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SUCCESS STORY - Cantwait2

A detailed account of a Fastlane process...

Mike351

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I was one of those "easy way out disney Goofy chuckle kind a guys" always seeing the end result and not researching their process....TMF , book and Forum opened my eyes, and that lead to wanting to know even more entrepreneurs multiple failures and start ups via books and the internet...it was then I realized that if I am to one day join the same club, I better start getting off my a$$ and doing enduring some more failures and hardships of my own. Ill never forget the feeling of "ohhh he has done it whats his dot point EXACT map and chart of how he did it!!!" When I hear of others success...Even if I am not successful at the moment I am disgusted by the feelings of "The Easy Way Out" that I used to get and seeing it in others when they ask successful people "come on man just freakin tell me your exact steps dammit!!!" That feeling of hope like "sweet hes/she has done all the hard work for me" I am ashamed for how I used to get my hopes up like that. Only horrible people "hope" for the lazy fast success without working and sacrificing their a$$ off for it...

Like Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson said

Tom: I want the truth!!!!

Jack: You can't handle the truth!!!

I show friends the link to these threads and they are all wide eyed and excited like some magic bullet is going to fall into their hands...they then scrunch up their noses and say "man that sounds like a lot of work..." well no Sh1t Sherlock!!!!! I sometimes wonder if I have gone mad staring at those books on my bookshelf calling them my "mentors" and the contact with friends that go out a lot less and less...dribbling on a bit here but this story I instantly said "yeah this guy is as fastlane as a fighter jet flying over the highway..." all the traits are there..all the failures are there...definitely inspiring in terms of living in the same country (Australia)....if anyone doesn't get inspired by what he posted let alone MJs book, they are dead inside. And probably belong at Wendy's scrubbing the grill and cursing "those damn rich people" . So thank you all for the inspiration especially the creator of the forum, TMF and this bloke among many others Duncan Bannatyne and pretty much any entrepreneur you can think of as most were self made with nothing more than belief in their heart and the desire to change their lives because sh1t just wasn't working out. Unfortunately there are too many who are complacent with sh1t not working out...those are the ones who can't handle the truth.
 
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rivertucky

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The persistence in the OP's story is awesome, it seemed to turn good relatively quick. Not sure if I correctly caught the timeline of that section.
Either way, well worth the read!
 

Fatal Jay

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It took me awhile to read this but once I got closer to the end it blew my mind and at age 28 a year younger then me. This was very much inspirational. I find that with all true success stories their are always a test of misery, pain, frustration and feeling of giving it up. I learned all who fought past it all was rewarded.
 
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Dwight Schrute

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I remember reading 2 threads before my registration here on this forum:

One was about someone dreaming of a bugatti.
The other one is worth a bump.

Too good to not be on the front page, screenplay material.
 

Supa

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Wow, this story gave me goosepumps and made me speechless.. Thanks @Dwight Schrute for getting it back to the front page!

That was just incredible, those threads are the ones that would deserve PLATINUM tag and every new user should read it.
 

Eldi4n

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That was just incredible, those threads are the ones that would deserve PLATINUM tag and every new user should read it.
Agree.. this is a fantastic story, full of valuable lessons.
A "never give up" hymn.
Really, Really inspiring!
 
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KeepGoin

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Not letting comfort make you complacent, just a badass story
 
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Shabeer

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Lesson, #8 – Appreciate now.

Well it’s coming up to 15 months since we landed back on New Zealand’s pristine shores. What can I say it’s been one hell of a ride. The business has continued to thrive, we have expanded and now trade in New Zealand as well as Australia. The key appointments I made in Australia have proved to be the lynch pin holding the delicate process of running a new company from afar together. We are now strong enough to continue uninterrupted even if those personnel were to break away.

Based on the 100 fastest growing companies published in Australia, we would rank in the top 20 which gives me a real sense of satisfaction.

I have kept true to my original business criteria and that is to maintain low overheads and startup costs, have a highly automated business that is easily scalable. The local version of Ebay here in New Zealand sold for $700m and they only had 50 staff. This is where I envision taking our group of companies. By industry standards which are in line with where I would value our company, puts its value in the 8 figures range, I will continue to chase that ninth digit.

