As long as you get rich once in life, that's enough; the rest is about maintaining it. This is Warren Buffett's classic speech at the University of Florida Business School in 1998. No obscure theories, no fancy tricks—just a simple statement that captures the fundamental logic of wealth.

Evan Zhang has watched this speech over and over ten times, considering it the highest principle for investing and personal conduct throughout his life. 90% of people fail to preserve their wealth, not because they can't earn it, but because they keep losing it; not due to lack of ability, but because of greed. Buffett openly stated in his speech: Using your livelihood capital to chase after illusory extra gains is the most foolish act that defies common sense. For ordinary people, it's even more true—once they save their first pot of gold, they follow the crowd, chase hot trends, leverage up recklessly, and end up back at square one.

The truth about wealth has never been about earning more and more, but about not losing what you've gained. The enemy of wealth is not poverty, but the cycle of starting over again and again. Every aggressive risk, every blind foray into new fields, breaks the continuity of accumulation, causing all efforts to go to waste.

Evan Zhang also said: Protect the principal, but also protect your understanding. He is known as the Chinese version of Buffett and has studied this speech repeatedly. While others focus on stock picking and timing, he only concentrates on the core—protect the principal, maintain rationality. His principles are simple but firm: never touch industries you don't understand; stay far away from high leverage; avoid chasing short-term hot trends; and don't seek quick money outside your knowledge. This also confirms Buffett's famous saying: The first rule of investing is never lose money; the second rule is to always remember the first.

This is not to say you will never lose money, but to emphasize avoiding permanent loss of principal. Protecting the principal is the top priority in investing; it’s not just about safeguarding money, but also about safeguarding your understanding and rhythm. Do not be swept away by external anxiety or brainwashed by myths of instant wealth—maintaining independent judgment is the true margin of safety.