Hobbies of the rich and successful

If money was no object, what would you do for fun or to unwind? Let’s take a look at the top 10 hobbies of the rich and successful.

Skiing

One of the most iconic pastimes for the business elite is skiing. From big tech CEOs to cosmetic entrepreneurs, the slopes are a favourite winter getaway. Even the royal houses of Europe don’t forget to schedule in their annual ski trip. Australian businessman, James Packer actually owned Australia’s biggest ski resort, Perisher, before selling it to the US-based company Vail in 2015. It was also alleged that Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich loved skiing so much that he made enquiries to buy the French ski resort of Courchevel.

Boating

When the snow finally melts, you’ll be able to find some of the same people cruising the blue waters of the Mediterranean. While media mogul and founder of CNN, Ted Turner prefers the more classic version of sailing, you’ll find most other successful business people tucked away in a cove on their private super yachts. Roberto Cavalli, Calvin Klein and Giorgio Armani are just a few names that travel in such fashion. Even the late Steve Jobs had a super yacht commissioned that is entirely powered by iMacs. Unfortunately for Jobs, he never got to sail on his dream yacht called Venus, which has an estimated value of US$120 million.

Golf

Not just for the rich and famous, golf is a hobby enjoyed by all. It’s a chance to get away from the stresses of life, get some fresh air and work on your swing. The beauty of golf is that can be played by people of all ages. For business people, it’s often used as a networking opportunity and a way to build report with others. You’ll catch everyone from Bill Gates to Michael Jordan on the greens… and hopefully not in a sand trap!

Sports teams

Why collect cards, when you can collect players? More so for the clout than the money, many famous business people around the world end up buying their favourite sports teams. Russian business tycoon, Roman Abramovich bought the English based Chelsea Football Club in 2003 for £60 million. Another high-profile example is the former Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, who bought the LA Clippers basketball team in 2014 for a then record sum of US$2 billion. We guess that’s one way to make the team!

Cars

Having a flashy car is almost synonymous with success. For some it’s more than just a car, it’s a passion. Among many, fashion mogul, Ralph Lauren is an avid car collector. He owns more than 60 cars in total, including Ferraris, Bugattis, Bentleys, Jaguars and McLaren F1 sports cars – most of which are in the colour red. Some car lovers have taken it one step further such as Paul Newman, who co-founded the highly successful Newman/Haas Indy Car race team.

Health and exercise

Maintaining a healthy body helps to balance the mind. Therefore, it’s no secret that business leaders have their own health routines. Mark Cuban does an hour of cardio a day. Opera Winfrey does yoga. Joe Rogan, the famous podcaster goes to the gym and practices martial arts daily. Even Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg goes for a run three times a week. “I make sure I work out at least three times a week — usually first thing when I wake up. I also try to take my dog running whenever I can, which has the added bonus of being hilarious because it’s basically like seeing a mop run,” Zuckerberg said in a recent interview.

Politics

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you would have seen business billionaire Donald Trump leading the free world as President of the United States over the last four years. This full-time hobby or lust for power among business leaders is nothing new. In fact, it’s quite common all around the world. Other notable business people turned politicians include, Silvio Berlusconi (Italy), Vijay Mallya (India), Clive Palmer (Australia), Saad-eddine Rafic Al-Hariri (Lebanon), Sebastián Piñera (Chile), and how could forget the ‘Governator of California’, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Art

Collecting of art is a way to visually acknowlege your success in business. It is a symbol of luxury and wealth. French billionaire and founder of The Kering Group, Francois Pinault is one of many business tycoons to collect art. In his business career, Pinault owned the likes of Gucci, Alexander McQueen, Converse and Château Latour. When it comes to art, it is said that he has one of the largest private collections in the world. Even Microsoft owns a Picasso in their 5,000 rich collection of fine and modern art.

Flight

From Howard Hughes to Steve Bezos, the art of flight has been a hobby of famous business people since the dawn of modern aviation. American businessman and Aviation Hall of Famer, Steve Fossett lost his life while flying. Richard Branson clung on for dear life in a near death incident while attempting to circumnavigate the world in a hot air balloon. But now there is a new frontier: the space race! We are now living at a time where the likes of business magnates Richard Branson, Steve Bezos and Elon Musk are in a race to fly to space and beyond. It’s an expensive and dangerous hobby that could lead to the transformation of human society as we know it.

Philanthropy

According to a report from the market research company, Wealth-X, philanthropy has come out at the most popular hobby of high-end business people with a net worth of US$30 million or more. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have for a long time devoted large fortunes towards charitable activities. In 2006, Buffett made a pledge to give away most of his fortune to philanthropy. Last month the 90-year-old gave away a further $US4.1 billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.