Michael Bloomberg Quotes From the Multi-Billionaire Businessman

As one of the richest people on Earth, the life of successful businessman Michael Bloomberg is a subject of intrigue for many.

Check out the Michael Bloomberg quotes below to gain an interesting look at the billionaire’s life and career. 

Do Michael Bloomberg’s political policies represent you? 

Born in 1942, Michael Bloomberg is an author, entrepreneur, businessman, and politician.

He is the CEO of Bloomberg L.P., a multi-billion dollar data, finance, and media company.

As of February 2020, he is the 9th richest person on Earth, with a net worth of $62.8 billion.

After a lengthy stint as the Mayor of New York and over a decade of presidential campaign speculation, Bloomberg launched his 2020 presidential campaign in November 2019. 

Learn more about the perspective of Michael Bloomberg by reading the insightful quotes below!

Also check out these Andrew Carnegie quotes to ignite your hustle.

Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration. 

Our inspirational quote category page has even more inspirational and educational quotes.

Powerful Michael Bloomberg quotes

1. “Progress really is possible.” – Michael Bloomberg

2. “We will go forward… we will never go back.” – Michael Bloomberg

3. “You can’t define what’s middle class, what is wealthy, what is poor.” – Michael Bloomberg

4. “Capitalism works.” – Michael Bloomberg

5. “There is no accountability today… no willingness to focus on big ideas.” – Michael Bloomberg

Michael Bloomberg quotes about New York

6. “These endless legal challenges that define elections in New York are a joke in this country, and they are the reason why it is so expensive, or one of the reasons, it’s so expensive to run here and why so many people decide not to run.” – Michael Bloomberg

7. “And because no matter who you are, if you believe in yourself and your dream, New York will always be the place for you.” – Michael Bloomberg

8. “Many of America’s and New York’s sons and daughters are around the world fighting for the freedoms that the Statue of Liberty stands for.” – Michael Bloomberg

9. “This is the city of dreamers and time and again it’s the place where the greatest dream of all, the American dream, has been tested and has triumphed.” – Michael Bloomberg 

10. “It is exactly because we are a city that embraces freedom, that welcomes everyone and encourages their dreams, that New York remains on the front lines in the war on terror.” – Michael Bloomberg

11. “Look, we live in a very dangerous world. We know there are people who want to take away our freedoms. New Yorkers probably know that as much if not more than anybody else after the terrible tragedy of 9/11.” – Michael Bloomberg

12. “We’ve shown the world that New York can never be defeated, because of its dynamic and diverse population and because it embodies the spirit of enterprise and the love of liberty. And because no matter who you are, if you believe in yourself and your dream, New York will always be the place for you.” – Michael Bloomberg

13. “On Sept. 11, 2001, thousands of first responders heroically rushed to the scene and saved tens of thousands of lives. More than 400 of those first responders did not make it out alive. In rushing into those burning buildings, not one of them asked, ‘What God do you pray to?’ What beliefs do you hold?’” – Michael Bloomberg

14. “The World Trade Center site will forever hold a special place in our city, in our hearts. But we would be untrue to the best part of ourselves and who we are as New Yorkers and Americans if we said no to a mosque in lower Manhattan.” – Michael Bloomberg

15. “We may not always agree with every one of our neighbors. That’s life. And it’s part of living in such a diverse and dense city. But we also recognize that part of being a New Yorker is living with your neighbors in mutual respect and tolerance. It was exactly that spirit of openness and acceptance that was attacked on 9/11, 2001.” – Michael Bloomberg

16. “Our goal here in New York is to ensure that every child who graduates high school is ready to start a career or start college and to dramatically increase the number of students that graduate from college.” – Michael Bloomberg

17. “No place epitomizes the American experience and the American spirit more than New York City.” – Michael Bloomberg

Michael Bloomberg quotes about government

18. “I think if you look at people, whether in business or government, who haven’t had any moral compass, who’ve just changed to say whatever they thought the popular thing was, in the end they’re losers.” – Michael Bloomberg

19. “Government is dysfunctional.” – Michael Bloomberg

20. “Nobody is going to delegate a lot of power to a secretary that they can’t control.” – Michael Bloomberg

21. “I don’t believe that government is good at picking technology, particularly technology that is changing. By the time you get it done and go through democracy, it’s so outdated.” – Michael Bloomberg

22. “The level of analysis that is done when you see laws created, whether it’s the city or state or federal level – it’s much more horse-trading than analysis.” – Michael Bloomberg

23. “Government shouldn’t tell you whom to marry.” – Michael Bloomberg

24. “What chance does a five-foot-seven billionaire Jew who’s divorced really have of becoming president?” – Michael Bloomberg

25. “The cold harsh reality is that we have to balance the budget.” – Michael Bloomberg

26. “You know, I start with the assumption that -or with, with the belief that this president has to succeed. We all have an enormous amount of capital invested in his success. His success is the country’s success.” – Michael Bloomberg

27. “People have no confidence that Washington, both sides of aisle, are coming together to try and do what’s right for the economy.” – Michael Bloomberg

28. “The politics of partisanship and the resulting inaction and excuses have paralyzed decision-making, primarily at the federal level, and the big issues of the day are not being addressed, leaving our future in jeopardy.” – Michael Bloomberg

