Despite coming from very different backgrounds, Carlos Slim and Steve Ballmer share a deep passion for numbers, a trait that has helped both men climb the ranks of the world’s wealthiest.
Carlos Slim: From Engineer To Billionaire
Slim, the Mexican tycoon and Academy Class of 1994, attributes much of his success to an early fascination with numbers.
“I selected engineering because I like numbers,” Slim said, adding that some people connect with letters, others with numbers. He said numbers spoke to him and that shaped his career.
“I am a … man of numbers,” he stated.
After earning a civil engineering degree from the National Autonomous University of Mexico in 1961, Slim founded Inmobiliaria Carso, a construction company, at just 25.
Over the decades, he expanded into mining, telecommunications and retail, acquiring Telmex and Grupo Condumex and later merging mobile operations across Latin America under America Movil.
Today, Slim’s net worth stands at $127 billion, ranking 15th on the Bloomberg Billionaire Index.
Steve Ballmer: Math Shapes Leadership
Former Microsoft CEO Ballmer, who ranks just above Slim at 14th with $132 billion, also credits mathematics for shaping his business acumen.
As a child, Ballmer faced criticism for struggling in math, but a supportive teacher helped him catch up.
“I had a lot of my motive force, if you will, in math. I’m good at it,” Ballmer said. “Numbers tell stories.”
Ballmer, the son of a Ford manager who also worked as an interpreter at the Nuremberg trials, attended math camp during his childhood.
He went on to study math and economics at Harvard University, where he managed the football team. He also lived just down the hall from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo Courtesy: Octavio Hoyos on Shutterstock.com
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