How Michael Bloomberg Works

September 14, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

How Michael Bloomberg Works

Getting fired was the best thing that ever happened to him. At 39, after 15 years of 12-hour days and six-day weeks at Salomon Brothers, Michael Bloomberg was pushed out along with a handful of other partners when the firm was sold. He received $10 million as compensation. "If they had said we had another job for you, I'd have done it in a second," he writes. "I would have never left voluntarily." Instead, he took the money and started a company from a 100-square-foot rented office with a view of an alley. Fifteen years later, he had a billion-dollar business.

The Foundation: Sales, Showing Up, and Incremental Progress

Bloomberg's career began at the bottom. After Harvard Business School, he took a job at Salomon Brothers in 1966 for $9,000 a year plus a $2,500 loan—barely enough to survive in New York. He worked his first summer "in our underwear in an unairconditioned bank vault" counting securities by hand. His friends had plush offices as research analysts; he was a clerk. "Why didn't I quit? I was too embarrassed." But this was preparation. He learned that "it's the doers, the lean and hungry ones, those with ambition in their eyes and fire in their bellies, who go the furthest and achieve the most."

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What you'll learn

1 (00:04) **Getting Fired from Salomon Brothers** - Bloomberg recounts being fired at age 39 with a $10 million severance, describing it as one of the best things that ever happened to him.
2 (01:52) **Early Career & Harvard Lessons** - Bloomberg describes his working-class background, Harvard Business School experience, and his first job at Salomon Brothers.
3 (03:08) **The Meta-Skill of Sales** - Bloomberg emphasizes that selling is the core skill behind almost every occupation, a lesson he learned in his early days.
4 (05:44) **Starting at the Bottom** - Bloomberg details his humble start at Salomon Brothers, including working in his underwear in an unair-conditioned bank vault counting securities by hand.
5 (06:08) **Leadership Lessons from Billy Salomon vs. John Gutfreund** - Bloomberg contrasts the leadership styles of two bosses, showing how decisiveness creates a better culture.
6 (11:10) **Making Yourself Indispensable** - Bloomberg explains his strategy of showing up earlier and staying later than everyone else to build a relationship with the boss.
7 (13:43) **Philosophy on Work, Planning, and Incremental Progress** - Bloomberg lays out his core operating principles: outwork everyone, avoid long-term plans, and string together many small advances.

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