Meet Daniel Strauss, author of The Billionaire Mindset

THE BILLIONAIRE MINDSET is Daniel’s first book and one of his biggest aims is to change the mindset of enough people to enable a revival in the business world.

Daniel Strauss (38) is an entrepreneur and venture capitalist, who invests in small- and medium-sized enterprises with the aim of growing them into larger businesses at a rapid speed. He is both a macro-optimist and micro-realist. Passionate about wealth creation, he finds great joy in unlocking the full potential of people from different walks of life, especially those building businesses.

He is the Strauss in the investment holding company Stocks & Strauss an holds a B.Eng. (Industrial Engineering) and MBA from the University of Stellenbosch. As an MBA graduate, Daniel enjoys guest lecturing MBAs and other University students. Over the years, he has also attended various courses in places like China, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, which he describes as invaluable. It is also no secret that he considers mentorship an extremely important part of each aspect of a person’s life.

Daniel grew up with his parents and sister, Dr. Ledivia Strauss, in a small South African town called Keimoes. It is situated on the Orange River, about 40km from Upington and nearly 800km from Cape Town.  He matriculated at High School Keimoes and was a keen rugby player and athlete at university. He excelled at 110m hurdles in school and attended the South African championships. He was also the Dux scholar of his school.

He is married to Rolene Strauss, a former Miss South Africa and Miss World. They have two children and live in the Cape Winelands.  Daniel leads a busy but exciting life. His day could start out by lecturing a group of MBA students, followed by a visit to one of their portfolio companies to play a game of dominos with some of the factory workers before meeting with the CEO. He could also meet up with one of their wealthy investors, while receiving a call from a celebrity asking for advice. In the evening he and his wife could also be at a gala dinner, sharing a table with well-known personalities from the business world or the entertainment industry.

The fact that he mixes with people from all walks of life on a daily basis gives him a unique perspective. He is his own boss, but that was not always the case. Growing up, he was convinced the rich must be smarter or have skills or knowledge that other people cannot attain. But one day a chance meeting with a billionaire entrepreneur made him realise that they are “normal people” just like him. The difference is that those who went from penniless to rich, know how to “Think Above The Line”.  They have the mindset of a billionaire.

THE BILLIONAIRE MINDSET is Daniel’s first book and one of his biggest aims is to change the mindset of enough people to enable a revival in the business world.

The book is published by Tafelberg, an imprint of NB Publishers (www.nb.co.za) and is available in all bookstores and online from 26 February 2021.