Not (in the) safe
Every few weeks, I dig up some old treasure in a book, autobiography or an old letter.
One of such is this funny story Warren shared in his 1989 letter to shareholders.
“Every two years I'm part of an informal group that gathers to have fun and explore a few subjects. Last September, meeting at Bishop's Lodge in Santa Fe, we asked Ike (the manager of a business they recently bought), his wife Roz, and his son Alan to come by and educate us on jewels and the jewelry business.
Ike decided to dazzle the group, so he brought from Omaha about $20 million of particularly fancy merchandise. I was somewhat apprehensive - Bishop's Lodge is no Fort Knox - and I mentioned my concern to Ike at our opening party the evening before his presentation. Ike took me aside. "See that safe?" he said. "This afternoon we changed the combination and now even the hotel management doesn't know what it is." I breathed easier. Ike went on: "See those two big fellows with guns on their hips? They'll be guarding the safe all night."
I now was ready to rejoin the party. But Ike leaned closer: "And besides, Warren," he confided, "the jewels aren't in the safe."
What?
I know this isn’t the lesson Warren was trying to pass across, but one of the things I took away from this funny tale is this:
Make your plan B better than plan A.
And know when to make A be a cover for B.