Bill Gates follows this one advice from Warren Buffett at his foundation for maximum success

As much as he is known for making an enormous amount of money, Bill Gates is also known for his huge donations as one of the biggest philanthropists. The world’s second-richest man and his wife Melinda Gates run the world’s largest private foundation aimed to help those in need.

The foundation that was started by the Gateses 20 years ago, primarily focuses on health and education and has spent $53.8 billion for global development and various programmes since it was established. This makes the foundation so far the most successful in the history of American philanthropy.

In 2015, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation distributed $3.8 billion at a time when no other foundation could even cross the $1 billion threshold, according to a Vox report.

So what’s the secret behind Gateses’ foundation's success? The two have revealed the answer in their annual note.

Bill and Melinda have been following their “dear friend” Warren Buffett’s advice for maximum success of the foundation. Buffett, while donating a bulk of his fortune to the foundation, had advised the two to “swing for the fences”.

“As always, Warren Buffett—a dear friend and longtime source of great advice—put it a little more colorfully. When he donated the bulk of his fortune to our foundation and joined us as a partner in its work, he urged us to ‘swing for the fences’,” Bill and Melinda said in their annual letter.

'Swing for the fences' is a phrase used in baseball.

“When you swing for the fences, you’re putting every ounce of strength into hitting the ball as far as possible. You know that your bat might miss the ball entirely—but that if you succeed in making contact, the rewards can be huge,” the two explained the meaning they derived from Buffett’s advice.

The two added that they apply the same in philanthropy too as “the goal isn’t just incremental progress”. “It’s to put the full force of our efforts and resources behind the big bets that, if successful, will save and improve lives.”

However, Bill and Melinda admitted that not every dollar they have spent had the effect they hoped for. “We’ve had our share of disappointments, setbacks, and surprises. We think it’s important to be transparent about our failures as well as our successes,” they said.

Further in the letter, the two have shared in detail about the work they have done in the areas of health, education and others and how climate crisis and gender equality will factor into the next 20 years. Read the letter here