We purchased what I think is an amazing $2m home on the water in a nice secluded area where we can enjoy all the trappings and space. I’ve been fortunate enough of course to realise a childhood dream and purchase a Lamborghini Murcielago with cash, flat to stack - paper pride. I have stayed away from finance as a personal preference after feeling the crippling weight of debt in the past. We still choose to live a relatively conservative lifestyle financially, and I still squirrel away money as a back up although it’s no longer six figures but seven.

The freedom to be able to live without the worry of money troubles has been a really great feeling, being able to help close family when their backs are against the wall. I am still with my girl and we will chalk up 10 years in June, that’s right let’s hear it…ooorrrrrrr

This has all been an amazing reward and I never lose the intensity of satisfaction or appreciation for this new lifestyle we can afford ourselves. I still on occasion just as I did from the day we moved in, stand in the middle of our home and without consciously preempting the action just put both my arms in the air as my own moment of victory.

Since being able to live a more financially abundant life I have found myself realising that money alone isn’t the holy grail that we sometimes think it is when we don’t have it. I guess it’s the fact that when we don’t have it and things in our lives aren’t going well it can easily turn into this perceived missing link that “if only we had money everything would be okâ€.

I’ve started to look around me and really notice that our quality of life is all relative. I encourage you to watch what I think is an amazing movie, it’s called The Castle and is a low budget Australian film. It’s about a guy who lives in a very small house right next to the airport, the planes land almost on his roof, it would be fair to say they are a basic family with a modest home.

This guy is just the happiest guy on earth, he loves his home and his family and nothing bothers him. Then on the other hand I see extremely wealthy businessmen and successful actors and performers who are miserable. One of the most successful stock brokers in Australia Renee Rifkin committed suicide when I was living in Australia. They have all the money they could spend and this is where they are. If the Father from the castle and any one of these extremely wealthy people died tomorrow and arrived at the pearly gates of heaven, who would have lived the most enjoyable, satisfying and fulfilling life?

I believe the key to our maintained enjoyment of life is our gratitude and appreciation for what we have, both possessions and relationships. I try to remember the past so I can appreciate the now and look forward to the future. Every time I drive my Murci I get a rush from every angle, the amazing rush from the car itself, the intense satisfaction of my journey to acquire it and the feeling of pride to be seen in it. I never want to lose that because that is the heart of my enjoyment, if I lose any of those elements I start to lose what is to me the real life value of the car, it then just becomes a car that sits in the garage that I show people and then try and desperately feed off their excitement hoping to regain what I once had but lost.

I’m not wanting to preach some self titled eternal wisdom here, this is just my final lesson in this stage of my life and if you’ve found value in my journey to this point I simply make the assumption that you may too find value in the distinctions I’ve made since achieving a degree of wealth. I’m sure everyone takes a different view of the world this is just mine.

I’m still relatively young at 28 years and certainly don’t have all the answers but maybe I have some. Be assured I’ve always got a lot more questions than I do answers. I’m happy to follow those that can teach and lead those that can listen.

I guess the point of where I’m going with this is that not everyone can be wealthy in a financial sense, but everyone can live an equally fulfilling, happy and enjoyable life.

Because people don’t have money I believe they don’t concentrate on being happy because they think that if they had money they would automatically live happily ever after and thus live their life on lotto tickets and if only’s.

But don’t get me wrong, wealth is a legitimate and worthy goal to pursue, and if you want it bad enough you will find it in even the darkest corners of hardship. Just don’t let it be a condition on your right to enjoy life now, because that is a right I believe we are all inherently bestowed.

I must also say thank you for your interest in my story. It has helped me recapture the focus that brought me to this point and I am excited to harness that again in the new chapters and the new lessons of my life. Of course everything till now has simply been an apprenticeship for me, it now gives me credibility in the business world, on the world stage of business I have only just begun, it is 9am on the Monday morning of potential and let me tell you that this is a working week I’ve been looking forward to all my life.

I’ve enjoyed the road to this point and every experience really has been a lesson in one form or another, I’m happy to help people with advise based on my experiences if someone asks me for it. I don’t often mention stories from where I have come, to be honest when people ask me what they need to do to achieve wealth, I sometimes wonder if they are really ready for the answer.

