I guess I?ll follow DH?s story. I wouldn?t call it Rags to Riches but it was definitely building something from nothing.

I started 7 or 8 years ago while I was studying in university and living with my parents. I had stumbled across Persian Kitty while surfing with lynx (anybody who remembers lynx knows it was no way to find porn). After a month of lynx I finally surfed with a browser and went back to Persian Kitty. I was in shock when I saw her hit counter. It was the old Digits one and the number of visitors it displayed blew me away. I couldn?t believe that many people would be going to a site. Immediately my brain kicked into high gear.

So I built my first Free site. I hosted it on my free account with the university. It was all pictures, no banners and a web counter. It went up on PK around 6pm on Friday. OH MAN! That was the beginning of my new career. I was getting hits like there was no tomorrow. A friend of mine was over and I showed him the hit counter and I?d reload and say look 100 people just visited in the time I clicked reload. It was a great night. I made no money but I knew I was onto something big. Monday morning at 8am I got a phone call from the university. Apparently I had used 99% of the bandwidth in 3 days that the university had used in 5 years. They were pissed. I was banned from all internet and computer accounts in the school.

I won?t bore you with the rest of the details. But from that day on I put my heart and soul into building up my business. I worked my ass off. I would pull all nighters with my Wife. We?d go out for coffee around 3am then finish working between 8 and 10am go out to breakfast come home sleep for a few hours and do it all over again.

I started with nothing, just a regular young guy going to university. I sacrificed a lot of friends and a lot of good partying to have what I have now and it was all worth it. Thanks to this industry I met my kick ass beautiful Wife (who is also my business partner). I?m living in the Bahamas. I sit at my desk everyday and have the ocean staring right back at me. We get to travel to amazing places. Rent exotic cars, stay in amazing hotels, have fantastic meals. We?ve got our own boat. We?ve got a business that is continually growing. Most of our best friends have been people we?ve met thanks to this business. I don?t regret a thing. It was all worth it and I honestly can not picture my life without it.

One word of advice. I remember going to a dinner back in 1998. It was the first time I ever met people from the industry. Carol and Danny Cox, Saus, Serge (who probably still remembers I didn?t say hi to him), James and Victoria. Anyhow, back then a few of the people there were discussing free sites and how anybody who hadn?t started a free site by then was too late. This is 1998. Imagine if myself or others would have listened to the advice that it was TOO LATE to start something. I heard the same thing about paysites 3 years ago when I started Twistys. I?m glad I didn?t listen then either. Remember it is NEVER TOO LATE! If you have the idea and have the determination it is never too late. Put your heart and soul into it and you?ll be successful. :thumbsup

You're the reason college fees have skyrocketed!!! :1orglaugh

Good post Shap! Viva La Canada!!!

DH

SHAP, you set an example for all the college students buddy :)

I started in 1998 (non-adult) with my own Internet Marketing agency, grew to 12 people in 18 months. That was all organic growth, people, I had no capital to speak of... I had $500 from my college days when I did a recruitment brochures for the college (a lot of fame, but not enough money).

In 2000, we merged with an IT company - biggest Outsourcing company here. I left in 2003 to start www.NicheFetish.com. My dividents from this company (it's privately held) are still times more than my profit from www.NicheFetish.com but the biz is growing and I'm happy :)

I wouldn't say I was in rags before but I certainly felt like it during my mandatory military service. So yeah ... I feel much richer :)

bump for more rags to riches stories :)

I "know of" a true rags to riches to rags story involving the IRS, cancer and death...

But won't be posting it here....

i went from rags, to a more than comfortable monthly income, then back to rags again :1orglaugh

now.. to get back to my old comfort level and go from there, actually a little tougher the second time around

rick latona was a car salesman

Thanks for that bit of advice. I needed that right about now.

LOL...great anecdote...

<BIG B as the Big Radu>


"Ive gone from Rags to Riches"


Thanks CECash!


