Billionaires are getting divorced, it’s happening everywhere! It’s started getting mainstream when the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos got one. He parted away with 4% of Amazon, it’s no big deal, still retained his position at the helm. Made his ex one of the richest woman in the world with that divorce. Ladies, you gotta pick em right. You have options, align them with plan A as the best but have a strong plan B and C. Then Kanye West got one. Kim Kardashian is herself a Billionaire so the divorce process will be smooth, plus prenuptial agreements were signed, I feel this was a great business agreement. The two brands were great together, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian – Kimye, that is amazing! Elon Musk and Charlie Munger have been divorced at least 2 times son. Steve Jobs could have had one if he lived longer, I am almost certain; there’s no ways Steve Jobs doesn’t get a divorce. Even the greatest man in the world, Warren Buffet had some problems; but he didn’t divorce, that would disgrace his name. They made it into a business-like agreement, they were cordial with one another, but the wife left him, things worked out perfectly for both parties as they both self-actualized and lived fulfilled lives. Classic Warren Buffet, a winner in any case, a natural winner, even when he loses he wins; his wife put a younger woman to look after his needs since she lived on the other side of the world, it was someone she trusted, someone with credibility, someone with the right values, someone who could fit into Warren’s tempament like a glove, someone functional and valuable. Just recently Bill Gates got a divorce. Wasteful, Bill didn’t learn from Warren. But let me not blame him, it’s just the climate, Billionaires are getting divorced. Zuckerberg, the world’s waiting for your divorce, no pressure.
Why is this happening? Is it a business transaction? Is it love? Is it happiness and fulfillment? Is it the human touch? It’s tough being in a relationship with a Billionaire. They are so charged-up like a red bull, bullish and long on the next wave like Stochastic.
Who’s the richest man in the world? For years Forbes has stated that it is Jeff Bezos but I have never been sure. Sure, Amazon is a great company and it runs a monopoly. A great monopoly that sells virtually everything and knows you better than you know yourself. The acquisition of companies like Alexa and Twitch makes it a force to be reckoned with, but I still think its stock is too inflated. Don’t get me wrong I think Jeff Bezos is an absolute genius who specializes in internet companies and a visionary who can forecast into the future. He has smart investments in his portfolio, futuristic investments like the purchase of Twitch. He bought Twitch for $970 Million, he knows e-sports is the thing of the future. We have more examples of Bezos futuristic thinking, he was one of the founding investors of Google investing $1 million in 1998. He was one of the first people to see the potential and now Google is the pulse that runs the world. In addition to Google, he invested $15 million into Twitter in 2008 and today they are evaluated at over $22 Billion. He also invested $3 Million into Uber and now its stock is worth $300 Million – a 13233% return on investment, not bad for a day’s work. The acquisitions of organic food company Whole Foods Market and the space company Blue Origins is just brilliant. People are becoming more health conscious and are watching what they eat, the purchase of Whole Foods Market Is in line with that reality. There’s also the small fact that we want to inhabit Mars in a couple of years making us a multi-planet species. The acquisition of Blue Origins to rival SpaceX just makes sense and provides a great opportunity to make a lot of money. Regardless the question has to be asked. Are his assets liquid? Or are they just paper assets? Jeff Bezos recently had a divorce and had to part with 25% of his Amazon shares. He initially had 16% and gave his ex-wife 4% which amounts to $38 Billion. Isn’t that a bit steep? Don’t you think Amazon shares are over evaluated? Don’t you think they are inflated? Granted, I may be underestimating Amazon but I don’t think I am. I don’t doubt Bezos business acumen, I think he is the JD Rockefeller of modern times. He runs Amazon like Standard Oil, he buys the competition or he butchers them. No one even comes close, he is ruthless. He is one of the best businessmen in the world. Still, his investment portfolio is over 60% of Amazon and if indeed Amazon’s stock is inflated that would make him the richest person in the world – but only on paper. Something behind the door is being done to inflate those shares, maybe his issuing out shares like how banks just create new money. I seriously doubt that he could give away billions to charity like Warren Buffet and Bill Gates. And if he can’t is he still the world’s wealthiest man?