So now when I pull up in my Murcielago at a restaurant or café or even just to get gas and someone says with hope in their voice, “how can you afford that?â€

I just smile and with a curious smirk politely reply “where would I begin?â€

When looking back I have to admit that it isn’t a course of events that I would want to repeat anytime soon, but it’s an initiation than many of us will have to complete. I believe there is a natural law of selection when it comes to opening the treasure chest, while others can give you a map, everyone must go in search of their own key.

Wow... You're amazing man, I'm so happy for you and your girl. Honestly, I teared up when I read the part where you mention your $2 million home, and lamborghini. So much wisdom and knowledge in this post. I'd love to chat with you if possible, and hopefully one day, meet you in person and crack open a beer together. Enjoy what you've earned. :)
 

BrooklynHustle

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One decade later, this is still an amazing & inspiring story! Loved every last bit...

Lesson, #8 – Appreciate now.

Well it’s coming up to 15 months since we landed back on New Zealand’s pristine shores. What can I say it’s been one hell of a ride. The business has continued to thrive, we have expanded and now trade in New Zealand as well as Australia. The key appointments I made in Australia have proved to be the lynch pin holding the delicate process of running a new company from afar together. We are now strong enough to continue uninterrupted even if those personnel were to break away.

Based on the 100 fastest growing companies published in Australia, we would rank in the top 20 which gives me a real sense of satisfaction.

I have kept true to my original business criteria and that is to maintain low overheads and startup costs, have a highly automated business that is easily scalable. The local version of Ebay here in New Zealand sold for $700m and they only had 50 staff. This is where I envision taking our group of companies. By industry standards which are in line with where I would value our company, puts its value in the 8 figures range, I will continue to chase that ninth digit.

We purchased what I think is an amazing $2m home on the water in a nice secluded area where we can enjoy all the trappings and space. I’ve been fortunate enough of course to realise a childhood dream and purchase a Lamborghini Murcielago with cash, flat to stack - paper pride. I have stayed away from finance as a personal preference after feeling the crippling weight of debt in the past. We still choose to live a relatively conservative lifestyle financially, and I still squirrel away money as a back up although it’s no longer six figures but seven.

The freedom to be able to live without the worry of money troubles has been a really great feeling, being able to help close family when their backs are against the wall. I am still with my girl and we will chalk up 10 years in June, that’s right let’s hear it…ooorrrrrrr

This has all been an amazing reward and I never lose the intensity of satisfaction or appreciation for this new lifestyle we can afford ourselves. I still on occasion just as I did from the day we moved in, stand in the middle of our home and without consciously preempting the action just put both my arms in the air as my own moment of victory.

Since being able to live a more financially abundant life I have found myself realising that money alone isn’t the holy grail that we sometimes think it is when we don’t have it. I guess it’s the fact that when we don’t have it and things in our lives aren’t going well it can easily turn into this perceived missing link that “if only we had money everything would be okâ€.

I’ve started to look around me and really notice that our quality of life is all relative. I encourage you to watch what I think is an amazing movie, it’s called The Castle and is a low budget Australian film. It’s about a guy who lives in a very small house right next to the airport, the planes land almost on his roof, it would be fair to say they are a basic family with a modest home.

This guy is just the happiest guy on earth, he loves his home and his family and nothing bothers him. Then on the other hand I see extremely wealthy businessmen and successful actors and performers who are miserable. One of the most successful stock brokers in Australia Renee Rifkin committed suicide when I was living in Australia. They have all the money they could spend and this is where they are. If the Father from the castle and any one of these extremely wealthy people died tomorrow and arrived at the pearly gates of heaven, who would have lived the most enjoyable, satisfying and fulfilling life?

I believe the key to our maintained enjoyment of life is our gratitude and appreciation for what we have, both possessions and relationships. I try to remember the past so I can appreciate the now and look forward to the future. Every time I drive my Murci I get a rush from every angle, the amazing rush from the car itself, the intense satisfaction of my journey to acquire it and the feeling of pride to be seen in it. I never want to lose that because that is the heart of my enjoyment, if I lose any of those elements I start to lose what is to me the real life value of the car, it then just becomes a car that sits in the garage that I show people and then try and desperately feed off their excitement hoping to regain what I once had but lost.