</Big B as the Big Radu>


BIG B

i've never been in "rags" and not yet in "riches" by any means, but i've made enough to buy a new car, computer, random other shit, saved up some, and hopefully pay off college by the time i graduate... which is next may. if i never got into this, i would still be driving my ford tempo, working a minimum wage college job, and stressing about making rent month to month... but now, i do pretty well for my situation.... however, after graduation... i dont know what im gunna do!! i guess turn it up a notch til then. :thumbsup

I grew up in a wealthy family. When I left home, I was poor because I never got any handouts. Worked for someone else for 7 years then for myself for the last 5 and now I'm 28 and successful beyond my expectations for this age.

:glugglug

Brad

No rags to riches here because I don't like greed and only with greed it's possible to build up something really big.I started with my first business ideas when I was 12 or 13 because I couldn't afford things I wanted, I've always worked for myself never got into any dependance.

My thing is to work as less as possible (of course you have to work hard in the beginning) but make a good living of it.I don't really need 10k+ a month and I wouldn't want to work more if I wouldn't have to.More money doesn't make me any happier so I don't feel the constant need to grow business bigger and bigger.I may be the only one who thinks like that here :winkwink:

I started with nothing and I have what I need ... I aiin't rich but still :) Props to all the porno buyers

cant say. but i agree with that.

definitely needs it's own thread...

I know of a riches to rags story involving the IRS that's happening right now....very disturbing shit...


:(

Johndoebob you are way off on this. It isn't only greed that can bring someone riches. There is a little something called hard work that pays off pretty damn well. Everything we do is about being 100% honest with everyone we deal with and we know companies than are much bigger than us and don't have an ounce of greed in their blood.

Hi TheJimmy. We've come across alot of Rich Lifestyles going back to Rags thanks to the IRS. I wouldn't call those people Riches to Rags stories because in reality they never had the riches. All they had was expensive material items and no savings, no investments and no growth of their financial portfolio. I think that is one of the biggest problems people have. They live big, spend fast and save nothing.

for the most part I would agree, minus the few stories that involve large, unexpected medical expenses...but as you said, there was never 'true' wealth if it was lost easily...

If you always want more and can't get enough it's greed in my opinion.I don't mean the "getting rich by fucking over other people" greed.

They work all day just for money that they don't really need or could spent, that isn't my thing, I know when I have enough and try to lower my working hours as much as possible.I don't need millions of dollars to enjoy life.

I agree Jimmy. I think medical expense stories are really shit luck :(


Johndoe i have to disagree. If you have a solid product that you built up maintaining it will earn you easy money without having to sweat much. Just look at ATK and Karups. Just by updating their site they make huge money.

You may be less materialistic than others here but don't confuse ambition with greed, they are light years apart.

scoreman check my definition of greed two posts above.

Joe...would have to agree with Shap's disagreement ...


what a lot of people, including myself, lack is follow through...

I'm sure some can relate in having too many projects started and not enough completed...

pick a good recurring business model, paysite, hosting, rental feeds, content plugins, etc and run with it...




Scoreman also made a great distinction, ambition and greed ARE different things....cousins for sure, but not the same...

If they don't feel the need for more and just maintain and maybe even grow while maintaining, than they don't fit into my definition of greed above.

how many years along is it now?

didn't see any positive results in mine until about the 4.5 year mark.

:1orglaugh :1orglaugh :1orglaugh

GOt any advice for a SEO newb?

I totally agree with you on that one. lmao:1orglaugh

Here is a true rags to riches story:

A bunch Of guys asked me to help them build there very first website - I did more than that, I actually photographed their very first models and paid for their first domains-
The guys had no cash and I even gave them a car on hp and paid for the shoots - (Some of the guys could afford to pay their share, others (I Include their current ceo) could not.


This, Web Girl, is now the company that employes you!

Where in Costa Rica are you? Nice story, by the way!

cool sotry :thumbsup

I once had a silver spoon, but am now holding a burning bag of poop.

Is that a good story? :)

if only I started in 1996 or so, o mannnnnnnn........