25 Life Quotes From Bill Gates On His 67th Birthday We selected 25 quotes from Bill Gates on life, business, charity, society and much more.

One of the most successful and recognized men in the world, Bill Gates celebrates his 67^th birthday today. In a life where he seems to have achieved everything that a businessman and entrepreneur can dream of, and more, the software developer, author and investor has been known over the last decade more for the significant philanthropic work he has done. The co-founder of Microsoft has been panned for his business methods, but there is a lot one can learn from someone like Gates.

It was in 2008 that he became fully involved with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the private charitable foundation which had been started by him and his ex-wife Melinda Gates in 2000. Gates gives credit to the philanthropy of David Rockefeller as playing a major role in getting him involved in helping others. The extraordinary success he has achieved in the various fields of life, especially the computer revolution that he was a major part of from the 70s made him a part of pop culture, which included Gates being part of an episode of the highly popular sitcom The Big Bang Theory. He has also been featured in The Simpsons in a parodied version.

Books can and have been written on the lessons we can learn from Gates, but we narrowed down and selected 25 quotes from him which give us an insight into the genius that he is.

1. I really had a lot of dreams when I was a kid, and I think a great deal of that grew out of the fact that I had a chance to read a lot.

2. We make the future sustainable when we invest in the poor, not when we insist on their suffering.

3. Bitcoin is mostly about anonymous transactions, and I don't think over time that's a good way to go. I'm a huge believe in digital currency... but doing it on an anonymous basis I think that leads to some abuses, so I'm not involved in Bitcoin.

4. Headlines, in a way, are what mislead you because bad news is a headline, and gradual improvement is not.

5. If your culture doesn't like geeks, you are in real trouble.

6. There are more people dying of malaria than any specific cancer

7. Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.

8. Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important.

9. People always fear change. People feared electricity when it was invented, didn't they? People feared coal, they feared gas-powered engines... There will always be ignorance, and ignorance leads to fear. But with time, people will come to accept their silicon masters.

10. Everyone needs a coach. It doesn't matter whether you're a basketball player, a tennis player, a gymnast or a bridge player.

11. Capitalism has worked very well. Anyone who wants to move to North Korea is welcome.

12. Just in terms of allocation of time resources, religion is not very efficient. There's a lot more I could be doing on a Sunday morning.

13. Exposure from a young age to the realities of the world is a super-big thing.

14. Whether it's Google or Apple or free software, we've got some fantastic competitors and it keeps us on our toes.

15. Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can't lose.

16. It's fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure.

17. If you can't make it good, at least make it look good.

18. Discrimination has a lot of layers that make it tough for minorities to get a leg up.

19. We all need people who will give us feedback. That's how we improve.

20. Information technology and business are becoming inextricably interwoven. I don't think anybody can talk meaningfully about one without the talking about the other.

21. As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.

22. Software is a great combination between artistry and engineering.

23. Treatment without prevention is simply unsustainable.

24. The belief that the world is getting worse, that we can't solve extreme poverty and disease, isn't just mistaken. It's harmful.

25. Intellectual property has the shelf life of a banana.