I’m not wanting to preach some self titled eternal wisdom here, this is just my final lesson in this stage of my life and if you’ve found value in my journey to this point I simply make the assumption that you may too find value in the distinctions I’ve made since achieving a degree of wealth. I’m sure everyone takes a different view of the world this is just mine.

I’m still relatively young at 28 years and certainly don’t have all the answers but maybe I have some. Be assured I’ve always got a lot more questions than I do answers. I’m happy to follow those that can teach and lead those that can listen.

I guess the point of where I’m going with this is that not everyone can be wealthy in a financial sense, but everyone can live an equally fulfilling, happy and enjoyable life.

Because people don’t have money I believe they don’t concentrate on being happy because they think that if they had money they would automatically live happily ever after and thus live their life on lotto tickets and if only’s.

But don’t get me wrong, wealth is a legitimate and worthy goal to pursue, and if you want it bad enough you will find it in even the darkest corners of hardship. Just don’t let it be a condition on your right to enjoy life now, because that is a right I believe we are all inherently bestowed.

I must also say thank you for your interest in my story. It has helped me recapture the focus that brought me to this point and I am excited to harness that again in the new chapters and the new lessons of my life. Of course everything till now has simply been an apprenticeship for me, it now gives me credibility in the business world, on the world stage of business I have only just begun, it is 9am on the Monday morning of potential and let me tell you that this is a working week I’ve been looking forward to all my life.

I’ve enjoyed the road to this point and every experience really has been a lesson in one form or another, I’m happy to help people with advise based on my experiences if someone asks me for it. I don’t often mention stories from where I have come, to be honest when people ask me what they need to do to achieve wealth, I sometimes wonder if they are really ready for the answer.

So now when I pull up in my Murcielago at a restaurant or café or even just to get gas and someone says with hope in their voice, “how can you afford that?â€

I just smile and with a curious smirk politely reply “where would I begin?â€

When looking back I have to admit that it isn’t a course of events that I would want to repeat anytime soon, but it’s an initiation than many of us will have to complete. I believe there is a natural law of selection when it comes to opening the treasure chest, while others can give you a map, everyone must go in search of their own key.
 

Lionhearted

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I totally understand his adversion to the question of "How Can I Afford That?" question when driving around in his Murci. Just yesterday at the gas station I had some guy pull up to me and ask "What team do you play for?" (I came from the gym and probably looked like an athlete). I responded I didn't play pro sports.

He retorted back with "What do I have to do to get one of those!?" The question is so loaded and most people don't have a clue. I was kind and told him I was an internet entrepreneur. But the reality is, if I told him EXACTLY what to do, he wouldn't do it as most people can't survive the hardships like those described above. It really is a question that exposes human nature as CantWait2 stated "Have you found the easy way to riches, and if so, can you tell me!?" I can see being offended.

The path of least resistance is most taken.
Let me add. "The path of least resistance is the most taken and offers the least reward."
 
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ALC

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Great story ! patience, persistence and hustle!
 

GravyBoat

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Still the best thread on this forum. RIP CantWait2
 
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andrewsyc

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Thank you very much for your truly inspirational story Cantwait2.

I read the entire thing and I can't thank you enough for laying it all out there. I myself am 18 years old and I too have the largest aspirations for life out of anyone I know. I don't hope, but I do KNOW that someday I will be able to look back and tell my story like you told yours.

Thank you so much again for sharing. It was truly an amazing story.

-Alexander

Over 10 years later it's already far and above playing out.


Quick side note, I could of sworn I heard a story on a podcast very similar to cantwait2...
I think it was mixergy? The age, location, value were identical and I listened to it back in 2009-2011 or so the recording.

Nearly 12 years later, here's a bump :)
 

TheRedShaman

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The below is one of my favourite passages of writing. I felt I could relate closely to it and I was taking a lot of inspiration from its message. I thought I’d share it as you may take something from it also…I don’t want to get all soft and philosophical but I think it’s a good enough passage to risk it on this occasion as it relates closely to these lessons. I don’t know who wrote it, I wish I could say it was me.


