Bill Gates didn’t believe in vacations, weekends. This changed his mind

Bill Gates said, 'I can always count on all three of my kids to keep me up to date on how young people see the world.'

As a youngster, Bill Gates did not believe in taking vacations or unwinding during the weekends. The Microsoft co-founder explained in his latest blog post how his views changed as he got older, especially after he became a father.

"When I was my kids’ age, I didn’t believe in vacations or weekends. But as I got older—and especially since I became a father—I realized there is more to life than work," Gates wrote in his blog.

He added that watching his children grow up has been joyful and that they are "invaluable sources of wisdom in their own right". In his blog, Bill Gates also mentioned that sharing the stage with Phoebe, his youngest child, at the foundation’s Goalkeepers event was one of the highlights of his year. "I loved watching my daughter Phoebe moderate a panel on gender equality at the foundation’s Goalkeepers event this year. I can always count on all three of my kids to keep me up to date on how young people see the world—and on the latest TikTok trends," he added.

The billionaire's comments come at a time when a discussion sparked by another billionaire and Infosys founder Narayana Murthy is still ongoing. Murthy advocated for young professionals in India to work for 70 hours every week for the betterment of the country.

While Bill Gates also seems to have had similar views in his early years, he emphasised the importance of work-life balance in his recent blog post. "I hope you’re able to take some time this holiday season to have fun and relax before we dive into 2024," he wrote.

Read more: Bill Gates says a 3-day work week is possible with AI so humans ‘don’t have to work so hard’