Pharmacist to Billionaire: Larry Friedland’s Rise to Power

Those of you with ambition will want to read this Bloomberg article about Larry Friedland, who quit pharmacology in the 1950's to focus on real estate. Three billion dollars later, can he really have any regrets? There are nuggets of insight to be gleaned from reading of another's life.

What is there to like about the Friedland story? The way he stuck to his knitting and invested in only what he understood well. The way he operated with little debt, which gave him flexibility to wait for the right tenants. The way he meticulously studied the market and other deals to see what made sense.

Yes, it's commercial real estate, but many successful residential landlords can still learn from his example.

• "A Billionaire New York Landlord Who Doesn't Trumpet His Wealth" (read now)