These People Had Nothing When They Started

It’s very easy to think that some people are just different and that’s why they achieve more than others. But that’s really not the case – we are all made of the same matter and everyone can achieve greatness in life, no matter where they start.

I hope that the stories of these people will show you that no matter what your background is, no matter where you start in life, you can be, do or have anything you want.

1. Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lifshitz was the youngest of four children. He was born in Bronx, New York. His parents were Jewish immigrants from Belarus. From an early age Ralph worked after school to earn money for his clothes.When he was in high school he sold ties to his fellow students. In a high school yearbook, below his picture, he wrote that his goal was to become a millionaire.

Later on in life he changed his surname to Lauren and started to study at Baruch College. That didn’t last long because he dropped out and enlisted himself into the army. After two years in the army he discharged in 1968 and married Ricky Low-Beer.Later on he worked for Brooks Brothers as a salesman and finally he got some financial backing and opened his own necktie store to sell ties. He also sold his own “Polo” branded ties.

After a couple of years of great progress he finally purchased the Rhinelander Mansion and made it into his flagship store. Throughout the years he opened stores not only in the US but all over the world. He is now worth $3.6 billion.

2. Roman Abramovich

Roman Abramovich was born on 24th of October 1966 in the Russian town of Saratov.

He lost his parents very early in life. His mother died when he was 18 months old and his father was killed in an accident when Roman was four.

His uncle brought him up and he spent most of his childhood with his uncle in Northern Russia.

He finished school and got a degree in public law at Moscow State Law Academy. That was the first time he set up a business with his fellow students to produce toys.

His passion, however, was not in toys and he later on moved on to work in the oil industry.

That’s where he finally found success and became one of the richest people in the world, currently owning Chelsea Football Club.

3. Steve Jobs

Steven Jobs was born in San Francisco, California, and was adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs. In 1961 the family moved to Mountain View, California. This area was becoming a center for electronics.

Steve spent a lot of time working in the garage workshop of a neighbor who worked at Hewlett-Packard, an electronics manufacturer. Jobs also enrolled in the Hewlett-Packard Explorer Club. That was the time he saw his first computer and from then on he was fascinated by them.

In 1975, after quitting College and coming back from India where he studied eastern religions, he joined a group known as the Homebrew Computer Club. One of the group members was building a small computer and Steve was very impressed with it. Soon they formed their own company and called it “Apple Computer Company”.

At that time computers were extremely big and expensive, so Steve decided to focus on building affordable smaller computers for individuals. The first year their company made $2.7mln. in sales and within three years their sales jumped to $200 mln.

4. J. K. Rowling

J.K. Rowling was born in Gloucestershire, UK. She attended secondary school at Wyedean School and College. She also studied in Paris for a year and then moved to London to work as a secretary for Amnesty International.

The idea of Harry Potter book came to her in 1990, when she was on a delayed train from Manchester to London. She immediately began to write the story. However soon her mother died and that heavily affected J. K. Rowling.

Then she moved to Portugal to teach English and while there got married. Within a year she got separated and moved to Edinburgh, Scotland, together with a daughter from the marriage. She was then diagnosed with clinical depression and was thinking of suicide.

She completed her first novel while living on welfare. When she completed Harry Potter book it was rejected by all 12 publishing houses it was submitted to. Finally after a year she got a publishing deal with a small English publishing house and she was advised to get a day job since nobody believed she could make a living by writing books. Her books went on to become extremely popular and made her a billionaire.

5. Manny Pacquiao

Manny Pacquiao was born in Kibawe, Bukidnon. His parents separated when he was in sixth grade, after his mother discovered that his father was living with another woman.

He finished his elementary education, but dropped out of high school because of his extreme poverty. He had to leave home at the age 14 because her mother, having six children, was not able to support her family due to her lack of money.

1995 was a life-changing year for Manny because then his close friend, a young aspiring boxer, died. That was the event that spurred Manny to pursue a boxing career.

At the age of 16 he started fighting in small venues and within a year he became quite a recognised boxer.

He is currently the WBO World welterweight champion and is rated by Ring Magazine as the number one pound-for-pound boxer in the world.

6. Oprah

Winfrey was born in Mississippi to unmarried parents. The teenage parents soon split up leaving only the mother to look after Oprah. However her mother decided to travel and left Oprah with her grandmother for six years to live in poverty.

At the age of six, Winfrey moved to live with her mother. The living became even harder for Oprah because her mother was a difficult person to live with. Later on she told during her show that at the age of nine she was molested by her uncle, cousin and a family friend.

After years of abuse, aged 13, she ran away from home. At the age of 14 she became pregnant but lost her son after birth. At the same age, upon her mother’s request, she moved to live with her father.

Her father was strict and made education her priority. So she started to study hard and soon she attracted the attention of a local radio station which hired her to do the news part-time. Gradually she gained more and more popularity, moved to television and got a contract to host her own TV show. She also successfully published two magazines.

7. Liz Murray

Elizabeth Murray has one of the most inspiring stories I’ve ever heard. She was born in Bronx, New York, to a poor, drug-addicted, HIV-infected family living on welfare.  Liz did very poorly at school and she skipped most of the classes.

When Liz was 16 her mother died and her father moved to a homeless shelter. She had no choice but to live on the streets. This was the turning point for Liz. Finally she clearly saw how her mother’s dreams were never realised and she understood that she would end up in the same place as her mother if she kept making the same choices.

So from then on she firmly decided to get straight A’s at school and to study at Harvard – and she did. She saw a Harvard scholarship advertised in New York Times, applied for it and got it.  Her story, after the scholarship, attracted a lot of publicity and she went on to become an inspirational speaker who now empowers millions.

8. Jim Carrey

Jim was born in Ontario, Canada.

Since the age of 15 he did many stand-up shows but none of them led to any lasting success.

He also did small film roles but they also didn’t bring him much success. Although his future didn’t seem bright, Jim never lost his hope of becoming a great comedian.

Finally in 1994, after numerous performances, he gradually started to be taken seriously. That was the year he got a role in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. His unusual energetic personality got not only viewers’ attention, but also the attention of movie producers.

From then on other big roles followed, including The Mask, Dumb and Dumber, The Cable Guy and Liar Liar (the last two movies are amazing).

Following these successes came many more, making him one of the best known comedians in the world.

Conclusion

I’m sure these stories will inspire you and show you that no matter where you are and who you are, you can achieve success. What you need is persistence and positive attitude backed by constant action. With this formula, as you’ve seen in these examples, you can achieve anything.

Related posts:

1. Always Believe In Miracles
2. Three Types Of People And Their Destinies – Progress Makers
3. Raise Your Standards
4. The Key To Single-Mindedness
5. Three Types Of People And Their Destinies – Devoted Dreamers