My thoughts and comments:
What Bill
Gates said is generally true but not absolutely true. Rule #11 is sort of
funny. It says if you born poor, it's not your mistake. But if you die poor, it
is your mistake.
Have you heard of this Chinese
saying? What a person's life is like, or whether it will be successful or not,
depends on these 5 determining factors: birth, luck, feng shui, karma
(charitable work or helping others) and education.
Indeed life is not fair. Only
death is fair (everybody dies). If you were born to poor parents in a poor and
backward country, you would face much greater challenge in life. If you were
born to rich parents in an advanced country, you would gain much advantage to
succeed in life. Still, Bill Gates' advice or life lessons are good references to
think about.
My philosophy is that whatever
card life gave you at the beginning, you just have to play the game the best
you can. Got an Ace? Good for you. Got a 5 only? You still have to play the
game and never give up.
What is success in life? There
are so many different definitions. To most people, it means money, power and
fame. To some spiritual people, it simply means health and happiness. To me,
success in life is not about money and material possessions. Peace !