Man is made or unmade by himself.
In the armory of thought he forges the weapons by which he destroys himself, he also fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy, strength and peace.
By the right choice and the true appreciation of thought, man ascends to divine perfection. By the abuse and wrong application of thought he descends below the level of the beast. Between these two are all the grades of character, and man is their maker and master.
Of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the soul, none is more gladning nor fruitful of divine promise and confidence than this: That man is the master of thought, the molder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environment and destiny…



Lesson 5: To achieve, first begin.

Coming from the Netherlands where temperatures were maxing out at 6 degrees C, Brisbane was a nice change with consistent high 20’s and low 30’s.

I had organised for an old friend of mine to pick us up from the airport and he was nice enough to put us up until we were able to find work. We were focused now on getting back on track so the day after arriving we were both on the trains and working the agencies and applying for all the roles we could. I could legally work in Australia with no restrictions and could dismiss my overseas period as a holiday so given my previous experience I was confident to find a good job quite quickly with the strength of my resume.

The problem I kept running into was the length of the recruitment process for the roles I was applying for. First the applications were normally open for a month, then the recruitment company would conduct there preliminary interviews and then refer their short list to the client who would conduct the final interviews. If you made it to their final call back list, you then went through all their additional physcological testing etc etc and then they would make their decision, I could be waiting at least 2 months to hear if I had the job and we didn’t have two months…we were living on our last dollars and needed work yesterday.

We moved out of my friends house and into a shared flatting arrangement with two other people, they were nice people and it worked in well because we were able to share their furniture and cutlery etc as we didn’t have any of our own furniture just a suitcase and an inflatable air mattress.

We had been chasing jobs for a couple of weeks and I was getting knocked back from some pretty basic jobs, given my previous roles they just couldn’t accept that I would stay with them for any length of time so would dismiss my resume. Things were starting to get desperate. We were literally down to about $20, we had found a cheap fruit and vege shop which sold $1 loafs of bread and $0.50c packets of pasta. This is what we were living on but now we were even running out of loose change for these basics.

I’ll never forget when after another day of job hunting, my girl had managed to secure a temp assignment in a milk factory on a production line, the type of job they advertise on the “stay in school†ads. Even so it was like winning lotto, we were literally bursting with excitement, we were jumping around like a couple in one of those strange celebratory Russian folk dances, it was a real high, the first natural one I’d had in a while.

A few days later and she received her first part weeks pay, my God what a relief. We walked down to the supermarket and were actually able to buy meat, we brought half a dozen bags of groceries and were acting as if we were the king and queen of Babalon with more money than a small country. We went through the checkout and proudly paid with our new found riches.

We were saying very little to each other when we left the supermarket, just walking in a weird kind of silence, maybe we were both rolling back the last months to this point trying to draw some meaning from them…I know that’s what I was doing. We made our way through the parking lot and across the road, we each had a few bags and for a couple of moments just sat on a nearby brick fence, still saying nothing just blindly staring back at the supermarket and the cars racing buy in front of us…it was a really emotional moment and my girl quietly started to cry, the type of tears where you want to hold them in and be strong but the emotion is simply too much and they just start to flow...I had just court a bit of dust in my eyes so any passers by probably thought I was crying too. Even typing this now brings back the clarity of that moment and the emotion that surrounded it. Total Relief.

I knew that sending my resume was getting me nowhere so I started calling the managers advertising the roles and trying to sell myself straight into the interview, eventually I struck it lucky with another large FMCG company who was looking for a delivery driver, they invited me in for an interview the following day. The Manager I met was a really nice lady and we had an instant repore, once we had finished the interview she said “look, I think this has been very positive and if you wouldn’t mind I’d like you to meet our state managerâ€.

Obviously I had no objection and she led me to another office down the hall. I waited and a few moments later they both returned, we exchanged pleasantries and he began to flip through my resume…â€hmmm†he’d say nodding his head as he flipped back and forth through the pages. I didn’t really know whether this was good or bad but then he calmly looked up and said “What are you doing here?â€,
I replied “I’m not sure I understandâ€â€¦

â€You should be in my seat, it doesn’t make any sense, are you fully aware of the role we are hiring for?â€

“Yes sir, I would just rather prove myself in any capacity you have available and I’m sure if I do that well and something more senior comes available then you’ll consider me for itâ€. I was confident that was the best answer as “well actually I’m totally broke and currently living on bread and pasta I’d probably polish your shoes for a fiver if you asked me†may have come across a little desperate.

