- Warren Buffett: "I also recommend Forty Chances by my son, Howard. You'll enjoy it." source ↗
Howard G. Buffett (Warren Buffett's son) and his son Howard W. Buffett write about the Howard G. Buffett Foundation's work fighting global hunger, framed around the central metaphor: if you were given three fields to plant and 40 chances to get it right, what would you do? The book blends the elder Howard's experiences farming and running philanthropic projects in war zones and developing countries with the younger Howard's policy perspective, arguing for a more strategic, outcome-driven approach to agricultural aid.
Warren Buffett recommended this book in his 2013 letter: 'I also recommend Forty Chances by my son, Howard. You'll enjoy it.' For founders, the book's title metaphor — you have a limited number of chances to make a difference, so allocate them deliberately — is a capital-allocation lesson dressed as a philanthropic memoir. The Buffett family's approach to giving mirrors Warren's investing discipline: measure results, concentrate resources where they have the best odds, and don't spread yourself thin across too many initiatives.
The practical lesson for founders is the field-planting metaphor applied to their own decisions: you have a finite number of big swings before your time, energy, or credibility runs out. The question is not which of 40 opportunities to take, but which ones to skip so the few you take have enough focus and resources to actually work.