Young Millionaires on...Best Business Advice They built million-dollar businesses before they were 40, and now they're sharing their advice with you.
We asked our 2004 young millionaireswhat advice they'd offer aspiring entrepreneurs and what they wish they'd known before going into business. Read their answers to give yourself an edge over your competition.
Bernard Frei, 39, founder of 365 Inc., an online retailer of licensed soccer and rugby apparel and a soccer and rugby news outlet and database
I was actually given a brilliant piece of advice, from an extremely successful Australian man whom I won't name, but it was basically to get on and do it now and not to hang around. I think so many business plans end up sitting around and never get used, and that's a shame. I was 18, and it had a huge impact on my life. It got me going quicker than I think I would've done otherwise.
Shawn Nelson, 28, founder of LoveSac Corp., a chain of stores (about half are franchised) specializing in modular furniture
If I could do it all over again, I'd ask more questions. Young, cocky kids often trust in their own abilities, but at the end of the day, there are a lot of people out there that know more than me. I've realized that. My management team besides myself consists of four guys that all have decades of experience with large companies and know what they're doing.
Josh Linkner, 34, founder of ePrize, an interactive promotion agency
One thing that has helped us is the concept of persistence, having the gut to do this. As an entrepreneur, you should just expect to run into every kind of brick wall you could possibly run into. One of the reasons we're here today and flourishing is that unwavering commitment and gut to keep persisting no matter what.
Payam Zamani, 33, Behnam Behrouzi, 23, and John Truchard, 32, founders of Reply.com, an online referral service for automobiles, real estate, home improvement and financing
Zamani: You need to trust the fact that you are capable of learning what others are doing and learning that very rapidly. If you don't know, then hire the right people. Often the competition underestimates a newcomer, so they don't react to the newcomer quick enough.
Christopher Faulkner, 27, founder of C I Host, a web-hosting and data enter infrastructure provider
Go for it. Take a risk. I didn't hit gold the first time out. Without failure you'll never be successful. If you fail, get up and try it again. There's nothing to be embarrassed about, nothing to be fearful of. You've got to be able to overcome that fear factor. Risk equals reward.
