The Board must be alert to this possibility at the CEO level and the CEO must be alert to the possibility at subsidiaries. This is easier said than done; I could cite a few examples from the past at major companies. Directors should be alert and speak up is all that I can advise.
查理和我曾多次面臨這種狀況卻未能及時處理，這樣的失誤可能造成嚴重後果。董事會必須在執行長層級預先警覺這種可能性，而執行長也必須對子公司保持同等警覺。說來容易做來難，我能舉出幾家大型企業的過往實例。董事們應當保持警覺並勇於發聲——這是我唯一能給予的建議。

During my lifetime, reformers sought to embarrass CEOs by requiring the disclosure of the compensation of the boss compared to what was being paid to the average employee. Proxy statements promptly ballooned to 100-plus pages compared to 20 or less earlier.
在我有生之年，改革派試圖透過要求揭露執行長薪酬與普通員工平均薪資的對比，來讓執行長們難堪。委託書聲明隨即從早期的 20 頁或更少，迅速膨脹至超過 100 頁。

But the good intentions didn’t work; instead they backfired. Based on the majority of my observations – the CEO of company “A” looked at his competitor at company “B” and subtly conveyed to his board that he should be worth more. Of course, he also boosted the pay of directors and was careful who he placed on the compensation committee. The new rules produced envy, not moderation.
但這些善意並未奏效，反而產生了反效果。根據我多數觀察——A 公司的執行長看到競爭對手 B 公司的情況後，會巧妙地向董事會暗示自己應獲得更高薪酬。當然，他們同時也提高了董事薪酬，並謹慎挑選薪酬委員會成員。這些新規定引發的是攀比心理，而非節制。

The ratcheting took on a life of its own. What often bothers very wealthy CEOs – they are human, after all – is that other CEOs are getting even richer. Envy and greed walk hand in hand. And what consultant ever recommended a serious cut in CEO compensation or board payments?
這種層層加碼的現象已自成體系。令許多極富有的執行長耿耿於懷的（畢竟他們也是凡人）往往是其他執行長變得更加富有。嫉妒與貪婪總是如影隨形。又有哪個顧問曾真正建議過要大幅削減執行長薪酬或董事酬勞呢？

* * * * * * * * * * * *

In aggregate, Berkshire’s businesses have moderately better-than-average prospects, led by a few non-correlated and sizable gems. However, a decade or two from now, there will be many companies that have done better than Berkshire; our size takes its toll.
整體而言，波克夏旗下企業的發展前景略優於平均水平，其中幾家規模可觀且互不相關的優質企業更是領頭羊。然而，十到二十年後，將有許多公司的表現超越波克夏；我們的龐大規模確實帶來了一定程度的負擔。

Berkshire has less chance of a devastating disaster than any business I know. And, Berkshire has a more shareholder-conscious management and board than almost any company with which I am familiar (and I’ve seen a lot). Finally, Berkshire will always be managed in a manner that will make its existence an asset to the United States and eschew activities that would lead it to become a supplicant. Over time, our managers should grow quite wealthy – they have important responsibilities – but do not have the desire for dynastic or look-at-me wealth.
在我所知的企業中，波克夏遭遇毀滅性災難的機率最低。此外，與我接觸過的絕大多數公司相比（而我見過的企業可不少），波克夏擁有更為股東著想的管理層和董事會。最重要的是，波克夏的經營方式將始終使其成為美國的資產，並避免任何可能導致需要向外求援的活動。隨著時間推移，我們的經理人理應累積可觀財富——他們肩負重任——但並無建立商業王朝或炫耀財富的意圖。

Our stock price will move capriciously, occasionally falling 50% or so as has happened three times in 60 years under present management. Don’t despair; America will come back and so will Berkshire shares.
我們的股價將會反覆無常地波動，就像現任管理層六十年來經歷過三次那樣，偶爾可能暴跌約 50%。請別灰心；美國經濟終將復甦，波克夏股價亦然。

