亿万富翁布恩•皮肯斯的发家史

Back when he was an oil drill worker in the 1950s, T. Boone Pickens earned just $5,000 annually. Fast-forward about eight IPOs and 15 corporate raids and takeovers later, and the 85-year-old is now worth about $950 million-down from $4 billion before the market collapsed in 2008 and losses in wind-energy investments. But he's not pinching pennies yet: 'I'm back trying to make another billion,' he tells us. Here's how he did it the first time around. -Jen Wieczner

在上世纪50年代当石油钻探工人的时候，布恩?皮肯斯(T. Boone Pickens)每年只赚5,000美元。历经8次首次公开募股(IPO)和15次公司狙击以及收购之后，这位现年85岁的老人的身家大约有9.5亿美元，低于市场在2008年崩盘、风能投资打了水漂前的40亿美元。但是他仍未开始精打细算过日子。他说，我又开始尝试再赚10亿美元。下面是他第一次发家的经历：

1. At the age of 10 in Oklahoma, agrees to mow his grandma's lawns but grossly underestimates their size. 'It was a very bad deal,' he says,'but she made me stick with it.'

1. 10岁，在俄克拉荷马州，他同意为奶奶修剪草坪，但大大低估了工作量。他说，这笔交易很糟糕，但是奶奶不许我反悔。

2. Starts delivering newspapers to 28 homes; acquires more routes and reaches 156 houses. 'From that point forward, I always had money in my pocket.'

2. 开始给28户家庭送报纸；随后获得更多路线，将业务拓展到156户家庭。他说，从这时候开始，我兜里总是有钱的。

3. Roughnecks on oil rigs (like on right), at age 16. Loses his $25-per-month college basketball scholarship but tutors for $1 an hour (for a C grade) up to $3 (for an A).

3. 16岁，在石油钻井平台当工人。虽然损失了每月25美元的大学篮球奖学金，但是做家教每小时可以赚到1美元（辅导成绩拿到C）至3美元（辅导成绩拿到A）。

4. Works for Phillips Petroleum on wildcat wells but then resigns just a few years later to strike out on his own.

4. 在Phillips Petroleum公司的初探井上工作，但是后来没几年就辞职自己干了。

5. Spends $2,500 in 1956 to start what becomes Mesa Petroleum (named after Texas area above). But blows two years, and $2 million, on a dry well. 'Every loss is a learning experience.'

5. 在1956年，花2,500美元开了一家公司――后来的Mesa Petroleum。但他在一口贫井上白白耗费了两年时间和200万美元。他说，吃一堑长一智。

6. Takes Mesa Petroleum public in 1964, then later merges with Hugoton Production Co., which is 20 times bigger. Runs the ship, but his stake sinks from 23% to 1.5%. 'For 20 years, I had no investment other than in the company,' he says. 'I bet on myself.'

6. 在1964年让Mesa Petroleum上市，后来与Hugoton Production Co.合并；后者的规模为前者的20倍。虽然他仍是掌舵人，但是持股比例从23%降至了1.5%。他说，在那20年中自己除了这家公司外别无任何投资，赌注都押在自己身上。

7. Starts acquisition spree, multiplying his company's revenues 15-fold, to nearly $200 million in four years, and discovers oil jackpot in the North Sea (above). Withdraws from Mesa, with his $78 million net worth, and founds energy-focused hedge fund BP Capital Management in 1997.

7. 开始大肆收购，四年内公司收入增长了14倍，至近2亿美元，然后在北海找到了石油大发现。退出Mesa，依托自己的7,800万美元净值，在1997年创立了专注于能源行业的对冲基金BP Capital Management。

8. Starts donating $1 billion, with some money going to universities (right) and hospitals. Sees wealth peak at about $4 billion in 2007.

8. 开始捐献10亿美元，一些资金捐给了大学和医院。财富在2007年膨胀到了大约40亿美元的顶点。

9. Loses half of his net worth during the financial crisis- leaving him around $1 billion then. 'I always feel like if I made a billion, I'll make two, three, five, whatever.'

9. 在金融危机期间净值损失了一半，剩下10亿美元左右。他说，我总是感觉如果自己赚到了10亿美元，未来就将赚到20亿、30亿、50亿什么的。

10. To the surprise of some, he becomes a poster boy for alternative energy, championing wind farms over old-fashioned oil. Now argues wind power only works if natural-gas costs soar. Otherwise, he adds, 'it puts you out of business.'

10. 令一些人感到惊讶的是，他变成了一个极度热衷替代能源的人，大力支持用风电场取代石油这种传统能源。现在他认为，只有天然气成本飙升，风电才能大行其道，否则它只会让你破产。