When he was just eleven years old, Buffett bought his first stock. He purchases 6 shares of Cities Service preferred stock: 3 shares for himself, 3 for his sister, Doris, at $38 per share. The stock fell to $27 but went up to $40. Warren and Doris sold their stock for a small margin. Immediately after that, the stock zoomed to $200 per share, much to his disappointment. That's when he learnt a very important lesson in life: Patience pays!

A self-made billionaire, Buffett has a great memory and was always good at mathematics and business.

At the age of 14, with the money he had saved from part-time businesses and delivering newspapers, he bought a Nebraska farmland, which he later leased to a farmer.

After his graduation from the University of Nebraska, he pursued further studies at the Columbia Graduate Business School under Benjamin Graham. He started his career with Graham where he learned a lot about stock investment.

After Graham retired, Buffettt started a company in his native place Omaha funded by family and friends. It turned out to e a great success. Later, he set his eyes on buying stocks in Berkshire Hathaway.

Soon, Warren Buffettt has a majority holding in the company. He set out to revive the company which was hit by high manufacturing costs. He helped Hathaway buy out two Nebraska insurance companies. This was the turning point in Berkshire Hathaway. Since then there has been no looking back… His friendship with lawyer and investor Charlie Munger further turned around his fortunes as well as the company's. Munger joined Warren at Berkshire Hathaway as its vice-chairman.

Under their leadership the company became well-established. Today with 2,17,000 employees, the company boast of revenues to the tune of $118.245 billion and net income of US$13.213 billion.

Berkshire Hathaway, headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S., manages a number of subsidiary companies. Berkshire Hathaway's core business is insurance, including property and casualty insurance, reinsurance and specialty nonstandard insurance.

Buffett had once told a friend that he will be a millionaire by the time he turns thirty. In 1983, Berkshire shares is at $775 per share, by the end of the year it rises to $1,31 and Buffettt's personal net worth zoomed to $620 million. He makes it to the Forbes richest list for the first time.

Image: Warren Buffett wears a traditional Druze cap given to him by an unidentified Druze man (R) after his press conference with Iscar founder Steff Wertheimer (2nd L) and Buffett's business partner Charlie Munger (L) at the Iscar Metalworking headquarters in northern Israel.