A Few Final Thoughts  最後幾點思考

One perhaps self-serving observation. I’m happy to say I feel better about the second half of my life than the first. My advice: Don’t beat yourself up over past mistakes – learn at least a little from them and move on. It is never too late to improve. Get the right heroes and copy them. You can start with Tom Murphy; he was the best.
或許這番話有些自利之嫌，但我很樂於坦言：我對自己後半生的滿意度遠勝於前半生。我的建議是：別因過往的錯誤苛責自己——至少要從中汲取些許教訓，然後繼續前行。追求進步永遠不嫌遲。找到對的典範人物並效法他們。你可以從湯姆·墨菲開始；他是最卓越的榜樣。

Remember Alfred Nobel, later of Nobel Prize fame, who – reportedly – read his own obituary that was mistakenly printed when his brother died and a newspaper got mixed up. He was horrified at what he read and realized he should change his behavior.
想想後來以諾貝爾獎聞名的阿爾弗雷德·諾貝爾——據傳當年他兄弟逝世時，報社誤刊了他的訃聞，他讀到自己的訃告後大感震驚，並意識到自己應當改變行事作風。

Don’t count on a newsroom mix-up: Decide what you would like your obituary to say and live the life to deserve it.
別指望報社會鬧出這種烏龍：你該設想自己希望訃聞中記載怎樣的人生，並活出與之相稱的生命軌跡。

Greatness does not come about through accumulating great amounts of money, great amounts of publicity or great power in government. When you help someone in any of thousands of ways, you help the world. Kindness is costless but also priceless. Whether you are religious or not, it’s hard to beat The Golden Rule as a guide to behavior.
偉大並非來自累積巨額財富、獲得大量關注或掌握政治權力。當你以各種方式幫助他人時，就是在幫助這個世界。善意無需成本卻彌足珍貴。無論你是否信仰宗教，都很難找到比「己所不欲，勿施於人」更適合作為行為準則的原則。

I write this as one who has been thoughtless countless times and made many mistakes but also became very lucky in learning from some wonderful friends how to behave better (still a long way from perfect, however). Keep in mind that the cleaning lady is as much a human being as the Chairman.
我寫下這些文字，作為一個曾無數次考慮不周、犯過許多錯誤的人，同時也幸運地從幾位良師益友身上學會如何改進言行（雖然離完美境界仍很遙遠）。請記住，清潔阿姨和董事長同樣都是值得尊重的人。

* * * * * * * * * * * *

I wish all who read this a very happy Thanksgiving. Yes, even the jerks; it’s never too late to change. Remember to thank America for maximizing your opportunities. But it is – inevitably – capricious and sometimes venal in distributing its rewards.
謹祝所有閱讀本文的朋友感恩節快樂。是的，即便是那些討厭鬼也不例外——改變永遠不嫌晚。別忘了感謝美國為你創造了最大化的機會。但這個國家在分配獎賞時——不可避免地——既反覆無常，有時甚至充滿貪腐。

Choose your heroes very carefully and then emulate them. You will never be perfect, but you can always be better.
審慎選擇你的楷模並效法他們。你永遠無法達到完美，但總能持續進步。

About Berkshire  關於波克夏

Berkshire Hathaway and its subsidiaries engage in diverse business activities including insurance and reinsurance, utilities and energy, freight rail transportation, manufacturing, services and retailing.
波克夏·海瑟威及其子公司從事多元化的商業活動，包括保險與再保險、公用事業與能源、貨運鐵路運輸、製造業、服務業及零售業。

Common stock of the company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, trading symbols BRK.A and BRK.B.
該公司普通股於紐約證券交易所上市，交易代碼為 BRK.A 與 BRK.B。

– End –  – 結束 –

Contact  聯絡資訊

Marc D. Hamburg 402-346-1400
馬克·D·漢堡 402-346-1400