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Self-made billionaires: How they started
6 days ago Source: http://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/topstories/self-made-billionaires-how-they-started/ss-AA91vPu
What is it that makes these individuals rare? Is it their strong conviction, ability to take risks, or self-efficacy?
Here’s a look at the people who made it on their own to the billionaires’ list.
Their current net worth is as of January 31, 2015.
Growing up in a middle-class neighbourhood, he dropped out from the University of Illinois at Urbana as
well as the University of Chicago. One of his early jobs included making database for the CIA. Soon he
became interested in software development and founded Software Development Laboratories (SDL) with
two partners. SDL was officially renamed Oracle in 1982.
Net Worth: US $52.1 billion
Coming from a humble background, Schultz earned a football scholarship in the Northern Michigan
University. He started as a salesperson with Xerox Corp. Later, he joined Starbucks as director of
marketing, which he later bought in 1988 for $3.8 million.
Net Worth: US $2.4 billion
Oprah won an oratory contest, which helped her secure a full scholarship in the Tennessee State University.
Soon, she started working part time with WVOL, a local radio station, before anchoring news at Nashville's
WLAC-TV. Oprah, a black woman in white-dominated media business, soon rose to fame with her talent to
become the most popular TV presenter.
Net Worth: US $3 billion
Branson started his record business while running The Student magazine from the crypt of a church.
The magazine used to carry interviews of famous personalities of the late 1960s as well as advertisements of
popular records. Eventually, he opened a records shop at Oxford Street, London, and launched label Virgin
Records. Today, Virgin Group is a multinational venture capital conglomerate with interests in airlines,
mobile phones, financial services, music, internet and more.
Net Worth: US $4.8 billion
Quitting his job as a vice president at the financial-services firm D.E. Shaw in 1994, Bezos set out to take
advantage of the growing internet market by starting up Amazon. The eCommerce portal operated from a
garage before settling into its current elegant headquarters in Seattle.
Net Worth: US $32.5 billion
The extravagant Russian businessman started his first business of selling plastic ducks from a Moscow
apartment. He soon acquired a stake in the country’s largest oil firm Sibnet through strong connections with
Russian government officials. He amassed wealth by entering into various sectors like oil, steel, gold, real
estate and yachts. He also owns the Chelsea Football Club.
Net Worth: US $9.6 billion
Moving to Canada at the age of 17, the South Africa-born Musk shifted to the University of Pennsylvania in
the USA as a transfer student. He made his mark by co-founding Pay Pal, and later went on to launch electric
car company Tesla and aerospace venture SpaceX.
Net Worth: US $7.8 billion
The founder of WhatsApp had a knack for computers from an early age. Before staring the widely popular
mobile messaging service that was acquired by Facebook in 2014, Koum worked as a security and
infrastructure engineer for nine years at Yahoo.
Net Worth: US $7.2 billion
Bill Gates entered the tech world by writing a programming language called BASIC for the Altair computer
system while he was still studying in Harvard. With its success during 1976, he went on to co-found
Microsoft which later specialised in creating operating systems, including MS-DOS and Windows.
Net Worth: US $78.7 billion
Mark Zuckerberg, along with his several friends, started Facebook in 2004, allowing the students of his
university (Harvard) to connect with each other and share information. In September 2006, the system was
opened for everyone.
Net Worth: US $33.5 billion
Receiving her undergraduate degree from George Washington University, Elaine and Steve Wynn became
college sweethearts at the University of Pennsylvania. Elaine co-founded casino empire Wynn Resorts with
ex-husband Steve three decades ago.
Net Worth: US $2 billion
The man who runs the largest casino company in the world, Las Vegas Sands, has come long way. He was
just 12 year old when he took a US $200 loan from his uncle to buy his first newspaper corner. He went on
to build his fortune by selling newspaper ads, running vending machines, developing condos and hosting
trade shows.
Net Worth: US $28.5 billion
Jack M convince 17 of his friend to invest in his vision of an online marketplace called Alibaba.
The company, which soon started attracting members from different parts of the world, has raised millions
from various banks, including Goldman Sachs and Softbank. In 2005, Yahoo paid $1 billion for 40% stake
in the company.
Net Worth: US $20.7 billion
Fredriksen ventured into oil trading in 1960s, and bought his first tankers in 1970s. With Frontline Ltd.,
he established himself as the king of the tanker trade in the 1990s.
Net Worth: US $9.4 billion
The founder of fashion giant Zara, Ortega started as a gofer at a shirt store. He later started making dressing
gowns and lingerie along with his then-wife Rosalia Mera. Over the decades, he has also ventured into real
estate.
Net Worth: US $62.1 billion
Owner of the multinational conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffet exhibited an entrepreneurial
streak from an early age. Doing odd jobs like teaching and working as a stock broker during his formative
years, Buffett invested in the loss-making textile company in 1962. Later on, he ventured into insurance.
Net Worth: US $70.5 billion
Cuban, who started his career as a bartender, founded his first tech company called MicroSolutions in 1980s.
He made it big by selling the video portal Broadcast.com to Yahoo for US $5.7 billion in 1999, and reinvested
the money in multiple ventures, including television network AXS TV, cinema chain Landmark Theaters and
movie studio Magnolia Pictures. He also owns NBA team Dallas Mavericks.
Net Worth: US $2.7 billion
While attending college, Khan started working part time at Flex-N-Gate - automotive manufacturing company.
He was eventually hired by them as an engineer after graduation. In 1978, he started his own company
Bumper Works, which made car bumpers. Two years later, he dissolved the company and bought
Flex-N-Gate from his former employer. Today, besides owning this company, Shahid Khan owns
Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham Football Club.
Net Worth: US $4.4 billion
With a master’s degree in computer science, Li started as a consultant at a subsidiary of Dow Jones. After a
brief stint with the search engine company InfoSeek in Silicon Valley, he co-founded China's No. 1 search
engine Baidu in 2000. Baidu’s shares hit record high at the Nasdaq this year.
Net Worth: US $15.8 billion
Born and raised in a middle-class home in Medford, Massachusetts, Michael Bloomberg attended Harvard
Business School. In 1966, he was hired by a Wall Street firm, Salomon Brothers, for an entry-level job.
With a vision to bring transparency and efficiency to financial securities transactions, he launched Bloomberg
from a one-room office. Today, the company has offices in 73 countries with more than 15,000 employees.
Net Worth: US $35.6 billion
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![[캐스모] 캐나다 한국인 스토리 모임](http://t1.daumcdn.net/cafe_image/cf_img2/img_blank2.gif)
삭제된 댓글 입니다.
@주유천하 쑥스럽게 왠 갑자기 칭찬모드? ㅎㅎ
내 경험은 40대중반이 정점이고 그후는 다운힐 ㅠ.ㅠ
갑자기 로즈카페님 생각이 많이 나네~ㅎㅎ 엄청 재미난 글빨
포스트닥 다 마치고 지금은 교수님이 되어 있을텐데