Community Chat

[golding76]

Bezos's advice does not apply only to for-profit enterprises.  I just retired from an agency of the federal government and was part of a team transforming the way a major segment of this very active agency does business.

It was my job to write up a new approach to doing our critically important work, and believe me, with the info I was given, I had to be creative and verbalize inchoate thoughts.  Never having to write for big-wigs at the agency in this sort of arena before, I played a conservative game for a bit, but then I decided to go rogue.  I brought in Bezo's quotations that I singled out for this thread.  They were a hit!  And people kept using them during discussions.  He helped our agency recreate itself, I believe.

We all need to reinvent, not only ourselves but the way things are done. 

[Noel7]

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@millieshops wrote:

@Noel7When I read the thread title, my first reaction was "what's his philanthropic bent?"   Glad to see he's working on that.

I have no problem at all when the wealthy live well as long as they also work to raise the levels of others. They can easily do both.

Not too long ago, I read a great article in the NYTimes about the successes in the fights against worldwide poverty.  While there are still too many pockets of people suffering, I was also pleased to see the statistics showing significant progress  It's a long, ugly fight and there will always be inequities but people with major wealth like Bezos and many with wealth on a much smaller scale are making a difference.  I applaud them.

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Thanks for mentioning that aspect of it it @millieshops

Others suffering in a different country affects the world, not just their small area.

[Noel7]

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@golding76 wrote:

Bezos's advice does not apply only to for-profit enterprises.  I just retired from an agency of the federal government and was part of a team transforming the way a major segment of this very active agency does business.

It was my job to write up a new approach to doing our critically important work, and believe me, with the info I was given, I had to be creative and verbalize inchoate thoughts.  Never having to write for big-wigs at the agency in this sort of arena before, I played a conservative game for a bit, but then I decided to go rogue.  I brought in Bezo's quotations that I singled out for this thread.  They were a hit!  And people kept using them during discussions.  He helped our agency recreate itself, I believe.

We all need to reinvent, not only ourselves but the way things are done. 

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I'm thinking of writing to him.  IMO water rights are becoming so important. Some want to OWN water in order to make money.

I'm going to suggest he interest himself in projects providing clean water to areas that need help.  Too many babies and others dying from a lack of basic clean water.

Thanks for your work @golding76

[Noel7]

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@IamMrsG wrote:

CNBC reported this morning that Bezos is just a smidgen (in his terms, I suppose) away from becoming the richest man in history.  

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Hi @IamMrsG

Did they say who was the richest man in history?  Fascinating.

[golding76]

King Midas

(I couldn't resist.)

[Noel7]

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@golding76 wrote:

King Midas

(I couldn't resist.)

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Rumpelstiltskin?

[Plaid Pants2]

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@golding76 wrote:

“All businesses need to be forever young. . . . If your customer base ages with you as a company, you’re Woolworth’s.”

Another good one!

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It explains what hasw been happening with the Q, and hiring new, young, hosts, doesn't it?

[garmer]

Bill Gates is back on top.

[Noel7]

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@garmer wrote:

Bill Gates is back on top.

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THAT FAST?  @garmer

Man, those billions must be rolling in!

[IamMrsG]

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@Noel7 wrote:

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@IamMrsG wrote:

CNBC reported this morning that Bezos is just a smidgen (in his terms, I suppose) away from becoming the richest man in history.  

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Hi @IamMrsG

Did they say who was the richest man in history?  Fascinating.

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@Noel7  No, they did not, but your question was interesting enough to make me Google it.  

From Wikipedia:  Mansa Musa, or Musa I of Mali is considered to be the richest man to ever walk the face of the Earth with his wealth at $400 billion (at the time of his death in 1331). Musa was the tenth emperor of the Mali Empire that developed along the Saharan slave trade routes in the later medieval period. Mansa Musa made his fortune by exploiting his country’s salt and gold production.

Musa is said to have brought several tonnes of gold to Mecca when he made a pilgrimage there in 1324. Reported as being inconceivably rich by contemporaries, "There’s really no way to put an accurate number on his wealth."

John D. Rockefeller is considered the wealthiest in modern history:

"On September 29, 1916, Rockefeller became the first person ever to reach a nominal personal fortune of US$1 billion. Rockefeller amassed his fortune from the Standard Oil company, of which he was a founder, chairman and major shareholder. By the time of his death in 1937, estimates place his net worth in the range of US$300 billion to US$400 billion in adjusted dollars for the late 2000s (decade). When considering the real value of his wealth, Rockefeller is widely held to have been the wealthiest American, as well as the richest person in modern history."