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This is the one skill Warren Buffett says will increase your worth by 50%

Warren Buffett with other philanthropists at the Forbes Media Centennial Celebration on September 19, 2017 in New York City. <em>(Photo by Daniel Zuchnik/WireImage via Getty)</em>
Warren Buffett with other philanthropists at the Forbes Media Centennial Celebration on September 19, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Daniel Zuchnik/WireImage via Getty)

What advice would Warren Buffett, revered as a god of investing, give to 20-something year old graduates?

The answer has nothing to do with how to pick stocks.

“The one easy way to become worth 50 percent more than you are now at least is to hone your communication skills – both written and verbal” said the investment veteran in a video recorded by 22-year old Toronto-based startup co-founder Michael Hood.

“If you can’t communicate, it’s like winking at a girl in the dark – nothing happens.

“You can have all the brainpower in the world, but you have to be able to transmit it. And the transmission is communication.”

How much does it pay to be a good public speaker?

Half of what you’re already worth, he indicates. Speaking to a class of business students at Columbia University in 2009, Buffett pointed to the significance of verbal communication.

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“You can improve your value by 50 percent just by learning communication skills – public speaking.”

His response is also deeply personal: Buffett had a deep fear of public speaking during high school and college. To overcome this, he took a public-speaking course at Dale Carnegie, twice; he dropped out the first time because he was scared he’d be asked to speak up.

Buffett’s accomplishment in public speaking is significant to him. “In my office, you will not see the degree that I got from the University of Nebraska,” he said in the Becoming Warren Buffett documentary.

“You will not see the master’s degree I got from Columbia University. But you will see the award certificate I got from the Dale Carnegie Course.”

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