Bill Gates' life of DOS and don’ts

Bill Gates' life was transformed when a computer terminal arrived at his prep school. (Image: Getty)

Sat, 08 Feb 2025

By David A ShaywitzWe cling to tidy success narratives – appealing stories that trace an outsize triumph to a single critical decision, a vital personality trait, a striking incident from childhood. Such stories make extraordinary success seem comprehensible, perhaps (we imagine) even attainable. Yet reality tends to be more complicated. At a certain level of achievement, success is unfathomably contingent, requiring a hefty amount of luck on top of remarkable ability and durable conviction. In Source Code, Bill Gates&rsquo...

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