8 Things You Didn't Know About Mark Zuckerburg

by / ⠀Startup Advice / September 14, 2010


We all know the story of the nerdy billionaire who allegedly screwed over his real friends on the way to making about 500 million new “friends.”  But The New Yorker has recently published an incredibly in depth article on Mark Zuckerberg just before movie producer Kevin Spacey can tell his side of the story.

Here are 8 Things You Didn’t Know About Mark Zuckerburg…

1. Zuckerburg lists his cell phone number on Facebook

A bold move for someone famous, but as he says he’s “trying to make the world a more open place”.  If he truly believes that it’s okay to give out this information online with all the privacy issues going on, he better be publishing his blood type and social security number on Facebook.

2. Zuckerburg’s childhood home was filled with computers

Just as Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000 hour rule states, Zuckerberg, like Steve Jobs, grew up in an environment where computers were everywhere.  It’s no mistake that having geeky parents can lead to becoming the next titans of tech.

3. Zuckerberg was on AOL and Microsoft’s radar in High School long before Facebook.

Zuckerberg created a predecessor to Pandora in high school called Synapse.  Supposedly Microsoft wanted to buy it, but it wouldn’t be the first time that Zuckerberg turned them down.

4. Zuckerberg drives a black Acura TSX.

When asked why? Because it is “safe, comfortable, not ostentatious.”   Not that Zuckerberg has lots of liquidity in that billion dollar valuation but a TSX is no Ferrari.  Zuckerberg clearly isn’t doing this because of money as he’s walked away from the previous billion dollar offers.

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5. Zuckerberg has found all his homes on Craigslist.

In fact, his current 4 bedroom home he rents is “too big.”  Besides, what does he use the other bedrooms for anyway?

6. Zuckerberg is colorblind.

Zuckerberg is red-green colorblind he found out a few years ago.  Blue is his strongest visual color–no wonder it’s everywhere on Facebook.

7. The words “A Mark Zuckerberg production” once appeared on every page on Facebook.

In the early days, Mark had these words as the footer on every single page on Facebook.  Talk about taking personal branding to the extreme; makes you wonder if Zuckerberg is afraid to sell because he’ll lose the power at Facebook.

8.  Zuckerberg is okay with you telling the world you are gay.

“I think Facebook might be the first place where a large number of people have come out,” he said. “We didn’t create that—society was generally ready for that.”  He went on, “I think this is just part of the general trend that we talked about, about society being more open, and I think that’s good.”

As Zuckerberg normally turns down these types of interviews this is clearly a last ditch PR effort for Facebook as the preceding months have been filled with negative hype about this geeky, ideal stealing billionaire before the Social Network comes out October 1.

What do you wish you knew about Zuckerberg? Leave a comment below and we’ll try to find out.

Article written by Matt Wilson co-founder of Under30CEO.com.  Follow him on Twitter @MattWilsontv as he urges young people to drop the 9-5 and get passionate about something!

About The Author

Matt Wilson

Matt Wilson is Co-Founder of Under30Experiences, a travel company for young people ages 21-35. He is the original Co-founder of Under30CEO (Acquired 2016). Matt is the Host of the Live Different Podcast and has 50+ Five Star iTunes Ratings on Health, Fitness, Business and Travel. He brings a unique, uncensored approach to his interviews and writing. His work is published on Under30CEO.com, Forbes, Inc. Magazine, Huffington Post, Reuters, and many others. Matt hosts yoga and fitness retreats in his free time and buys all his food from an organic farm in the jungle of Costa Rica where he lives. He is a shareholder of the Green Bay Packers.

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