John D. Rockefeller (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American business tycoon, industrialist, and philanthropist. Founder of the world famous Standard Oil Company, he is considered to be the wealthiest American in history by some calculations. He is best known for controlling the oil industry through his shrewd and innovative business practices, accumulating massive wealth, and then turning his attention to philanthropy in his later years.
He learned business at a bookkeeper’s desk before he ever touched oil. At sixteen he went to work in Cleveland as an assistant bookkeeper, and he celebrated the anniversary of that first job for the rest of his life. He brought the habits with him when he started his own produce firm and then moved into refining: know your costs to the fraction of a cent, keep careful books, and hold something back in reserve. When suppliers charged too much, Standard Oil built or bought its own barrel shops, pipelines, and tank cars, until oil could travel from the field to the customer under one roof. He gave money away the same way he made it, with research first and institutions built to keep working after he was gone: the University of Chicago, the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, and the Rockefeller Foundation all grew out of that plan.
Rockefeller was an entrepreneur at heart got his start in the growing oil industry at a young age. He founded Standard Oil in 1870 and directly ran the company until 1897, continuing to be the largest shareholder thereafter. Standard Oil revolutionized the oil industry, drastically reducing costs while increasing distribution, and eventually coming to control nearly the entire sector. Rockefeller aggressively pushed out competition and acquired not only direct competitors, but also suppliers and ancillary companies. He was a pioneer in the business strategies of both horizontal and vertical integration which allowed his companies to control their costs better than everyone else and undercut the competition.
Standard Oil’s rise ignited much debate regarding capitalism and the merits of monopolies. The company served as the inspiration for many of the country’s antitrust laws and Standard Oil was eventually broken up through antitrust litigation. Ironically, the value of the resulting individual companies grew so significantly as separate entities, that as a 25% owner in each of them, Rockefeller became even richer than before the breakup. The resulting companies include ExxonMobil, Chevron, Marathon Oil, and Conoco, which continue to dominate the oil industry today.
Rockefeller spent the later portion of his life engaged in massive amounts of philanthropic projects across a wide spectrum of causes. He supported education, research, public health, science, and other initiatives to improve welfare worldwide. His philanthropic impact is felt all throughout the world to this day.
Rockefeller left a lasting legacy on American business and society that continues to influence American business, politics, and many other facets of everyday life today.
Core Ideas
- Persevere until it yields. Persist past discouragement; it overcomes almost everything, even nature.
- Do common things uncommonly well. Excellence in ordinary work is the open secret of success.
- Build credit and character first. A reputation for keeping your word is capital no bank can take back.
- Keep one purpose. Singleness of aim beats scattered talent, whatever the aim happens to be.
- Listen more than you talk. Keep your ears open and your mouth closed, and you will hear what others miss.
John D. Rockefeller Quotes
“I believe in the supreme worth of the individual and in his right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
“I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.”
“The secret to success is to do the common things uncommonly well.”
“The most important thing for a young man is to establish a credit . . . a reputation, character.”
“A man has no right to occupy another man’s time unnecessarily.”
“Singleness of purpose is one of the chief essentials for success in life, no matter what may be one’s aim.”
“Success comes from keeping the ears open and the mouth closed.”
John D. Rockefeller Books
“Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.” – by Ron Chernow. The big modern biography of the man and the company: patient, documented, and fair to the record.
“Random Reminiscences of Men and Events” – by John D. Rockefeller. His own memoir, first published in 1909, in the Fordham University Press edition: direct, plain-spoken, and full of the bookkeeper’s way of thinking.
“John D. Rockefeller on Making Money: Advice and Words of Wisdom on Building and Sharing Wealth” – by John D. Rockefeller. Sayings and short pieces on earning, saving, and giving, gathered in one small volume.
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