Bill Gates is a very rich man today... and do you want to know

Hear the words of Dave Barry, spoken with the sharp wit of a satirist but carrying a truth deeper than jest: “Bill Gates is a very rich man today... and do you want to know why? The answer is one word: versions.” These words may sound like laughter, but beneath them lies a profound commentary on the nature of progress, commerce, and the endless renewal of human invention.

For in the old world, wealth was tied to land, to mines, to armies, and to ships. But in the age of technology, wealth is tied to the cycle of creation and renewal. Gates did not merely sell a single tool to the world and rest upon his fortune. Instead, he mastered the rhythm of versions—the constant release of improved systems, updated software, and renewed platforms. Each new version became not only a product, but an invitation: to stay current, to adapt, to advance. And with each step, his wealth multiplied.

This strategy was not born with Gates. History shows its echoes. Consider the printing press, where publishers issued not one edition of a book but many, correcting errors, adding prefaces, and stirring fresh desire in readers. Or the automobile industry, where models rolled out year by year, each a little faster, shinier, more powerful than the last. In each case, the heart of profit was not permanence, but renewal. Gates merely carried this wisdom into the digital realm, where versions became the heartbeat of software and the source of empire.

Yet Barry’s jest hides a caution as well. For though versions enrich the creator, they also burden the user. Each new release demands learning, adjustment, sometimes frustration. Many remember the long nights of updates, the errors of early releases, the relentless march of obsolescence. What for Gates was wealth, for the common user was both gift and trial. The “rich man” is made not only by invention, but by the world’s dependence on his cycle of change.

But O seeker, do not hear this only as cynicism. Within it lies also inspiration. The secret of versions is not merely commercial—it is spiritual. For life itself is made of versions. The self of yesterday is not the self of today; each day is a new edition, corrected, improved, sometimes clumsy, sometimes brilliant. Gates became rich because he embraced change and built a world that demanded it. So too can each person enrich their life by refusing to remain static, by choosing instead to release new “versions” of themselves through growth, learning, and resilience.

The lesson is clear: if you wish to prosper—whether in wealth, wisdom, or spirit—embrace the rhythm of renewal. Do not cling to old models of yourself when they no longer serve. Update your mind with new knowledge, refine your character with new habits, and correct your flaws as an author corrects errata in a book. For just as Gates grew mighty through versions, so too will you grow strong through the continual remaking of your life.

Practical steps follow: seek feedback as one seeks error logs; treat mistakes not as ruin but as opportunities for the next release. Set aside pride in the “first edition” of your efforts, knowing that greatness comes in revision. And when faced with change, do not resist it, but master it, shaping each version of yourself with intention rather than letting time rewrite you blindly.

Thus, remember Dave Barry’s playful but profound truth: “The answer is one word: versions.” This is the secret not only of Bill Gates’ fortune, but of life itself. To embrace renewal is to embrace growth, and to embrace growth is to secure a wealth that no riches can match—the wealth of becoming ever greater than you were before.