Charlie Munger Said 'It's So Much Harder To Make Money Today, You Can't Believe It' — The 'Low-Hanging Fruit' That Made People Rich Is Gone

If it feels harder to build wealth these days, you're not imagining it—and the late Charlie Munger agreed.

In a 2023 CNBC interview with Becky Quick, Munger—who was 99 at the time—was asked a simple but loaded question:

"So you think it's harder to make money now?"

Munger didn't hesitate. "Well, that's a very interesting question. And it's a very important question. And of course it's harder. It's so much harder you can't believe it."

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For someone who spent nearly a century analyzing markets, that blunt answer was striking. And it wasn't just a complaint—it was a history lesson.

Munger explained that the investing playbook that made Warren Buffett rich, taught by legendary investor Ben Graham, doesn't work like it used to. Graham's strategy—buying undervalued companies with strong asset backing—was revolutionary during the Great Depression. He wasn't chasing unicorn startups or IPO hype. He just found "a few good things" and stuck with them for a few years.

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"He just floated around from the best available stuff among companies good and bad. That was his system," Munger recalled. "Well, after he became so famous, partly with the help of Warren Buffett… everybody tried to do the same thing."

And that's the problem. The moment everyone flooded the market trying to be the next Ben Graham, the opportunities dried up. "The low-hanging fruit that Ben Graham had a lot of… has gone away," Munger said.

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It's not just the investing world that's more competitive—every part of the wealth-building journey feels heavier now. Sure, Buffett has famously said that even today's bottom 2% are richer than Rockefeller in many ways. And Munger himself has urged people not to complain too much about modern life. But that doesn't mean people feel rich. Not with inflation hammering everyday costs, home prices surging, and savings rates lagging behind asset inflation.

Yes, technology has opened doors. But it's also raised the bar. Everyone has access to information, apps, and trading tools. But that access hasn't made it easier to get rich—it's just made the race more crowded.

What Munger was saying—in his signature blunt manner—is that the easy wins are gone. If you want to build wealth today, you'll need more than just hustle. You'll need patience, strategy, and a willingness to climb higher for what used to be waiting on the ground.

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