It would be very strange if the name of such a person as John Davison Rockefeller, who is known, first of all, for becoming the first person in the history of the planet Earth, whose fortune exceeded one billion dollars, was absent in the “Success Story” rubric.

It is very remarkable that the story of his success began in a small provincial town in North America and this man owes his success solely to his talent and perseverance.

John was born in Richford, New York, to a Protestant family. His father, William Avery Rockefeller, was first a lumberjack, and then became a traveling salesman who supplied the inhabitants of the surrounding area with miraculous elixirs and potions. Dad was rarely at home, he devoted a lot of time to trade, alcohol and riotous women. But in his memoirs, John speaks of his parent as a good father who, in free time devoted a lot of time to his son and, in particular, taught him to trade. William, as they would say now, arranged for his son a kind of training by buying and selling various services of his son. Subsequently, John highly appreciated these lessons. And from communication with his father, he made a firm conviction that alcohol and tobacco are a vice, and this is very bad. And looking at how his mother suffers from the frequent betrayals of her husband, he decided as a child that he would never do this.

Neighbors considered John's father very a strange person who does not want to work, but simply, a loafer. However, William managed to save up some money and buy land and invest some money in various businesses. He willingly shared with his son his knowledge of the principles of doing business and the fundamental criteria for success.

John's mother, Eliza Davison, ran the entire household (there were six children in the family. John is the second child in the family), was very sensitive to religion and resignedly accepted the hardships of life: regular lack of money (the husband was often absent from home, which required austerity) and cheating spouse.

Subsequently, John said that he began to engage in commerce from early childhood. Many consider it disgusting that the future millionaire bought sweets in a shop, and then sold them individually to his sisters. Preying on your relatives is disgusting?! It all depends on what angle you look at it from. Do you also think the boy's actions are terrible? Then try to answer the following questions:

  • Are sweets an essential item?
  • did the girls have money (they also bought sweets from John) and what prevented them from buying sweets in the store themselves?
  • sweets in the shop were sold not by the piece, but by weight. The girls spent less money buying one candy each than if they bought these sweets in a shop, which means they thought they were getting a good deal. If both parties believe that they have received the expected benefit, then what is immoral?

So even in early childhood not from books, but from my own practical experience John understood what the laws of surplus value are and how they work. I think it's very important for a future success story to understand how money works.

At the age of seven, he began to breed and feed turkeys for sale, helped his neighbors (not free of charge) dig potatoes.

And what is remarkable is that he recorded all the results of his commercial activities in a notebook. A stingy boy? Business is not possible without accounting and planning. Little John knew what is a revelation for many of today's businessmen - success is not possible without consideration and planning.

Everything that he managed to earn, the boy kept in a porcelain piggy bank, which allowed him to start lending at the age of thirteen - it was at this age that he issued his first loan to a farmer he knew. Fifty dollars at 7.5 percent per annum. Expensive? But the farmer took it, which means he considered that it was profitable for him. Money should not just lie - they should work and make a profit. This is one of the rules for success. Money has to work.

If you want a success story, don't go to school

In the same year, when he issued the first loan in his life, he went to school for the first time. Many years later, recalling this period of his life, John wrote that it was very difficult for him to study, and completing the lessons required simply titanic work. But the boy had a goal and he successfully graduated from high school and went to college to learn the basics of accounting and commerce. But, as often happens with people who are not ordinary, he quickly realized that education does not bring him closer to success, but turns him into a diligent employee who will work for other people all his life.

He is completing a three-month accounting course and is looking for a job.

Just at this time, the Rockefeller family moved to Cleveland. John has been looking for a job for a month and a half and eventually becomes an accounting assistant in a small real estate and shipping company. Hardworking and punctual, he attracts the attention of the owners of the enterprise and when Chief Accountant leaves the company, the owners offer Rockefeller to take this place. But, the predecessor received 2,000 dollars a year, and John is offered only 600. And he leaves the company. If you do not appreciate your work, then others will not appreciate it. This is another rule for success - appreciate your work and do not let others devalue it. If you do not do this, then you will not have success or a success story. It was the first and latest work when John worked "for his uncle".

It so happened that it was at this time that an English businessman, John Maurice Clark, was looking for a partner with a capital of at least $ 2,000 to create and conduct a joint business. The young Rockefeller, at that time, had a gold reserve of $ 800. The missing amount had to be borrowed from daddy Rockefeller at 10% (!!! Remember the interest that John announced to a familiar farmer) per annum.

And April 27 happens historical event John Davison Rockefeller becomes junior partner in Clark and Rochester. The newly created company trades in hay, pork, grain ... Trades in everything that they buy.
And then something happens that can be called a gift of fate - it begins Civil War in USA. I understand your indignation - how can you call war a gift?! But, I will remind you that we are talking about a success story. For the business of a young company, the beginning of the war opened up great opportunities: war requires not only blood and lives, it takes everything. And hay, and pork, and cartridges ... Everything.

For such a business, the company's capital was clearly not enough, and John persuades the bank manager to issue an unsecured loan. How did it happen? History and young Rockefeller do not expand on the motives that pushed the hand and pen of the head of the bank. There is an opinion that Rockefeller was so sincere and convincing that the bank manager could not resist. Have you ever received a loan from a bank? Have you ever seen a sentimental bank manager? Or maybe people worked as bank managers in those distant times?!

