Bill Gates Reveals Lesson He Should Have Learned 'A Lot Sooner' From Warren Buffett

Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have been friends for over 30 years, and during this time, they have shared many lessons with each other. One piece of advice from Buffett that Gates wishes he had learned sooner is the importance of not overloading your schedule so that you can be both happier and more productive.

Gates recently posted on Meta's Threads app, saying, "It took far too long for me to realise that you don't have to fill every second of your schedule to be successful. (In hindsight, it's a lesson I could have learned a lot sooner had I taken more peeks at Warren Buffett's intentionally light calendar.)”

Gates reflected on his years as the CEO of Microsoft, where for 25 years, he packed every minute of his schedule until stepping down in 2000.

He admitted that he was a tough boss who would even send requests to employees at 2 a.m.

"I thought that was the only way you could do things," Gates said in an earlier interview with journalist Charlie Rose in 2017.

"I remember Warren showing me his calendar... he [still] has days that there's nothing on it. You control your time... It's not a proxy of your seriousness that you fill every minute in your schedule."

Buffett also emphasised the value of time, stating, "I can buy anything I want, basically, but I can't buy time."

Buffett's approach of maintaining a lighter schedule is essentially about working smarter, not harder. This is supported by research from Stanford University, which found that worker productivity declines sharply after 50 hours of work per week. Those who work up to 70 hours get the same amount of work done as those working 55 hours.

However, working too few hours is also not ideal. People are generally happiest when they stay busy, but avoid overworking. A study in 2021 suggested that the optimum amount of daily free time is up to 9.5 hours, which, while seemingly unrealistic for many, can lead to lower stress levels and long-term health benefits.

Gates has acknowledged that it took him years to find a healthy work-life balance.

In a commencement speech at Northern Arizona University, he said, "When I was your age, I didn't believe in vacations. I didn't believe in weekends. I didn’t believe the people I worked with should, either. Don't wait as long as I did to learn this lesson. Take your time to nurture your relationships, to celebrate your successes, and to recover from your losses. Take a break when you need to. Take it easy on the people around you when they need it, too."