Jeff Bezos’ Top Tips for Getting Richer
Written by
J. Arky
Edited by
Kristen Mae
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Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is known worldwide for being a savvy businessman, making him one of the richest people in the world, with a net worth of $213.9 billion according to Forbes.
This fortune didn’t appear overnight. Bezos accumulated his wealth over decades, navigating plenty of pitfalls and setbacks along the way. Despite obstacles, he remained focused on his goals, continuously learning and refining his approach to business. Along the path to obtaining billionaire status, Bezos has acquired wisdom and insight that can help other entrepreneurs looking to strike gold.
Here are Jeff Bezos’ top tips for getting richer:
Think Long-Term
In a 1997 letter to Amazon shareholders, Bezos wrote: “We believe that a fundamental measure of our success will be the shareholder value we create over the long term.” Bezos has always emphasized the importance of thinking less about short-term gains and more about building toward the future.
That same letter included another key statement: “We will continue to make investment decisions in light of long-term market leadership considerations rather than short-term profitability considerations or short-term Wall Street reactions.”
This philosophy has been pivotal to Amazon’s success, showing that wealth-building demands patience, strategic investments, and a willingness to think beyond immediate returns.
Put Passion Behind Your Work
Clocking in and clocking out just to earn a paycheck is one way to go about work. But Bezos knows that building real wealth requires passion — that extra something that gets you up in the morning ready to invest your whole self into your company.
Speaking at the Forum on Leadership at the George W. Bush Presidential Center, Bezos said: “You can have a job, or you can have a career, or you can have a calling. And if you can somehow figure out how to have a calling, you have hit the jackpot.”
While some chase trends for quick profits, Bezos encourages entrepreneurs to look inward and explore what they believe they can give to the world, using that drive as motivation. When work aligns with personal passion, financial success becomes a natural byproduct.
Don’t Be Afraid To Experiment
Any entrepreneur would love a simple formula to make their business successful and themselves rich. But even the most successful entrepreneurs don’t get it right on the first try. Bezos has repeatedly stressed the importance of being willing to try new strategies, all while innovating and adapting along the way.
“If you double the number of experiments you do per year, you’re going to double your inventiveness,” he explained at the 2016 Recode Code Conference.
Take Big Risks
Amazon is now a global powerhouse, but in the 1990s, the idea of an online retail business was considered revolutionary and highly risky. Many doubted Bezos’ decision to leave his stable finance job and put everything into a new internet startup.
“I think that’s probably true for all kinds of risks in life, not just for starting a business,” he told Business Insider in 2018. “Life is full of different risks. And I think that, when you think about the things that you will regret when you’re 80, they’re almost always the things that you did not do.”
This may be the most important lesson that Bezos offers for getting richer: take calculated risks in business and in life. The bigger the risk, the bigger the potential payoff.
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