5 Financial Wake-Up Calls—And What You Can Learn from Them
High achievers reveal their big financial aha! moments and the lessons you can use to live your dreams in Bobbi Rebell's
How to Be a Financial Grownup.
By Bobbi Rebell
Photo: Mike Coppola/Staff/Getty Images
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Charles Best, CEO,
DonorsChoose.org
My Wake-Up Call
I've been a fan of bass fishing for as long as I can remember. In the sixth grade I planned to start my own business making custom fishing lures. I researched all of the costs for my tiny venture—from the molds and molten lead I'd need to make the lure weights, to the classified ads I'd need to promote my product in Bassmaster Magazine. This was before Amazon, Etsy, or Kickstarter ever existed. Ultimately I realized that the start-up costs and the number of lures I'd have to sell to recoup my investment were too much. Instead I became a soccer referee to make some cash.
What You Can Learn
The most incredible businesses are started by entrepreneurs who relentlessly pursue their passion, but passion works best with a thoughtful, ambitious-yet-grounded business plan.
Published 10/18/2016
