Bill Gates reveals the 5 things he wish he had heard in his youth

2023-05-17 18:29

Bill Gates has shared the different pieces of life advice he wish he received in his youth. The Microsoft founder delivered his third commencement speech (he had previously spoken at Harvard 2007 and Stanford 2014) to the forestry and engineering graduates of Northern Arizona University and posted his speech on his website. When it comes to the 67-year-old's time on campus, he never made it to his own graduation and left after three semesters to start Microsoft, something that he does mention. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter "So, what does a college dropout know about graduation? Not much personally, to be honest," he said. Here are the five things Gates wishes he heard at the graduation he never had: Your life isn’t a one-act play. "You probably feel a lot of pressure right now to make the right decisions about your career," Gates said. "It might feel like those decisions are permanent. They’re not. What you do tomorrow—or for the next ten years—does not have to be what you do forever." He goes on to add that he thought after leaving school he would be working for Microsoft for the rest of his life but that now philanthropy is his full time job. You are never too smart to be confused. "I thought I knew everything I needed to know when I left college," he began. "But the first step to learning something new is embracing what you don’t know, instead of focusing on what you do know." When facing a problem that cannot be resolved alone, he said: "Don’t panic. Take a breath. Force yourself to think things through. And then find smart people to learn from" - and also advised not too be too afraid to ask. Gravitate toward work that solves an important problem. "The good news is, you are graduating at a time when there are many important problems to solve." "New industries and companies are emerging every day that will allow you to make a living and make a difference, and advances in science and technology have made it easier than ever to make a big impact." Don’t underestimate the power of friendship. "When I was in school, I became friends with another student who shared a lot of my interests, like science fiction novels and computer magazines," Gates said. "Little did I know how important that friendship would be. My friend’s name was Paul Allen—and we started Microsoft together." You are not a slacker if you cut yourself some slack. Gates noted how life is all about work - something that he learnt as he grew up. "When I was your age, I didn’t believe in vacations. I didn’t believe in weekends," he said. I pushed everyone around me to work very long hours. In the early days of Microsoft, my office overlooked the parking lot—and I would keep track of who was leaving early and staying late. "But as I got older—and especially once I became a father—I realized there is more to life than work." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Bill Gates has shared the different pieces of life advice he wish he received in his youth.

The Microsoft founder delivered his third commencement speech (he had previously spoken at Harvard 2007 and Stanford 2014) to the forestry and engineering graduates of Northern Arizona University and posted his speech on his website.

When it comes to the 67-year-old's time on campus, he never made it to his own graduation and left after three semesters to start Microsoft, something that he does mention.

Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

"So, what does a college dropout know about graduation? Not much personally, to be honest," he said.

Here are the five things Gates wishes he heard at the graduation he never had:

Your life isn’t a one-act play.

"You probably feel a lot of pressure right now to make the right decisions about your career," Gates said.

"It might feel like those decisions are permanent. They’re not. What you do tomorrow—or for the next ten years—does not have to be what you do forever."

He goes on to add that he thought after leaving school he would be working for Microsoft for the rest of his life but that now philanthropy is his full time job.

You are never too smart to be confused.

"I thought I knew everything I needed to know when I left college," he began.

"But the first step to learning something new is embracing what you don’t know, instead of focusing on what you do know."

When facing a problem that cannot be resolved alone, he said: "Don’t panic. Take a breath. Force yourself to think things through. And then find smart people to learn from" - and also advised not too be too afraid to ask.

Gravitate toward work that solves an important problem.

"The good news is, you are graduating at a time when there are many important problems to solve."

"New industries and companies are emerging every day that will allow you to make a living and make a difference, and advances in science and technology have made it easier than ever to make a big impact."

Don’t underestimate the power of friendship.

"When I was in school, I became friends with another student who shared a lot of my interests, like science fiction novels and computer magazines," Gates said.

"Little did I know how important that friendship would be. My friend’s name was Paul Allen—and we started Microsoft together."

You are not a slacker if you cut yourself some slack.

Gates noted how life is all about work - something that he learnt as he grew up.

"When I was your age, I didn’t believe in vacations. I didn’t believe in weekends," he said.

I pushed everyone around me to work very long hours. In the early days of Microsoft, my office overlooked the parking lot—and I would keep track of who was leaving early and staying late.

"But as I got older—and especially once I became a father—I realized there is more to life than work."

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.