Think Bill Gates; the image that pops up in your mind is of a suave business tycoon, wearing a Giorgio Armani suit, diamond cufflinks and tiepin, a diamond studded top-of-the-line Rolex wrist watch, Gucci shoes, et cetera. The more imaginative amongst us may even smell the Calvin Klein Eternity perfume he must be wearing. Then there are people who may see the profile of a ruthless monopolistic tyrant with little regards for laws of fair play and equality.

A larger chunk of people will have the vision of their role model, inspiration personified, a living proof of what can be achieved in a lifetime and that is literally EVERYTHING. But probably then they belong to that fortunate strata of society that is just cursorily checking out this article from the confines of their plush offices, comfortable homes or from a swanky, up market cyber cafe. But the name Bill Gates have altogether different connotations for little Ankit.

Ankit is your normal kid apart from the fact that he has been diagnosed as an AIDS patient- the only inheritance his mother, a sex worker living and working in the by lanes of Kolkata, could pass on to him were strains of deadly HIV virus. For Ankit, “Bill Gates” is the name emblazoned on the side of the van that comes to distribute medicines and nutrient supplements in the slum he lives in. He is also aware of the fact that this is the name of individual who along with his wife is paying his medical bills and funding the NGO that runs a school where he is currently studying. Yes, we are referring to the “Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation”, the largest transparently operated charitable foundation which is currently the guardian angel for millions like Ankit across the globe providing them the right and means of living in an otherwise hostile world.

Welcome to the brave new world of successful entrepreneurs who are sweeping the world with winds of change through their considerable works of philanthropy providing succor to the underprivileged amongst us. In this august list Bill Gates is more of a rule then an exception. Here, we are talking about those self-made billionaires and millionaires who having seen the hardships of life are ready to give back to the society and make this world a better place to live in. This is the new crop of business persons who routinely make it to the Fortunes’ list of Who’s who but are still not snobbish or uptight about it.

Many of them have succeeded not because of the society but in spite of it. But still they acknowledge the fact that we all are clogs of the same wheel and well being of the individuals is not a zero-sum game. For them philanthropy is not just an extension of their corporate social responsibility, or the pursuit for the bored wife of a high flying CEO. For them it is a means of defining their existence in the larger scheme of things, something that completes them and provide them a purpose apart from mindlessly chasing money. That is why we get to see most of them so passionately involved in various projects and activities and they are not there simply writing down checks but they are more “hands on” making their presence and influence felt as well as leveraging their experience and intellect for the cause.

Let us try and examine what makes a successful entrepreneur a philanthropist. Is it in their DNA or had they learned the art of giving and sharing on their way up. It is worthy of being noted here that several studies point towards the fact that when it comes to charity self-made entrepreneurs are almost twice as generous as  compared to charitable Heirs that is millionaires who got their wealth mostly through inheritance. So it appears quite ironical that people hailing from the cut-throat world of modern day business where success often comes at the price of morality and innocence are so willing to support others.

But it will not appear so ironical if we study the fine print in greater detail. Most of these entrepreneurs have themselves got a helping hand early in their career. Whether it is in form of an angel investor or the friendly neighborhood uncle who let them use their garage, or the professor at the University who believed in them and polished their business proposal for final presentation; they all have got some help in one form or the other. Most of them were also beneficiaries of various scholarship schemes in the early phase of their career. It all makes them realize how significant even a small help can look from the end of the beneficiary. This ingrains the art of giving and reaching out in their hearts and this is a lesson they do not easily forget later in their lives. Most of the entrepreneurs when they start working on their innovative ideas do so in collaboration with some good friend or associate, someone who believes in them as well as in their dreams. So naturally they learn the ropes of sharing and collaborating and how beneficial symbiotic relations can prove to be.

So this is where they pick their living-for-each-other traits. They have the intellect that keeps them bothering with status-quo and as soon as they figure a way out they get on to work towards achieving it. In this world, ideas are a dime a dozen but success comes only to them who can execute these ideas and shape them into reality. This is a quality that makes them a success in business and this is the quality that distinguishes them in the arena of philanthropy as well since the projects they undertake usually achieves the objectives they have set out for. They bring in money and influence; have an eye for recognizing talent and try to nurture it. They want to be a part of the solution and hence their impact is often very positive and encouraging.

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