Bill Gates Scholarship Programs - How Do You Qualify?

The Bill Gates Scholarship funds are designed to help students from low income families go to college. The goal is to help more than 27,000 highly motivated, low income students go to college by 2016. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation supports eight scholarship programs. Of these programs, one of the most popular is the Gates Millennium Scholarship. Other scholarship programs supported by the foundation include Mary Gates Scholars, Gates Cambridge Scholarships, and Gates Public Service Law Scholarships among others.

The Gates Millennium Scholarship program is geared toward minority students from low income families. Students pursuing graduate and undergraduate degrees are eligible for this scholarship. While students must meet needs based income guidelines, such as being eligible for the Federal Pell Grant, there are other criteria as well. The selection committee will be looking for those students who have the potential to become leaders as well as those students who have attained academic achievement and who have rendered service to their communities.

There is no set amount for the Gates Millennium Scholarship as it is a needs based scholarship. This means that the amount of the scholarship will depend on the cost of tuition, books, and fees as well as the amount the student is awarded from any other scholarships, grants, or financial aid. The scholarship takes into account living expenses as well so it could literally mean the difference between a student's ability to attend college or not.

Remember, there are eight scholarship programs in all that are supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation so you will want to look over them closely to see which ones you might qualify for. Follow all directions exactly when applying for scholarships and look closely at the application deadlines. Winning a Bill Gates Scholarship could make a tremendous difference in your future so apply for any of them for which you meet eligibility criteria.

Looking to Find Financial Aid Sources for College

Stop by Financial Aid Funds and learn more about various grants and aid packages including Scholarships for Mothers

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Success Coaching - What Bill Gates and You Should Have In Common

He was just a teenager, but he was already displaying the powerful habits that would one day make him a billionaire.

I had to dart down to Atlanta on Monday for a business meeting with a partner of mine and grabbed a new book to read on the plane.

I really get supercharged for a good autobiography and I had one in my mist(you know that feeling?).

The teenager I was talking about was none other than the world's richest man, Bill Gates.

It was 7am, we were about to depart to Atlanta, and I dove into 'Hard Drive: Bill Gates And The Making Of The Microsoft Empire.'

I want to share with you 2 success insights and strategies that Bill Gates used to create his fortune which you can use to change your life.

You ready?

Let's go (buckle up).

(deep breath)

1) Success Environment - Out of the many themes in Bill Gates'
life, the one success insight that always reveals itself, is that he managed to get himself around, positive, action-minded people.

The consistancy of this habit for him was incredible.

Starting when he was just a teenager, up to working with Paul Allen, who he met in college, and then Steve Ballmer, who is now CEO of Microsoft, Bill Gates was also seeking out WINNERS.

Yes, winners, people that were determined to supercharge their lives and 'crack the code' to achieve their dreams.

How many people are in your 'inner circle' right now that are 'ahead of you?'

I'm always looking for people that are doing better than I am in areas that I'm looking to improve in and there are many.

You need to do the same, hear me?

It's so important. Join a local business group, find a coach, and there are a bunch of other ways.

One of the many reasons that I put together 'Success Mania 2005', this coming September in Atlanta, Georgia, is because I want to be around 400 winners and 9 speakers who I can learn from. A full weekend of breathtaking life changes, that's what everyone there is going to experience.

Just by getting around the right people, I've been able to create monster increases in my in.come, just like Bill Gates has done.

Onward.

2) Wealth Confidence - Never underestimate the power of your commitments and decisions.

Let me explain.

When Bill Gates was a teenager, he told anyone who would listen that he'd be a millionaire by 25 years old.

Yes, his parents thought he was crazy, as well as many friends.

(we know how that is, right?)

But, Bill Gates had what I call 'Wealth Confidence'.

Like Bill, you want to take the shortcut to success and that means you need to believe in yourself and your talents. The long, hard road to your dreams appears when you trap yourself by limited, "I'm no good" thinking.

I've been there, done that.

It's not fun.

It's really not fun.

Listen, there'a hidden fortune inside of you ready to be released if you will just believe in yourself enough to take the NEXT STEP.

We all live at a fraction of what's possible for ourselves and we HAVE TO change that and never be satified on our personal development.

You in?

You ready to push yourself? (ask yourself this again)

I'm asking you, because that's what I'm demanding of myself.

That's what my goal is and I want to know if you're ready to join me.

You and I can create stunning results in our lives and you can give fear and doubt the 'one-two knockout punch' immediately and leap to your dreams. You really can.

If you're eager for help in developing the 'Wealth Confidence'
because you're committed to raising your income this year, look at the P.S below.

Listen, let's make today 'jaw-dropping' through the simple steps we can take to move our lives forward. Simple steps lead to huge results.

Start putting yourself in a 'success environment' and do whatever you can to start building your 'wealth confidence'.

Because you're reading this, I know you're serious about your future and I'm excited to help you every step of the way.

Make your move.

Talk to you soon.

Mike Litman's Success Secrets

Mike Litman is the co-author of the #1 Best-selling book Conversations with Millionaires. Over the last 3 years, Mike has unleashed the greatness of tens of thousands of people worldwide. Networking Times Magazine called Mike Litman ?a modern day Napoleon Hill? and at the age of 30 he?s already shared the stage with well-known speakers such as Jim Rohn, Mark Victor Hansen and Bob Proctor

[http://www.successmania2005.com]

http://www.mikelitman.com/

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Speech Writing - How Did Bill Gates Prepare His Harvard Commencement Speech?

Speechwriting is a hard-to-master art form. It requires a lot of background knowledge on the part of the writer that cannot be acquired overnight. But that's not enough.

A good speech also requires a clear core message. The writer, the speaker and the audience should all be able to answer the following question right away - "what was this speech all about?"

It is also important to adjust the speech to the audience and the setting, or the occasion. A high school commencement speech should not read like one delivered at a gridiron or political fund raiser event.

To understand the kind of effort and care that goes into a great speech, I'd like to share with you the number of steps Microsoft's Bill Gates went through while preparing his June 7, 2007 Harvard Commencement Speech.

Gates started to prepare his June 2007 speech back in December 2006. He used a Gates Foundation staff member to vent out his initial ideas. Gates and the staffer, who had been a writer for the online magazine Slate, worked on several ideas and drafts through six brainstorming sessions. The result was six drafts of the same speech, writing "some of the longest ones himself," according to the Wall Street Journal.

To fortify himself and focus on a central concept, Gates read historic speeches delivered by Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Enrico Fermi, Robert Koch, Bill Clinton, Bono, and George Marshall.

In January he sent e-mails to his trusted staffers asking for their contributions and ideas.

In May, Gates visited Warren Buffet in Omaha, Nebraska to get his opinion and ideas on the speech as well.

Then he rehearsed the speech by reading it to himself on a podium at his office. He sent another copy to Buffet and the next day "he read the speech aloud to his wife on the private plane ride to Boston," according to WSJ.

And on June 7, 2007 Gates was at long last ready to deliver the speech that he worked on for over 6 months. That is the kind of energy and analytical focus with which Gates prepares for a public communication opportunity.

Is it a wonder that he is one of the most successful businessmen the world has ever known?

**************************************************************************

Ugur Akinci, Ph.D. is a senior writer and web content consultant with 20 years of experience.

Subscribe to his FREE "Weekly Success Update" Newsletter today at
http://www.writer111.com and claim your FREE BONUS GIFT.

**************************************************************************

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Master Resale Rights: 5 Lessons Bill Gates Could Teach You

Smart Internet marketers know that buying master resale rights is a shortcut to getting products on the market. But did you know that Bill Gates and the Microsoft empire were built from purchasing master resale rights?

That's right - the richest man in the world bought the rights to DOS, the operating system that began the Microsoft empire.

There are 5 important lessons Bill Gates could teach you about master resale rights.

1. Find a hungry market with a burning need and fill it.

Bill Gates read about the Altair 8800 computer in Popular Science in 1975. Realizing Altair needed a simple programming language to make the computer popular, Gates sold a version of BASIC to Altair before it was even written. Then Gates worked night and day with Paul Allen and Monte Davidoff to develop it. Microsoft was born.

In 1980, IBM created the desktop PC - but they didn't have an operating system. Gates saw a burning need waiting to be filled, and learned a new lesson:

2. You don't have to create a product to fill a need if you can buy the master resale rights instead.

IBM approached Bill Gates to create an operating system for the PC. Gates initially recommended they contact Digital Research to purchase their CP/M operating system. But those negotiations failed, and IBM came back to Bill Gates.

