"If Bill Gates Can Drive His Kid, So Can You"

A lesson from from David Letterman's Netflix interview with Melinda Gates

We're all learning from each other. What you do matters.

Melinda Gates is interviewed by David Letterman in season 2 of his popular Netflix series "Our Next Guest Needs No Introduction". During the interview, she talks about her work in the developing world, the roles of women there, and the realization that even in the US women have not achieved equality in many places. So she asked herself many questions including, "How can we be sure we get equality in our homes? In our community? In our places of work?"

David Letterman asked her, "How can we? What is the key there?" Her reply: "I think you have to start in your home." She went on to say that sometimes you have to have uncomfortable conversations in your marriage to make sure that you have equality there.

She then goes on to provide an example. When their oldest daughter started preschool, Bill suggested that he should drive their daughter to school two days a week, and he did. Suddenly, a lot more fathers started taking their kids to school too. Apparently when some of the mothers saw that Bill was driving the little girl to school, they went home and said to their husbands, "If Bill Gates can drive his kid, so can you."

Never underestimate the power of your actions. You may not be Bill or Melinda Gates, but people notice what you do (and don't) do. You can make a difference.

Melinda Gates is a mother, wife, and the the co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. She recently released a book called The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World.

Bill Gates is a father, husband, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and co-founder of Microsoft.

David Letterman is a father, husband, and the host of the Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.

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