Editor's note: The miracle of compound interest not only occurs in the financial sector, but also applies to self-improvement. Just like Munger said, we have to spend the best time every day for ourselves, improve our minds, and leave the rest of the time to the world. If things go on like this, we will experience the charm of mental compound interest. 

We have all heard of the magic of compound interest. In fact, mental compound interest is just as powerful. I read some advice from investor Charlie Munger in the book "University of Berkshire Hathaway":

"Munger thought of introducing compound interest into his mind, so he reserved the best time of the day for himself to improve his mind, and the rest of the time for the world. He said it might sound very good Selfish, but very useful. He also pointed out that if you stay in this state, it is difficult to fail anything you want to do."

I call this idea "Munger technique". But when I mention this to my students, team members, or friends, most people think that Munger is talking about morning routines. This is a misunderstanding. Munger said that he saved the best time of the day to himself, and he used this hour to improve his mind.

1. When will you improve your mind?

This has nothing to do with the morning routine. Personally, I am not a person who likes to get up early, nor do I have strict work and rest habits. Of course, I try to avoid checking emails, reading news, or consuming useless content in the morning, but I don’t have a fixed schedule before starting work in the morning. I know that some people like to arrange their morning like this, such as getting up at 7 in the morning , drinking water, meditating, reading a magazine, reading, and going to work. It must be in this order. I am not like this. I get up in the morning and start work immediately. As long as I can forget all the distractions in the world, I can treat it as a good morning. But when I read this advice from Munger, I asked myself two questions:

1. When can I improve my mind?

2. How can I improve my mind?

For me, improving my mind means improving my key skills: writing, persuasion, decision-making. I read and take notes, trying to connect everything I have learned. When I try to improve my mind, I just want to learn. Action is the future. It is exactly what I have done.

But when can I improve my mind? Until now, I always think I should do this in the morning. After all, morning is the best time, right? However, this is not always the case.

2. When are you in your best condition of the day?

I believe that life is circular. I learned this from successful investors like Howard Marks. They often emphasize that if calculated on a daily basis, the stock market fluctuates greatly, but if you observe the stock market for 10, 20 or 30 years, you will see a steady upward trend.

Similar things happen in our lives. One day you may feel good, and one day you may feel very tired. Just like the stock market. This is why I don't like the regular morning routine, because it is unrealistic to expect myself to feel the same every day.

I understand people's arguments about getting up early and resting. Because it is generally believed that good morning habits will make your day better. But in my experience, this is not the case.

Sometimes, getting up early will only make you less energetic when you wake up. Sometimes you will encounter an emergency. If you have children, your morning is for them. In this case, although you can continue to meditate, you will still feel tired or have to deal with an emergency.

You can think of many reasons why the morning routine doesn't work. But Munger's method is always effective, let me explain why.

3. Maintain a "water mentality"

If we know that days may rise and fall, then how can we maintain a long-term upward trend? We can do this by maintaining a "water mentality". Water always changes with the shape of the environment.

Munger’s technique will help you become like water and flexibly save the best moments of the day to yourself. Your best time may be in the morning one day or after dinner the next day. But this must be your best moment.

This technique has greatly changed the way I study. I am no longer frustrated because I can't study in the morning, because I realize this is not my best time. When you want to improve your mind, you want to be in a relaxed, more fluid state. You want to feel good, rested, and energetic.

As Munger said, this sounds selfish, but it works. In the long run, this will make you more reliable. When you raise a daily point of your mind, it will have the mind of compound interest. After your mind grows up, it's hard to fail anything in your life.

In the past few months, I have found that my best time is often after dinner. Especially if I exercised that day and work efficiently during the day. I will eat dinner first, maybe relax, have a cup of tea, and then start to improve myself.

Before that, I would often watch some videos on YouTube or browse the web. Often, you don’t even realize what the best moment of your day is. But you must be conscious and constantly adjust your habits to keep them in line with your energy. Maybe my best time is the first hour after I wake up. Who knows? Try Munger's technique. Starting tomorrow, use the best time of your day to improve your mind. If you do this every day, knowledge will have compound interest miracles.