If only to survive the management of one of the largest technology companies in the worldBill Gates had to learn some productivity tricks to optimize your time as much as possible and prevent work from ruining your personal life.
As Bill Gates himself has recognized on occasionhas been acquiring these habits to live a happier life throughout your career based on mistakes or receiving advice from your friends. With the publication of his latest autobiographical book ‘Source code: My beginnings’Gates has once again reflected on these same principles.
The question is more important than the solution. One of the keys to problem solving is having the right answers, but much more important for Bill Gates is asking the right questions to find the right answers. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the millionaire published on his website some thoughts on how to find the solution.
“Since I was a teenager, I’ve approached every big new problem the same way: starting with two questions. I used this technique at Microsoft and still use it today. I ask these questions literally every week about Covid-19.” According to Gates, two of the first questions we should ask ourselves are: Who has dealt with this problem well before? And what can we learn from them?
Reinventing the wheel. In summary, what Bill Gates suggests is that it is not necessary to reinvent the wheel again and again, when someone has already found the solution to that problem. The best thing is to find a “wheel” that can adapt to your case and apply it. That approach does not require unlimited creativity, intelligence, or resources. It is simply about observe and learn in someone else’s head.
Control time. Gates recognizes that time control, especially in the early years of Microsoft, was not his strong suit, and that is why he spent long working days programming and developing the brand’s first products.
Until one day, his friend and investment magnate Warren Buffett: “The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.” In one intervention on the Charlie Ross showboth millionaires talked about the topic.
Empty diaries. Bill Gates reflected on the veteran investor’s admirable command of time: “The fact that he is so careful with time, he has days when there is nothing on (his agenda)… sitting and thinking can be a priority much older. It is not an indicator of your seriousness that you have occupied every minute of your schedule.”
This point is key since if you really want to achieve your goal, it is not enough to fill your work agenda. That will keep you so busy that it may prevent you from getting what you really want. So set priorities and say ‘no’ to the rest.
Patience is the key to motivation. When Bill Gates founded Microsoft, he was barely a twenty-something with no knowledge about business or even notions of how to manage the company’s employees, so tended to be a somewhat toxic boss that with A look at the Microsoft office parking lot I could tell which employees were working and which had gone home.
Over time, he realized that prioritizing results over always controlling what each employee did at all times was a better option both for his relationship with his staff and for his personal life. “Patience is a key element of success,” he said on one occasion.
Learning lessons. Gates admits that this lesson was difficult to learn, but believes the key is to persistently work to put yourself in a good position and simply wait for the opportunity to arrive so you don’t miss it.
This has also helped him improve his relationship with his employees. He discovered that by showing patience and trust towards them and their talent, improved their personal motivation and they wanted to do their best so as not to disappoint that person who had trusted them. In the end, both results and relationships benefited from the change in attitude.
A version of this article was published in February 2025
Image | Lukasz Kobus
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