As a junior companion and businessman, John D. Rockefeller decided to marry Laura Celestine Spelman, a simple teacher he had met during his student days. Like all women of that time, Laura was overly pious and at the same time unusually practical. Many years later, Rockefeller said that if it were not for the advice of my wife, then I would have remained a poor man. Was it true? Of course it was! Laura may not have understood business, but a like-minded wife is not just the secret to success. This is a rocket that will carry any normal man to the very pinnacle of success and to several lines in history, if not civilization, then business for sure.

Where did the success stories start?

The world was entering the age of oil. Kerosene lamps were already burning and the great minds of the world were developing their engines internal combustion. Civilization slowly but surely marched towards the twentieth century - the century of motors.

It was during this period that John met the chemist Samuel Andrews, who was fascinated by the problems of oil refining and was confident in the huge prospects of the emerging industry. In those days, the conversation was only about the possibilities of kerosene lighting of rooms and streets. A huge number of people, cities and towns ... A huge market that no one has yet controlled.

At this time, a message appeared in the press about a "fresh" oil field, which was discovered by Edwin Drake. The offer was risky, but very tempting. Rockefeller teamed up with Andrews, and then both of them, already as partners, turned to Clark. As a result, the oil refinery "Andrews and Clark" was established, with the aim of building an oil refinery, which the partners called "Flats". It was decided to transport oil by railway.

For the Rockefeller success story, oil and railroads are keywords. And it's not that oil was transported by rail. There are 12 golden rules on how to achieve success from the first billionaire. I present to your attention rule number 13, about which the author did not like to expand.

In the new company, Rockefeller led the search for oil fields. The work is hard and not always rewarding. During this period, John thought about the fact that a huge number of small enterprises are scattered around the country that are engaged in oil production and its processing. Terrible chaos in the market. But if all these small enterprises are united under one sign and roof ... It was with this idea that John Rockefeller came to his partners. This historical fact.

And now the main recipe in the success story from John Rockefeller - read carefully!

Under the laws of the time, corporations were not allowed to own property outside the state where the company was registered. And this was a big problem - potential investors are not interested in investing small amounts of money in a huge number of objects. The object of investment becomes much more attractive if the property can be combined.

And Rockefeller figured out how to get around the laws. The business plan (if you can call it that) of the future company was prepared very carefully: even such a question was thought out that employees should not have been paid in cash, they were given shares - this, according to Rockefeller, should have made them work more and more productively.

The following historical fact testifies to the thoroughness of the plan: barrels were required to transport oil. Barrels could be bought for $2.50, but the companions opened their own factory, which allowed them to get the same barrels for $1.00. For a small enterprise, the price of a barrel was not significant. However, the partners planned a business in which hundreds of thousands of barrels were needed.

The next point of the plan was the organization of transportation of oil and refined products. Rockefeller carefully studied all the transport companies operating in the region, their competitive advantages and weaknesses. A separate plan was drawn up, which involved the creation conflict situations among transport workers and using the consequences of these conflicts for their own purposes. Rockefeller created problems for transport workers, and then helped solve them.

Even before Standard Oil was formed, the implementation of this plan reduced the cost of transporting one barrel of oil from $2.40 to $1.65. This "small" advantage, multiplied by tens of thousands of barrels, was the key to the very big success of the future supercompany.

A number of secret agreements between the Rockefeller company and transport workers appeared: low price for Rockefeller and a high price for any other company. Under such conditions, competitors had no chance of success. Employees of competing oil producing and oil refining companies were bribed.

In 1870, the Standard Oil Company was incorporated with a registered capital of $1 million. And in this new company, the share of John Rockefeller was 27%. And from that moment between oil producers and refiners began real war, behind the scenes of which Standard Oil was hiding, which organized this war.

As mentioned above, in those days, oil was transported in wooden barrels on open railway platforms. The oil evaporated and the buyer received only a part of the shipped cargo - the most valuable volatile oil fractions evaporated.

The Rockefeller group secretly owned the transport company Union Tanker Car Company, and the transport company had a patent for pressurized metal tank cars (oil is still transported in such tanks at the present time). The transport company allocated such wagons to Standard Oil's competitors, and John Rockefeller tracked the competitors' deliveries, their volumes and consumers. And as soon as a competitor began to invest in the development of his business, received loans and expanded the sales market, the command followed - do not allocate wagons. Competitors were going bankrupt, and Standard Oil was buying up bankrupts at a meager price. Rockefeller used this business expansion tactic for many years. Competitors could not even imagine who organized their bankruptcy and who is the real owner of the transport company.

Just because of collusion between Standard Oil and transport workers, the state treasury lost more than fifty million dollars annually. The independent oil companies that remained afloat turned to the state administration with a proposal to build a pipeline. The state authorities supported the idea and construction began in 1878. The pipe could destroy the monopoly that Rockefeller had created for so many years.

Standard Oil's response to the decision to build the Riverside pipeline was the recruitment of gangs who attacked the builders and blew up the already assembled sections of the highway. The oil pipeline was still completed. In response, the Rockefeller company built four such pipelines and announced a meager price for pumping oil. A rival pipeline went bankrupt and was bought out, again for minimum price, Standard Oil. It is clear that as soon as the competitor was eliminated, the prices for transporting oil increased significantly.

Why were the authorities silent? He did not remain silent. A Pennsylvania grand jury returned an indictment against Rockefeller and Flagler for organizing gang attacks. A demand was sent to New York for the arrest of John Rockefeller. However, for unknown reasons (ha-ha), this judicial act was not executed.

Success in all its splendor

This is where the real success began. Rockefeller negotiated with transport workers across the country and bought up small oil producing and oil refining companies. The competitors had little choice: go bankrupt or transfer property to the Rockefeller empire for a share of the shares. Thus, by 1880, more than 95% of all oil production and refining in North America. Having become a monopolist, Rockefeller raised the price of oil.

