Elizabeth Holmes, 30 year old self-made billionaire woman

[Anonymous]

Hey guys, it's me. Debbie Downer. I know, you've missed me. But something came to mind when I read this article, and this thread, that bugged me. Zuckerburg, Bill Gates, this lady, what do they all have in common? They came from affluent families. I can't tell you the last time I read about some technology titan who came from nothing or was born poor, or at least working class. Of course you're going to be able to make the most out of your brilliance if your parents are paying for summer Mandarin courses at Stanford. But I wonder, would a girl like this whose parents *couldn't* afford Stanford, or all of that enrichment, would she have been able to make it as far as she has? Is that the country we live in now? Do we like it this way? By no means do I want to diminish this woman's accomplishments and I think she is fabulous, but there was this nagging feeling as I read the article about everything her parents had done for her, and how all of her professors and teachers saw this brilliance in her, and it made me think "but what if she was poor?" If her parents were working two shifts or barely making ends meet and they lived in a not-so-great school district, would anyone have seen that brilliance? Would anyone have cared? And how many brilliant kids with world-changing ideas are we losing as a result?

[Anonymous]

Agree with Debbie Downer. Most if not all of the successful innovation titans came from money. But is that really a surprise?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree with Debbie Downer. Most if not all of the successful innovation titans came from money. But is that really a surprise?

It's not a surprise, I guess... but I guess I feel that maybe in the past there were more "rags to riches" types of stories. Or no?

[Anonymous]

How can you invest?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How can you invest?

I'm sure some DCUM's are already invested via being LP's in the VC firms that have invested in her company.

but if you aren't, then you can't as it is private.

[Anonymous]

Hey Debbie Downer, her father is a fed and her mother is a congressional staffer! Not exactly uber-rich, especially by DCUM standards.

"Her father, Christian Holmes IV, has devoted most of his life to public-minded government service–disaster relief in Africa, international development projects in China, environmental work in this country–and is currently the global water coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development. He met Elizabeth’s mother, Noel, on Capitol Hill, where she worked as a congressional committee staffer."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey Debbie Downer, her father is a fed and her mother is a congressional staffer! Not exactly uber-rich, especially by DCUM standards.

"Her father, Christian Holmes IV, has devoted most of his life to public-minded government service–disaster relief in Africa, international development projects in China, environmental work in this country–and is currently the global water coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development. He met Elizabeth’s mother, Noel, on Capitol Hill, where she worked as a congressional committee staffer."

They don't sound like poors but probably pretty well connected.

[Anonymous]

Wow. She is amazing. She's a genius in so many ways. Born to do this. I look up to her, but she's not exactly a role model. She's too extraordinary, absolutely unique. You can't do what she's done, any more than you can become Albert Einstein.

But I love that she's not all about making loads of money, at least that's what she says. Charging less than half of what Medicare pays for tests is not the same thing as charging a little more than it costs to run the tests. She's not entirely altruistic, although she comes from a family with a history of public service, which is admirable.

More power to her. I hope she succeeds and succeeds.

But with Apple as a model, well, Apple's products are not available to the masses because they are too expensive. They've always been a product for people with money. I hope she combines the idea of great products with the concept of affordable ones, which seems to be what she's doing now.

Thanks for posting! Great article! I'd never heard of her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey Debbie Downer, her father is a fed and her mother is a congressional staffer! Not exactly uber-rich, especially by DCUM standards.

"Her father, Christian Holmes IV, has devoted most of his life to public-minded government service–disaster relief in Africa, international development projects in China, environmental work in this country–and is currently the global water coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development. He met Elizabeth’s mother, Noel, on Capitol Hill, where she worked as a congressional committee staffer."

Since I am a fed myself, I know that I am indeed more affluent than the majority of people in this country. My spouse and I make a good salary in a job that requires normal 9-5 hours, plus I am highly educated and my parents had enough money to give me a large down payment on a house in a good school district. So I have the savvy, time, and money, that if I had a gifted child, I would be able to summon the resources to help her or him as much as needed. Now would someone else, who worked long hours or shift work or was barely making ends meet in a bad school district, would that person be able to give the best to their gifted child? I don't know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. She is amazing. She's a genius in so many ways. Born to do this. I look up to her, but she's not exactly a role model. She's too extraordinary, absolutely unique. You can't do what she's done, any more than you can become Albert Einstein.

