A Few People Got to Meet Bill Gates

“My annual letter this year makes the case for using a tool of business to improve the health and welfare of more of the world’s people.” — Bill Gates

A small group of journalists and bloggers got to meet with Bill Gates a few days ago for an hour and ask him questions about his annual letter, which focused on setting goals to improve the lives of poor people around the world. Jason Kottke has a nice writeup about the meeting, and Tyler Cowen’s notes are fascinating.

On why shaking hands is a waste of time:

He is smart enough, and health-savvy enough, not to waste time with handshakes at the beginning of meetings. People as productive as Gates should not be required to shake hands, and the same can be said for people less productive than Gates.

On how he famously didn’t finish college:

Gates suggested that if he had been more careful tracking and organizing his AP credits, he might have been able to receive his undergraduate degree. That is one sense, in his words, in which he is barely a college drop out. In another sense, it makes him a very extreme college drop out.

On his love of The Great Courses from The Teaching Company:

He mentioned that he is an extremely eager consumer (and not just funder) of on-line education and The Teaching Company. And this is a man who could receive free (or paid) lectures from almost anyone he wants.

Photo: orcmid

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