When Bill Gates first started having money to invest, he made sure to put his money to work by buying shares in some of the world’s biggest companies. The Microsoft founder purchased stock in Coca-Cola, UPS, Crown Castle, and other companies, including some in which his close friend Warren Buffett, another of the world’s richest men, also invests. However, if you were to ask Gates what is the best investment to make, his answer might not be what you would expect.
During one of the famous AMAs, or “ask me anything” events on Reddit, Bill Gates answered different questions from various users. Among them was one about his investment strategies and what advice he could share.
Invest in your education
This exchange happened more than a decade ago, but it shows how important education is to the billionaire. As he has stressed on more than one occasion, he views it as key to success. In fact, whenever he recommends new books he includes works on complex subjects. Gates educates himself about the subjects he is interested in and the industries he invests in, something he also learned from his friend Warren Buffett.
Constant learning is necessary even for entrepreneurs as they must give themselves the opportunity to expand their horizons and gain a clearer understanding of certain industries.
It is therefore not surprising that much of Bill Gates’s philanthropic work focuses on education, almost on par with his support for health initiatives. For years, he has donated billions of dollars for education both in the US and globally, and one of his most recent investments was $1.1 billion in mathematics education, an area where many students could use extra help.
So Gates invests in education in more ways than one. But the truth is that if you have money and you’re thinking about investing, one of the best things you can do is invest in yourself, and your age doesn’t matter. It’s never a bad time to start and it may make your path forward, in life and your career, clearer.
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