Munger and Buffett, two different people but a wonderful combination: Sanjay Bakshi

The biggest role that Charlie Munger had on Warren Buffett was to advise him to focus on the quality of a business.

While Warren Buffett is a fun-loving and hopeful investor, the late Charlie Munger, who passed away at the age of 99 on November 28, cautiously saw the other side of the coin -- downside risks and pessimism. Yet, the two came together and made Berkshire Hathaway into a $778-billion investment giant. "That was a wonderful combination", finance expert professor, Sanjay Bakshi said in an exclusive conversation with Moneycontrol.

Bakshi, a professor of behavioural science and value investing at FLAME University, said the relationship between the two teaches investors to become better decision makers by not just being on their own, but by also having allies and friends whom they can talk to and seek help to take complex business decisions.

Also read: Raamdeo Agrawal explains Charlie Munger’s compounding strategy, and why only a few get it

Bakshi noted the importance of setting aside one's ego to become a successful investor. "Both Buffett and Munger are very spiritual, they were detached, were not egoistical and gave each other a lot of leeway," he said.

During the years that the two worked together, there must have been disagreements, but none of them walked out. "Future is uncertain and different people assign different weights to different factors, so by keeping egos in check, you end up becoming a much better decision maker," Bakshi added.

Read more: Top 10 quotes from investing genius Charlie Munger

He recalled Munger's advice about marriage and suggested that it applies to investing and about partnerships in life. "You should keep your eyes wide open before you get married but only partly open afterwards," Bakshi quoted Munger, referring to the importance of partnerships in investing.

Lastly, he said that the biggest role that Charlie Munger had on Warren Buffett was to advise him to focus on the quality of a business. "If there is one idea that I would say is the single most important idea that he introduced to Buffett was the idea of compound interest inside a business."