And ten years later, the Sherman Anti-Monopoly Act required Standard Oil to be broken up into a number of small and independent companies. Rockefeller complied: 34 small businesses were created. And in each of these enterprises, John Rockefeller had a controlling stake. Virtually every modern American oil company the success story starts with Standard Oil. To be more precise: their stories are the success story of John Davison Rockefeller.

Prior to the separation, Standard Oil, annually, brought to its main owner more than three million dollars. And in addition to Standard Oil, John Rockefeller owned 16 railway transport companies, 6 metallurgical enterprises, 6 shipping companies, a dozen firms that traded in real estate, a group of banks (9 pcs.) And many other properties, such as orange groves and huge land plots.

What else can be said about John Rockefeller and his success story?

He was a very religious man (?) and from his very childhood he gave ten percent of his income annually to the Baptist Church. In 1905, 10 percent amounted to one hundred million dollars.

He lived long life and died at the age of 97 (and dreamed of living to 100). He began (gradually) to move away from business management as early as 1897 and concentrated all his efforts on charity: the University of Chicago and the Rockefeller Medical Institute were built with his money, etc., etc., etc.

Before he died, he gave away more than $500 million for charitable purposes. But this was not the whole fortune: the son inherited about 460 million.

In 2007, Forbes magazine attempted to estimate Rockefeller's wealth in modern equivalents. It turned out 318 billion. Bill Gates topped the list that year with just $50 billion.

And finally, 12 golden rules for success from John Davison Rockefeller.



Success stories always make you think about how a person managed to achieve this very success, in what ways and by what means. If you have read this post fully and carefully, you may well have felt some disappointment: a Christian entrepreneur, high moral principles and collusion, bandits, tax evasion on a particularly large scale. And it's all one person - John Davison Rockefeller. To decide who he was, as always, is up to you. One big life, like any big story, is made up of small stories. Can these stories be considered success stories or should they be bashfully silent? To each his own. There was just such a person and this person lived. And these are no longer success stories - this is a historical fact.

Almost similar stories, but such different fates. You can look at the path to success or. And think...

John Davison Rockefeller is the richest man in the world in the history of mankind.

The future billionaire was born on July 8, 1839 in Richford, New York. Both parents, William Avery Rockefeller and Louise Celanto, were members of the Baptist Church. The family brought up six children, of which John was the second oldest. William worked as a traveling salesman and from childhood brought up in children the ability to trade. To do this, his father paid John to do household chores. During the periods of William's departures, the mother, who did not work anywhere, but was engaged only in housework, had to save money, and Louise instilled this ability in her offspring.

The world's first billionaire John D. Rockefeller

Little John is already early age showed commercial ingenuity - he sold sweets to his sisters, which he bought in bulk. And at the age of 7, the boy was hired by his neighbors on a farm, where he earned his first money by picking potatoes and growing turkeys. From the first days of his working life, Rockefeller started an account book, where he carefully entered income and expenses.

Young John gave the impression of a quiet, thoughtful boy to those around him. A lean and unemotional child thought for a long time and was in no hurry to make a decision. But in fact, John was a very sensitive boy, and experienced the loss of his own sister, who died as an infant. After the girl's death, John lay face down on the grass far from home for 12 hours.


At school, Rockefeller did not like to study, although teachers noted that the boy tenacious memory and the ability to think logically. During his student years, John started a loan shark business. Rockefeller realized that by lending small amounts at low interest, you can earn without difficulty. The boy did not want to become a slave to money and work day and night for a salary, John decided to make money his own slaves and make them work for him. After leaving school, John became a student at a commercial college, so the young businessman got a three-month accounting course, where he mastered the necessary basics of money management.

Business

In 1855, John got his first and only paid job at Hewitt & Tuttle in the accounting department. The young man started out with a salary of $17, but a few months later the young man was promoted to $25. A year later, Rockefeller is appointed manager of the company. John began to receive a salary of 20 times the accounting salary. But the ambitious young man was not satisfied with this amount, since the previous leader was paid much more and, having not worked for a year, John quits to start his own business.

In order to become a partner of a British businessman, Rockefeller had to borrow $1,200 from his own father at 10% per annum. Having collected the necessary $ 2,000, Rockefeller became a partner and owner of the shares of Clark and Rochester. The company traded in agricultural products. Rockefeller quickly won the trust of partners with business acumen, intuition and sincerity. The young man took up the management of the financial affairs of the enterprise.


In the second half of the 19th century, the development of new sphere market - the oil refining business, as kerosene lamps began to be popular in everyday life. John Davison Rockefeller invites the practicing chemist Samuel Andrews to cooperate and makes the scientist a partner in the new firm of Andrews and Clark. Previous partner Clark did not want to participate in such a business, and John had to buy out a stake in the company and take over the management of the business.

At the age of 31, Rockefeller created the Standard Oil company, which is engaged in the full cycle of kerosene production, from oil production to marketing. finished products. A feature of doing business was that John did not pay salaries to employees in cash. The businessman gave promotion with the shares of the enterprise. This approach allowed employees to work with greater responsibility, since now well-being directly depended on the success of the company.


The development of Rockefeller's business went at a rapid pace. Through entrepreneurial spirit and the ability to negotiate with influential people John secured reduced rail freight rates for his own company. Compared to competitors, Standard Oil products were transported 2-3 times cheaper. Rockefeller thus forced other oil companies to sell production to Standard Oil. Thus, an enterprising businessman turned into a monopolist.

