One of the tricky questions in most interviews is the question, if you had a superpower what would it be? The world’s second-wealthiest billionaire – Bill Gates was recently asked this same question in an interview and his answer was one you wouldn’t have guessed so quickly.
The Co-founder and former Microsoft Chief Executive Officer was asked the question pertaining to his special traits and in response, he surprised us by not stating his abilities as a software developer, his philanthropic abilities or his position as the co-founder of one of the world’s largest companies.
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His answer was simple and straightforward – his optimism and his ability to put together great teams to work. “If I have [a superpower], it has something to do with optimism about scientific innovation,” he said.
This comes as no shocker as the billionaire has displayed his optimism time and time again publicly. A recent example of that was during his lecture at the University of Cambridge, in which Gates predicted that investment in scientific innovations would result in the end of global malnutrition and the eradication of malaria by 2040.
Gates’ ability to gather teams of people to work with can be affirmed in what he has achieved with his foundation – Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which has nearly 1,500 employees around the world and an endowment of more than $46 billion.
Gates and his wife, Melinda had managed different teams varying from strategists, researchers and other partners working on issues ranging from global poverty and malnutrition to working to eradicate diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS.
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Apart from his foundation, Gates’ team-building skills can also be seen during his time at Microsoft back when he was assembling teams of engineers towards shepherding software projects to completion at the company he co-founded in 1975 and helped grow into a trillion-dollar business.