One thing all billionaire investors have in common

All billionaire investors have one thing in common – they are workaholics who see investing as pleasure instead of work.

It is one of the findings David Rubenstein shared in his new book, How to Invest: Masters on the Craft.

David Rubenstein is the co-founder and co-chairman of The Carlyle Group, a global investment firm managing more than $300 billion.

To write his book, Rubenstein interviewed top investors and global leaders in finance to see what they have in common.

Wallstreet luminaries he interviewed include BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio, and Equity Group Investments founder Sam Zell.

“I had a chance to talk about their backgrounds, what made them tick, and try to establish what makes somebody is great investor versus an average investor,” Rubenstein said.

He found that many successful investors have similar traits, including:

• They come from nice, middle-class families.
• They are good at mathematics and are good students.
• They like to read.
• They like to be in control and make the final decision on investments.
• They go against conventional wisdom.

Rubenstein said a good example of going against conventional wisdom is John Paulson making $20 billion by betting against the U.S. housing market before the subprime mortgage crisis.

Another example is Michael Novogratz, who invested in cryptocurrencies very early when people thought it was terrible and made a lot of money.

Commenting on one thing all the billionaire investors had in common, Rubenstein said they are all workaholics.

“There is not one who only works nine to five, come in late, or leave early. For these people, investing is not work – it is pleasure,” he said.

“These investors love what they do, and if they were not making enormous amounts of money, they would still do it,” he said.

He explained that the billionaires he interviewed do not need more money but continue to work hard because they love investing.