Bill Gates Gives His Best Advice - Motivational

Summary

Bill Gates reflects on key moments in Microsoft's history, like betting on Windows and graphical interfaces despite initial doubts, and recognizing the importance of embracing the internet. He emphasizes the need to keep innovating, hiring smart people, and learning from customer feedback. Though proud of successes, Gates says Microsoft wakes up every day thinking about what they're missing and how to keep improving products. He concludes by asserting that this mindset of constant innovation is what has kept Microsoft at the forefront of technology.

Takeaways

• 😊 Bill Gates talks about how Microsoft bet the company on Windows and graphical interface, which took over 4 years to take off but now is ubiquitous
• 💡 Bill discusses how Microsoft is now betting big on the internet and developing tools and content plays there
• ⏰ Bill spends his time meeting with customers, responding to emails, thinking deeply about the future during 'think weeks', and spending time with his family
• 📈 Bill explains how competition spurs innovation, using browsers and operating systems as an example
• 😎 Bill highlights the importance of design and marketing in creating phenomenal, intuitive products with broad appeal
• 👩‍💻 Bill stresses the importance of working with very smart, innovative people and always pushing to do more
• 🤔 Bill says Microsoft has to continually think about what they are missing and how they can keep innovating
• 🔁 Bill explains how Microsoft has had to tear up plans and rethink strategy in light of developments like the internet
• ✅ Bill talks about enjoying the process of working on new problems with smart people each day
• 😤 Bill emphasizes the need to hire the very best talent and maintain a culture of innovation

Q & A

When did Microsoft first come up with the Windows concept?

Microsoft first came up with the Windows concept back in 1983.

What does Bill Gates say led to the quick adoption of Microsoft applications like Word, Excel and PowerPoint?

He says it's because they switched into the Windows environment, which made it easier for people to use those applications.

Who does Bill Gates say has now also come out with Windows applications?

He says that even companies like WordPerfect and Lotus have now come out with Windows applications.

What does Bill Gates say is attracting all the innovation in the industry?

He says the Windows environment is attracting all the innovation in the industry.

What does Bill Gates say that Netscape wanted to turn the browser into?

He says Netscape looked at turning the browser into an operating system.

What approach did Microsoft take instead?

Microsoft looked at taking their operating system and building the browser in an integrated fashion.

What does Bill Gates say is the kind of competition that spurs innovation?

He says the competition between companies like Microsoft and Netscape is the kind of competition that spurs innovation.

What does Bill Gates say helps drive Microsoft forward?

He says their focus on hiring the very best people and making sure they keep innovating at a rapid pace helps drive them forward.

What does Bill Gates say happened every time Microsoft has had a bit of success?

He says they're very careful not to dwell on any success. Instead they wake up thinking about what they might be missing and how they can keep innovating.

What does Bill Gates say is a great example of how Microsoft has had to embrace innovation?

He says the internet is a great example, where Microsoft has had to tear up their plans and fully embrace all that's good about the internet.

Outlines

00:00

😊 Early Days of Microsoft and Windows

Paragraph 1 describes the early days of Microsoft and the development of Windows. It talks about how Windows took over 4 years to develop before becoming popular. Bill Gates discusses betting the company on Windows despite doubts and lack of initial support.

😃 Gates' Leadership Style and Contributions

Paragraph 2 discusses Bill Gates' leadership qualities and contributions to Microsoft's success. It describes his sense of design and aesthetic, engineering background, intuitive understanding of marketing, and ability to reinvent the company to stay ahead.

💡 Need for Constant Innovation

Paragraph 3 talks about the need for constant innovation and not dwelling on past successes. It uses examples like graphical interface and integrated browser to illustrate how Microsoft has continued innovating.

😀 Enjoying the Work, Focusing on Hiring

Paragraph 4 describes Bill Gates' enjoyment for his work and Microsoft's focus on hiring the best talent and maintaining a culture of innovation to stay ahead.

Keywords

💡Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Windows is the graphical user interface operating system that Microsoft developed. Bill Gates explains how Windows was a big bet for Microsoft starting in 1983 that took over 4 years to gain popularity. He sees it as one of Microsoft's major successes.

💡graphical user interface

The graphical user interface (GUI) was pioneered by Microsoft Windows and presented information visually on screen rather than via text commands. Bill Gates mentions how the GUI was initially developed outside of the operating system, but Windows integrated it.

💡innovation

Innovation refers to the introduction of new ideas, technologies, products and ways of doing things. Bill Gates talks about how competition drives innovation in the technology industry and the need for Microsoft to continually innovate.

💡internet

The internet is the global computer network that provides connectivity and communication between devices. Bill Gates discusses how Microsoft had to adapt its plans and products like browsers to embrace the rise of the internet.

