On an overcast Thursday, I stepped out of the car and entered my Karate dojo hoping to earn my third stripe for green belt. I ignored the sprinkling rain and pervasive cloud cover, for it is always cloudy in Bellevue, Washington, and hurried into the building. As I warmed up with toe-touchers and pikes, a new student stepped on to the mat. He was very little, about four years old, and had a mop of brown hair that hung in his eyes. Deeming him too young to talk to and therefore unimportant, I ignored the little boy and went back to focusing on the warm-up. Little did I know that the little boy was Bill Gates’ son, Rory. I was shocked to learn that arguably the wealthiest man on earth had decided to send his only son to a dojo whose clientele composed of mainly middle class families. Gates could have bought the dojo without blinking but he decided to send Rory to class as an ordinary student. What is the thought processes behind this computer genius? How did he become the iconic figure for innovation and business?
While enrolled at prestigious preparatory school, Bill Gates encountered his first computer at the age of thirteen. He was fascinated with intricate computations and puzzles associated with computer program. Gates spent the majority of his free time studying the source code of the CCC program – I honestly have no idea what that is but it is computer related. The expectations from his parents and a SAT score of 1590 out of 1600, Bill Gates attended Harvard with the original intent of becoming a lawyer like his father. However, during school he aimlessly studied subjects with no real intent of ever getting a law degree. Gates eventually dropped out of school to start his own company with the help of one of his buddies, Paul Allen.
Gates and Allen developed a new computer thingamabob that made computers better. To those knowledgeable and interested in the intricacies of computer programming, this new innovation was incredibly exciting. Microsoft, Gate’s company, - I doubt that anybody did not know that already – partnered with IBM. Due to anti-trust laws, Microsoft was able to expand and become the prominent computer company of the day. Gate puts his new found wealth into many charities, especially his own philanthropic charity called the Gates Foundation.
Through unconventional methods Gates became the most successful, and wealthiest, man in the world. Gates is a counterexample of the stereotypical method to become successful: individuals need to earn a college degree and then work hard for the rest of their carrier to achieve prosperity. He dropped out of college to go off on a seemingly ill conceived endeavor and ended creating a revolutionary technology and company. Gates’ path to success highlights the dual nature of traditional schooling, it enabled his exploration into computers but stifled him form devoting the majority of his focus onto the interests he loved. Like many other iconic figure’s actions, Bill Gate’s path to success highlights how true innovation comes not from rope memorization but through taking risks that are oftentimes rejected by the faint of heart
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