But I love that she's not all about making loads of money, at least that's what she says. Charging less than half of what Medicare pays for tests is not the same thing as charging a little more than it costs to run the tests. She's not entirely altruistic, although she comes from a family with a history of public service, which is admirable.

More power to her. I hope she succeeds and succeeds.

But with Apple as a model, well, Apple's products are not available to the masses because they are too expensive. They've always been a product for people with money. I hope she combines the idea of great products with the concept of affordable ones, which seems to be what she's doing now.

Thanks for posting! Great article! I'd never heard of her.

Apple products are for those on the ends of the scales, the rich and poor and sometimes nice gifts for the working middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey Debbie Downer, her father is a fed and her mother is a congressional staffer! Not exactly uber-rich, especially by DCUM standards.

"Her father, Christian Holmes IV, has devoted most of his life to public-minded government service–disaster relief in Africa, international development projects in China, environmental work in this country–and is currently the global water coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development. He met Elizabeth’s mother, Noel, on Capitol Hill, where she worked as a congressional committee staffer."

He went on to work in the private sector when they moved to Texas. He didn't remain a Fed.

[Anonymous]

Her upbringing having lived in China and her parents jobs and contacts must have contributed to some fantastic college entrance essays. Poors don't have those kinds of opportunities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hey Debbie Downer, her father is a fed and her mother is a congressional staffer! Not exactly uber-rich, especially by DCUM standards.

"Her father, Christian Holmes IV, has devoted most of his life to public-minded government service–disaster relief in Africa, international development projects in China, environmental work in this country–and is currently the global water coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development. He met Elizabeth’s mother, Noel, on Capitol Hill, where she worked as a congressional committee staffer."

He went on to work in the private sector when they moved to Texas. He didn't remain a Fed.

So none of you actually read the article? Her family are descendants of the Fleishmann yeast fortune. Educated parents working in civil device and likely an affluent family going way back. She is doing great meaningful work, but not self made in I sorry. On top of the great great grandfather who was a surgeon and World War I hero. She is the latest on a long line of a successful family, but her accomplishments are mostly a result of upbringing and likely resources few of us can match.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hey Debbie Downer, her father is a fed and her mother is a congressional staffer! Not exactly uber-rich, especially by DCUM standards.

"Her father, Christian Holmes IV, has devoted most of his life to public-minded government service–disaster relief in Africa, international development projects in China, environmental work in this country–and is currently the global water coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development. He met Elizabeth’s mother, Noel, on Capitol Hill, where she worked as a congressional committee staffer."

He went on to work in the private sector when they moved to Texas. He didn't remain a Fed.

So none of you actually read the article? Her family are descendants of the Fleishmann yeast fortune. Educated parents working in civil device and likely an affluent family going way back. She is doing great meaningful work, but not self made in I sorry. On top of the great great grandfather who was a surgeon and World War I hero. She is the latest on a long line of a successful family, but her accomplishments are mostly a result of upbringing and likely resources few of us can match.

I'm the OP and a guy who is very passionate about issues of opportunity, but I can't agree with the last sentence. Even for her pedigree, her accomplishments are ridiculous. 80 patents, 100+ co-patents, her business maturity at such a young age (there are videos of her at age 25 talking to stanford students regarding importance of cash flow in building a business....very different from what most young tech founders think about or say) - I know lots who went to HYPS that aspired/gunned to just make a lot of money while minimizing risk via finance or consulting or law.

Then again, I'm around my age so maybe i just want to get in her pants (though a number of her youtube videos kind of give off the vibe that she bats for the other team) but no I think her accomplishments are a lot to do with her with 20% to do with her background.

[Anonymous]

i don't think jobs and woz came from affluent families.