Entrepreneurial Advice From The Richest Man In The World
On November 19th 2015 I published an article on LinkedIn titled:
“Entrepreneurial Advice From The 13th Richest Man In The World”
Today, on 25th January 2025, I am republishing the same article here on TOSCEO, but with some additional closing comments at the end.
Enjoy the story, and share it with whoever comes upon your heart.
Entrepreneurial Advice From The 13th Richest Man In The World
Today has been all about business growth, and I mean gazelle type business growth. My morning was spent in the offices of our new technology partner Qubit, a company founded in 2010 by four ex Google employees. In 2014 they raised £16m to export their technology to the US. 12 months later Qubit have grown to a size of 250 (and counting).
This afternoon I have had the absolute privilege of attending the annual gathering of entrepreneurs who have been on the Goldman Sachs 10k Small Businesses High Growth Programme, since its inception. On PRWD's 11th birthday I explained more about my involvement in this exceptional programme in my article A Bedroom Entrepreneurs Growth Journey.
Surrounding yourself with over 300 other entrepreneurs is quite a unique experience. For this annual gathering to have been hosted at Goldman Sachs UK Head Office in London added a whole new level to the feelings of growth, ambition, innovation and, crucially, humility.
Part of this afternoon was a Q&A session with Richard Gnodde, Co-Chief Executive Officer at Goldman Sachs International, and Michael R. Bloomberg, Founder, Bloomberg LP (and the 13th richest person in the world). In a word, for me personally, this was priceless.
Here I share the entrepreneurial advice shared by these two genuine powerhouses who have been there and done it...
Growth Foundations - Get the true foundations in place first, don't get ahead of yourself - product, proposition, people, vision
Growth Trajectory - Growth takes time, Rome wasn't built in a day - play the long game, build it and they will come
Passion - You cannot lead without passion within - you've got to love what you do
Enjoyment - If you like it you'll get up in a morning and do even better, and then there will be more reason to like it
People - Focus on hiring exceptional people that fit your culture - don't neglect this as you grow, it remains crucial to your success
Innovation - Innovation is doing something without data - you can overstate data. Go against conventional wisdom
Ambition - Inherent ambition is crucial for growth - US entrepreneurs are far more ambitious than the UK & EU. In the UK there is a stigma to failure - you can't get yourself trapped in that
Context - Keep things in context. In challenging periods, is it really that bad, or is it actually an opportunity to learn, adapt, change, improve, optimise? No its not that bad, at all
Hard work - the key to success is hard work. There is absolutely no getting away from this
Adaptability - Stuff happens, you need to be able react and move forward
Challenges - Embrace the challenges. In the words of Richard Gnodde, "The financial crash gave me some of my most exhilarating times of my career"
Leadership - The most important characteristic in leadership - the people you are leading believe you are genuine
At the end of this truly inspiring session, Michael was asked what is the one thing you would say to entrepreneurs. His response:
Just be ambitious.
Closing Comments For 2025 & Beyond
Did you know that in God’s Kingdom, the first will be last and the last will be first? Did you know that the love of money is the root of all evil? 1 Timothy 6:10
Did you know that you cannot serve two masters? For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and enslaved to money. Matthew 6:24
This is what God says that we should teach the rich in the world:
Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment.
1 Timothy 6:17
Finally, if you haven’t yet, I pray now that you will learn to be content with whatever you have. I pray that the Holy Spirit will teach you to live on almost nothing or with everything. I pray the Holy Spirit helps you to learn the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or a little, for you can do everything through Christ who gives you strength. Philippians 4:11 NLT
Is Jesus Your Lord & Saviour?
If you haven’t already, it is now time for you to be born-again by receiving Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour!
Head over to the Become Born-Again website to read God’s purpose for your life.