Half of Bill Gates portfolio is Berkshire Hathaway. Interestingly he doesn’t own a lot of Microsoft shares. In the year 2000, during the big tech crash he sold out most of his Microsoft stock to diversify his portfolio to protect his net worth. I think that’s so intelligent. Throughout the years Warren Buffet had been a rival in the list of the richest people in the world. Buying Berkshire Hathaway shares worth billions is a great way to nullify the threat and the best way to diversify your portfolio. And because Warren Buffet is considered to be the greatest money maker in the world, success is virtually guaranteed. It was a chess move for Bill Gates and it speaks volumes of the respect he has for Warren Buffet. You see by owning so much of Berkshire Hathaway, Bill Gates is an owner of everything Warren Buffet owns. Berkshire is a holding company that owns shares and stocks in a lot of great companies like Coca-Cola and Apple. Berkshire’s stock are not inflated and its assets are liquid. That’s the major difference between a Jeff Bezos and a Bill Gates or Warren Buffet. Berkshire owns companies that pay out dividends and they own these stocks/shares for the long haul. The returns from these companies in a form of profit or dividends can pay for themselves essentially making billions for Berkshire for nothing. Bill Gates owns a lot of stocks that pay dividends on his portfolio, companies like; Waste Management, Canadian National Railway, FedX, Caterpillar, Walmart and a lot others. Bill Gates loves Dividend stocks because they earn him money virtually every day and they pay for themselves, freeing up capital to use for other projects or securing more assets. This is the reason Bill Gates and Warren Buffet can give away billions to charity and still have billions. They are indispensable. The billions they make are not tied to their net worth, it is simply free capital that they can afford to give away. Since 2000, Warren Buffet has given away over $46 Billion to charity making him the world’s most charitable billionaire in the world. While Bill Gates has given away $18 Billion to charity since 2000. I seriously doubt Jeff Bezos has the capability of doing that not because of moral obligations but because it would cripple his net worth. With time, I think he will be able to do that.
The richest man in the world is Bill Gates for the diverse stock he has in his portfolio. Through Berkshire he owns some of the greatest and best companies in the world including Coca- Cola, Apple and Amazon. On his own he owns Stocks that are unmatched by competition standards and yield consistent figures. For example, pundits predict another market crash and maybe it will happen but Bill Gates won’t be affected all that much because of the choice of stocks he has chosen in his portfolio. Even when the stock market crashes, people still need to dispose of garbage – Bill has a Waste Management company. Even when the stock market crashes, people still need to eat – Bill owns Walmart. Even when the stock market crashes, people still need to travel – Bill owns a railway company. Even when the stock market crashes, people still get thirsty and Bill owns a company that packages soft drinks like Coca-Cola. The companies in Bill Gates portfolio have a big competitive advantage. Most of them pay dividends and they are relatively defensive, prone to external forces like the stock market crash. Honestly, I think his the most intelligent businessman ever. The greatest money maker in the world is Warren Buffet – for it is he who makes half of Bill Gates money. Warren Buffet is a freak of nature, someone who understands the business world in its entirety, he is immersed in it, it is first nature to him. He is a practical man who understands human nature and lives in the real world. Warren Buffet is a visionary who invests over the long haul. He dissects companies to the bone before making a decision. He is supremely intelligent, an informed man. A man who makes money for a living. My observations are that Bill Gates is the richest man in the world and that Jeff Bezos is not far out. Jeff Bezos will be the undisputed richest man in the world, his investments and portfolio predicts and suggests that. If the Amazon stock is not overvalued and inflated then he is already that and will never be toppled. On the contrary, maybe Mark Zuckerberg has a chance. Since 2005, he has dominated the internet and how people perceive reality. He is young and has made impressive acquisitions. He will be the one to challenge Jeff Bezos and I think he will win.
