Why Do Two of the Richest People in the World Drink So Much Coke?
When you think about the habits of the world’s richest, Coca-Cola probably doesn’t spring to mind. Why is it then that Bill Gates and Warren Buffett drink so much of it? What strange diets do the world’s top executives have, what does it tell us about them, and what can we learn?
JOHN NICHOLS
SEPTEMBER 12, 2020
Inside Bill’s Brain is a fascinating look into one of the sharpest minds in the world today. The way he thinks, the way he perceives the world around him and the way he tackles the biggest issues that trouble it is laid bare to the camera, and it’s a sensational, awe-inspiring insight into how a high-level mind operates.
The show also provides an peek into certain habits he has. One of these are his Thought Weeks, where he retreats to a secluded cabin for a week to read and gather his thoughts.
Another of these habits shown is rather peculiar – his love of Diet Coke. For those of you who haven’t watched it, how much Coke do you think he drinks? He’s one of the world’s smartest individuals, so it can’t be much, right? A few cans per week? One per day? Wrong. He actually drinks 3 to 4 cans every single day.
Gates isn’t alone. Many popular figures in the business world have strange food & drink habits – hell, Gates isn’t even the only one with an unhealthy obsession with Coke.
Who Else Drinks Too Much Coke?
If you thought 3 to 4 cans of Diet Coke per day was a bit excessive, Warren Buffett manages to one-up Gates, to a quite astounding 5 cans of Cherry Coke per day.
Buffett was notoriously a Pepsi-Cola Cherry man, having favoured Pepsi over Coca-Cola for over 50 years, even going so far as to herald it as the official drink of Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholder meeting, but there’s an interesting story as to how he switched sides in the battle of the sodas.
In 1960, Buffett lived across the street in Omaha from one Don Keough, a coffee salesman at the time. Buffett was in the process of starting Berkshire Hathaway and offered Keough the chance to invest with him for $10,000, an offer which Keough turned down. Today, that $10,000 investment with Buffett would be worth in the region of $100mil.
Nevertheless, Keough’s business was bought out by Coca-Cola in 1964. He would stay on in his new home, eventually rising to the COO position in 1981. Four years later, he read in a magazine that his old neighbour, Warren Buffett, was a huge fan of Pepsi-Cola Cherry. He wrote to his friend, and swiftly arranged to send samples of the in-development Cherry Coke out to him.
Buffett was immediately sold on Coca-Cola’s cherry variant, with his love of the product initiating seismic changes in the business world. The official drink of Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting was changed to the new drink in 1986, and today, Berkshire Hathaway owns around 10% of the Coca-Cola company, valued at just shy of $20bil.
It’s not just Cherry Coke that Buffet has an unhealthy obsession with. He also has a fondness for hamburgers, but has a rather unusual way he enjoys them. Bottom bun, beef patty, top bun – nothing else. Oh, except all the salt he liberally adds between the bottom bun and the patty before reconstructing the burger. I must admit I’ve never tried this myself, but salty bread doesn’t sound all that appetising.
Couple the Cherry Coke and strange hamburgers with a McDonald’s breakfast dictated by the stock market, a reliance on fast food for every meal, and an avoidance of vegetables altogether, it’s simply a mystery how Buffett is able to function at the level he does.
Bob Bryan at Business Insider tried to replicate Buffett’s notoriously unhealthy diet for a week, and reported feeling terrible at the end of it. When 25% of your daily calorific intake is purely Cherry Coke, that’s not much of a surprise. By Buffett’s own admission, he has the diet of a 6-year old, but he’s quite happy with the fact and has no interest whatsoever in changing his eating habits anytime soon.
What Other Strange Food & Drink Habits Are Out There?
You would think that C-Suite executives recognise the important of a balanced diet, and have nutritionists on hand to help keep their health in check – after all, health is wealth, right? Whilst this is true in a lot of cases (e.g. Jeff Bezos), it certainly isn’t the case with everyone.
Whether its simply being unhealthy, having excess amounts of a single foodstuff, or simply having nothing at all, there’s no shortage of strange dietary habits at the boardroom level.
Elon Musk is no stranger to unusual habits. He uses time blocking to min-max towards productivity, meticulously planning out his entire day in 5-min increments. To save time in the morning, he likes to enjoy a Mars bar for breakfast (if he has anything at all).
Mark Zuckerberg views breakfast as a daily decision not worth putting thought towards, so he’ll have anything he likes, whether that be a fast food burger, an animal he’s killed himself, or nothing at all.
In contrast to Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs was incredibly picky about his eating habits, flirting between a vegan diet (which he believed would mean he didn’t have to shower regularly), fruitarianism (fruit, veg and seeds) or eating just carrots and apples. He’d also often embark on multiple day fasts, reportedly to experience euphoria-like states.