Gates learned that Tim Paterson of Seattle Computer Products had developed a clone of CP/M called QDOS. Microsoft bought the rights for just $56,000.

Of course you don't have to invest $56,000 to get rights worth selling. Often you can buy master resale rights for $100, $50, even $10 or $20. You can even join resale rights membership sites and get thousands of dollars worth of products for a small monthly fee. Sometimes you can even find master resale rights products for free!

Why so cheap? Sometimes the products aren't very good, but often they're great products that weren't marketed well. Not seeing the opportunity, people sell their work for almost nothing.

Smart marketers know that sometimes you can just rename a product or change the marketing and have a hit. This is where Bill Gates could teach us the third lesson:

3. Repackage or rebrand, change the marketing approach, and build your own brand.

QDOS stood for "Quick and Dirty Operating System." IBM might have bought it even with a name like that, but being a savvy marketer, Gates decided to rebrand it. He dubbed it "PC-DOS," for "PC Disk Operating System." He targeted it squarely at IBM - and they bought it, big time.

When PC clones hit the market, Gates saw another hungry market with a burning need. Microsoft quickly rebranded DOS, dubbing it "MS-DOS" for "Microsoft Disk Operating System," thus building the Microsoft brand at the same time. The rest is history.

Resale rights products are often widely available. If you do the same thing as everyone else, why should someone buy the product from you? But if you take the time to repackage or rebrand the resale rights where permitted, you will have a unique product you can market to a hungry audience with a burning need. Because the next lesson we can learn from Bill Gates is:

4. Just because someone else didn't become a billionaire with the master resale rights for a product doesn't mean you can't. Use your brain and figure out how to do things better.

Success in any business is often as dependent on intelligence, motivation, and marketing as it is on the product itself.

Others created the BASIC programming language, but Bill Gates repackaged it and sold it to Altair. Digital Research had a perfect operating system for the PC, but they missed out. Tim Paterson created the DOS operating system that would run every PC in the world. But he sold it to Microsoft for $56,000. Bill Gates is now worth an estimated $51 billion. Forbes magazine says he is the richest man in the world.

Realizing he had a hungry market with a burning need, Gates saw opportunities that others missed, took products that were relative failures, and built a multi-billion dollar empire.

Not everyone is Bill Gates, but don't you think we all have opportunities that we either take or miss? And don't you think we sometimes settle for less than we could have?

That brings us to the final lesson that Bill Gates could teach you about master resale rights:

5. Don't sell your life for almost nothing.

Bill Gates took opportunities that others had and did something with them. Do you think Bill Gates would ever sell the master resale rights to all of the Microsoft products for $10?

Of course not! Yet you will often see people selling master resale rights to great products for less than you'd spend for dinner! They don't realize they are selling their life for almost nothing.

You can't go far on the Internet without someone promising you that you can make a million dollars by selling their product. Do you realize how many $10 products you would have to sell every day to make a million dollars a year? 274! Each and every day, 365 days a year. Wouldn't it be easier to sell 27.4 copies of a product every day for $100 each? Or a $30 monthly membership to a site 8 times a day?

You're not going to see Microsoft selling the next version of Windows for $10 each, and you shouldn't sell yourself short either.

Don't drop your price. Build your marketing skills instead. Find a hungry market with a burning need. Fill it by creating your own repackaged, rebranded product from other people's master resale rights products. Use your brain and figure out how to do it better. Don't sell your life for nothing. Charge a higher price and make it worth it to people. Fulfill their need and you'll have no shortage of business.

Copyright 2006 Mike Adams

Mike Adams has been marketing on the Internet since the early 1990's. His latest project is Gigantic Resale Rights.com. As part of the launch of Gigantic Resale Rights.com, Mike is offering our readers several free resale rights packages. You can get yours at: http://www.gigantic-resale-rights.com/5lessons.html

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The Man Who Could Have Become Bill Gates

The Legend Goes Like This: One fateful day in the summer of 1980, three buttoned-down IBMers called on a band of hippie programmers at Digital Research Inc. (DRI) located in Pacific Grove, Calif. They hoped to discuss licensing DRI's industry-leading operating system, Control Program for Microcomputers (CP/M). Instead, DRI founder Gary Kildall blew off International Business Machine (IBM) to gallivant around in his airplane and the frustrated IBMers turned to Gates for their operating system.

This anecdote has been told so often that techies need only be reminded of "the day Gary Kildall went flying" to recall the rest. Gates offered to provide IBM an operating system too, even though he didn't have one at the time. This required a hasty purchase. While he's revered for his technical innovations, many believe Kildall made one of the biggest mistakes in the history of commerce. The saga of the computing industry is rich with outsize characters and surprising plot turns, but there's one story that has risen over time to mythic proportions. It's the tale of how software pioneer Gary Kildall missed out on the opportunity to supply IBM with the operating system for its first PC-essentially handing the chance of a lifetime and control of tech's future, to rival Bill Gates and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT). In the process, he may have missed out on becoming the world's richest man. The Book: They Made America by Harold Evans, is certain to elicit cries of protest.

That's because it attacks the reputations of some of the key players of the early PC era-Gates, IBM and Tim Paterson (born 1956). "The Father of DOS", an American computer programmer, the Seattle programmer who wrote an operating system, QDOS, based partly on CP/M that became Microsoft's DOS. Paterson squirms, for instance, at the implication that he's fixated on his authorship of DOS. He holds a profile in Forbes, contrived as a first-person account. "I was 24 when I wrote DOS," it begins. "It's an accomplishment that probably can't be repeated by anyone ever." Evans asserts that Paterson copied parts of CP/M and that IBM tricked Kildall, because Gates rather than the more innovative Kildall prevailed, according to the book, the world's PC users endured more than a decade of crashes with incalculable economic cost in lost data and lost opportunities.

David G. Lefer, one of Evans' two collaborators, says: "We're trying to set the record straight. Gates didn't invent the PC operating system and any history that says he did is wrong." There's no doubt that Gary Kildall an American computer scientist and microcomputer entrepreneur was one of the pioneers of the industry. He invented the first operating system for microcomputers in the early 1970s, making it possible for hobbyists and companies to build the first personal computers. Legalities aside, Microsoft's original DOS was based in part on Kildall's CP/M. His insight was, that by creating an operating system separate from the hardware, applications could run on computers that were made by different manufacturers. On July 8, 1994, Gary Kildall (May 19,1942-July 1994) fell at a Monterey, CA. biker bar during a biker brawl and hit his head. The exact circumstances of his death and injury remain unclear; Kildall's colleagues recall him as creative, easygoing and adventurous.

Kildall preferred to leave the IBM affair in the past and to be known for his work before and afterward, he continually faced comparisons between himself and Bill Gates as well as fading memories of his contributions. In addition to flying, he loved sports cars, auto racing, boating and he had a lifelong love of the sea. Although his career in computing spanned more than two decades, he is mainly remembered in connection with IBM's unsuccessful attempt in 1980 to license CP/M for the IBM PC. Gates bought Tim Paterson's program, called QDOS, for approx. $75,000, renamed it DOS, improved it and licensed it to IBM for a low per-copy royalty fee. The rest is history. (Bill Gates Net Worth:$53 Billion: 2010).

Paterson passed in and out of Microsoft during the 80's, but returned for good in 1990. Paterson has patents and industry awards to his professional credit (including the Stewart Alsop Hindsight Award in 1991, recognized along with Bill Gates). He's now retired, but the prominent "First Place" trophies and clippings on the wall of his Building 2 office come from the world of off-road racing, in which he bangs a four-wheel drive Mazda around gravel back roads throughout the Northwest. "I'm still having lots of fun," he said.

I hope you enjoyed my article.

Larry Bussey is a Entrepreneur, Pro Internet Marketer and Author. "If your Business is not Advertising on the Internet by the end of 2011, Surveys Say You won't be in business in 2015."

"Facebook Rocks, we all know this Right? 550 Million Members. Now find out how to get paid using it; as you build your Personal or Business Brand."

[http://MyFaceBizProPage.Com]

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Bill Gates, Microsoft and His Life

Everyone who's ever used a computer knows exactly who Bill Gates is. Credited with "invented the internet," Gates is the world's third richest man, with a net worth of $58-billion. Until a few years ago, Gates' fortune had a chokehold on the number-one position, but other fast movers manage to surpass the Microsoft founder.

Gates is also well known for dropping out of Harvard University and donating millions upon millions to a wide variety of charities around the world. He married wife Melinda Gates in 1994 and has four children. Gates has publicly stated that his children will only receive.01% of his fortune as an inheritance.