They agreed to give me the job on the spot and took me outside to show me what I would be driving to make the deliveries. Damb it was a good sized truck, I may not be able to go through the McD’s drive through but it was going to be transport and that was a huge bonus. I took the truck home and while strictly meant to be for work use only, my manager eventually worked out what I was doing and chose to ignore it, I thank her for that.

$527 a week. When that first payment hit my account I felt like a new man. I was back in the game…we had money coming in and food in our stomachs…It was funny, I’d never been so poor but I felt good, we’d pulled ourselves up off the ground and I could start to see a little break of light. I drew up a budget on how much money I could put towards my debts and now knew exactly how long it was going to take to pay them off.
We were on the rails and now I was ready to raise the bar…It was time to bring back the dream of starting a business but this time it wouldn’t just be a dream…


It simply had to meet these criteria…
1/ require no money to set up.
2/ require no staff other than myself
3/ require no connections, friends, or family to assist (because I only new one person in Australia)
Ok, I then thought to myself…I might need a few days on this one…

I started coming up with lots of different business ideas and going to the library to use their computers to research them on the internet. I was looking mainly at online businesses as they would require the least start up money. In the real world I was looking at possibly being a freelance sales person and finding a really good product and negotiating distribution rights in exchange for selling the product.

I was also looking at utilising my corporate history to contract my services to companies in order to run sales incentive strategies.

All could potentially meet my very restricted criteria. I eventually decided to sell a set of quality products on behalf of their manufacturer, I would not need to hold the stock I would simply promote and sell them and they would drop ship them to my customers. I wrote a business plan and I was ready to take the next step.

I needed a website and a computer, my only hold back was I didn’t have any money. By presenting myself in the right way I managed to commission the building of the site I had designed with no money down. I figured buy the time the site was finished I would be able to save enough money to pay for it, well that’s what I hoped. When asking myself how I was going to afford a computer it came to me in a moment of clarity…I had been given $500 of shares from each of my parents for my 21st birthday which I had totally forgotten about. I quickly sold them and was able to by my computer…oorrrh yeah things were starting to hot up.

The total cost of the website was $1100 and by the time it was finished I had saved the money to pay for it in full, it meant slowing the speed at which I was repaying my debts but I thought it was for the greater good. I won an incentive prize at my work which gave me a $350 voucher to a department store which was great timing because I could now get a small computer desk.

So there I was sitting in front of my computer, looking at my website...watching...watching...waiting....hello....is this thing on.....anybody out there?
...now what?
So I guess it’s not that easy…it was time to get serious...



<posts between chapters>
You've got to respect the fact that almost all people who have reasonable wealth have there own story which will often involve a huge amount of tough times, hard work and sacrifice.
When people come along and ask “What do you do?†or “I must be in the wrong business†bla bla it’s almost insulting because they without realising it are trivialising your achievement. They think that you have just stumbeled across the next mouse trap, the fact is it’s not what you do most of the time, it’s how you do it and what you’ve done.
If you have a good body the first question a lot of people ask you is, what roids are you on? Same thing…
The fact is while they were scratching their balls lying in bed for the past 3 years, your balls were sweating while you were pushing weights at the gym at 6am in the morning.
People’s what do you do questions are often translated to “I’m looking for an easy way, have you found it, if so what is it†That’s why I don’t think many people like those questions…my 2c anyway
<end of posts between chapters>



Lesson #6 – Self Belief

I was starting my delivery runs at 5am and working as fast as I could to be back at home with my full days work completed by 11am. I’d then knuckle down researching competition and trying to figure out how they were getting their business. I heard through the grapevine that one of my competitors was advertising in the TV guide on the Gold Coast…I thought to myself – if it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for me.

For the next 6-8 weeks I used every penny that was left from my paycheck after food and debt repayments to pay for this little ad, I had the phone number on an automatic divert to my company mobile so if I was driving my truck along the motorway and the phone rang I would pull over as fast as I could, turn the engine off, and answer the phone in my most professional voice, hoping they didn’t pick up on the traffic noise relentlessly hammering at the side of the truck.

