They seem to just magically come out on top, one day appearing as a great success – but entrepreneurs come from all kinds of backgrounds. There’s no such thing as being an entrepreneur from birth, no one can biologically differentiate a successful person from a failure – it just doesn’t work that way. So if it’s not nature it’s got to be nurture that makes an entrepreneur… right? Incorrect; there’s no formula for the making of an entrepreneur; they come from all walks of life. We asked a few entrepreneurs where they came from, and this is what they said.
- Kathi Burns of AddSpaceToMyLife.com: Assistant to rich people – Kathi spent years of her life doing the “dirty work” for executives all so the people she was working for could get rich. One day Kathi took a good hard look at her life and realized she was devoting all of her skills to the advancement of someone else’s career. She knew that wasn’t what she wanted and started her own business – which now makes millions.
- Founder Pitchgrid.co.uk – Welsh Guards Infantry: The army might seem like an unlikely place to harbor the talents of a rising entrepreneur –but that doesn’t mean it can’t hold a few innovators. After spending 5 years in the infantry, the founder of PitchGrid saw an opportunity and took it. I guess when you realize how fragile life is; it makes you want to achieve great things.
- Neil Patel of CrazyEgg.com: Floater – Neil spent years trying every job and money-making technique he could think of before settling in to his current company where he enjoys a handsome income. Neil told us that one thing he does regret is trying too many things at once. However, after holding so many different jobs, he also realized that founding a business is the only sure-fire way to make a lot of money.
- Natalie Ledwell of Mind Movies: Drug Store Clerk – After dropping out of school, Natalie spent a year working the counter at a drug store. She hated it so much that she vowed to never return to a job she disliked. Fast forward a few years and Natalie is running a company that’s approaching 20 million in revenues. Sometimes hatred can be enough to motivate success.
- John Smith of GamerSuggestions: White-Collar Robot – John worked in a large company (which we won’t call out). What he found was that everyone was only interested in their own personal advancement and not the furtherance of the company as a whole. This resulted in stagnation and overall discontent in the company. John decided to do something about it and start his own company – where people would care… not just act like robots.
Don’t use your past as an excuse to not succeed in the future. Just because you didn’t grow up in a startup hub or work with Steve Jobs when you were young doesn’t mean you can’t become a business owner. Success has no formula; every person has to take their own path to financial prowess, what will yours be?
After starting several companies and selling them off, Josh Haynam dedicated himself to helping others become their own bosses. His site www.entrepreneur-stories.com features stories from highly successful entrepreneurs and is designed to bridge the gap between having the desire to start a company and actually a business.
