Born in Camden, South Carolina, Bernard Mannes Baruch (1870–1965) became a self-made millionaire by the age of 30. With keen instincts and fearless strategy, he rose from office boy to Wall Street legend in just seven years.

“I will never be an old man,” he quipped. “To me, old age is always fifteen years older than I am.”

Baruch’s financial brilliance and steady character led to his service as an advisor to U.S. presidents from Woodrow Wilson to John F. Kennedy. He helped guide the nation through war, recovery, and technological upheaval.

“Millions saw the apple fall,” he once observed. “But Newton was the one who asked why.”

Appointed chairman of Wilson’s War Industries Board in 1918, he later aided FDR in shaping the National Industrial Recovery Act during the Great Depression, and in 1946 led a global proposal for atomic energy control at the United Nations.

“Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best,” he advised—a reflection of the steady compass he lived by.

“During my eighty-seven years,” he reflected, “I have witnessed a whole succession of technological revolutions. But none of them has done away with the need for character in the individual or the ability to think.”