William Henry Gates III was born October 28, 1955 in Seattle, Washington. Even as a small child, a young Bill showed flashes of extreme intelligence. His father was a successful attorney and Gates enjoyed a well-to-do upbringing, attending the exclusive Lakeside School in the area.

He may have been lucky financially, but he was truly gifted mentally. He attended Harvard University in 1973 and met future partner Paul Allen. They began working on their computer programming language, BASIC, that was to work as the basis for MIT's Altair. Gates left Harvard in his junior year and went on to form the Microsoft Corporation.

The Microsoft Corp. had very humble beginnings. Though both Gates and Allen were geniuses, they needed to revolutionize far beyond the reaches of human imagination. Since computers were already a big part of life, they needed to create something to connect the world. Gates always believed that every home in the world should own a computer.

Eventually, Gates developed ways to make computers work easier, faster, and his technologies gave them substantially longer lives. Once the Information Super Highway (World Wide Web) became realized, Gates' fame exploded and so did the computers - which left his bank account busting at the seams.

Bill Gates was often criticized for being greedy and too aggressive, and he and his lawyers spent much time in the courtroom fighting lawsuits. Apple Computer, Opera, Netscape, WordPerfect and Sun Microsystems were among the companies to file suit against Microsoft, claiming that they had an unfair monopoly on the industry.

These other companies ended up becoming rather wealthy, and it had no affect whatsoever and Microsoft's ability to earn. By the mid 90s, Bill Gates was the world's riches man, a title which he kept until 2008 when he stepped down as the CEO to Microsoft.

In 2005, Gates received an honorary knighthood directly from the Queen of England, and in 2007, he was given an honorary diploma from Harvard. Gates has also created one of the world's largest charitable foundations, which has given away more than $1-billion a year since 2000. Warren Buffett, the man whose riches surpassed Gates in 08, pledged that he would give a substantial portion of his net worth to the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation. Bill Gates now acts as the lead software designer for Microsoft and plans to retire soon.

Visit the CasinoMan Blog for more articles and blogs about the lifestyle of the rich and opulant.

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Find Out Why Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, and Gorge Soros Are Billionaires and Wealthy?

Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, and Gorge Soros are billionaires because they apply superior mind formulas. Even if some of them started off with lots of money, they are where they now find themselves as a direct result of the superior mind formulas they've been applying.

You and I may not be in the same league, and may not be interested in playing in that league. If you don't have all the money you need and want, it's because you've been applying inferior mind formulas. Your parents didn't pass any or much mind-expertise on to you. You learned little or no mind-expertise in school.

In contrast, the chances are that Gates, Buffet, and Soros learned important mind power skills early in life and also know how to further improve their mind power.

It's very important to realize that the secret of everything lies in our mind, it is our own mind through which we experience every thing in our life. we can't do anything in our life without the help of mind, so the most important and very powerful part of our life is our mind, Yet we know very little about it and we never pay much attention to understand it. It is through our mind only we experience success love money health life peace almost every thing.

Unfortunately, most people never understand this so they never learn any superior mind formulas because they don't know the secret of their Mind Power which can make them Rich and Successful, regardless of their "back story"!. Mind is the greatest powerful thing on this planet. every big corporation like Microsoft, IBM, Wipro which is created on this planet is start from the idea of a single human brain.

The person who realize the Power of Mind, for him the Path of Life become very clear. He can visualize the future very clearly, He exactly understand what he has to do in his Life. That is the reason within a year, Bill Gates had dropped out of Harvard and Microsoft was formed. Please try to understand your life is nothing but an reflection of your mind. So if you really want to make your Life much better then it is very much necessary to first make your Mind better, as in this world every big thing i.e (from invention of Airplane to the making of computer) has started from the mind.

So Now it is your turn to understand the magical key secrets of the mind and to create your own reality, for more information visit to http://www.master-the-secret-of-mind-power.blogspot.com

Do you know what decides your Destiny and how? Want to know what is the real key secret that can easily bring you more Money Success Love Peace health and more.... checkout these most valuable and vital information completely free at http://www.master-the-secret-of-mind-power.blogspot.com

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Bill Gates is Not a Man to Be Resented, He is to Be Applauded!

One of the most hated men in America, and in fact the world, is Bill Gates. Do you hate him too?

You shouldn't. Bill Gates is one of the most generous men in the world. His foundation, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, donates over 1.5 billion dollars a year to charitable causes. Take a moment and think about that number, it's astounding!

Bill Gates has recently retired from Microsoft in order to devote more time to running the foundation and to devote his life to philanthropic work, but some people still think he's an asshole. Or, more accurately, unsuccessful people with negative attitudes think so.

Is Microsoft perfect? Hell no. But they are far less evil than a certain search engine with a candy coloured logo.

So all in all I respect Microsoft and respect Bill gates, and applaud his success and what he has done with it. I see him as a shining example of what one can create from nothing.

Here's the cold, hard, honest truth. You have to be a taker before you can be a giver, otherwise you have nothing to give. There is no virtue in remaining small so as not to appear greedy. Bill Gates knew this, and he built himself up into someone truly capable of making a difference in the world. If you are sitting around complaining about how much money he has, what difference are you making in people's lives?

Meanwhile Bill Gates is contributing to AIDS research, reducing world hunger, and all in all being an outstanding citzen of the world.

If you resent the success of others, you will only deprive yourself. If your belief is that successful, rich people are greedy and evil and selfish, and you feel that you are a good person, then how will you ever be able to become wealthy and still feel that you are a good person?

The next time you notice yourself have negative feelings towards someone who is more successful than you (and this can be anyone from Donald Trump to your next door neighbour), why not stop as ask yourself why?

The Limelight is about living life creatively and finding inspiration to do so. It is not restricted to any one narrow focus, and so you will find articles here on topics ranging from money to food to photography, and anything else that contributes to amazing lifestyle design.

Jonathan Timar is a naturally creative person. Creativity is his life's blood. He's an actor and filmmaker, a writer and a photographer. He is also a graduate of broadcasting school. He is and avid reader of both fiction and non-fiction. His favourite novel of all time is Tai-Pan by James Clavell followed closely by Shogun, also by James Clavell. He believes in success.

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The Rise and Rise of Bill Gates

As the co-founder and chairman of the mammoth Microsoft Corporation, Bill Gates is the moving force behind a company that has been regarded as "The Most Innovative Company Operating in the U.S." (1993, Forbes magazines). Microsoft introduced several revolutionary technological advancements in the computer industry that made the company the first truly dominant player among home computer operating systems. Microsoft also created the most widely used operating system in the world, Microsoft Windows.

Gates is widely regarded as the brains behind the Microsoft Corporation, primarily responsible for product strategy from the time the company was founded in 1975 until 2006. Among his key contributions are extensively broadening the company's product lines and vigorously defending Microsoft's dominant position in its key areas of operation. And while some of his decisions have led to antitrust litigation over Microsoft's business practices, his reputation as one of the most popular and respected entrepreneurs of the personal computer revolution remains intact. His fame actually surpasses the realm of computers and business and extends into mainstream society. For instance, in a 2006 list compiled by New Statesman magazine, Gates was voted eighth in the "Heroes of Our Time" category.

In June 2006, Gates announced that he will be handing the reins of Microsoft's day-to-day operations to someone else by July 2008 to concentrate on the philanthropic work of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, although he will continue to serve as the company's chairman and as an advisor on special projects. Plans are already afoot to transfer Gates' role as Chief Software Architect of Microsoft to Ray Ozzie, the former head honcho of the Groove company which Microsoft purchased in 2005.

Gates has donated several millions of dollars to various charitable groups and scientific research studies. By some estimates, Gates has contributed over half his fortune to charity. Even if such were the case, he can easily afford it. Recently, the prestigious Forbes magazine named Gates as the world's richest person for the 12th straight year, with a 2006 net worth of $50 billion. Incidentally, he actually became the world's first "centibillionaire" in 1999 when his net worth surpassed the 100 billion mark briefly.

Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles on many topics including Computers [http://computerinformationsource.com/], Science [http://fortheloveofscience.com/], and Cosmetic Surgery [http://1stcosmeticsurgery.com/]

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Bill Gates, Virtual Reality, and Six Flags

Does bill Gates know something we do not know about Six Flags amusement parks? No probably not, but anyone as smart as he, certainly understands the future of Virtual Reality. Look at the new X-Box 360-degree system? Obviously Microsoft gets it and their research teams may have entered the Virtual Reality Realm a little late, but they certainly understand gaming. Mr. Gate’s increased his holding in the company from 8% to 10%. There can only be one reason in my opinion, Virtual Reality is coming to a theme park near you. This probably makes a bit of sense and also a rebounding economy tends to really bolster Theme Parks. In GA actually in Six Flags over Georgia, where actually they are still arguing over one particular flag some interesting things are happening;

http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/1998/06/01/story1.html

Lots of spending and upgrading, however I believe that Bill is smart enough to understand the next wave of technology in Theme Parks will be VR-Virtual Reality and boy has it come a long way these days, Science and computers are moving at an incredible pace, almost unheard of in this arena. Think I am wrong?

http://www.abacon.com/vitanza/cyber/Gates.html

[http://www.monitor.ca/monitor/issues/vol3iss11/feature4.html]

[http://www.thebee.com/bweb/iinfo58.htm]

[http://www.goldenessays.com/alphabetic/2/computers/]

http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/Tate.VR.html

[http://net.info.nl/vr.html]

Even the Pentagon is into this shit with their newest Net-Centric War-fare designs where each unit works as a whole but instant information puts pieces together during ops. It does not take a genius after ready one of the latest Clancy books to figure out where all this is going does it?

[http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2002/0708/web-trans-07-10-02.asp] .

You see even if Bill Gates does not have time to read all the books I do, by Arthur C Clarke, Ben Bova, Tom Clancy and Michael Creighton etc. he understands the technologies commercial value and as MIT scrambles to find buyers for all their newest codes, algorithms and ingenious inventions, so to is the US Government, and Microsoft Research looking at ways to enhance the coming technologies. From fiction to reality, Virtually and forever, here we go. And it should replace the drug problems in the US too. Where better than to test and use these newest machines and perfect them than a theme park or even in Las Vegas on the strip. I guarantee you this is going to be awesome. So before anyone claims that they know why Bill Gates is betting on the future shouldn’t you be wise enough to read some of his predictions for the future and watch some of the movies that his former partner and his newest associates are making and which screen plays are selling and who is writing those movie scripts books and audio tapes and video games? Don’t be naive. Your great Grandparents did not have cars and lived to see airplanes. Your grandparents saw airplanes turn into space ships. We watched TV turn into the Internet and we will see reality turn into what ever you want in the virtual world.

First it will cost a lot in theme parks, then someday you buy a hat and some programs from Wal-Mart for $250.00 hook it to your computer and relive that last NASCAR race, F-18 Smart guided bomb run or help the President negotiate with the Saudis over an oil deal. Think it won’t happen? You will be able to make love to your favorite actress, learn to fly, go visit the fossils in the Gobe Desert, Cross the icy Delaware with George Washington, discuss philosophy with Aristotle, sit on a rock during the Sermond on the Mound with Jesus or take a tour of the Space Station for less than the 20 million current fee all for a program costing $39.95 from Microsoft running on XP on sale at Wal-Mart for the next years National 9-11 holiday sale. Bet me!?.

Gate’s is no dummy and he may be ahead of the game by a few years, but remember he has the connections and the technology exists now to make the whole thing come to a complete Matrix Movie in the VR world. Face it folks the future is here. I hope you humans are smart enough to see that? Think about it, it will come to you.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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Is Bill Gates Doing More Good When He Keeps His Money Or When He Gives it Away?

The question of whether Bill Gates is doing more good when he keeps his money or when he gives it away, is an interesting one. In which of these two scenarios does mankind benefit more? Before you dismiss this as a clearly ridiculous query, one not even worth considering, ponder this.

When you are worth tens of billions of dollars, where do you keep your stash? Do you hide it under your mattress? That would make for a very lumpy sleeping surface; as a billionaire, it's not very likely you would put up with such discomfort.

How about burying your fortune in the backyard? With all that loot, you're not going to be doing any digging. After all, you didn't get rich digging holes in the ground, but rather by using your noodle, and you're not about to start with the manual labor now. You could, however, get the gardner to plant the funds in the Azalea bed, but this might not be such a good idea, either. Not to cast aspersions on landscapers everywhere, but what's to keep her (don't want to be sexist here) from digging up the treasure when you are not around and heading for the South Sea Islands?

People with obscene (as some might think) amounts of money (the perspective many, who don't understand capitalism, cling to) don't hide it -- they invest it. They reinvest it into their businesses so it can grow bigger, stronger and give their customers better value for their money. They also invest it in other peoples' companies, resulting in these other entrepreneurs having money to expand their businesses; in the process, they take advantage of the miracle of compounding interest and as a result, make even more money.

What is the result of all this wealth in the hands of a single capitalist? In Bill Gates' case:

His company, Microsoft, and the extensions thereof, have spawned an estimated 12,000 millionaires and four Billionaires
As of 2009, there were 93,000 employees receiving a very good income and excellent benefits for themselves and their families
Many other companies which do business with Microsoft, et al, flourish and are able to employ untold numbers, and many start-up and existing businesses have access to the capital they need
All these well-employed folks and their families have money to spend in their local communities, plus nationally and worldwide
As a result, there is plenty of money available to be given to any number of worthwhile causes and charities -- if these people wish to do so
The Gates Foundation, as of 2009, has an endowment of 33.5 billion, from which it has given a minimum of 1.5 billion to worthwhile causes annually

Now let's look at the other side of the coin. What if, after making his first million or two, Bill Gates had decided that having a couple million dollars was as much as any one individual should have or needs to have and took his small fortune and closed up shop? What if he had decided to retire early and live off the interest on his first one or two-million-dollar earnings? Let's say that he decided to take $500,000 of his money to start a foundation to give grants to those in need. Giving away the interest on the half-million dollars each year, at an average of 10% interest, he could give away about $50,000 per year. In 20 years he would have given about a million dollars to worthwhile causes -- not bad. Of course, he wouldn't have created 12,000 millionaires who, if they gave just a miserly $1,000 each to charity, would be donating 12 million PER YEAR -- twelve times as much as Bill could give, under this early-retirement scenario, in 20 YEARS!

Of course, we all know that Bill Gates didn't take his first piddly little two million and run. He did what many successful entrepreneurs do each year; he risked it all by reinvesting the money he had made back into the business with the hope and belief that he could make even more money and better serve his customers with ever better products and services that would make their lives better.

As a result of his keeping the vast bulk of his money through the early years, Bill Gates now has a foundation that can, with matching funds, give away billions of dollars here in the U.S. and around the world -- improving the quality of life for countless people. And this doesn't even include all the money given to charities by all the billionaires and millionaires resulting from his business acumen. Keep in mind that each little billion is a thousand million or a thousand times as much as Bill Gates could have given to those in need in 20 YEARS, if he had gone philanthropic too soon or too full bore.

We see that when a wealthy person such as Bill Gates keeps his money for himself, he is not really keeping it for himself, because this money is kept in circulation, growing the economy, creating countless jobs in innumerable businesses across the country and the world. Even when a rich person spends his money on food for parties, for a yacht or clothes, it helps to keep the party stores, yacht stores and clothing stores profitable so they can continue to employ their staffs. The truth is that the more rich people there are and the wealthier they are, the more there is for everyone else in that economy -- unless the wealthy one "puts it under his mattress."

Does this truth hold for one's health and fitness as well as for financial matters? Here is my question for you: When it comes to your health and fitness, is it better to take care of yourself first or your loved ones? If we allow ourselves to become rundown and sick because we ignore our own well-being while helping our loved ones, how much help will we be to them then? Making our own well-being our top priority creates more energy, strength and vitality with which to care for those we love. When we have taken the time to make ourselves ultra-healthy and fit, we are also good role models and a positive example for all in our circle of influence -- including strangers we pass on the street.

Bill Gates kept the bulk of his money (invested it) for decades and we are all the beneficiaries of this choice. As a result of his taking care of business (taking care of himself and his "family" FIRST), he and those he helped to become rich can now help many, many more. We can learn from this model, whether we're talking about finances or health.

And now I'd like to invite you to claim your FREE Fitter After 50 / Fitter for Life e-newsletter when you visit http://www.FitterforLife.com

From Ed Mayhew -- the author of Fitter After 50, Fitter For Life and other books, CDs, videos and articles on how you, too, can make falling apart as you age merely an option -- NOT a mandate. Why not make the rest of your life, the BEST of your life? http://www.YouCanGrowYounger.com

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Bill Gates - The Ultimate Entrepreneur

Bill Gates today is one of the most recognised names on earth. His face is well-known around the world. He is known to be the world's ultimate entrepreneur. So what did he do to be the most recognised name on this planet?

