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Who were they before they become great entrepreneurs we know today? The road to success doesn’t always lead through a start-up garage where immortal ideas are born. Sometimes the beginnings are more pedestrian and surprising. Future businessmen sell newspapers and candies, think about a pianist career, take up modeling, drive an ambulance or do your laundry.
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1. Warren Buffett
The famous investor and entrepreneur started his career selling newspapers and chewing gum. He also worked at his granddad’s grocery store and was a car dealer. In his first tax filing in 1944, he deducted $35 for the bicycle and watch he used to do his job.
2. Martha Stewart
Today she is an institution, owning a media empire and guarding the cleanliness of the houses all over the world. As a teenager, she babysat and started modeling career at 13, what helped her support herself during her education. After graduating, she became a stockbroker for 5 years.
3. Sam Walton
The founder of the biggest retail in the world grew up in the Great Depression, so he needed to work to help support his family. As a boy, he milked cows, bottled the milk and delivered it to the customers. He also distributed Columbia Daily Tribune.
4. Henry Ford
A man who revolutionized our thinking about work and management (many of his observations still apply today) started as a watchmaker in the small local shop. Small, precise mechanisms fascinated him, and that passion influenced his career path. He even considered establishing his factory of cheap watches.
5. Rosalía Mera
Do you associate Inditex (a fashion giant, including Zara) only with Armancio Ortega? The company was established by the duo, and Rosalia was not only the richest woman in Spain but also the richest self-made woman in the world. She didn’t inherit a fortune; she didn’t marry a wealthy guy. She earned all of it with her own hands.
She started as a seamstress, quit the school at 11 to work, and realized that some other people are making significant money on her skills. Then she created her line of lingerie (considered a bit too risky at the time) and established Zara in 1975 with her husband.
6. Blake Mycoskie
The founder of TOMS shoes led a funny business when in college. It was the laundry service: the guys took your laundry from your home and then delivered it back, fresh and clean.
About Blake’s mission and company we wrote extensively here.
7. Jeff Bezos
Today he reigns the kingdom of e-commerce, but before Amazon was founded, he worked part-time for 12 years at his grandfather’s ranch in Texas.
8. Sally Osberg
The President and CEO of Skoll Foundation that empowers social entrepreneurs. She started as a swimming instructor and taught kids how to overcome the fear of water.
To get the job she needed to take a course and a final exam, during which the senior instructor tried to drown her (what is a standard procedure during the exam). Unintentionally during the exam, Sally hit her with the jujitsu stroke.
9. Thomas Edison
Edison’s youth would make a great material for a book. An unruly pupil always searched for his way to learn, for example conducting experiments on his own.
Before he made his breaking inventions, improved other devices and established his company, he was selling candies and newspapers on the train. He also sold vegetables.
10. Cher Wang
Co-founder and CEO of HTC, she was born in the family of a prosperous Taiwan entrepreneur. She studied in the USA (Berkeley) and considered becoming a pianist, but eventually she chose economy. Then she worked in personal computers department. Part of her job was carrying the computers that she was supposed to sell. She started dreaming that these could be much smaller and lighter.
11. Walt Disney
Walt Disney is a controversial figure, mostly because of his strong political convictions. Out of patriotism, he became an FBI spy or transform legendary stories (like Winnie the Pooh) according to his own, American system of values.
The same patriotic feelings moved him to enlist to Red Cross (he wasn’t accepted in the army because he was too young) during the I WW. He was sent to Paris and was driving the ambulance.
12. Scott Harrison
The founder of charity: water, started his career in McDonalds. He took orders, cleaned tables and even distributed coupons, dressed as a hamburger.
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