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Famous Entrepreneurs Who Hit it Big With Humble Beginnings
The movie The Social Network showcased Mark Zuckerberg’s ability to create an enormous business from seemingly nothing. Not all entrepreneurs have been accepted to Harvard like Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates to hit it big. However, having the intelligence to get there doesn’t hurt.
I grew up next door to a very smart man who worked his way through a state college and started a little company with $5000. That man was Leonard (Sam) Shoen who created U-Haul by asking gas station owners to let him rent trucks from their lots. Amerco is now the parent of U-Haul and is a far cry from the corner gas station beginnings.
There are plenty of Leonard Shoen and Sam Walton stories out there. Accountingdegree.com recently published a list of 10 big businesses that got started in a garage including:
For more detail regarding how each of these companies got started, you can click on each individual company or read the article by clicking here.
To see Steve Jobs’ Commencement Speech at Stanford explaining how he started Apple watch the following video:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc]Related Articles
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Is Your Target Date 401k Fund Not As Safe As You Thought?
Target date funds have become a very popular way for people to invest in their 401k. Target-dated funds are mutual funds that automatically adjust the asset mix of stocks, bonds and cash usually based on the investor’s future retirement date. There are a lot of people out there that don’t want to take time to think about if they are invested in the right balance of stocks and bonds. Target date funds take care of this balancing act for them. As people get closer to retirement age, they have less time to weather the ups and downs of the stock market. Because of this, as retirement draws near, these funds have traditionally been adjusted to be in less risky investments. Bonds have often been considered less risky at times than stocks and therefore the closer the target date, the more these funds may tend to be heavily bond-loaded than stock-loaded.
Recently there has been some debate as to whether these target date funds have a hidden risk. As the market has become more volatile, some fund managers have been moving toward more bond funds. According to WSJOnline.com “Of the 45 funds with a target date of 2016 to 2020 tracked by investment-research firm Morningstar Inc., the average has about 32% in bonds and about 58% in stocks—up from 25% in bonds and 67% in equities three years ago.”
The concern is that there is debate as to the safety of these bond funds and that this move could actually cause more risk. Some experts believe that the bond market may be headed for trouble.
For an interesting discussion of how the different fund managers perceive this to be a possibility, check out the Wall Street Journal article: Hidden Risks in Target Funds
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Retired for Hire: More Seniors Working, Shopping, Donating and Spending
A report released last week from Scarborough.com showed in 2010 that 6.2 million people over 65 are working. This group has been referred to as the Retired for Hire. Many of these workers are not in dire financial straits either. In fact this report showed, “Adults over the age of 65 who are still working full-time or part-time are slightly more likely than the average adult to have an annual household income of $150K or more.”
This report has some interesting profile information about this group including:
- They were financially in good shape with an average income over $150K
- Of those working, 57% worked part time and 43% worked full time
- 22% of them shopped at Wal-Mart in past 3 months
- They were 30% more likely to donate to green causes
- They were avid patrons of the arts
- They were 92% more likely to have donated to political organizations
- They were just as likely as the normal population to go to the gym
- 48% of them were into gardening
- Their use of HDTV’s is up 150%
- 80% had desktop computers
- They were more likely to spend money on home improvements
- 41% made a purchase at Home Depot in the last year
Scarborough concluded, “The 6.2 million adults working past retirement age in America tend to be financially sound, with robust investment portfolios and higher than average incomes. This suggests that financial service providers such as banks, investment firms and personal services such as accounting firms and financial planners have a robust marketing target in Retired for Hire.”
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401K Reinrollment: Why Your Money May Be Put Into Target-Dated Funds
Target-dated funds are mutual funds that automatically adjust the asset mix of stocks, bonds and cash usually based on the investor’s future retirement date. Companies have been offering these options for their employees for many years. Some companies are now even having employees have to acknowledge if they don’t want to have their money put into target-dated funds.
In the hope of helping employees keep their money safe, companies are stepping in and trying to control where they hold their retirement funds. Employees can continue to choose from their company’s listed fund choices, but if they don’t opt out of the target-dated funds, their money may just be moved for them.
For those people who don’t want to hassle with choices and watching their funds, this may be a good choice. For those who are more financially savvy, the target-dated funds may not appeal to them; they may prefer to have control over their investments.
There are pros and cons to using target-dated funds based on gender, age and risk tolerance. For more information about target-dated funds and employers utilizing them, check out a recent article by the Wall Street Journal by clicking here.
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LinkedIn IPO May Be Sooner Than You Think
LinkedIn has already completed the first step in the IPO process. With over 90 million members in over 200 countries and an estimated worth of $2 billion, its growth is undeniable. All Things Digital reported, “LinkedIn, the online business networking site, is likely to file regulatory documents for an initial public offering as early as today, according to sources close to the situation.”
Linkedin may not be the only big name going IPO soon. According to All Things Digital, “LinkedIn’s entry into the public market is one that many expect will be followed by other Internet firms in the coming year, including Zynga, Chegg and, most anticipated of all, Facebook.”