I was getting calls and making a very small amount of sales but I was making no where near enough sales to pay for the ads I was placing. There had to be a better way, I was spending $200 to make $30, as nice as it was to make sales, it obviously made no sense. My next angle of attack was to try and spin the PR wheel…I had no experience dealing with the media and I was in no position to hire a PR firm, I did have a phone so it was time to start calling the newspapers and talking up these great products I was selling.

It was difficult to actually get through to the person who could make the decision and I seemed to be making no progress, I was about to chalk it up as a dead end when I got some interest from a local newspaper.

“Sounds interesting†this anonymous voice on the end of the phone murmured.

“I think it’s a story, I’ll have a photographer meet you tomorrow and we’ll run it†he said. I’m listening to every word attentively trying to play it cool while throwing my fist in the air several times while he’s ending the conversation.

The photographer meets me the following day and I’m all dressed up for the occasion, he does the shoot and we both leave. This was the break I had been waiting for, this newspaper goes out to approximately 1 million readers, photo and copy would be taking up at least a third of the page…I could smell the C-notes on there way.

The next morning while I was making my deliveries I had the most intense butterflies in my stomach, I couldn’t eat with anticipation, every petrol station or convenience store I drove past I would be staring in to see if the bundle of papers had been dropped outside. I didn’t have to wait long, on my second stop the delivery guy comes in and drops the bundle of papers on the floor. I’m hanging around like and annoying blow fly and convince the worker to cut the bundle tie and sell me a paper.

I grab the paper and still trying to play it cool walk to the truck trying not to break into a jog. I get in the truck and start whipping through the pages, my mouth is now totally dry with anxious excitement...then I spot it, there it is, I’m in the paper, the picture is much larger than I expected, and the story is longer than I thought it would be, the article is taking up just shy of half a page. I start reading the article out loud to myself ensuring I digest every word. It’s reading well and really getting behind the benefits of my products…money, money, money...this is my break, right in front of my face.I get to the last paragraph and then it ends. No mention of my company name, my phone number, website, nothing. Devastated.

The do it yourself PR campaign hadn’t quite set the world on fire like I had hoped, so I had to find another angle. I never thought starting a business would be this much of a battle.

Almost a year had past since arriving in Australia and I had now repaid all my debt.
Now that I was debt free I was looking at things in a different light, I really needed to concentrate on the business full time and to do that it was going to mean putting myself out on the edge once more, the business was far from generating enough money to house, cloth and feed us so I needed a better plan if I was going to give up my constant pay check. We were also approaching another hurdle, my lady was on a work permit in Australia and that was fast running out, she had already had the only possible extension. That would mean if I left my job I would have to support both of us and the business, it was a big ask and a decision that could break us before we even really started.

I decided to roll the dice, the way I saw it we had to give this everything we had, I just wasn’t prepared to stay where we were. I knew that once I left my job I would need transport and I had an idea on how we could spin it…before I resigned I utilised my work history and income to apply for a car loan, this was really pushing my buttons because after almost a year of paying off debt the thought of going back in was almost sickening. The fact that it could be sold again if necessary was my only consolation. All of my previous debts had been overseas luckily didn’t interfere with the approval process, I was given the thumbs up for my new car, well not exactly new, but a car nonetheless. We were now the owners of a ’94 Nissan Maxima, good reliable car.

With that done, I resigned from my delivery job. I was now feeling really exposed to the wrath of failure which had plagued me so much in recent years. I now didn’t have a job, I had car repayments, my lady had approximately 3 weeks left to work and the business was sitting there, to say it was ticking along would have been an over zealous exaggeration.

The internet just wasn’t working for me, I didn’t really know much about it, I had a website but it had been developed on a shoe string budget so was put together using frames. Basically what that means is the search engine can’t access the content of the pages so they largely ignore it, not that it really mattered because it wasn’t optimised to make a dam anyway.

....

Quite the read, I really valued these two lessons ( 5 and 6 ) the most from what you stated. More people need to believe in themselves, we are the future after all, what we do will impact the lives of generations of people who aren't even born yet. Beginning is literally half the battle, persistently making that choice every day is the second half.

Thank you for your post, hope to learn more from you.
Stay cool
 

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