In 1890, Senator Sherman's antitrust law was passed in the United States, which was directed against the activities of the Standard Oil Company. Rockefeller for 20 years was forced to split production into 34 controlled enterprises. In each of them, John secured the right to own a controlling stake. This division of business had a positive effect on the capital of the magnate; Rockefeller increased his own income many times over.

State

Every year, John Rockefeller's income from the activities of Standard Oil was $ 3 million. At the time of his death, according to experts, the fortune of the oil tycoon was $ 1.4 billion. The company owned 70% of all world oil fields. In terms of the current dollar rate, this is $ 318 billion or 1.5% of the United States GDP. Rockefeller owned 16 railroad companies, 6 steel mills, and 6 steamship companies. The businessman owned 9 banks, 9 real estate firms.

Rockefeller at the end of his life surrounded himself with luxury, but did not advertise this to society. The family of the magnate owned orange groves, villas and mansions, a land plot of 273 hectares. John Rockefeller's favorite game was golf, so the billionaire had a playing field at his disposal for personal use. The tycoon explained his own well-being by discipline and maintaining the 12 golden rules of life that John developed in his youth.

Charity

John Rockefeller attended a Protestant church from childhood and, as an exemplary Christian, from the very first earnings he began to transfer tithes for the needs of the parish he attended. The oilman did not change his own habit until the end of his life. The tycoon transferred $ 100 million. In addition to donations to the church, Rockefeller did a lot of charity work. John transferred sums of money to the University of Chicago, the New York Institute for Medical Research, of which John was the founder. At the beginning of the 20th century, Rockefeller created the "Council for General Education" and the "Rockefeller Foundation".


Tycoon John Rockefeller in 1885

The oil magnate wrote a number of biographical books, the first of which was the 1909 edition of Memories of People and Events. In 1910, Rockefeller's book How I Made $500,000,000, about the history of enrichment, was published. In 1913, the entrepreneur wrote the book "Memoirs", in which he outlined everything Interesting Facts own biography.

Personal life

At 25, John D. Rockefeller married teacher Laura Celestia Spelman from a wealthy family. The girl attracted the groom with piety. Young people were united by a mutual feeling of love for each other and views on life and family well-being. Both were extremely economical and unpretentious in their desires.


In the Rockefeller family, 4 daughters were born and the only heir is the son of John D. Rockefeller Jr., who became the successor of his father's work. Even when Rockefeller acquired the Cleveland refinery, the family continued to live in rented housing and did not keep servants. As the oil tycoon himself wrote, John owes his commercial success to his wife.

After the death of his wife, John Rockefeller lived for a long time. The oilman fell in love with women's society, gradually got used to wearing expensive suits. Rockefeller's favorite headdress was a straw hat, in which the elderly businessman often posed for photos.


John raised the children original way. Each child had a ledger that recorded cash rewards and expenses. In the Rockefeller house there was a certain system of rewarding children for work. John rewarded his daughters and son for their refusal of any benefits. For example, for a day without sweets, a child was entitled to a sum of money.

John D. Rockefeller Jr. increased the wealth of the family corporation many times over. And five grandchildren, the most famous of which were Nelson, Winthrop and, participated in the political and economic life of the United States until the beginning of the 21st century.

Death

John Rockefeller had two dreams in life that did not come true: to live to be 100 years old and earn $ 100 thousand. But the entrepreneur died at the age of 97, and his fortune was $ 192 billion. John Rockefeller died on May 23, 1937 from a heart attack in Florida .

Quotes

Famous oil tycoon quotes:

Whoever works all day has no time to earn money;
Your well-being depends on your own decisions;
If your only goal is to become rich, you will never achieve it.

12 Rockefeller Rules

  1. Work less for people. The more you work not for yourself, the faster you get poorer. The word "work" has the root "slave".
  2. Saving money is the right step to success. Buy products where it is cheaper or in bulk, prepare a list of what you need in advance, purchase products according to the list.
  3. If you are poor, start doing business. If you don’t have a penny at all, then you should open a business right now, without delaying even for a minute.
  4. The path to success, the road to great wealth, is through passive income.
  5. Dream of earning at least $50,000 a month, and possibly more.
  6. Money comes to you through other people. Communication, goodwill makes people rich. unsociable person rarely becomes rich.
  7. A poor environment, unsuccessful people pull you into poverty and failure. Surround yourself with winners and optimists.
  8. Don't give yourself an excuse to put off the first step towards achieving your goal - there isn't one.
  9. Learn the biographies and thoughts of the world's richest successful people. Life story successful person will help to fulfill the desires of everyone - this is the meaning of this quote.
  10. Dreams are the most important thing in your life. The main thing is to dream and believe that dreams will come true. A person begins to die when he stops dreaming.
  11. Help people not for money, but from the bottom of your heart. Give 10% of profits to charity. That is, everyone should help those in need. This is evidenced by the success story of John Rockefeller.
  12. Create business systems and enjoy your earned money. The meaning of this quote is that a person must work in order to live happily, and not stupidly accumulate wealth.

Today I will tell you about how I made my fortune - the first dollar billionaire, the richest person in the world in the history of mankind. To this day, the name of this man is a symbol of wealth. John Davison Rockefeller lived in the second half of the 19th - first half of the 20th century, but is still in charge.

The first billionaire of our time, heading - Bill Gates lags behind him in terms of level financial condition more than 4 times! Biography and success story of John Rockefeller, the most interesting facts from life in today's publication on Financial Genius.

John Rockefeller: biography. Childhood.

John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (he later had a son with the same name) was born in 1839 in Richford, New York. His parents were very religious (Protestants), the family was large: in total, 6 children were born in it, of which John Rockefeller was the second. John's father had little capital, but often left for a long time, selling elixirs, during these periods his mother was in poverty and saved a lot on everything.

From childhood, the mother, father and priest, whom the Rockefeller family often visited, taught their children to take care of personal finances, work and earn money on their own. From an early age, business has become for John one of the main areas of family education.

His father often paid him for various services, while bargaining. At a very young age, Rockefeller already bought a pound of candy, then distributed them in piles and resold them to his sisters for more. At the age of 7, he began to earn money from neighbors, digging potatoes for them, and growing turkeys for sale. From childhood, John Davison Rockefeller led, writing down all his income and expenses in a small book, and putting all the money he earned into his piggy bank. By the way, he kept his home accounting, which began from an early age, and continued to keep it all his life.

At the age of 13, John Rockefeller saved up $50 and loaned it to a farmer he knew at 7.5% per annum.

John successfully graduated from high school, after which he entered a college that taught the basics of accounting and commerce, but soon decided that he would only lose time there, so he left the college, and instead completed a three-month accounting course, after which he began.

John Rockefeller: biography. Career and entrepreneurship.

John Rockefeller got his first serious job at the age of 16, after 6 weeks of searching: he first became an assistant accountant in a trading company with a salary of $ 17, and was soon promoted to an accountant with a salary of $ 25 per month. Rockefeller proved himself so well in this position that after some time, when the head of the company left his post, John became the manager of this company with a salary of $ 600. However, Rockefeller did not like that the previous manager was paid $ 2,000 a month, and he was only $ 600, so he soon quit.

This work became the only place of employment in the biography of John Rockefeller.

In 1857, Rockefeller learned that an English entrepreneur was looking for a business partner with a capital of $2,000. At that time, he only had $800, but he got excited about this idea, so he borrowed the missing money from his father at 10% per annum and became a junior co-founder of Clark and Rochester, which specialized in the sale of hay, grain, meat and some other goods.

When the company had a need to take to increase working capital, negotiations with the bank were conducted by John Rockefeller: thanks to his sincerity and talent for persuasion, he was able to convince the manager to provide their still young company with a loan in the required amount.

John Davison Rockefeller: The Oil Business.

At the beginning of the 2nd half of the 19th century, kerosene lamps became popular in the United States, which stimulated an increase in demand for the main raw material for their production - oil. During this period, John Davison Rockefeller met the practicing chemist Samuel Andrews, who specializes in the processing of petroleum feedstock and predicts a great increase in the popularity of kerosene as a lighting product. They combined their capital with the capital of Rockefeller's business partner Clark and created the oil refinery "Andrews and Clark".

John Rockefeller saw great prospects for the oil market and tried to persuade Clark to transfer all available capital to this business. When he nevertheless refused, Rockefeller bought out his share in the enterprise for $72,500 and devoted himself entirely to the oil business.

In 1870, John Davison Rockefeller Sr. created his main oil company, Standard Oil, which in the future brought him the main wealth. This company has already carried out a full cycle: from oil production to production and supply of the final product.

At his firm, John Rockefeller introduced a non-standard system: instead of wages he settled with employees with company shares, which constantly grew in price and brought good income. It turned out that the employees themselves were interested in diligently and efficiently doing their work: after all, the success of the company depended on this, which means the growth in the price of its shares and their personal income.

The Standard Oil Company developed rapidly, increasing its turnover, and John D. Rockefeller began to invest in other oil companies the profits received from its activities. He found an opportunity to dump on the cost of transporting products by negotiating with transport railway companies, which competitors could not afford. Therefore, Rockefeller put his competitors before a choice: either merging with him, or bankruptcy. So many of them gradually became part of Standard Oil.

In just 10 years, John Rockefeller's company became an almost absolute monopoly in the United States: 95% of the country's oil production was concentrated in it. After that, Rockefeller raised the prices of his products and Standard Oil became the largest oil company in the world.

Another 10 years later, in 1890, the US antitrust law was passed. At first, the oil tycoon circumvented his norms in every possible way, but when he could no longer resist the authorities, 21 years later, in 1911, he divided his corporation into 34 enterprises, retaining a controlling stake in each of them.

The Standard Oil Company annually brought Rockefeller a profit of $ 3 million (in terms of current money, this is billions). The corporation's assets included:

– more than 400 enterprises;

– more than 90 miles of railway tracks;

– more than 10 thousand railway tanks;

- 60 oil tankers;

- 150 ships.

The company's share in the world oil turnover exceeded 70%.

John Rockefeller: fortune.

The fortune of oil tycoon John Rockefeller was estimated at 1.4 billion dollars, in terms of the current American currency - this is 318 billion dollars. At the time of his death, Rockefeller's fortune was 1.54% of US GDP, and in 1917 it reached 2.5% of US GDP.

In addition to Standard Oil, John D. Rockefeller's assets included:

– 16 railway companies;

– 6 steel companies;

– 9 firms engaged in real estate trade;

– 6 shipping companies;

– 9 banks;

- 3 orange groves.

Rockefeller lived richly, but never focused on his wealth. He had several villas and houses in different states, a land plot of 273 hectares, and a private golf course.

John Rockefeller: Charity.

From the earliest years, John Rockefeller consistently used 10% of his income for: he transferred to help the Baptist Church. Over the course of his life, he transferred more than $100 million there.

In addition, Rockefeller donated about $ 80 million to the University of Chicago, he also became the founder and sponsor of the New York Institute for Medical Research, and later established the well-known Rockefeller Charitable Foundation.

At the end of his life, John Rockefeller gave away about half a billion dollars to charity.

John Rockefeller Jr.

John Davison Rockefeller Jr. is The only son John Rockefeller. He inherited $460 million from his father, and spent about that amount on charity throughout his life. In particular, thanks to his donations, the UN headquarters in New York and the famous Empire Building skyscraper were built.

John Rockefeller Jr. left behind 5 sons (known as the Rockefeller grandsons) and a daughter. Each of them has its own history, but all of them are somehow connected with doing business.

John Rockefeller: interesting facts.

John Rockefeller from childhood dreamed of living to be 100 years old and earning $100,000, but he only lived to be 97 years old and earned $1.4 billion.

At the age of 96, John Davison Rockefeller received insurance payment 5 million dollars as a person who lived to that age. The insurance company estimated the probability of such an “insured event” as 1:100,000, and this was the first such case in the history of the company.

In 1908, John Rockefeller wrote a book - "Memoirs", in which he described his life path, his success story. To this day, the Memoirs of John Rockefeller is a very popular book, published many times in huge circulations, highly appreciated by readers and critics.

Rockefeller company employees scared their children with it: “If you cry, Rockefeller will take you.”

Most of all, John Rockefeller was proud not of his wealth and achievements, but of his morality, which he considered impeccable.

The most famous quotes of John D. Rockefeller:

- Whoever works all day has no time to earn money;

– Your well-being depends on your own decisions;

- If your only goal is to become rich, you will never achieve it.

Here she is - the biography and success story of John Rockefeller - the richest man on earth, an oil tycoon.

Stay on, improve your financial literacy, learn to use personal finances wisely and effectively, and perhaps someday you too will be able to achieve at least a small fraction of what John Davison Rockefeller achieved in life. See you soon!

Today, articles about business are extremely popular. Answers to many questions could be given by John Davison Rockefeller, whose biography teaches perseverance, patience, confidence, prudence.

Indeed, John Rockefeller has become a legend for our generation. Almost everyone today knows his "12 golden rules". Despite the fact that they were invented a long time ago, today these rules remain relevant.

The Childhood of John Davison Rockefeller

The Rockefeller family at the time of John's birth (July 8, 1839) lived in the state of New York. The father of John Davison Rockefeller, parties and entertainment with women of dubious reputation took up most of the time, he was far from raising his son

But the mother invested a piece of herself in the upbringing of her son. John Davison Rockefeller often recalled that it was the mother, together with the priest, who inspired the boy with the basic principles of life from childhood. His statements about labor and economy had something like this:

“Life is a constant work. But the main thing is not only to earn money, you need to be able to save money - this will help to keep what you have earned.”

John Rockefeller's fortune at the time of his death was estimated at $1.4 billion. If we translate this figure, taking into account inflation, then in 2006 Rockefeller's fortune would be equal to $ 192 billion! Surprised by this figure, you immediately remember the "12 golden rules" of business.

Interesting facts from childhood - the first steps in business

The principles laid down in childhood, a legendary man, a multimillionaire, carried through his whole life. They, in a slightly corrected form, later entered his “12 golden rules”.

Some educators may find such a fact from the childhood of an entrepreneur disgusting that John Davison Rockefeller, as a toddler, bought some candies with the money that he was given for the holidays, and then sold them to his sisters by the piece. Of course, in his "business" the basic law of entrepreneurship was in effect - surplus value. And the money became many times more.

So, not from books, but through practice, John learned to "make money", studied the basic economic principles of trade. And it was then that the boy deduced an axiom for himself: to buy in bulk means to save.

And the indignation of teachers who condemn a child who sells sweets to his sisters more expensive than the purchase price can be repaid with arguments:

  • Candy is not an essential item without which girls could not survive.
  • They bought sweets from the girl's brother, perhaps because they were too lazy to go to the store themselves.
  • Wanting to save money, the sisters took one candy from John, naively believing that they would spend less that way, that is, they did not know how to think globally.

Later, after reaching the age of seven, John decided not only to resell what he bought, but also began to produce goods himself. He raised turkeys in his farmstead, which he profitably sold to his neighbors. What is not a commendable business? And, as a result, the appearance of one of the business rules: any work brings income.

But the future entrepreneur, the famous John Davison Rockefeller, "put into growth" the proceeds of $ 50, lending to a neighbor. From this enterprise, the boy had another 7% per annum. Thus, another of the businessman's rules was born: “Money should not lie idle - they must constantly “work”, generating income!”

The hidden soulfulness of a multimillionaire philanthropist

In fact, John was not such a "biscuit". His sensitive and vulnerable soul, capable of suffering and worrying, is evidenced by the fact that on the day of his sister's death, the boy ran away from everyone and, falling face down on the ground, lay like that for a whole day.

As an adult, John Davison Rockefeller continued to be sensitive and responsive. Having accidentally learned that one of his former classmates was in great need due to the death of the breadwinner-husband, he assigned her a pension. True, in her youth, this girl had a feeling of affection for John, but things did not go beyond this.

And the whole biography of the multimillionaire is replete with good deeds. Thanks to his mother, he grew up a deeply religious and He constantly transferred 10% of his profits to those in need.

In addition to the regular payment of tithes to the church - a tenth of the profits - John Davison Rockefeller is building Spelman College, the University of Chicago, Rockefeller University, the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, the Museum of Modern Art in the country. Many monasteries owe their appearance to the philanthropist and the richest man in the world.

Having founded the Rockefeller Foundation, the businessman transferred large sums for the development of medicine and education. In the history of the fight against yellow fever, there are pages written by Rockefeller - he financed many projects in this area. Meanwhile, John Davison Rockefeller demands that all his good deeds be kept secret from the public. And part of the profits - John Davison Rockefeller is building Spelman College, the University of Chicago, Rockefeller University, the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, the Museum of Modern Art in the country. Many monasteries owe their appearance to the philanthropist and the richest man in the world.

Rockefeller descendants continue the tradition of philanthropy by taking an active part in charitable and political activities. One of the 12 "golden" rules derived by Rockefeller is the "tithing" law.

A negative example is also an example

From his childhood, Rockefeller derived a few more rules that became leading in his adult life. The first is based on healthy way life. Looking at his father who was drinking and wasting away his years, at his mother suffering from this, Rockefeller completely abandoned alcohol and smoking.

And one more of the rules of life was “given” to him by his father. Having seen enough of him, the boy began to hate the wild way of life. This is how the “negative example” worked - Rockefeller was a faithful husband, a good father.

But John owed the most important of the basic rules of business to his father. An excerpt from his quote reads: “He often bargained with me and bought various services from me. He taught me how to buy and sell. My father just “trained” me to get rich!”

Businessmen are not born - they are brought up

The biography of the millionaire also contains information about family life. Once married to Laura Celestine Spelman, Rockefeller remained faithful to her all his life. We have received such quotes from his statements about her: "Without her advice, I would never have become rich, I would have remained poor."

The couple raised four jointly acquired children: three girls and a son. The upbringing in the family was original, today they would say creative. It had much in common with his "12 golden rules".

Of course, the main principle of organizing the life of children was work. But, instilling industriousness, Rockefeller interested the kids financially. Children got a few cents for killing a fly, sharpening a pencil, playing music, getting good grades in school. Special attention father devoted to work in the beds.

The second on the list of rules for raising children is to teach them to be unassuming. For example, Rockefeller rewarded those kids who lived for a day, refusing sweets.

The third of the rules is worth mentioning the education in children of accuracy, accuracy, responsibility. Children were fined for being late to the table, failing to fulfill any instructions, disobedience.

Rockefeller created a miniature market economy in his home for children. Daughter Laura played the role of "director of the enterprise." Each child in the family kept his own account book, wrote reports, and kept balance.

Rockefeller believed that developing the ability to save properly is a step towards success. No wonder one of his 12 famous "golden rules" is the point about proper savings.

Biographical information

The description of the life of a multimillionaire is the story of his success, enrichment. Such statements of the multimillionaire are known: "To not only with hands, but also with the head."

College John Rockefeller did not finish. Upon reaching the age of sixteen, he decided to go to work. After completing a three-month accounting course, young John Rockefeller began looking for work in Cleveland, where they then lived with the whole family.

The history of the search only a month and a half later received a positive outcome: the Hewitt and Tuttle trading company hired Rockefeller for the position of assistant accountant.

Later, he was offered the position of chief accountant there, but Rockefeller was offended by the fact that his salary was supposed to be many times lower than his predecessor received. As a man proud and appreciating his work, John Rockefeller refused.

Rockefeller never worked for the people again. He began to work only for himself, and therefore achieved great success. And in the "12 Golden Rules" there is a quote that says this directly.

In 1861-1865 the American Civil War broke out. At this time, John Rockefeller becomes Clark's partner. Engaged in the supply of pork, flour, salt and other products of the warring army, the partners made some capital.

The discovery of oil near Cleveland was a turning point for them. By 1864, John Rockefeller and Clark were in the business of buying and selling Pennsylvania oil. After a year, Rockefeller decided to devote his entire business to this area, but he failed to get Clark's consent. Clark - a conservative person - was afraid of "burning out." Then, for $72,500, John bought his share in the joint business from a partner and plunged headlong into the oil business.

Rockefellers today united their fortune with the Rothschilds - another richest dynasty. But they never stop doing charity work, because their father bequeathed it in the 12 Golden Rules. And today the descendants honor the precepts of their ancestor, who managed to turn from a simple dropout student into a multimillionaire.

If you want to be rich, be!

The "12 golden rules" for business success are widely known. A person who decides to achieve the goal of getting rich must know them, understand and accept them. In fact, these rules are quotes from the statements of a multimillionaire.

  1. Work less for people. The more you work not for yourself, the faster you get poorer. The word "work" has the root "slave".
  2. Saving money is the right step to success. Buy products where it is cheaper or in bulk, prepare a list of what you need in advance, purchase products according to the list.
  3. If you are poor, start doing business. If you don’t have a penny at all, then you should open a business right now, without delaying even for a minute.
  4. The path to success, the road to great wealth, is through passive income.
  5. Dream of earning at least $50,000 a month, and possibly more.
  6. Money comes to you through other people. Communication, goodwill makes people rich. An unsociable person rarely becomes rich.
  7. A poor environment, unsuccessful people pull you into poverty and failure. Surround yourself with winners and optimists.
  8. Don't give yourself an excuse to put off the first step towards achieving your goal - there isn't one.
  9. Learn the biographies and thoughts of the world's richest successful people. The life story of a successful person will help to fulfill the desires of everyone - this is the meaning of this quote.
  10. Dreams are the most important thing in your life. The main thing is to dream and believe that dreams will come true. A person begins to die when he stops dreaming.
  11. Help people not for money, but from the bottom of your heart. Give 10% of profits to charity. That is, everyone should help those in need. This is evidenced by the success story of John Rockefeller.
  12. Create a business system and enjoy your earned money. The meaning of this quote is that a person must work in order to live happily, and not stupidly accumulate wealth.