Bill Gates name is synonymous with Microsoft. Microsoft marketed and sold the operating systems for every personal computer now installed into homes from the North Pole to the South Pole and everywhere between. This market domination makes Bill Gate and Microsoft the ultimate entrepreneur. Bill Gates branded his name along with the Microsoft Corporation Company. This personal name and company branding is an excellent example of what branding a product can do.

Bill Gates started branding his Microsoft Corporation at the beginning of starting the company. By placing his name and face as an essential part of the Corporation he founded, nurtured and developed made him the world's leading entrepreneur long before branding a product became the accepted business practice.

Bill Gates the Man

Bill Gates is a man of vision. He is someone who is able to visualise something that is non-existent and bring it into a reality. Very few people in human history have been able to not only see but to realise their vision of what could be.

To be able to 'see' something before anyone else is a gift of foresight that most of us don't possess. Bill had an idea of something that would benefit communication between people and found and developed the product to make it into a reality.

Seeing something that many people would or could find useful is one thing but making it into a reality for people everywhere is a rare gift. Many of us will have ideas of something that could be useful to people but very few of us then have the ability to make it actually happen.

Anyone who has good management skills, both of people and product development and then be able to sell their idea to others is a very rare combination in most humans. Many of us can do one or the other, but to find someone who can do all four skills is very unusual.

The Ultimate Entrepreneur

The essential skills needed for the Ultimate Entrepreneur are vision, people management, product development and the ability to first sell the idea and then sell the product.

Vision - To recognize something that has the potential to be useful to people as well as being a product people will want.

People management - requires employing the right staff with the right skillset for the positions required for product development and then treating them with empathy and understanding. The staff will need to be enthusiastic and capable. A good staff manager will need to be able to lead the employees by enthusiasm and encouragement to participate in product development and production.

Product Development - Involves being able to develop the product through the 'teething stage' and get it ready for mass production in a cost efficient manner.

Selling - The Initial Idea

A good entrepreneur will need to sell the product and or concept of the new product to their financial institution first and then to their staff. The concept of this two-way selling is a gift that Bill Gates has that few other men throughout history has had and this is what makes Bill Gates the ultimate entrepreneur.

Selling - Mass Marketing

Bill Gates has proven himself as the ultimate entrepreneur as he has mass marketed the operating system for a personal computer around the world.

In fact, the fact that I am even writing this article and you are reading it, is proof. He envisioned, manufactured and marketed the very thing that we are both using right now and that is the operating system in our Personal computers. Without his vision, we would never have been able to make contact.

Bill Gates is the ultimate entrepreneur on planet earth today. His ability to visualize and implement his vision into reality is what made him so successful and why all small business startups can learn from him.

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Discover What Bill Gates Had to Say in Front of Thousands of College Kids

I'm sure you have heard of Bill Gates before and he's one of the most famous and wealthiest people in the world. You're going to be surprised on what he had said to thousands of college kids in a college ceremony. Bill Gates said that they should drop out because they still had the time to make something happen with their lives. This is coming from someone who has been able to achieve success by dropping out of college so you know that he knows the truth.

Most of us are lead to believe that in order to be successful in life you have to go to college get good grades in order to get a good job. But the truth is that college only slows the process down because it takes 4 years out of your life and it's pretty much useless. So when you drop out you can invest your time into something that's going to better yourself and is going to increase your education.

So you must understand that the education you need in order to success in life is self education. As you continue to grow and develop you're going to be able to get educated on the different ways to be successful and all you are going to be doing is investing your time. What happened if Bill Gates decided not dedicate his time to building his business and instead decide to go to college. This is why you must understand that your time is very valuable so you must choose wisely where you want to invest it. Not many people are aware of how valuable their time is and they usually waste it away.

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Steve Jobs and Bill Gates - Two of the World's Biggest Success Stories

The interesting thing about Power and Money is that they both seem to come together. A perfect example is Bill Gates and his company. When Microsoft launched in the beginning it seemed like any other company. The changes that were made and implemented changed the face of computers forever. In the eyes of most nerds, excuse me writers, Bill Gates was viewed as a God. Then came along a guy named Steve Jobs.

Steve Jobs is the same person as Bill Gates. They both put on their pants one leg at a time, like any other human being. The difference between us and them is they put together an idea that not only transformed the world, but their lives as well. Steve Jobs said, "That by the age I was 24, I was worth a 100 million dollars." His legacy is one that kingdoms is made of and it is legendary. Studying the birth of his empire is the best way to map out one's path to financial freedom. Financial freedom is a word that most individuals in a recession, pray to God to be introduced to.

Bill Gates is one of the world's biggest pioneers and his influence is obvious in Steve Job's progression. Every great person needs a model to follow and for every Bill Gates their is a Steve Jobs. My biggest suggestion to every new inventor, trying to join the rat race is simple: Think outside of the box and keep your mind open to ideas. You never know who will cross your path.

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Bill Gates - Biography of the Richest Man on Earth

Bill Gates was born on October 28, 1955 in Seattle, Washington. Bill was an ambitious boy from childhood. He was very intelligent and fiercely competitive. Without a doubt, these qualities have played a role in where he is now. He was always good with mathematics and science. His father was an influential lawyer and his parents had planned a law career for him but as we all know, destiny had other plans.

He showed his interest when he was young. At school he wrote a program to play tic-tac-toe against a computer. He used the programming language called BASIC. Thus began his fascination with the world of computers. Gates was skilled in computers and even got banned from Computer Centre Corporation for exploiting bugs in the system and obtaining free computer time. His close friend and eventual business partner Paul Allen was banned along with him. After this ban, the four students offered to discover and eliminate bugs in return for computer time. As can be seen, Bill shared a true passion for his work and showed enterprise.

Seeing his proficiency, his school hired him to write a program to schedule students. He wrote the code such that he could be in the class with the most female students. At 17, Gates and his friend Paul Allen started a venture called Traf-O-Data. This program helped record and regulate traffic and it helped them earn around $20,000.

Graduating out of high school, he joined Harvard. Here he met Steve Ballmer, a future business partner. He was confused in college, just like a lot of other people. He chose pre-law, but he stuck with his love for computers. He would spend long hours in front of the computer all night and sleep in class next day. He stayed in constant touch with Paul Allen and they both got jobs in Honeywell. Finally he decided to drop out of college and start his own firm.

This firm was Microsoft, started with the vision "A computer on every desk and Microsoft software on every computer". Bill Gates has since achieved remarkable success. He is the richest man on earth and his company has achieved goals and set benchmarks for other companies time and again. Bill Gates was an ordinary man who believed in the power of intelligence and hard work.

He pursued his dream and never gave up. His story shows us perseverance is the difference between success and failure, that any person can become great and achieve success with hard work and perseverance.

Want to become rich like Bill Gates? Visit http://www.waystobecomerich.com for all the free advice you need.

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Bill Gates Biography - Part I

The greatly abridged Bill Gates Biography series. Here is the first installment of the Bill Gates Biography series. There has been enormous demand for more accurate Bill Gates biographies in the market that cover his rise to fortune. A great Bill Gates biography will show you the keys to greatness in any calling.

Bill Gates was born and raised in the greater Seattle area in a middle-upper class family. His father was a highly respected attorney and taught Bill Gates a tremendous amount about business and negotiating. Bill Gates understood from a very early age the importance of legal maneuvering to gain advantage in business. He was exceptional in math during his early years of schooling, and translated that skill into computer programming where he was given a more tangible medium to express this skill creatively. Bill Gates was also a very well rounded student, embracing a liberal arts education that would provide him with a strong grasp of how the world worked. In his education, however, he literally became obsessed with computer programming and this fatefully led him to meet his future Microsoft mate, Paul Allen. The two became the best of friends in their youth, sharing in many computer programming projects, many of which earned them money.

Gates went on to attend Harvard for his college career. In this time at college he knew that he wanted to start a business within the computer industry, but he didn't know where exactly he wanted to enter. It virtually wasn't a real possibility for smaller companies to become competitors because there weren't personal computers available for the public; it was more reserved for large corporations operating mainframe computers. The advent of this PC gave Gates the impetus to find an outlet for his business. So Gates and Allen decided to make their move within the software niche of the computer industry, writing programs that would run the computers. They knew it was their specialty and that it was the smartest market to enter.

