11 Quick Facts You Should Know About The New Richest Man in the World, Jeff Bezos
11 Quick Facts You Should Know About The New Richest Man in the World, Jeff Bezos
Bezos is Not is Biological Name
His mother had Jeff when she was a 17 year-old high schooler and was forced into marriage with his father Ted Jergensen. He was eventually born and was given the name Jeff Jergensen. However, after a year his parent’s marriage fell apart. His mother would go on to marry a Cuban immigrant by the name of Miguel Bezos. Jeff eventually changed his name and took his step-father’s surname “Bezos.”
His Family Owns a Huge Chunk of Texas
Waaaay back his father’s ancestors settled in and over time amassed huge chunks of land. Eventually the Jergensens acquired over 25,000 acres. (39 sq. miles). As of March 2015, the Jergensen family retain the crown of the largest landholders in Texas.
He Was a Genius Even as an Infant
Apparently, Jeff Bezos was ahead of his time even as a toddler. When he was a still sleeping in a crib, one day he took a screwdriver and dismantled his crib. As a child Jeff also set up a science laboratory in his parent’s garage.
He Drafted His Business Plan on a Road Trip
While driving cross-country from New York to Seattle, Jeff Bezos drafted the Amazon businesses plan, then eventually opened up the first Amazon store out of his garage. Jeff at the time was working on Wall Street. Soon he quit his well paying job at a hedge fund and launched Amazon.
He’s a Micro-Manager
Portfolio.com, once wrote “is at once a happy-go-lucky mogul and a notorious micromanager. … an executive who wants to know about everything from contract minutiae to how he is quoted in all Amazon press releases. His hell-bound approach to attention to detail have created talks that Amazon is not a fun place to work.
Harvard Business Review Named Him “Greatest Living CEO
This is a pretty lofty title. Although he may be a hard ass when it comes to micro managing, Jeff Bezos knows how to turn profit. Jeff was able to earn shareholders an eye-popping 124 times return on their investment.
He Has a Thing Called The “Two Pizza Rule”
The Two Pizza Rule suggests that businesses form small teams, consisting of the number of people that can feed on two pizzas, in order to have a successful business venture. Obviously this works.
He Makes All His Employees Man the Phones, Including Himself
Jeff created a rule at Amazon that every two years employees have to spend two days at the customer service desk. Talk about keeping you grounded.
The First Item Ever Sold on Amazon Was….
A science textbook titled “Fluid Concepts & Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought.” This is not surprising considering he’s a child prodigy.
He’s Kind of Frugal
During the early years of Amazon, Jeff was working out of his garage and didn’t want to splurge on real office furniture. Instead he used a door as a desk. Even to this day his desk is that same door.
He Bought The Washington Post
He made headlines literally. In 2013 Jeff Bezos purchased The Washington Post for a whopping $250 million dollars. Man folks believe print is dead but apparently Jeff knows something we don’t.
