Prometheus 6

June 24, 2004
Contact: Bob Keener
(617) 423-2148 x26

It Takes a Village to Make a Millionaire
New Report Blasts Myth of the Self-Made Man
Download the report PDF 280 KB

"I personally think that society is responsible for a very significant percentage of what I've earned."

—Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

A new report, "I Didn't Do It Alone: Society's Contribution to Individual Wealth and Success," spotlights successful entrepreneurs and concludes that the myth of self-made success is destructive to the social and economic infrastructure that fosters wealth creation.

• Martin Rothenberg, the son of a housepainter and sales clerk, grew up to become a multimillionaire software entrepreneur.
• Investor Warren Buffett is the world's second-wealthiest person.
• Ben Cohen co-founded Ben & Jerry's with no business background and walked away with $40 million when the company was sold years later.

While these three seem typical examples of self-made success, they're not. None of them believes they did it on their own. Like others profiled in the report, they attribute their success to many factors, among them public schools and colleges, government investment in research and small business assistance, contributions of employees, and strong legal and financial systems.

"How we think about wealth creation is important since policies such as large tax cuts for the wealthy often draw on the myth of the self-made man," says "I Didn't Do It Alone" co-author Chuck Collins. "Taxes are portrayed as onerous, unfair redistribution of privately created wealth — not as reinvestment or giving back to society. Yet, where would many wealthy entrepreneurs be today without taxpayer investment in the Internet, transportation, public education, legal system, the human genome and so on?"

Jim Sherblom, a venture capitalist and former chief financial officer of the biotech firm, Genzyme, says, "The opportunities to create wealth are all taking advantage of public goods — like roads, transportation, markets — and public investments. None of us can claim it was all personal initiative. A piece of it was built upon this infrastructure that we all have this inherent moral obligation to keep intact."

"I Didn't Do It Alone" shows not only that society's role in wealth creation is significant, but if that role withers from inadequate revenues and political will, then opportunities for wealth and innovation will shrink. Entrepreneurism, the economy and society will be undermined.

"I Didn't Do It Alone" was written by Chuck Collins, co-author with Bill Gates Sr. of "Wealth and Our Commonwealth" and associate director of United for a Fair Economy; Scott Klinger, co-director of Responsible Wealth and a Chartered Financial Analyst; and Mike Lapham, co-director of Responsible Wealth.