David Rubenstein: We took $5M and turned it into $500B

0:00I raised $5 million from four investors in 1987.

0:03Today, Carlisle manages not $5 million, but $500 billion.

0:07How old were you then when you started Carlisle?

0:0937.

0:09I said, geez, if I don't do it now, I'll never do it.

0:11Do you have any habits that you think would shock people?

0:14I always view myself as being from a blue-collar family in Baltimore.

0:17But even like in the year 10, you weren't thinking like, all right, I can breathe a little.

0:22This is going to work.

0:23I think I'm safe.

0:24No, because if you're an entrepreneur, you always think something bad's going to happen.

0:27You still feel that way?

0:28Every day.

0:2999.9% of the companies that started in the United States are not in business five years later.

0:34If you go back and look at anybody that built a company, they have self-confidence that is staggering.

0:39I met Jeff Bezos for the first time and he said, well, I'll give you 20% of the company that I'm about to build.

0:43Later, after the company was going somewhere, I said, we should have taken that deal.

0:46That was stupid.

0:47That stock's probably worth $14 billion now.

0:49Can I ask you about seeing people get power?

0:52Well.

0:54I feel like I can rule the world.

0:55I know I could be what I want to.

0:58I put my own in it like a day zone.