Contrasting Billionaire Lifestyles

A story about visiting two very different billionaires - Joe Lonsdale and Monish Pabrai - in Austin, revealing their contrasting lifestyles.

"We went to Austin and had interviews scheduled. First was Joe Lonsdale, a billionaire who started more billion dollar companies than anyone else in America. I went to his house at 8 AM, did a morning workout with him, had breakfast, did a cold plunge. I toured his house - he's got a gaming LAN center for him and his cousins, a basketball court, an artillery gun at the top. When we were leaving, 10 senators were coming over for lunch and Elon Musk showed up.

Then there was Monish Pabrai. I go to his house - he doesn't have staff that answers, he opens the door barefooted wearing basketball shorts. He says 'Let's have some tea.' No clock, no assistant telling him to move to the next thing. He shows me his nap room and says 'I nap every day. My whole job is thinking, I have to make great decisions. Napping keeps me fresh, it's like having a second day.'

He's got all these books in his library but he's also kind of alone. When I asked about his team, he said 'The best investors make their decisions as independent thinkers, not committees.' He just has a researcher or two, managing about $2 billion in his fund."