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Is Rags to Riches real?

ryjohn829

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I’m 17 years old (turning 18 in 2 weeks.) I live 15 miles north of Boston. In MJ’s books he brings up how all of us who can access clean water have it good. I’m not here to throw a potty potty bc I live in a relatively nice house with an in ground pool. All of this came before my dad died (age 6) AMD my mother became a raging alcoholic. Just a few days ago I was thrown out, I’m back now but things could get worse. I have no money so I’m going to start with getting a job. I Don’t want to be miserable like my mom. She works so hard and poisons herself for a paycheck. The world still feels so new to me. All of this is overwhelming. People telling me what to be and how to live. I’m really confused p. Can someone please share their experience of being a young entrepreneur? I have to live free. My dad died young, never getting to live out aloft his dreams. I want to live for me & him (my Why)
 
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sparechange

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Save up cash from a job and try to move out if you are in a toxic environment, sucks to hear about your situation (been there myself)

Look into creating some type of business that can create some cash flow for you and work your way up, lot's of people have overcame big odds. Check out the movie Pursuit of HappYness, it's a story about Chris Gardner a former homeless person that lived in a train station bathroom with his child and went on to become a success.
 

WabiSabi

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Take care of your health first. Start working out, 5x5 stronglifts, dump fast food, quit video games/ drugs/insta and start changing time wasting habits. Next, get a job, doesn't matter what it is but save as much as you can (80%+). Don't buy things unless you absolutely have to.

Bad home lives are brutal and can kill your mood and motivation. Don't let your family ruin your dreams, If your mom is physically/mentally abusive try to move out as soon as possible. You're going to need to become your own therapist and unlearn all the bad mental habits living with her taught you. Don't set her off, and work on yourself.

You've got tons of time, entrepreneurship can wait until you're in a stable environment. Be positive and start with the little things. Clean your room, get your finances in order, and think about what you want out of life.

Recommended reading -> Compound Effect, Awaken the Giant Within
 

SteveO

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I grew up poor in a very broken family. As a teenager, all I could imagine was working construction.

I was booted from high school at the age of 15 and then again at 16. My parents did not even know. My dad was gone and my mom was severely mentally ill.

I had jobs since i was 12. Moved out when i was 16. Couldn't really support myself on what i was making but made enough that people allowed me to stay with them for a bit of cash. This usually involved a couch. Sometimes I slept in my old piece of shit car.

At 17 my dad signed for me to join the marines. Got booted from there due to a lot of unfortunate incidents that happened.

Went into construction for a while, worked as a landscaper, auto mechanic.

Had my first child at 19.

Started my own landscape company at 19.

Got a job at hp working the midnight shift as a janitor and bailed on the landscape company. Moved around through different jobs at hp and kept advancing.

Met someone there that owned apartments. He made more from that than he did on his job.

So i went that direction. Within 3 years i quit my job. Was a multi millionaire within 5 years of starting this process.
 
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sparechange

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I grew up poor in a very broken family. As a teenager, all I could imagine was working construction.

I was booted from high school at the age of 15 and then again at 16. My parents did not even know. My dad was gone and my mom was severely mentally ill.

I had jobs since i was 12. Moved out when i was 16. Couldn't really support myself on what i was making but made enough that people allowed me to stay with them for a bit of cash. This usually involved a couch. Sometimes I slept in my old piece of shit car.

At 17 my dad signed for me to join the marines. Got booted from there due to a lot of unfortunate incidents that happened.

Went into construction for a while, worked as a landscaper, auto mechanic.

Had my first child at 19.

Started my own landscape company at 19.

Got a job at hp working the midnight shift as a janitor and bailed on the landscape company. Moved around through different jobs at hp and kept advancing.

Met someone there that owned apartments. He made more from that than he did on his job.

So i went that direction. Within 3 years i quit my job. Was a multi millionaire within 5 years of starting this process.

Holy crap what a story!
 

Bekit

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Welcome to the forum.

Sorry about the loss of your dad.

Here's a rags to riches story that might inspire you. This thread was recently posted to the forum.

 

LordGanon

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Your situation certainly isn't nice. In my case, my dad was the alcoholic, and he made our lives miserable. I certainly don't miss the beatings. My mother did move out when I was four, but...yeah, my father was...uuh...so that wasn't the end of it. Let's not get distracted.