They received their first deal with a computer company in Albuquerque, NM, and Gates decided to take a leave of absence from school in his sophomore year to pursue this dream. They negotiated a deal that was not particularly in their best interest, but they knew it was their only road to success. The one caveat of their agreement was found in a clause that allowed them an out if the computer company wasn't pulling their weight in marketing Microsoft's first computer program, BASIC. The turn of events that would unfold would forever change the landscape of the computer industry and lead Microsoft into becoming the industry standard in computer software. Part II of the Bill Gates Biography series will be coming soon.

To learn more about how Bill Gates built his tremendous wealth and empire check out Volume I from the Billionaire Businessman Review.

http://www.billionairebusinessmanreview.com/biographybillgates

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Bill Gates on Education Reform and the Budget Crisis

Bill Gates, the well-known founder of Microsoft and an avid philanthropist may be more notorious these days for his heroic efforts in the education reform sector. Gates has been outspoken about the need for U.S. educational reform from preschool to post-graduate school and his most recent commentary details his opinions on school's monetary reforms. His suggestions run the monetary gamut: from ending pay increases for teachers who have earned master's degrees or have acquired seniority to ending teacher's efforts to reduce class sizes. Instead, suggests Gates, "rebuild the budget based on excellence-" or teachers' overall ability to motivate students and raise student achievement rates.

In an economy still enduring a budget crisis (New Jersey, for example has a $10 billion deficit; Ohio is right behind with an $8 billion deficit) officials are trying to find ways to reform without much monetary support. U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, recently delivered a speech in Washington which drew on Gates' recent comments and solution ideas. In his "Band for the Buck in Schooling," speech, Duncan placed a great deal of importance on education reform despite financial shortcomings. To fix the education system, noted Duncan, real, transformational change must occur rather than seeking out short-term options to get school budgets back on track. Shortening school years, reducing bus routes and other short-term solutions won't necessarily help either the education or financial systems long-term.

Gates advocates and secretary Duncan supports a more innovative approach, an approach which can both help to fix the faltering education system while restructuring and ultimately improving the nation's public education budget. By holding teachers to a higher standard and paying them according to their level of student achievement, the education system can be transformed.

Gates has long advocated for improved student achievement, retention and graduation rates and the current budget crisis, he says, is making changes like these all the more necessary. The ideas may seem radical to some, but with both the national education and budget systems falling short, more innovative approaches, like those advocated by Gates and Duncan need to be considered.

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Microsoft Windows - How Bill Gates Stole My Idea!

Just kidding, I love you Bill Gates, you are my Jedi Master! But, way back in 1984, with my first computer, the Apple IIe, I learnt Apple Basic and had an idea for speeding up the process of using the computer. For those of you, who are unfamiliar with the early days of micro-computers, or personal computers ("PC's"), there was no such thing as Windows. No mouse, no icons, no start menus..."NADDA"! To understand what the early days of home computers usage was like, simply go to your Windows Start Menu and find, under "Accessories", "Command Prompt". That black screen you are looking at, with that simple ">:" icon, was all you had in the early days of the 1980's.

User's of the Apple IIe used DOS and Apple Basic. DOS was an acronym for Disk Operating System, a means to actually control the use of the floppy disk drive storage system. Apple Basic was the IIe's language. So the legendary "Hello World" program came with the User's Manual of the IIe. You would turn on the IIe in the back, the large video monitor would warm up and you would have a black screen with a blinking white prompt next to the infamous ">:" icon. If you wanted to run a program you would simply type in the command for directory and "poof" the list of programs would be listed. To run, you would have to type in the command for ">:Run HelloWorld". Very similar if you use the Control Prompt in Windows. The IIe used a 80 column peripheral card. Meaning a graphics card that only produced 80 columns of text. So no Mario jumping or Master Chief "tea-bagging" around the universe.

After getting familiar with the User's Manual I got a pretty good grip on Apple Basic. After a while I was able to create programs for balancing your check book or creating a scheduler. Mainly programs that would produce reports, or store data, but the user could enter input and save it. Most Apple games used the idea of Dungeons and Dragons, where it would display simply text and sound then you would respond appropriately. The Word Processor was the most important software to my friends and I, because of the ability of not having to redo typing!!!!

Eventually I started to ask if there was a way to make things more user friendly. So I created programs that would allow the user to see all programs available on disk and all they had to do was choose which one. I was pretty pleased with my self. In 1987, at the age of 18, I signed up with the Coast Guard. After leaving the service and going to Computer Learning Center I finally was introduced to C++. The current language used by modern programmers for applications. Then in 1990, at my first job as a HelpDesk Support Programmer, I got my very first computer with Windows! Ahhhhhh mouse, what a wonderful word!!!!!!!! And at the same time "Dohhh!" Bill Gates beat me to the punch!!! (hehe) The job, as a support guy, still used the same type of operating system DOS. I wouldn't see Windows, again, until the mid 90s when the internet was introduced to the public.

Today, I'm enjoying the "techno-revolution". Cell phones, internet, I-Phones, MP3 players, virtual reality......my mind is exploding!!! But I am thankful to those wonderful peeps, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, for catapulting technology to the place we are today. Even though Mr. Gates stole my idea!!!! ;0)

Hi I am Jim Carrillo. I have my own business as a Help Desk programmer. So if you have a computer or Windows related problem check out my website:

http://tekkynasekky.webs.com/

I hope to have further articles of more interest in upcoming days. Please let me know how I'm doing! Thanks!

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Apologies to Bill Gates

One month during the last century, I rather presumptuously opined that "Bill Gates needs to get a life." In a monthly message as President of the local bar association, I took note of reports that Gates' number 2, Steve Ballmer, had audited Bill's last-year calendars to point out where his time was not best spent. It was safe to guess, I said, that "Ballmer did not encourage his boss to spend more time with his new kid, or in church, or reading a good novel, or writing poetry, or visiting friends.... After all, Microsoft loses money if Bill pauses to pick up a $500 bill on the sidewalk."

My point was that I and most lawyers tended, in ordering our priorities, to put quantifiable short term goals ahead of the less obvious payoffs from, for example, pro bono work or training-much less sacrificing a billable hour listening to a Mozart's Sonata for Piano and Violin in C Major. I urged all us lawyers to leaven the Gates singular focus with "serious doses of family, right-brain, and no-brain activity: learning the two-step or Irish jig; mentoring a foster child; riding a bike across America; studying the Koran; trekking in Nepal; becoming a gourmet cook."

So here we are ten years later and guess what? Bill Gates has become one of the world's great benefactors and a model to us all. The July 5, 2010 issue of Fortune, "The $600 Billion Challenge," reports that Bill and Warren Buffett have been quietly working to secure pledges by the world's billionaires to donate at least 50% of their fortunes, either while alive or through their estates. That challenge could bear fruit enriching the lives of millions for centuries to come. Already the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to which Buffett is adding much of his wealth, is investing over $3 billion a year in the fight against malaria, HIV/Aids and other scourges of civilization. Meanwhile Mr. Gates, still Microsoft's non-executive chairman, makes time to drop off or pick up his kids from school when he's home, and his "family almost never misses spending Sunday evenings together.... "

In my first run at this, I concluded that "Time is indeed precious. The waste is in spending it all in one place." Still true. But also true, in spades, is that Bill Gates has a life. And is using his time to ensure and enrich the lives of many others. My apologies, Mr. Gates.

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How Bill Gates Really Made His Money - All The Lies Exposed

I know you know bill gates. He's that rich dude who dropped out of Harvard, started Microsoft and bam in a few years became a billionaire. Yeah right, you've heard all that jazz before. But is it true? Is everything you heard about bill gates the real deal? Maybe you won't think so, by the time you finish. Just read on.

In case you don't know it, the most popular PR method of wiping up frenzies and turning a start-up into the most popular and valuable commodity is to twist the truth a little bit, not obviously lie but do it in a way as to create awe and acceptance.

How do I mean?

If you have an interest in rap music, then you must have heard that the immensely popular rapper 50 cent got shot nine times. Well he only got shot nine times in one incident! Definitely not nine different times. But who cares? That's what his record company says, and rap fans lap it up. It's a similar theme to the Bill Gates story.

Here's the story that's floating around currently and all the lies exposed.

