Why this retired tech exec turned founder still works 14-hour days
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Bill Harris has led some of the biggest names in financial technology. He was the CEO of PayPal and Intuit. Today, at age 69, he is still building companies.
Harris now runs Evergreen Wealth, a registered investment advisory firm based in Miami Beach. He lives alone in a modest 1,200-square-foot cottage, bikes to work, and uses handwritten index cards to stay organized. He does not own a car or a television, avoids social media, and regularly takes naps in a cot inside his office closet.
“Simplicity is remarkably liberating,” Harris said.
Although he could have retired years ago, Harris says his current role is the most intellectually engaging of his life. If he ever does step back from work, he plans to enroll at the University of Cambridge as a student. For now, he continues to put in full days of work with the energy of someone half his age.
Mornings without machines
Harris wakes naturally each day around 6:30 a.m. He does not use an alarm clock, preferring to rise when his body is ready. He avoids screens unless something urgent requires his attention. Instead, he spends the first part of his morning completing small, manual tasks such as preparing his gear and checking his bike tires.
These simple actions create space for deeper thought. “Something happens first thing in the morning, where all the unraveled pieces of information from the night before feel ready to be integrated.” Harris said. “It’s a remarkably productive period of time for me to find clarity, think broadly, and process.”
He skips breakfast and waits to shower until he arrives at his office. His commute is a 30-minute bike ride along the coast, which also serves as time to reflect.
By 7:30 or 8 a.m., he is at his desk and working. Meetings begin around 9:30 a.m., but until then, Harris focuses on deep work such as writing, building spreadsheets, or preparing presentations.
His organizational system is analog. He writes down tasks, ideas, reminders, and even small diagrams on index cards. “It is fast, flexible and way for me to stay organized,” he said.
Naps and flexibility over rigid schedules
Harris describes his work ethic as driven by enthusiasm rather than discipline. He does not follow a strict schedule, although he works long hours. Instead, he allows himself to follow his natural rhythms of energy and focus.
When his energy dips in the afternoon, Harris often takes a nap. He keeps a cot in his office closet and sometimes cancels meetings to lie down for 30 to 60 minutes. “I do not set an alarm,” he said. “I just let my body decide when to wake up.”
Colleagues know about the naps. He once left a Post-it note on the door that read, “The old man is sleeping.” He says he wakes up refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the day.
Harris does not consume caffeine. Instead, he relies on sleep and nutrition to manage his energy. Lunch, which is his first meal of the day, is often soup. It is easy to prepare and quick to eat. He drinks carbonated water from glass bottles, using a SodaStream to avoid plastic waste and microplastics.
Nights without distraction
After finishing work around 8 or 9 p.m., Harris bikes home and prepares dinner. He does not cook in the traditional sense. He has never turned on the oven in his home. Instead, he chops and combines simple ingredients like eggs, avocados, legumes, salmon, fruits, and vegetables. He avoids processed food whenever possible.
Dinner is usually accompanied by YouTube, his only form of media consumption. He does not use social media and does not own a television. His favorite content creators include Peter Zeihan on geopolitics, Sabine Hossenfelder on physics, Tim Miller on politics, and Lex Fridman on AI.
Sometimes, he reads before bed. More often, he returns to his index cards. He reviews the day’s notes and transfers any remaining items to a task list he maintains in Excel. That file now contains over 10,000 entries, compiled over many years.
“The size of the list is not intimidating,” he said. “It is a reassurance. If it is on the list, I know I have not lost track of it.”
He ends his day around 10 or 11 p.m., wearing an eye mask to block the morning light and allow his body to sleep until it is ready.
A different model for leadership
While Harris’s lifestyle might appear unconventional, it is increasingly familiar among leaders who reject over-scheduled lives in favor of simplicity and intentionality. But unlike many younger founders who preach productivity hacks, Harris brings a measured approach built on decades of experience.
His company, Evergreen Wealth, launched in 2023 and serves high-net-worth clients. The firm uses artificial intelligence to support its investment strategies, but Harris continues to value human decision-making and clear communication above automation.
He believes that simplicity, not speed, produces clarity. And clarity leads to better outcomes for clients and for his team.
Weekends are reserved for rest and recreation. Harris continues biking for at least an hour each day. He also goes out dancing, favoring live music sessions in genres ranging from jazz and rock to deep house. “I love the feeling of moving with other people to rhythm,” he said. “It reminds me why I still enjoy life so much.”
Despite his age, Harris has no plans to slow down. For him, productivity does not require rigid systems or constant digital connection. It requires purpose, attention, and the discipline to listen to the body when it needs rest.
He may no longer run billion-dollar companies, but his work today is no less meaningful. Harris still starts early, stays late, and finds time in between to recharge. The simplicity of his life is not a retreat from ambition. It is the foundation for his next success.
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