Boone Pickens enjoys giving money as much as making it

DALLAS - If you were to meet Boone Pickens, you would likely be impressed. Certainly not because he would try to impress you. It is just that he is bright, considerate, and articulate— a man who strikes me as having empathy for his fellow man. Mind you, I haven't been in his company for any length of time, but after a couple of brief encounters, I came away with a high regard for the richest man I ever shook hands with.

There once was a sign on the door of men's room at the Keeneland Race Track Press Box in Lexington, Kentucky, which read, "There never was a great man who did not sooner or later come to respect the reverence of his fellow man." You get the message, I am sure. I am sure, too, that Boone Pickens appreciates the logic of that bathroom prose. He didn't get to where he is without earning the respect of those with whom he has done business, great or small.

Outside his suite at the Oklahoma State University stadium, named for him, there is a photo of Pickens surrounded by a flock of OSU students. When he attends Cowboy football and basketball games, he finds time for students. "Older people," he says, "are often afraid of change. Young people are not, which is why I enjoy spending time with them. I like young people.

"It is important that we support educational institutions. From the beginning, I told Oklahoma State that one of the reasons I would make donations was that I wanted others, regardless of their wealth, to also contribute. It has caused others to contribute, which is very important," he told me.

There are many cogent messages to be revealed by this man, who has admitted that he enjoys making money but equally enjoys giving it away. After reading his book The First Billion is the Hardest, I decided to pay a visit to his headquarters. "Does his office staff call him Boone?" I asked Jay Rosser, his executive assistant. "Yes, and that is what he prefers," Jay replied. "Does he have time for his employees?" Jay's eyes began to light up. "He is never too busy to listen to any employee's concerns or suggestions. He invites his staff to bring him ideas. He embraces change and has said, 'If your plan is better than mine, I will step aside and defer to it.'" Employees are encouraged to take an hour each day to exercise in the company fitness facility. He usually caters lunch and enjoys conversation with the employees in a family atmosphere.

When his company enjoys a good year, Pickens is generous with bonuses. When he hands out bonus checks, he reminds his employees that bonuses for the next year will, again, be based on performance. Then he will add, "Be generous."

Talking with Boone Pickens and learning more about his plan for America to eliminate its dependency on foreign oil is illuminating. It is a simple fact, he says, that our insatiable appetite for oil means that in the immediate future, we are going to face a crisis that will be devastating if we don't find alternate sources of energy. He is a proponent of natural gas and wind energy but is open minded to all sources of energy— just get moving on a plan.

He likes to quote Jonathon Gatehouse who wrote in When the Oil Runs Out: "Starting in 2010, no later than 2020 or 2030, according to the latest vision of secular apocalypse, global oil supplies will peak, and the world will begin to unravel at the seams." Pickens asks the most logical of questions: "Why send trillions of dollars to people who don't like us?" If you write to Boone Pickens about his plan to limit America's dependence on foreign oil, he'll send you information that will convince you that time is of the essence.

I'm a fan of Boone Pickens and his logic. You have to believe in a man who, on a chair in his office, has a pillow bearing this message: "Be the person your dog thinks you are."