Bill Gates was your average Joe who happened to love computers and hit on the brilliant idea that personal computers who would soon be in demand all over the world and decided to create software that would make using the computer easy. (Lie #1)

He got admitted into Harvard to study law. But he's bored stiff with all the legal stuff and decides to quit. So he drops out and he starts his own company. While he's there in Harvard, he meets Paul Allen and together they start Microsoft. Then soon they find a venture capital firm who provides their start-up capital. (Lie #2)

Then they develop a computer program which they licensed to IBM while retaining the license to sell the program to other companies. (Now doesn't it just strike you to be a little odd that Bill's company got that deal? I mean Microsoft wasn't even a big enough company then. Sure Bill was a brilliant guy but then... (Lie #3)

Fast forward a few years; Bill creates the program which will prove his golden jackpot, the Windows 3.0. (Lie #4)

Wow, what an incredible classic American story, one of grass to grace. But the REAL TRUTH is that The King of Microsoft, perhaps one of the brightest business men ever had a few breaks in life. He may be the second richest man in the world today, but he was in pretty good shape on the day of his birth! Let's expose the lies right away.

Lie #1 EXPOSED:

You see, Bill wasn't your average poor, I-have-a-butcher-for-a-father Joe. His father, Bill Gates Jr. was a wealthy and very successful corporate lawyer long before Bill invented any software. But Daddy was nothing compared to Mom! Bill's mother, Mary Gates, was the grand daughter of J. W Maxwell, the founder of Seattle's National City bank in 1906. I'll also have you know that in his early years, he attended Lakeside School, one of the most prestigious and expensive private schools in the Pacific Northwest. That's where he met and befriended Paul Allen, not in Harvard.

Lie #2 EXPOSED:

He picked the perfect parents, PARENTS WHO WERE ONLY TOO GLAD TO PROVIDE HIM WITH START-UP FUNDS FOR HIS COMPANY! With Bill's rich background and connections provided by his parents, is it still any surprise to you that Bill got the money he needed to start-up his company? He had access to millions of dollars in a trust set up by his great-grandfather on the day he was born and a bank to boot!

Lie #3 EXPOSED:

Bill's mother was a well connected businesswoman and served on various boards as a director of first Interstate bank and Pacific Northwest Bell. But wait it gets better (pun intended). Mary also served on the board of directors of United Way and who do you suppose served alongside her on that same board? John Opel, CEO of IBM! Do you see now how bill and Microsoft got that deal with IBM? Connections are really necessary for success, what do ya think?

While serving on that board table with IBM's CEO, IBM just happened to choose Mary Gate's son, Bill, to develop the operating system (called MS-DOS) for all IBM personal computers. Now that's a break you don't get everyday!

Lie #4 EXPOSED:

Bill never invented Windows 3.0, nor did his busload of computer programmers. That nifty piece of real art was invented by an ordinary guy like you and I. Bill bought it off him for a whopping $50,000! I wonder if the mafia was trying to collect from him and he had to sell that fast and that low. By now he must be cursing himself because Bill is a billionaire just because of Windows 3.0.

According to Microsoft legend, Bill dropped out of school to create Microsoft and change the world. Don't you think that maybe one of the reasons he was so quick to take that risk was that he had no worry about who would pay the bills?

Before you think I hate Bill, I don't. On the contrary I love the guy. What with his charity exploits around the world, I can't hate him, even if I wanted to. And don't forget he gave me Windows and Office. Those two software has made my life easier.

Whether you think that's right or not, that's your opinion. All I want you to know is that if you want to get rich, achieve immense success, become famous or anything, you will achieve a much better chance modeling successful people who come from the same background as you and still made it to the top.

All is not always as it seems, before you go out and start looking for someone to mentor you, you need to be sure that they are coming from the same background as you do. If they're not, you'll just feel inadequate and won't learn a thing from them.

If you are from an ordinary background, I tell you now that you can make it top the top. Yes, you can, if you'll take the time to discover the one and only but often ignored success technique that works every single time without fail. What is this technique? Why don't you click on the link in my resource box below to find out?

Success is yours.

© Ikenna Nzimora, 2007. Did you know that 90% of people around the world fail because they don't know the one and only but often ignored success technique that works every single time without fail? Find out exactly what it is and how easily you can use it to achieve massive success in life. Here: [http://www.failurebuster.com]

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The Basics Behind the Bill Gates Scholarship

Often times in American culture, when a person becomes rich and famous they forget about those who get left behind. This has not been the case with Bill Gates who, in conjunction with his wife Melinda Gates, formed the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This organization is designed to create and distribute a variety of scholarships and grants, all of which are often referred to through a single term: the Bill Gates scholarship.

So, how does a Bill Gates scholarship work? All of them are designed to help low income students of color; or specifically African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics and Asian/Pacific Islanders. There is also an academic focus, though this requirement is not as strict as other scholarship programs. For example, the Gates Millennium Scholars Programs, (perhaps the most well-known Bill Gates scholarship), only requires a 3.3 GPA for eligibility. Other programs may only require a GED or, (in the case of graduate scholarships), a Bachelor's Degree.

As far as payment, the amount will range according to the program you're applying for. But for the most part, you can expect a few thousand dollars each semester. So, depending on the college you're going to, a Bill Gates scholarship may not be enough to fund all of your education. That's why you should try to supplement with college jobs or additional scholarships. Still, a Bill Gates scholarship will put a significant dent in your bills, which is why you should definitely consider applying.

With that being said, how does a person go about applying for a Bill Gates scholarship? The easiest way is to visit the website associated with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, (which can be found at GatesFoundation.org). You can alternatively apply through your high school guidance counselor or through your college's financial aid department. Either way, make sure you act fast as these awards are very competitive. Ultimately, if you drag your feet, there will be someone else to take your place.

To find HUNDREDS of unclaimed scholarships right now please visit: [http://www.search4collegemoney.com]

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How Bill Gates Improved His Presentations - And So Can You!

On his blog, Presentation Zen author Garr Reynolds gives well-deserved credit to Bill Gates for improving his presentations over the years. Being the master of gorgeous visuals, Reynolds of course addresses the tremendous improvement of Bill Gates' slides. Gates slides now include full screen pictures, minimal text and greatly simplified data. Having attractive slides has an overwhelmingly positive visual impact on a presentation. And since sight is the sense we as humans seem to trust the most, improving slides is very important.

Reynolds also points out from the 2009 presentation by Bill and Melinda Gates presentation and the 2010 Ted presentation by Bill Gates, that Bill's delivery has gotten better. As Reynolds notes, in 2010 Gates is no longer able to read his presentation so he make much better eye contact with the audience. The truth I suspect is that Gates never needed a script in the first place with either presentation. Gates knows this material well - it's very much internalized. The improved eye contact helps Gates make a better connection with the audience and he even appears more relaxed as a result.

There's one other improvement between the 2009 and the 2010 speech that Reynolds doesn't point out but which deserves attention: In the 2010 presentation, Bill Gates skips what I call the "blah, blah, blah opening." In the 2009 presentation, Gates starts by saying, "Well, good evening. It's great to see all of you here. If you came for the hockey game..." which is what I would classify as the blah, blah, blah start. Gates spent 15 seconds saying trite, disengaging blather that was totally unneeded, did nothing to connect him to the audience, and provided no value to the topic on which he spoke. Contrast that with how Gates started his TED talk where his first words were, "I'm going to talk today about energy and climate." Boom. There it is. No blah, blah, blah. He got right to his talk. Such a start is a vast improvement over lame references that get a nervous, uncomfortable laugh from the audience. It makes the audience sit up and pay attention - and don't we all appreciate it when we know a speaker isn't wasting their time.

But to get an even bigger improvement, I'd like to challenge Gates to do something that few executives dare to do - but when done, is extremely powerful. To improve even more, I suggest Gates start with a personal story.

The 2009 presentation started with a film, pointing to individual people who were "Living Proof" that financial aid to Africa is having a positive impact on real people. The film had the words "Living Proof" tagging individuals featured in the film. The film was very powerful. Now, imagine the impact Gates could have had if he'd started with a personal story about his real life encounter with one of these individuals who is "Living Proof" that financial aid works. It would be easy for him to tell such a story because he lived the event. Being more at ease would help him and his audience. In the 2010 speech on energy and climate imagine Gates really grabbing the attention of the audience by telling the story of seeing school boys studying under the street lights because they had no electricity. Audience members would be naturally more drawn in to such as story. While Gates dropped the blah, blah, blah start, which was a big improvement, a story would have been even better in engaging the hearts and minds of the listeners.

Executives and technologist are often reticent to include personal stories in their presentations. After all, many of them are successful because of their wonderfully logical brains. But all humans, technical and nontechnical, are wired by emotions. Tapping into that emotion makes for better connections and engagement.

Bravo to Bill Gates for being open to improving his presentation graphics and his speech style. I'd love to see him take it up one more notch, so that next year, I'm writing about his further transformation of audience engagement by telling a personal story.

(To see Garr Reynold's post go to http://ht.ly/2vUsK.)