Speaking of overvalued and inflated, I think one has to address the elephant in the room, Tesla. During the Covid-19 pandemic it elevated Elon Musk to the helm of the richest people in the world. Elon came from out of nowhere to beat everyone in the top 10. It looks like sustainable energy is finally bearing fruit, Tesla has been doing exceptionally well and are the benchmark for electric vehicles that are a sure thing for the future. Let’s not forget that Elon recently purchased Twitter in its entirety and turned it into a private company. Never mind everything said in this post about the other billionaires; Mark is cute, Bill who and Jeff is a has been – Elon certainly looks to be the man. His wealth is still accumulating in the 200 billions and it is widely forecasted that he will be the world’s first Trillionaire!
Earlier in 2019, Kylie Jenner was certified the youngest self-made billionaire in the world by Forbes eclipsing Mark Zuckerberg who managed the feat at 24. Kylie Jenner managed this incredible feat aged just 21. She unbelievably owns a third of the lipstick market in the United States. Also she owns a hundred percent stake in her company ensuring that all the profits go directly to her. The internet and social media has been buzzing all year questioning the status of “self-made”, it’s a bold declaration, one many feel she doesn’t deserve considering her last name. She had been affluent and lived a life of luxury all her life. She had the resources and the infrastructure at her disposal. There was no process to her riches – it was like pushing a button. Fair arguments, however she had initiative, she had skill, she had business acumen, she had wit, and she had intelligence to carry out her vision. After all, owning a third of the market requires some sort of consistency and poise. Sure maybe she was lucky but should we strip the title of “self-made billionaire” because of that fact? Never. Reason being all successful people are lucky. Shaun Carter aka Jay –Z is lucky to be alive considering the life of crime he led as a young man. He was born in Macy in the projects of New York. To survive he sold drugs and often got in heated feuds with members of dangerous gangs. He is lucky to be alive. He was lucky he found a skill he could harness from a very young age. He was lucky he got a mentor who taught him about the music business. He was lucky he met Damian Dash and he was lucky “Reasonable Doubt” did as well as it did. Luck comes after a sequence of hard work, it is contagious and can be channeled. This is exhibited on the Kylie Jenner story. Her family, her sisters worked hard just so she (Kylie) can be “lucky”. Kylie Jenner is a self-made billionaire because the business she created comes from her spirit, her psychology, her insecurities – those are the elements that inspired her business model. The fact that she had the resources doesn’t disqualify her.
What are the origins of her luck? Two words. Kim Kardashian. She possess amazing power. Sure her parents had wealth but Kim gave the family as a unit influence. Influence is subtle. Influence sways heads. Influence creates movements and drives change. Influence is underlying. Influence is transformative. Influence is hidden and repressed. Influence is resourceful. Influence is true power. Kim Kardashian is a seductive animal that emits pheromones into the atmosphere for all to take the bait and follow. Ever since her entrance into public life she has had this aura that is irresistible for all sexes of life. Her public persona is the stuff of legends. She is like the new age Marilyn Monroe in the sense that she knows she belongs to the world – to the public. She has created an incredible brand. A brand that is synonymous with beauty, fashion, trends, outlandish, repressed, forbidden and popular culture. The brand she has created is truly amazing. Kim Kardashian has pushed the limits of popular culture so many times. From successfully monetizing an amateur sex-tape over the internet to popularizing apparel that left little to the mind to fantasize about in the fashion world. As a brand, the Kim Kardashian image signified ultimate freedom from customs and systems – her image incited promiscuous intentions, naughty actions, repressed desires, dangerous consequences, erotic fantasies and forbidden transgressions. The Kim Kardashian brand provided a release, a platform to showcase what is underlying and often repressed by society – a platform to be unapologetically you. It is a powerful brand because it enables people to project on to you their darkest and most repressed desires. It is a brand that elevates one to the status of a god. Who could argue Kim’s claim to being a goddess? After all, multiple time she had been all that people talked about on the internet and popular culture. Multiple times she had been what young girls aspired to become. Multiple times she had left men on their knees.