💡smart people

Bill Gates emphasizes working with very smart and talented people as core to Microsoft's success in leading innovation. He enjoys the process of collaborating to solve problems.

💡technology change

Bill Gates stresses that technology companies need to anticipate change and not simply rely on previous successes. New challenges and innovations require rethinking products and priorities.

💡customer feedback

Understanding customer needs and feedback is presented as essential for guiding Microsoft's product development and innovation. Bill Gates travels to meet with customers directly.

💡marketing

Bill Gates praises Steve Jobs' intuitive sense of marketing in developing Apple products that consumers desired. This shows the importance of marketing alongside technology innovation.

💡operating system

The operating system manages computer hardware and software resources. Bill Gates talks about how browsers became a threat to dominate the operating system, so Microsoft integrated browsing capabilities.

💡research

Investing in research is required for anticipating technology advances. Bill Gates takes think weeks to deeply consider the future technology landscape and how Microsoft should direct research.

Highlights

Bet entire company on Windows graphical interface, took 4+ years to gain popularity

Spends nights and weekends responding to emails and thinking about the future

Travels 25% of time to meet with customers and check priorities

Believes in the power of design and intuitive marketing

Focused on continually attacking new frontiers instead of dwelling on successes

Saw opportunity in integrating browser into operating system

Predicted growth of Windows environment long ago

Powerful Microsoft apps like Word, Excel and PowerPoint quickly adopted on Windows

Even competitors like WordPerfect and Lotus moved to offer Windows apps

Industry innovation focused on Windows platform

Careful not to dwell on success, wake up focused on what's missing

Obsess over hiring the very best people

Tore up plans to embrace what's best about the internet

Recognized shortcomings of internet and aimed to lead the way

Focused on innovating at a very high pace

Transcripts

you find an idea that requires three or

four years of improvement and patience

I'm really sticking with it that we're

very good at that take Windows which we

BET our company on everybody who doubted

that would succeed IBM did not support

us in that it took longer than we

expected over four years before finally

graphical interface got popular and now

people take it for granted it's part of

every personal computer and you just you

just expect it to be there that was one

of the grand successes of the company in

the same way we're betting on the

internet that our tools there will be

popular and that a few of these content

plays that we've decided to get involved

in that the scale and and the users will

make those into great businesses my

calendar gets very full with those and

then at night after the kids have gone

to bed on on email a great deal I get

get messages during the day that's my

chance to give long responses and then

over the weekend I I send a lot of mails

as well as well I take two weeks a year

to just go off and read and think where

I'm not interrupted by work or anything

else I'm just solidly trying to think

about the future and people get to send

me things to read as part of that

so-called think week so it's a nice mix

of things about 25 percent of the time

that I'm out uh traveling around meeting

with customers Europe Asia and that sort

of helps me think okay do we have the

right priorities what what are people

responding well to and what would they

they like to see us do better sense of

design that everything had to fit a

certain aesthetic the fact that he

this little engineering background as he

had and it shows that design can lead

you in a good direction and so

phenomenal products came out of it he

knew about brand I mean in in the in

very positive sense he he understood he

had an intuitive sense for marketing

that was uh

amazing can't just keep doing the same

old thing you were doing before you have

to take your skills and attack the New

Frontiers now for example graphical

interface used to be outside the

operating system and so there were many

people doing those systems uh Windows

came out ahead there and now it comes

with the operating system likewise the

the browser is something that Netscape

looked at turning the browser into an

operating system and we looked at taking

our operating system and and building

the browser in an integrated fashion and

so that was a good example of the kind

of competition that Spurs this bill

I'm Bill Gates chairman of Microsoft

in this video you're going to see the

future

windows

Microsoft first came up with the windows

concept back in 1983.

and today the leading software users

have switched into the windows

environment

it's really incredible how quickly our

powerful applications like Word and

Excel and PowerPoint have been adopted

it's not just Microsoft applications

even companies like word perfect and

Lotus have now come out with Windows

applications and every week we see new

Innovative work

it's really attracting all the

innovation in the industry

we predicted this a long time ago

and now it's the future gotta enjoy what

you do every day and for me that's

working with very smart people it's

working on new problems you know every

time we think hey we've had a little bit

of success we're pretty careful not to

dwell on it we wake every day knowing

that in the business of Technology you

have to think about what are you missing

what is the research or customer

feedback that you should be paying more

attention to and how do you keep that

pace of innovation very very high how do

you make sure you're hiring the very

best people and that kind of focus is

has helped drive us forward through all

the Milestones the company has had

certainly the internet is is a great

example of that we had to tear up our

our plans and and step back and say well

how do we how do we really embrace all

that's good about the internet and

recognize some of the shortcomings and

make sure we're leading the way