Bill Gates is reflecting on his divorce from Melinda Gates after being together for over twenty years.
In an interview with The Times of London, Bill, who is 69, mentioned, “That was the mistake I most regret” when talking about his marriage. He also shared that even though he feels disappointed, he is “more cheerful now.”
Bill and Melinda, who are both 60, revealed their separation in May 2021 after 27 years of marriage. They tied the knot in 1994 and have three kids: Jennifer, Rory, and Phoebe.
In an interview with The Times, Bill shared that he really wanted to have a long-lasting marriage like his parents, who were together for 45 years. He mentioned, “I encouraged Melinda to be a bit more relaxed than my mom, but we were both very ambitious.” He also said he spent more time with their kids than his dad did, but Melinda still did most of the parenting. “We had a lot of fun together,” he added.
Bill talked about how special it is to share your whole adult life with one person, creating memories and raising kids together. When he and Melinda first met, he was doing well but not super famous, and he became really successful while they were married. “She was there for me through a lot,” he said.
Bill and Melinda met in 1987 when she started working at Microsoft. After they got married, they created a nonprofit organization together, but Melinda left the foundation after their divorce.
Reflecting on their split, Bill said, “It was hard when we got divorced, and I was disappointed when she chose to leave the foundation.”
Bill mentioned that his divorce, which was finalized in August 2021, is one of his biggest failures as an adult.
“I would definitely say that’s at the top of my list,” Bill shared when talking about his mistakes. “There are other things, but none of them are as significant. The divorce was really tough for both me and Melinda for at least two years.”
After their separation, Bill and Melinda have managed to set aside their personal differences to co-parent their adult children peacefully.
“Melinda and I still see each other because we have three kids and two grandkids, so we attend family gatherings,” Bill explained to a newspaper in the U.K. “The kids are doing great and have strong values.”
Melinda has also talked about the healing process after their breakup.
“It was incredibly painful in so many ways, but I had the space to work through it,” she said in an interview with Fortune in October 2022. “I also had to keep working with the person I was separating from, and I needed to show up and be my best self every day. So even if I was upset at 9 a.m. and had to join a video call at 10 a.m. with him, I had to put on a brave face. I learned that as a leader, I could handle it.”