As a result of Kim’s popularity, a decision was made to create a “reality show”. The show would follow Kim and her family as they navigated the world. Central to the show’s theme was beauty. The Kardashians used the show as a vehicle to create a need. We would see the sisters resorting to plastic surgery to make themselves desirable in the eyes of the world. We would see the excessive purchases of designer clothes. The show was predicated on social status and the validation of society. It would leave the viewers empty and with new found insecurities about how they looked and the clothes they wore. It was effective and critical in forming this plastic life. The show was so detached from reality, an element that made it popular and alluring. Everything about the show was bigger than life and so it provided an avenue to escape from the tribulations of life. The show exploited a very critical area in human psychology – the need to be liked and accepted. Status symbols and extravagant purchases represented a remedy and a means to deal with the gaps and holes inside ones heart. In truth one was better off not watching the show than watching it because it was warfare to the mind. The show made minds passive and indoctrinated them into an abyss of misery. However it was a success and central to the Kardashians wealth. Many more spin-off shows were created and the beauty market boomed with the Kardashians at the forefront of everything.
It was Kim Kardashian who started everything for her family. She created a really powerful brand. She exemplified the brand, she lived the brand, she believed in the brand. Whether her public persona is different from her usual persona – that is a different story for another day. Brands are essential in the accumulation of wealth. Kim’s brand is believable. She is a siren. An attractive girl who has all the attributes and features to land any man he wants. Her body and voice solidifies that claim. Her detached demeanor and rich, spoiled girl behavior is what we expect to see and it is what she projects – a larger than life personality that is alluring and devastatingly seductive. Her image evokes all kinds of emotions. She is desired. It is as if she is the brand she created. If youth was forever, Kim Kardashian would be the most powerful woman in the world. However, life is disappointing and looks fade. Still, she is central to Kylie’s success. Kim was bold, daring and provocative. She had a creative energy and entrepreneurial drive that was like no other. She was different. In her prime, she became all that she could be. She was a success. She laid the foundations for her sisters. She gave the Kardashian family fame – something that fast tracks success in any domain. Fame is infrastructure. Fame is numbers. Fame is a chance. Fame is support. Fame is money. Fame is influence. Fame is power. Her spirit is immense and is felt throughout the universe. That frequency emits and ripples a chain of luck molecules – her sisters were the recipients of these molecules and it has enabled them to do amazing things. We are the products of our ancestors and immediate family. Kim and her family created a world that was so big and realistic that Kylie was immersed it in, Kylie was a product of that world and she owned it and took the vision further. Now, her responsibility is to push boundaries and challenge customs and conventions.
To create something of significance and value, you need a tribe or community of people pulling in one direction. They don’t have to share blood, heritage or anything binding biologically, they just have to be like-minded. I like the example of Henry Ford. What he did with the automobile industry was amazing. In that time, cars were available but they were expensive and reserved for the wealthy and affluent. Henry Ford had a dream of making the automobile affordable for the average American. He came to the realization that he would need economics of scale to mass produce and save costs. The revolutionary thinking never stopped there. Essentially he started Capitalism by getting investors involved and creating the assembly line. The Ford company started mass producing cars but he also realized sales would be slow if there wasn’t a system in place. He created the modern 9-5 work week. This way employees would produce the vehicles mid-week and purchase them on the weekend. It was a success.
Ford grew and made money for his investors. I think that’s a beautiful example of Capitalism, that’s where everything started. I think the socialist economy is cool too. Countries like Sweden are beautifully run. There’s a lot of peace of mind considering everyone has access to the best schools, hospitals and other facilities. Systems like that guarantee peace of mind. Of course it can go bad like it did in the 20th century but I see a lot of positives. It’s a fair and just system. The only problem I see is parting with 50-60% of my income tax.
I also like what Mark Zuckerberg did with Facebook. I love the culture he instilled in the company. I love how clear their vision is “make the world more open”. Essentially to connect everyone in the world. To help him in his cause, he got the best people by his side. Today Facebook has over 2 billion active users. That’s powerful, it all started with a tribe, a community of students.
antakalipa 