So how about you? Are you willing to get out of your comfort zone? Can you change your slides so that instead of bullets, you have full screen picture, minimal text and simplified data? Can you trust yourself to know your material and not rely on reading your notes when you address your audience? Can you resist the temptation of starting with the blah, blah, blah opening? Are you willing to be different and connect with your audience by telling a personal story? If you are, send me links to your speeches so I can praise you in future articles! If you need help, come see me at Communications for Everyone and let's talk!

Kelly Vandever is the presentations skills expert with a technology twist. With 9 years of studying the art and science of presentations and 13 years of technology industry experience, Kelly is on the leading edge of how business presentations must transform to meet the needs of tech savvy audiences. Kelly can be reached through the company web site http://CommunicationsForEveryone.com.

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A Perspective on Bill Gates and Microsoft

Bill Gates isn't exactly popular with many people. In fact, a lot of people hate him. Maybe you are one of them.

That's a shame. Bill Gates does not deserve to be hated. He's incredibly generous and giving. He has a foundation, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, spends 1.5 billion per year - all on charitable causes. That number is so big it is hard to even imagine.

In fact, Bill Gates has now dedicated himself to charitable work through his foundation full time. He retired from Microsoft in order to do this. Surprisingly, some people still think he's an asshole. These people are generally the type who are jealous and bitter and negative about anyone else's success.

Now, no way is Microsoft the perfect company. But the perfect company doesn't exist! Microsoft is a lot less evil than many companies in corporate America.

Bill Gates has been a tremendous success, and is very generous. There is no reason to have any feelings toward the man other than respect, and to admire what he has built from nothing with Microsoft.

Let's be realists here. You can't give to others if you have nothing. If Bill Gates had not started out taking, he would have had nothing to give. Who would have benefited if he had been humble instead of ambitious? Nobody.

Bill Gates was smart enough to get that. He is a brilliant man, and he built a corporation so impressive that he could then become a real force for change in the world. Instead of sitting around complaining about how he has all this money, maybe ask yourself what you are doing to make the world a better place.

Bill Gates is busy every day, fighting world hunger, giving money for AIDS research, just generally being an amazing person who is trying to help everyone.

You only hurt yourself when you resent others' successes. If you believe that rich people get rich because they are greedy and crooked, what does that say about your chances of becoming wealthy? If you think you are a good person, and rich people are bad people, you aren't likely to become rich

Additional subjects I write about are finding good a good first up canopy and outdoor chandelier.

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I Love Warren Buffett! And Bill Gates!

No, not because they're both hugely rich but because they both remind me of my Uncle Johnny. And by that, I mean they live by clear, positive beliefs and they each know exactly what their values are. So, what are their beliefs and values that I like so much?

I've just watched a CNBC program that first aired in November of 2009. The program took the format of a town hall meeting, but the participants were MBA graduate students at Columbia University in New York City. Columbia is Warrant Buffett's old alma mater. Turns out that Harvard turned him down when he applied because they thought he was too young. I bet they've been sorry ever since.

It was a really interesting hour and five minutes, covering (1) the recession occurring at that time, (2) their views of America's future and (3) the qualities they each think a person needs to be happy and succeed in life.

Let's start backwards and talk about their views of what makes up a successful person, businessman and leader. They were each asked to tell what individual qualities they thought counted in their lives and careers.

Bill Gates answers:

Have good parents who share their own enthusiasm for life and what they are doing with it.
Pick good role models in your interest area.
Study and learn as much as you can about your chosen interest.
Develop confidence in yourself; learn to trust yourself.
Think long-term about everything: readying yourself for a career, planning a family; entertaining change as your life moves on. Don't let anyone else tell you what to do; you decide.
Marry someone who not only understands but also shares your values.
Develop an attitude of "giving back.'

Warren Buffett's answers:

Have parents who not only allow you to follow your interests but also help you along.
Seek out the best teachers you can find in your area of interest. Work for them for nothing if you have to, just for the education they can give you.
Don't be influenced by what others think you should be doing. Do what you have a passion for instead of working simply for money; do what you love.
Be honest; show integrity in your living.
Develop patience and self-control.
Respect yourself and others.
Do what's best for the most people, no matter about color, religion, and so on. "Give back to others less fortunate."

What do these ideas and values have to do with my Uncle Johnny? Unlike Warren Buffett's and Bill Gate's parents who were college-educated professionals, my grandparents immigrated to America from Italy. They had little education and no money. My uncle was the fifth child of seven born to parents who could only speak Italian when they arrived in St. Louis. Yet, he along with my four aunts, another brother, and my mom grew up with nearly identical beliefs and values as Gates and Buffett. And, they were passed down to me, my brother and my cousins.

My uncle is gone now but it is wonderful to hear other, especially successful people "talk up" the atmosphere I grew up in. It's reassuring. Can we pass these on to our children and grandchildren? Yes, certainly yes!

Now, back to the TV program. Here are some of their answers to other random, but equally important questions:

Warren Buffett was asked what keeps him up at night. He laughed and said that he tries to arrange his life so that he isn't awake at night. He went on to say (this was just one of many times) that America's 200 year-old approach to building businesses and new industries time after time, is the best in the world and he has supreme confidence in it for the future. So, he sleeps well.

When Buffett was asked why he had bought the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, his quick answer was that he had asked his dad for a train set one Christmas but hadn't gotten it. Of course, everyone laughed again. But, then he got serious and went into a short but really thorough analysis of the future of trains, how many tons are moved at what expense compared with the trucking industry with its high fuel costs and concluded that "trains are in tune with America's future."

Buffett mentioned that he owns a certain beverage company and admits to being addicted to the drink. Apparently, he chain-drinks Coke all day long. And, he added that he also owns "Fruit of the Loom," the "underwear company," but didn't think it would be appropriate to show the audience his personal sample of it right then. Laughter from everyone. Buffett has a great sense of humor; Gates said it was one of Buffett's most endearing qualities. And, I agree; he's charming, at least on camera.

But, Buffett is also extremely serious about hard work, thinking through issues and never just reacting to an issue. When someone asked him how he made such important decisions so quickly, he replied that when you have studied something for 50 years, it's fairly easy to make what looks like a "five minute decision."

Bill Gates was asked, "What's the next up and coming industry (because I want to get a job there)?" He replied that he thought Energy, Medicine and the Tech industry would grow the fastest in the future. And, he agreed with what Buffett had said; it's clear that they have almost identical views. America has the greatest business model in the world and although we've gone through an unexpected down time, the model has been and will continue to be successful.

But, for job seekers, his position is: "Do what turns you on. If you do that, you'll get out of bed every morning eager to go to work. And, that's the way you live a happy life." Don't work solely for the paycheck.

Gates was asked if the US should be worried that large, developing nations like China, India and Brazil will overtake us. I thought his answer spoke about a deep value both he and Buffett share: let's be happy to share, let's be open and pleased that other countries are developing so that they, too, can share the burden of feeding and educating the very impoverished third world countries. (I admit; this was new thinking for me.)

I think what they were saying is that the kind of competition that keeps others down is not a good thing. Competition with ourselves as individuals is what brings out the most unique, valuable ideas, talents and skills. We each have something to offer, whether we're American, Chinese, Brazilian, Indian or something else. Let's all contribute. (I say Yes!)

When asked if he thought America had any troubling problems, Gates replied that he's concerned about our education system. He believes it needs an overhaul; we're not developing our kid's potential in most areas. We need to provide more incentives that will attract our kid's interests and help them develop their individual talents.

And so we had reached the end of the hour. The last question to both men was: "How do you spend your typical day?" "Reading, thinking and learning," both answered. Then Buffett said, "With the work time I have left, I do what I love most: investing." Gates said, "With the work time I have left, I what I love most: managing my foundation, which includes most of Warren Buffett's money (99%, I believe).

So, thanks to CNBC and Becky Quick and Columbia University for this peek into the minds, emotions, values and principles of Warren Buffett and Bill Gates. I found the program fascinating. I hope you enjoyed this recap.

All the best to you until next time,

Joan

Joan Chamberlain is an author, therapist, and life coach with over 30 years of experience helping adults, couples, and teens. She has a Bachelor's degree in Business and Finance, a Bachelor's in education, and a Masters in individuals, couples, and family counseling. Her book, Smart Relationships, has helped many people achieve the self-awareness needed to see themselves honestly. Its wisdom has helped them work toward improving their relationships with themselves, their friends, and their families.

To learn more about the ideas and concepts presented in her articles, please peruse her website:

http://www.joanchamberlain.com

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