99-Year-Old Billionaire Charlie Munger Said 'Iron Rule Of Life Is Everybody Struggles' But You Have to 'Soldier Through — It's Your Only Option'

Charlie Munger didn't spend his 99 years pretending life was easy. He spent them proving that hardship wasn't an obstacle to success — it was just part of the job description.

Before he built his fortune alongside Warren Buffett, Munger weathered heartbreak most would buckle under. In his 20s, he went through a divorce. Two years later, he lost his 9-year-old son, Teddy, to leukemia — back when the fatality rate was 100%. He would later lose the sight in one eye after a botched cataract surgery. And near the end of his life, after 52 years of marriage, he said goodbye to his beloved second wife, Nancy.

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And yet, Munger never treated suffering as an excuse to stall out. "The iron rule of life is: Everybody struggles," he said in a 2023 interview with CNBC's Becky Quick. "You can cry all right. But you can't quit."

Munger didn't deny the pain. He didn't dismiss the grief. He explained it plainly: life will knock you down — sometimes in ways you can't fix or undo — but the only real choice you have is to keep moving. 

"If you soldier through, you can get through almost anything. And it's your only option," Munger said. 

"You can't bring back the dead, you can't cure the dying child. You can't do all kinds of things," he continued. "You have to soldier through it. Somehow you soldier through. If you have to walk through the streets, crying for a few hours a day as part of the soldiering, go ahead and cry away. But… you can't quit."

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Struggle Isn't a Bug — It's the System

Munger's entire life philosophy was built around one simple truth: bad things happen. And not just to the unlucky few — to everyone. Wealth, intelligence, connections — none of it gave you a pass.

He wasn't saying to hide your struggles. He was saying: don't let them take you out.

Opportunity Doesn't Wait for a Perfect Day

Munger knew success wasn't about avoiding hardship — it was about recognizing opportunities in between the blows. "Lots of hardship will come and you gotta handle it well by soldiering through," he said. "And lots of – a few rare opportunities will come. You got to learn how to recognize them when they come and not make too minor of a trip to the pie counter when the opportunity is available."

In short: life's not fair, but if you spend all your time mourning the losses, you'll miss the wins.

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Munger practiced what he preached. Even as friends upgraded to mansions and luxury living, he stayed grounded — choosing a steady, simple life over status symbols. "I still decided not to live a life where I look like the Duke of Westchester or something," he said. The reason? It wasn't about austerity — it was about not spoiling the next generation. "You grow up in a rich family, your duty is to use the wealth and live grandly. That is what everyone is doing with the money. You will learn from people who are doing it," he warned.

No Second Chances — Just This Life

Munger's blunt worldview wasn't a call to bitterness. It was a blueprint for endurance. Bad days come. So do gut-wrenching losses. But the only thing that really counts, in business and in life, is whether you stay in the fight.

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