How a College Drop out Became a Mega Millionaire

Gosh, I love this story so much thought of sharing it with all of you. This is the story of one of the richest man in the Philippines and I just loved how he became rich. I also admired the lessons imparted in this story as I have always believed in these things all my life. By the way, I just got this one from Bo Sanchez's blog so if you want to be more blessed learn from the man himself, go check him out at www.bosanchez.ph. 

“I don’t come from a rich family,” Edward said.

I blinked hard. “For a moment there, I thought you were related to the Taipans. Sorry to say this, but you look rich.” 

“Not at all,” he said, “My parents are very simple people. My mother was a school teacher and my father was an ordinary door-to-door salesman. That’s why I believe that anyone can succeed in life.”

That day, I was having lunch with the Chairman of the Board of a few mega-companies. (I never knew that this was going to be the first of many, many lunches with Mr. Edward Lee. He has now become one of my best business and life mentors.)

“I was a bad student too,” Edward said.

“No Harvard under your belt?” I asked.

 “Bo, I was a failing student all my life! People called me dumb. In fact, I never finished college.”

No college degree?

At that moment, a nice waiter came to our table. 

Suddenly, it occurred to me that the young chap serving my dish probably had a college degree! (We were eating in a really expensive restaurant.)

And here I was, seated in front of a man who had no college degree, yet was now a billionaire.

Why? What happened?

I couldn’t wait to find out…

One of the Secret Ingredients of Success

“Do you know how bad a student I was, Bo?”

“Really bad?” I asked.

“In Grade School, I was an overweight kid who always slept at the back of the class,” he said. “Because my mother was a teacher in that same school, she would silently enter the room and wake me up. Being stout, I’d sweat a lot. She’d pull me out of the classroom, wipe my back, and change my shirt. She’d then tell me to return to class. And yes, I’d go back, sit on my chair, and sleep again.”

We both laughed. “You loved sleeping.”

“I was so lazy. And I just didn’t like school. That’s why I failed most of my subjects. All the way to High School. The only reason why I never repeated a year was because of my mother. As I told you, she was a teacher in the school.”

“Must have been very difficult for your parents.”

“I gave them hell. I caused them so much heartache. They’d cry and cry and cry in front of me, saying, ‘Edward, we know you’re not dumb!’”

“They never condemned you,” I said.

“Never. Not once did they say, ‘You’re stupid,’ or ‘You’re hopeless.’ Instead, all I saw were their tears and their unconditional love for me.”

“Wow.”

Edward continued. “So if you ask me today, ‘What was the most important ingredient for your success?’ I would have to answer, “I am who I am today because of the unconditional love of my parents.”

“Beautiful. And did you at least try to go to college?”

“Yes. My parents insisted. But I failed there too. I cut classes and played bowling instead. By age 20, I dropped out.”

          “And then what happened?”

          “That was when I started investing in the stock market.”

          “Huh?”

God Moves His Hand

          “One day, while playing bowling, I met another bowler. I was shocked to learn that he was one of my college professors! As the days went by, we became fast friends. And he was the one who taught me how to invest in the stock market.”

          “So that’s what happened. You were 18?”

          “Yes. On that day, I believe that God intervened in my life.”

          “Wow.”

          “By the way, after 36 years, that professor is still my friend today. He now sits in the Board of Directors in one of my companies.”

          “Fantastic. And you never left the Stock Market ever since?”

          “Been there for 36 years. That’s how I created my wealth, Bo.”

Now don't get me wrong here, I'm not telling you to stop studying and just play bowling instead. I just believed that God always has a reason and life is about connecting the dots. Sometimes we don't understand why certain things happen. Maybe we will never understand, but if we believe that God has  something big in store for us and if we continue to live life the best we can be then maybe one day when we look back, we will realize that everything makes sense at all. We will then realize that those things had to happen in order for the big blessings to come. 

Oh, by the way. I forgot to mention. This is my secret to happiness. Believing that everything happens for a reason. How about you? What's your secret? Don't hesitate to drop a comment below.