Warren Buffett’s Thanksgiving Letter
Warren Buffett's Thanksgiving Letter sheds more light on why he decided to retire.
“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.”
— Warren Buffett, November 10, 2025
It takes a great deal of wisdom to know when to make one’s presence known and when it is necessary to withdraw from the limelight.
For many years, I began watching the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting webcast with some trepidation, assuming that Mr. Buffett would announce his retirement at the start of a meeting. For this reason, his retirement announcement at the end of the 2025 annual meeting was a bit of a shock. But the genius of that move quickly became apparent after some reflection. Announcing his retirement at the start of the meeting would have made the entire question and answer session about Mr. Buffett, but he wanted the focus to be on Berkshire Hathaway rather than on himself.
Those who hoped that Mr. Buffett would appear on stage along with Greg Abel at future annual meetings might have envisioned that Mr. Buffett would take on the role of “elder statesman” and perhaps emulate some of Charlie Munger’s famous wit and wisdom. But even a few moments of reflection makes it obvious that this would never work. There was never any doubt that Warren Buffett was in charge when he appeared on stage with Charlie Munger. In contrast, Mr. Buffett’s continued appearance on stage at the annual meeting would only serve to overshadow Greg Abel and make shareholders question whether Mr. Abel’s elevation to CEO was in name only. In light of this reality, Mr. Buffett has chosen to withdraw not only from the annual meeting but from writing letters to shareholders as part of Berkshire’s annual report.
Mr. Buffett’s Thanksgiving Letter makes it more clear why he has chosen to retire. At the age of 95, he finally feels old with his balance, eyesight, hearing, and memory “all on a persistently downward slope.” He is wise enough to recognize that “Father Time” has arrived at his doorstep and signs of decline cannot be denied. Fortunately, he still feels good enough to go to the office five days a week. From his performance at the annual meeting six months ago, it is clear that Mr. Buffett is still capable of serving as CEO today, but he obviously does not want to push the envelope and stay on the job too long. It takes a great deal of humility and wisdom to step aside from a job you love while you are still capable of doing it.
As Mr. Buffett wrote, he is “going quiet … sort of.” Rather than writing a letter coinciding with the annual report, he prefers to write to shareholders via his annual Thanksgiving letter in which he announces donations to the family foundations run by his children. This year’s letter is a rambling discourse down memory lane that sheds more light on Mr. Buffett’s past and highlights the many influences that shaped him, especially in Omaha. He advises us to “get the right heroes and copy them” and that we should start with Tom Murphy. I can think of no better place to start. Emulation of men like Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger, and Tom Murphy is simple common sense advice for those who want to rise in the world.
Mr. Buffett concludes with some thoughts on Berkshire Hathaway. While he believes that Berkshire’s businesses, in aggregate, have “moderately better-than-average prospects,” he cautions that many companies will inevitably do better in the coming decades due to Berkshire’s large size. This is simply inevitable, but the more important point is that Berkshire is far less likely to suffer from a “devastating disaster” than any business Mr. Buffett knows of. Berkshire also has a far more shareholder friendly management and board than “almost any” other company.
In an age of vomit-inducing proxy statements full of egregious compensation packages and vapid PR-speak, Berkshire will remain a bastion of good governance in the future. Berkshire is likely to serve as an excellent vehicle for steadily compounding wealth over time. While it is not an investment for those who want to get rich quickly, it is a great choice for those who are already rich and wish to protect their wealth, as well as those who are in the process of steadily building wealth over many decades.
Berkshire Hathaway shareholders are fortunate to have a CEO who has the wisdom to know when to turn the job over to a younger leader. Mr. Buffett clearly has a great deal of confidence in Greg Abel. When he steps into the spotlight on New Year’s Day, Mr. Abel will have big shoes to fill but I suspect that Mr. Buffett is correct in saying that it will not take shareholders long to gain confidence in his leadership.
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