Anyway, you gotta move out. So did I when I was 16. My first jobs were dogsitter/paperboy. But given your age, go for something that pays better, freelance coding for example. I'd strongly suggest you start reading books which teach you the nitty-gritty skills for running a company early. No more "How To Be A Millionaire By Thirty" stuff. It sure can put you in the right mindset, but these books lack applicable knowledge for day-to-day business.

Don't consume ANYTHING where some dude on YouTube teaches you to make a GAZILLION Dollars with his business model. If his business model actually would work and would be replicable and make so much money...then that would probably be what he'd be doing instead of making YouTube videos.

You're young. Switch industries often and learn about different trades. A job here, a job there, find out what you like and where you could find opportunities for business.

I wish you all the best. And maybe join Al-Anon or another self-help group for the families of alcoholics. The wounds (of neglect, maybe) inflicted will show sooner or later.
 

socaldude

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Here’s how I look at it.

Me and you both inhabit this little economic ecosystem. We both have the most powerful and valuable resource that is an input to production. It’s our mind.

Your mind is competing with other entrepreneurial minds in who can allocate resources the most efficiently and who can maximize utility the most. When you do this successfully, an abstract piece of paper called money finds its way into your hands.

Now, because some people know the power of this resource it’s the number one thing we have that has a target on its back. The government, media and academia wants to control it and manipulate it. Your upbringing destroys your self confidence and self image. And gives you zero tools to leverage this resource. It’s really no surprise.

Adam Smith in the Wealth of Nations touched on it a little bit and shoot even Karl Marx did in Das Kapital.

Focus on building your mind and it really makes no difference where you came from.
 
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Daemonyos

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I grew up poor in a very broken family. As a teenager, all I could imagine was working construction.

I was booted from high school at the age of 15 and then again at 16. My parents did not even know. My dad was gone and my mom was severely mentally ill.

I had jobs since i was 12. Moved out when i was 16. Couldn't really support myself on what i was making but made enough that people allowed me to stay with them for a bit of cash. This usually involved a couch. Sometimes I slept in my old piece of shit car.

At 17 my dad signed for me to join the marines. Got booted from there due to a lot of unfortunate incidents that happened.

Went into construction for a while, worked as a landscaper, auto mechanic.

Had my first child at 19.

Started my own landscape company at 19.

Got a job at hp working the midnight shift as a janitor and bailed on the landscape company. Moved around through different jobs at hp and kept advancing.

Met someone there that owned apartments. He made more from that than he did on his job.

So i went that direction. Within 3 years i quit my job. Was a multi millionaire within 5 years of starting this process.

Awesome story!
But wait a second, what process exactly?
How did you get there from being a janitor?
 

TheGreek

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I have read about some rags to riches stories. Sam Walton's biography is my favorite. So, it is real for some people. Sam had his wife to tell him what to do. He lived in small towns because of that and became the richest man in the world.
 

SteveO

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Awesome story!
But wait a second, what process exactly?
How did you get there from being a janitor?
At hp I was a nighttime assembler and janitor. Then I became an assistant in the research and development lab. Then I became a software specialist for the printed circuit board design group. Next step was a manager over about 30 techs and engineers, including a phd chemist.

The process was buying and selling apartments.
 
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ryjohn829

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Take care of your health first. Start working out, 5x5 stronglifts, dump fast food, quit video games/ drugs/insta and start changing time wasting habits. Next, get a job, doesn't matter what it is but save as much as you can (80%+). Don't buy things unless you absolutely have to.

Bad home lives are brutal and can kill your mood and motivation. Don't let your family ruin your dreams, If your mom is physically/mentally abusive try to move out as soon as possible. You're going to need to become your own therapist and unlearn all the bad mental habits living with her taught you. Don't set her off, and work on yourself.

You've got tons of time, entrepreneurship can wait until you're in a stable environment. Be positive and start with the little things. Clean your room, get your finances in order, and think about what you want out of life.

Recommended reading -> Compound Effect, Awaken the Giant Within
I’m already doing what I’m supposed to be doing. I’m healthy and physically fit.
It's like his third intro

Look what MJ posted on his profile. LOL
View attachment 34465
situations change
 

Stargazer

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I would have thought in the US you would have plenty of examples of impoverished people turning up and making it big.

Andrew Carnegie springs to mind.

Tiny cottage in Scotland where one main room was shared by two families, went to US with his family at the age of 12 and became the steel Tycoon dubbed The Richest Man in The World.

Dan
 

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