It’s hard to imagine the bromance between Bill Gates and Warren Buffett never taking shape. But in the early 1990s, the Microsoft Corp. co-founder harbored skepticism about building a relationship with the famed investor.
“Look, he just buys and sells pieces of paper. That's not real value added. I don't think we'd have much in common,” Gates wrote in a 2016 GatesNotes blog post,
The tech visionary saw little overlap between his pioneering software development and Buffett’s investment approach. Game-changing Microsoft products like Office and Windows 3.0 revolutionized computing in 1990. What insights could a wealthy trader offer?
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Yet Gates’s reluctance would soon be overruled by his mother. During one of Buffett’s visits to Washington state in July 1991, the titans’ paths crossed thanks to a mutual friend inviting Gates to dinner.
“My mom’s very sociable, always getting people together. … When she said ‘You’ve got to come out and meet Warren,’ I said, ‘Mom, I’m busy,'” Gates said at the University of Nebraska in 2005.
His mother persisted, insisting Buffett would be worth his time.
Gates agreed but only to “stay for no more than two hours before getting back to work at Microsoft.” However, once the pair engaged in conversation, the young tech mogul’s perception shifted.
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“These were amazingly good questions that nobody had ever asked,” Gates recalled of Buffett’s inquiries. What he once dismissed as trades on “pieces of paper” revealed itself as a framework for evaluating markets, people and "how things work in a very deep way."
The conversation flowed so naturally that Gates abandoned his time constraint, with "hours and hours” slipping by. He was enamored by Buffett’s sharp wit, humble demeanor and lucid thought process.
For skeptics who doubt the societal value of investing, Gates’s initial reservations are a powerful counterargument. The Oracle of Omaha’s teachings on business fundamentals, value investing principles and studying entire industries have educated legions beyond Wall Street.
From saying “I didn’t even want to meet Warren” to forming a deep friendship, Gates’s experience underscores the importance of heeding wisdom from unlikely sources. His mother’s insistence opened a window into an analytical mind that complemented the Microsoft founder’s talents, forming an iconic partnership.
Buffett advised students to associate with elite peers: “You will move in the direction of the people that you associate with. It’s important to associate with people that are better than yourself.”
For Gates, that pivotal dinner showed why an investor’s perspective can be invaluable to any aspiring leader of industry.
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