Bill Gates
DEDICATION: Episode EF6 is dedicated to Bill Gates, a man well known to consume enormous amounts of books and leverage that knowledge to change the world in incredible ways. Gates started by programming a simple tic-tac-toe game and grew that meager start into the what would become the most influential software stack in the personal computing revolution. And now through his Gates Foundation, initially funded with billions of his own capital, it’s hard to imagine any living person who will have a more positive impact on the world.
Being one of the wealthiest people in the world and the co-founder of one of the biggest tech companies doesn’t come at a small price. And success isn’t a synonym for wisdom. Imagining him to be a Gandalf type of character is an exaggeration on its own. But in his case, wisdom has evolved from his particular brand of applied knowledge acquisition and global entrepreneurship.
Gates might not have a long beard or post wise quotes on Instagram and Twitter. But through wisely selected projects, he might save more lives and improve the planet more than any person in history. If there were a case study in the power of effective altruism, it would have to be him. He’s now tackling some of the root causes of climate change as well, which will also contribute to his extraordinary legacy.
HOW BILL GATES INSPIRES EF6
Episode EF6 is all about overcoming the step between being knowledgeable and being wise and discovering the obstacles that lie between. We can say Gates pulls this off, but our protagonist still has a long road ahead of him. Bill Gates is proof that you can information mainline and still become wise; the effort is not ‘folly’ as the episode title suggests if you approach the project strategically.
If you need more insight in Gates’ work, check out the links below: