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How Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and other tech execs parent their children

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By Sarah Jackson 22 August 2024 07:30 PM

Tech execs are an interesting bunch. They’re hardworking, highly successful leaders who know how to shepherd an idea from concept to launch. They also need to be gifted communicators and motivators.

Tech execs like Mark Zuckerberg, left, and Sundar Pichai, right, have spoken about their approach to parenting.Anna Moneymaker/Justin Sullivan/Getty

  • It’s not surprising many tech CEOs would have screen time limits for their kids.
  • But many tech execs have also shared other tidbits over the years about their approach to parenting.
  • Here’s a look at some parenting philosophies of the biggest names in tech.

It’s qualities like these that seem like the kind many parents would want to foster in their children, though tech execs can also be extremely polarizing figures with their fair share of fans and critics.

Much is known about how they manage their companies, but for those with families, far less is known about their approach to the entirely different job of parenting.

So what parenting advice, including on hot-button topics like screen time rules for their kids, do tech execs promote?

We looked through past interviews to surface some of the most interesting pointers that they’ve given when it comes to parenting and setting children up for success in today’s world.

Here’s what some of the biggest names in tech have said about their approach to parenting:

When asked earlier this year what kids should be studying today, Zuckerberg told Bloomberg the most important thing is learning how to think critically and learning values when you're young.This is somewhat of a hiring philosophy that I have too, he said. If people have shown that they can go deep and do one thing really well, then they've probably gained experience in the art of learning something and taking it to an excellent level, which is generally pretty applicable to other things.In a 2019 interview on CBS This Morning, the Meta CEO said he and Chan don't give them everything.They have chores, they have responsibilities, Chan added. We also take them to work. Mark and I take both of them to the office to see what we do, how we contribute.I don't generally want my kids to be sitting in front of a TV or a computer for a long period of time, Zuckerberg told Fox News in 2019. At the time, he said he let his daughters use video calls to talk with relatives across the country but is stricter about other forms of screen time.

Mark Zuckerberg

Nadella says his own parents created an environment where they let me set my own pace and pursue what I wanted, and that influenced his approach to raising his own children.It's important to focus on what [our kids] need to thrive, he previously told Good Housekeeping.The Microsoft CEO and his wife, Anu, also both think children should have dogs, she told Good Housekeeping.There is a different sense of companionship and responsibility that comes with it — that emotional sense that there is a being waiting for you to come back, Anu said.Nadella told Good Housekeeping that he gets reports on what their kids do on their computers. The couple limits how many movies and what kinds of videos games and websites their kids can view.

Satya Nadella

Pichai still helps his kids with their homework — with some assistance from Google Lens.We use Google Lens for homework. I don't want to get him in trouble, but the class allows you to do that, Pichai previously told Bloomberg. But sometimes he asks me for help on math. Sometimes I'm lazy and I pretend as if I'm thinking but I'm also using Google Lens to kind of figure out the answer.The Google CEO told The New York Times in 2018 that his son, then 11 years old, didn't have a phone, and that he limited use of the TV.

Sundar PichaiAlphabet CEO Sundar Pichai is a dedicated fan of soccer club FC Barcelona.Pichai visited the team in 2017 and got his very own customized Barcelona jersey. During his visit he took photos with the Ballon d’Or trophy and Lionel Messi — the player who’s been given the award the most. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai)

Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates has said he parented his kids following a model developed in the 1970s called the Love and Logic approach.The philosophy focuses on exercising control when it comes to emotions, such as by minimizing emotional reactions like shouting at or reprimanding one's kids.Gates, who for many years was the world's richest man, has also said he tried to keep his kids from being spoiled. We want to strike a balance where they have the freedom to do anything, but not a lot of money showered on them so they could go out and do nothing, he once said.As far as screen time limits go, Gates forbade his kids from using phones at the dinner table, and didn't give them phones to begin with until they were 14 years old.

Bill Gates

Bezos took an unusual approach to raising his four kids at times. He said in 2017 that he let his kids use sharp knives from the age of 4 and power tools at 7 or 8 years old.The Amazon founder attributed this to his then-wife, MacKenzie Scott, who he said would much rather have a kid with nine fingers than a resourceless kid. Bezos added that this was a fantastic attitude about life.

Jeff Bezos
Bezos took an unusual approach to raising his four kids at times. He said in 2017 that he let his kids use “sharp knives” from the age of 4 and power tools at 7 or 8 years old.The Amazon founder attributed this to his then-wife, MacKenzie Scott, who he said would “much rather have a kid with nine fingers than a resourceless kid.” Bezos added that this was “a fantastic attitude about life.”

Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian incorporated a fun practice from his upbringing into his approach to parenting.My favorite parenting tip that I inherited from him was his Sunday tradition of making breakfast for our family, he said in 2020. I love being able to make pancakes with my family when we're all in the same place on a Sunday, and always do my best to put away outside distractions so we can be together.Ohanian told CNBC in 2018 that he and Williams want their daughter to know what it's like to have limits on tech.My wife and I both want her to be bored, he said. I do look forward to playing video games with her when she's older, but it's really important that she gets time to just be with her thoughts and be with her blocks and be with her toys, so we'll be regulating it pretty heavily.

Alexis Ohanian, Reddit cofounder

Alexis Ohanian incorporated a fun practice from his upbringing into his approach to parenting.”My favorite parenting tip that I inherited from him was his Sunday tradition of making breakfast for our family,” he said in 2020. “I love being able to make pancakes with my family when we’re all in the same place on a Sunday, and always do my best to put away outside distractions so we can be together.”Ohanian told CNBC in 2018 that he and Williams want their daughter “to know what it’s like to have limits on tech.””My wife and I both want her to be bored,” he said. “I do look forward to playing video games with her when she’s older, but it’s really important that she gets time to just be with her thoughts and be with her blocks and be with her toys, so we’ll be regulating it pretty heavily.”

Story from Africa.businessinsider.com

Sarah Jackson

Senior reporter at Business Insider covering tech, careers, work and wealth

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