At 19, Bill Gates saw a problem with computers and dedicated his life to improving them. He was frustrated that the computer language BASIC couldn’t be used on smaller computers, so he and his friend set out to fix this issue. They eventually dropped out of Harvard to found Microsoft and quickly rose through the ranks of the tech companies. They licensed one of their products to IBM and gained enormous credibility as a tech company. Worried about IBM pushing them out of the deal, Gates integrated Microsoft so tightly with IBMs computers that it made it impossible for IBM to kick them out of the deal.
Gates’ fame and finances rocketed up during the late 1980s, and many smaller computer companies were coming to him to use his software. He did not stop at just making money for himself though. He launched the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a charity dedicated to improving the world in countless ways, such as curing malaria and supporting global health organizations. Later on, it started focusing heavily on education.
Bill Gates has inspired me with his relentless drive and flexibility, which allowed him to build one of the biggest and most powerful companies in the world. Something about his story stood out to me in a distinct way. He did not dream to do something that was beyond his capabilities. Instead, he started relatively small and used the tools at his disposal to build something unique. I have noticed this pattern in several other industries, where people have seen a solution to a recent problem and have the tools necessary to address that problem. For example, in my economics class, we learned about the law of marginal utility, which was founded by three different people in Europe. These people had no knowledge of the other’s existence until they had all published separate works which contained very similar information.
It’s interesting and inspiring to me how Bill Gates recognized such a big problem and ended up finding a solution with his drive entrepreneurial mind. It’s inspires me how Bill Gates was only 19 when he innovated and found Microsoft. His idea represents real innovation because he ultimately changed the way of technology by seeing and acting on the opportunity before others could. Great post!