EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, the Internet throws up articles attributed to Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Recall, for instance, the fine piece that went viral five-six months ago on lessons the coronavirus pandemic could be teaching us. Or, the amazing story of what a newspaper seller in an airport kiosk taught Bill Gates. A similar article, more correctly a speech he is said to have delivered at a high-school graduation ceremony, has long been doing the rounds but remains relevant even today for young people stepping out into the big bad world.
Titled ‘Eleven Rules Your Kids Won’t Learn In School’, the speech comprises a classic set of life rules that are timeless in their wisdom. Although attributed to Bill Gates, it is believed to be a simplified version of an article written by American commentator/writer Charles J. Sykes. The article was first published in the San Diego Union-Tribune in September 1996 but began circulating under Bill Gates’s name from early 2000.
The eleven rules
Life rule I: Life is NOT FAIR. Get used to it.
Rule II: The world doesn’t care about your self-esteem. The world expects you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule III: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won’t be a vice-president with a luxury car until you earn both.
Rule IV: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule V: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger-flipping. They called it OPPORTUNITY.
Rule VI: If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault. So, DON’T WHINE about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule VII: Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So, before you save the rainforest from the parasites of your parents’ generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Winner takes all
Life rule VIII: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. Some schools have abolished failing grades and will give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule IX: Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule X: Television is NOT real life. In real life, people have to actually leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule XI: Be NICE to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.
The Twelfth Rule
Here’s a twelfth life rule — conveyed through a story circulating on social media — that will stand youngsters in good stead when they fly the nest.
Life rule XII: Know your worth
An ailing old man one day called his teenaged son to his bedside. Fishing out an antique watch from under his pillow, he said: “Son, your grandfather gave me this watch many years ago. It is more than 200 years old. It is time for me to hand it over to you. But before I do that, go to the watch shop on First Street. Tell the shopkeeper you want to sell the watch, and ask him how much he will offer. Come back and tell me what he says.”
The son dutifully headed to the shop and did what his father had told him. After a while, he returned home. He told his father: “The watchmaker offered to pay me $5. He said the watch is very old and has a lot of scratches.”
The father listened without a word. Then he asked the boy to go to the nearby coffee shop with the watch and try his luck. The boy returned in a while. He said: “Father, the coffee shop owner also offered me $5.”
Off to the museum
Again, the father heard him out silently. Then he said: “Son, now go to the museum and show the curator the watch. Come back to me with what he says.”
The son trudged off to the museum. When he returned, his face was flushed and his eyes were glowing. “Father, I can’t believe this! They offered me a million dollars for this watch.”
For a third time, the father listened to the boy quietly. Slowly, he said: “Son, I wanted you to see for yourself that the right person or the right place values you in the right way. Never put yourself in the wrong place and get angry if you are treated like trash. Those who know your worth will appreciate you. Don’t ever stay in a place that doesn’t value you.”