29. “I’ve always thought if we don’t want to enforce laws on the books, we should remove them from the books. But when you have laws, you breed contempt if you don’t enforce them.” – Michael Bloomberg

Michael Bloomberg quotes about policies

30. “We can only create good jobs if we make smarter investments in infrastructure and do more to support small businesses, not stiff them.” – Michael Bloomberg

31. “I do think there are certain times we should infringe on your freedom.” – Michael Bloomberg

32. “This society cannot go forward, the way we have been going forward, where the gap between the rich and the poor keeps growing. It’s not politically viable; it’s not morally right; it’s just not going to happen.” – Michael Bloomberg

33. “Taxes are not good things, but if you want services, somebody’s got to pay for them so they’re a necessary evil.” – Michael Bloomberg

34. “Every one of my positions cuts – out half the country. I’m pro-choice, I’m pro-gay rights, I’m pro-immigration, I’m against guns, I believe in Darwin.” – Michael Bloomberg
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of immigration quotes that explore each side of this social issue.

35. “We have to get control of our borders. You can only do that if you make companies obey the law and not hire undocumented or illegals. They can only do that is if they have a Social Security Card that has biometrics so they know whether the person is legal or not.” – Michael Bloomberg

36. “I’ve been a Democrat, I’ve been a Republican, and I eventually became an independent because I don’t believe either party has a monopoly on good ideas or strong leadership.” – Michael Bloomberg

Michael Bloomberg quotes about American society

37. “America is the greatest country on Earth – and when people vote with their feet, they come here.” – Michael Bloomberg

38. “America is built around this premise that you can do it, and there are an awful lot of people who are unlikely to have done it who did.” – Michael Bloomberg

39. “Unemployment in America today is too high. And part of the reason, unfortunately, is that many companies cannot fill the high-skilled jobs increasingly at risk of going overseas.” – Michael Bloomberg

40. “There is no business in America that would be prevented from taking results into account when making personnel decisions.” – Michael Bloomberg

41. “And I think the more money you put in people’s hands, the more they will spend. And if they don’t spend it, they invest it. And investing it is another way of creating jobs. It puts money into mutual funds or other kinds of banks that can go out and make loans, and we need to do that.” – Michael Bloomberg

42. “I think one of the great dangers here is going and categorizing anybody from one religion as a terrorist. That’s not true… That would let the terrorists win. That’s what they want us to do.” – Michael Bloomberg

43. “Trees will improve property values, take pollutants out of the air, help with water runoff.” – Michael Bloomberg

44. “Well, we have to provide the world’s best schools. We certainly don’t have them, but that’s our objective.” – Michael Bloomberg

45. “You don’t make spending decisions, investment decisions, hiring decisions, or whether-you’re-going-to-look-for-a-job decisions when you don’t know what’s going to happen.” – Michael Bloomberg 

46. “The people who are worried about privacy have a legitimate worry. But we live in a complex world where you’re going to have to have a level of security greater than you did back in the olden days, if you will. And our laws and our interpretation of the Constitution, I think, have to change.” – Michael Bloomberg

Michael Bloomberg quotes on upbringing and identity

47. “My father worked all the time.” – Michael Bloomberg

48. “Stubborn isn’t a word I would use to describe myself; pigheaded is more appropriate.” – Michael Bloomberg

49. “I know how to make decisions and stand up to the criticism every day.” – Michael Bloomberg

50. “I believe in Judaism, I was raised a Jew, I’m happy to be one – or proud to be one.” – Michael Bloomberg

51. “Being an entrepreneur isn’t really about starting a business. It’s a way of looking at the world: seeing opportunity where others see obstacles, taking risks when others take refuge.” – Michael Bloomberg

52. “If you don’t encounter setbacks in your career, if you don’t have doubts and disappointments, let me tell you, you’re not dreaming big enough.” – Michael Bloomberg

53. “Progress is not inevitable. It’s up to us to create it.” – Michael Bloomberg

54. “Life is too short to spend your time avoiding failure.” – Michael Bloomberg

55. “There are lots of threats to you in the world. There’s the threat of a heart attack for genetic reasons. You can’t sit there and worry about everything. Get a life.” – Michael Bloomberg

56. “People use so much more health care when they live longer.” – Michael Bloomberg

57. “By speeding the transition to cleaner energy, we can improve the lives of billions of people, while also reducing the risks we face from a changing climate.” – Michael Bloomberg

58. “I don’t know why you should be proud of something. It doesn’t make you any better or worse. You are what you are.” – Michael Bloomberg

59. “I think we are not serious about attacking the long-term debt problem, and that’s one of the things that he’s going to have to find a way to get on the agenda.” – Michael Bloomberg

60. “What has changed is that people have stopped working together.” – Michael Bloomberg

What could you learn from a billionaire?

As a member of the 99.99% of people who aren’t worth a billion dollars, the concept of being a billionaire seems almost otherworldly.

As a result, viewing Michael Bloomberg’s quotes allows me to learn about the world from a very, very unique perspective.

I believe that putting forth an effort to learn about people who are different than you is key to boosting your growth. 

Take time out of your day to learn more about people who live different lives than you, whether they come from a different race, gender, culture, or socioeconomic background.

Their perspectives may encourage you to open up your world and learn about experiences that you’ve never even dreamed of. 

Is there an insightful Michael Bloomberg quote above that you connect with?

Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below!