Richard Branson, being the stoic Brit he is, enjoys a cup of tea. I love myself a brew every now and again, but I can only imagine how much Branson enjoys it to feel the need to drink 20 cups a day.
Why Do They Do This? What Does It Tell Us About Them?
Almost all of these figures have solid reasons as to why they choose to stick to the diet they do.
Musk hates to waste time eating, so will often have the quickest meal available so he can get back to work as soon as possible. Zuckerberg doesn’t want to spend time on non-important decisions such as a nutritious breakfast, so will have whatever he feels like having. Branson just embraces the British stereotype of tea drinking, although 20 cups per day is just a tad more than the average Brit.
Apart from examples of strict diets, such as those of Jobs, there’s a common trend found in how food & drink is approached by business moguls – it’s seen as a necessity not worth the time thinking about, rather than an important facet of their life. Because of this, it’s very easy for them to fall into something which they feel works and then sticking to it, never giving it a second thought.
This also explains Gates and Buffett’s Coke consumption. If they get into the habit of cracking open a can when at their desk or with a meal, over a long period of time, this becomes a subconscious behaviour.
These business chiefs often have addictive personalities – it’s a key trait that makes these individuals detail-oriented, visionary and wise – but the flipside is that it makes poor choices, whether that be dietary, exercise or in any other area, easier to get into and much harder to get out of.
What Is The Effect On Them?
Just because these figures are admired by many, that doesn’t mean these habits don’t have a negative effect on them. Good nutrition is crucial to long-term health and the ability to perform at a high-level on a consistent basis.
In terms of Diet Coke (or any diet sodas), there’s a growing body of evidence which suggests that regular consumption increases the risk of high blood pressure, diabetes and brain conditions such as dementia and strokes. Cherry Coke (or other full-sugar sodas) isn’t any better, as the high sugar content leads to dehydration, with regular consumption leading to weight gain, increased likelihood of heart disease, and decreased immunity, as it can reduce your white blood cell count.
Excessive salt leads to increased blood pressure and possible heart and kidney issues amongst others – no wonder Bob Bryan felt so bad.
What is strange however is that Buffett reports feeling perfectly fine, and even with the recent COVID-19 pandemic meaning he is drinking even more Cherry Coke than usual at home, he says that his diet has no impact on his general wellbeing. Could this be a symptom of following the exact same diet for his entire adult life? Possibly – but that doesn’t mean it’s a good choice.
Everybody knows the negative health impact of fast food, but what about tea? Surely tea can’t be that bad for you?
As with anything, excessive consumption, especially in the region of 20 cups of tea per day, can cause health issues. Side-effects include headaches, digestive issues and disrupted sleep. The small amount of caffeine per cup builds up over the course of a day, and can easily lead to a caffeine dependency if you regularly have multiple cups a day – likely why Branson keeps up his tea drinking habit.
I’ve made a concerted effort throughout 2020 to be more healthy. The most important change I’ve made is switching from juices and sodas to drinking water. I never used to drink water by choice, and although Diet Coke (funnily enough) is now practically the only fizzy drink I have, this is far, far exceeded by my water consumption, and I have noticed an marked improvement in my mental state, skin and energy levels.
Final Thoughts
The reason why Gates and Buffett drink so much Coke is simple – because they want to. Minus a bit of exposure for a company Buffett has heavily invested into, it doesn’t go any deeper than that.
What do these food & drink habits tell us in general? Honestly, it just shows that idolised public figures are strange, habit-driven little human beings just like the rest of us. When you boil it down, we all have strange quirks that make no sense to others but seem normal to us, it’s just that the behaviour of popular figures is scrutinised to the nth degree, whilst in the grand scheme of things, nobody really cares if you like spreading Nutella on your crumpets for breakfast – like me.
Nevertheless, just because Buffett drinks 5 cans of Cherry Coke per day doesn’t mean you should too. It won’t turn you into a trailblazing entrepreneur, a stock-market genius or a business tycoon – it’ll just make you someone who drinks a lot of Coke.
You have to strike a balance between the healthy choices in your life and your indulgences. Picking the right choices for your health and physical wellbeing will help you in many aspects of your life, but perfection isn’t necessary – everybody needs that something they can enjoy in life without regret.
Just as figures like Musk, Gates, Zuckerberg and countless others know that there’s no such thing as perfection in business, you don’t need to make the right choice in every decision in life to succeed.
More so today than at any point in history, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to perform and hold ourselves to ever-increasing standards, leading to stress, anxiety and poor mental health. Discipline is paramount, and a vital skill to have, but know when you need to take a break, indulge a little and focus on your mental wellbeing for a moment. It’s these little moments of respite that recharge us, get us motivated and ready to take on the world.
Published September 12, 2020. Cover photo by Ylann Meyer on Unsplash.