These rules are called "golden" because they contain such quotes from the first richest man in the world that are of great importance to everyone to this day.

The $900 million oil tycoon started his career as a courier and paid $25 a month. Starting to work at the age of sixteen, John Davison Rockefeller - later the richest man in the world - three years later he opened his own company, and in 1862 went into the oil business.

Having bought out the companies of almost all local competitors, he set his sights on creating a national oil company with a national supply network. The embodiment of his plan was Standard Oil, which in 1879 controlled 90% of the US oil refining industry.

In 1897, he retired from active management of the organization and remained president of Standard Oil until 1911, when the US government finally liquidated the company. Last years devoted his life to the distribution of the main part of his vast fortune.

Biography. John D. Rockefeller was born in 1839 in Richford, Tioga County, New York. His parents were farmers, and it was expected that John Rockefeller (the eldest son and the second of six children in the family), along with his brothers and sisters, would help with farming.

But even at a young age, John Rockefeller showed remarkable commercial ability. He raised and sold turkeys and loaned the proceeds at 7%.

When John Rockefeller was fourteen years old, the family moved to Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating high school and Folsom College of Trade, he got a job as a courier and assistant accountant for the firm of Hewitt & Tuttle, representing commission wholesalers.

No one discussed the issue of wages with the future employee, and for almost three months the guy worked for free. After that, he was given $50 and the rate was determined: $25 per month.

Future billionaire John Rockefeller worked at Hewitt & Tuttle for three years and left after the firm refused to meet his salary requirements - John wanted to be paid $800 a year. This time he decided to open his own company.

John Rockefeller is the richest man in the world

Way to success. Having borrowed $ 1,000 from his father at 10% per annum, John Rockefeller, along with his partner Morris Clark, began to engage in agricultural products. He literally charmed the surrounding farmers, so that in the first year of operation (1859), the company's profit reached 500 thousand dollars.

At that time, the oil industry in Ohio was just beginning to gain momentum. Several oil refineries opened near Cleveland. John Rockefeller immediately understood the possibilities the new kind fuel, and without wasting time, in 1862 he opened the oil refinery of Andrews, Clark and Co.

He later sold his production commission rights to Clark, bought a partner's stake in Andrews, Clark and Co, and formed Rockefeller & Andrews.

By 1869, the Rockefeller firm had already acquired a number of other small firms, who worked in the same field, and became known as Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler. However, the oil refining industry as a whole was not better times. Every day there were more and more companies wishing to engage in the distillation of oil. The price of it has fallen so much that many companies have gone bankrupt.

But this did not frighten John D. Rockefeller. In 1869, he decided to merge Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler with the Standard Oil Company of Ohaio and became president of the company, which had a registered capital of $1 million.

Then John Rockefeller continued the implementation of the "combined" strategy, which he successfully implemented in the steel industry. He came to the conclusion that The best way to ensure the survival of the company in the current conditions - to distribute the risks associated with activities in an unstable area.

In order to achieve this goal, the most reasonable thing was to acquire all competing companies - both local and all other US refiners. In 1872, the Standard Oil Company already owned all of Cleveland's refineries.

The dominance of the Standard Oil Trust has drawn criticism. In 1892, the Attorney General of Ohio won a case to liquidate the trust.

Since 1890, while the case continued in court, John Rockefeller was in a state of severe stress. He was completely bald, he did not even have eyebrows. It was said that he suffered from a nervous breakdown.

However, Standard Oil was largely unaffected: it was simply reorganized into the Standard Oil Company (New Jersey) because, under New Jersey law, the parent company could own a number of other companies. The Standard Oil Company controlled 75% of the US oil refining industry.

John Rockefeller was president of Standard Oil until 1911, when the US Supreme Court nevertheless issued an order to liquidate the trust, declaring that the company had violated US antitrust laws. Thirty-eight organizations that formed a giant oil refinery trust became independent entities.

During his lifetime, Rockefeller was often criticized, a variety of fables were composed about him. For example, it was widely believed that he eats only bread and milk. It was believed that he had a phenomenal capacity for work, that he was not tired of hard work.

The entrepreneur himself assured that he did not even know what he was talking about: “People stubbornly continue to think that I was a 100% workaholic who worked constantly, day and night, at any time of the year. In fact, closer to the age of thirty-five, I became what would now be called a quitter. Never, since the first time I stepped into my office, have I allowed work to consume all my time and attention.

The last years of John Rockefeller devoted charitable activities. He donated over $35 million to the University of Chicago, founded the Institute for Medical Research, Foundation and Sanitary Commission, which fought hookworm in the southern United States. At that time, his fortune was estimated at $ 900 million.

He died on May 23, 1937 at his home in Ormond Beach. By that time, he had managed to distribute almost all of his fortune, leaving only $26,410,837.

Summary. John D. Rockefeller is the founder of the modern oil refining industry. Perhaps his commercial activity was not "in the public eye" like the activity that invented electric lighting, or with his Model T car. But without Standard Oil's cheap gasoline, neither the country's large-scale electrification nor the mass sale of cars would have taken place.

Realizing that one of the most important success factors is the professionalism of employees, Rockefeller assembled a team of the most talented businessmen. He often said, "Organization is made up of people, not machines."

Subsequently, he was unfairly accused of being the head of one of the most hated industries in the United States, where everything is run by trusts. Nevertheless, we must not forget that Standard Oil was founded at a difficult time for the industry and has been growing its influence over several decades.