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Robert talks about his experiences in Vietnam.
The first time he went to Vietnam was in 1966, when he was a student at the Merchant Marine Academy. His project was to study how to safely load and unload bombs in a war zone without getting hurt.
The second time he went to Vietnam was in 1972, when he returned as a helicopter gunship pilot. His job was to protect larger helicopters carrying soldiers into dangerous areas. He says being a gunship pilot was safer than being a transport pilot, who had to fly into hot zones and wait while soldiers got on and off.
He also worked as an assistant to the squadron’s top-secret information officer. Their job was to gather and process information and then report it to the commanding officer.
Robert explains that his experience as both a pilot and an information officer taught him a lot about the importance of information in war.
Let’s explore Robert’s experience as an information officer in the Vietnam War and how it shaped his view on the power of information.
Before going to Vietnam, Robert didn’t think much about information—it just seemed like facts to remember for school. But in Vietnam, he realized that information could be life or death for him and his fellow pilots.
He explains that the training in Vietnam taught them to quickly process information under pressure.The right information could save their lives, and the wrong information could cost them everything.
Looking back, Robert believes the skills he learned in Vietnam helped him become a better entrepreneur and investor. He learned that in business, just like in war, the right information is key to success.
He shares a memory of the first time they came under fire in Vietnam. In that moment, he realized war was life or death, and the right information made all the difference.
Robert compares how, in the past, people needed physical things like factories or land to become rich, but now knowledge and information can lead to wealth.
He points out that people can now access information from anywhere, showing how connected the world has become. This easy access to information can make someone very rich.
However, Robert also says that wrong or outdated information can harm people financially. Many people struggle because they hold on to old ideas, like thinking a good education or owning land is the key to wealth.
He gives examples like the creators of MySpace and YouTube, who used information and technology to become billionaires, proving that wealth today comes from smart information, not physical resources.
