“For some, entrepreneurship chooses them, while others have chosen entrepreneurship.”
– Elena Rahrig

What made you decide to become an entrepreneur? Why do you call yourself an entrepreneur? Why do you continue to work towards becoming a successful entrepreneur? If you are like me, then your answers to these questions run wide and deep. We will address some of these core reasons in chapter one; but for now, allow me to share with you my unique story as to how I became an entrepreneur.

When I was twelve-years-old, my mom and dad (in their infinite wisdom and ambition) began paying me to read books. These were not books about romance, vampires, or mystery; instead, they were books that taught about life, business, and spirituality.

The first book my parents had ever handed me to read was presented to me with a highlighter and a pen. They then instructed me to highlight all that aroused my attention and write in the margins any-thing that provoked a question or thought. Above that, they handed me a notebook to write summaries about each book I would read.

I forget the name of the first book, but it was navy blue with gold writing on the cover, and it was a book-let. At the age of twelve, I was less than thrilled about this idea of theirs; however, I obliged my parents because I wanted the $20 at the end of the last chapter.

Opening that book and reading the words on the pages, I tried desperately to combine the words into a sentence that I could comprehend. I had very little luck at this, as I became frustrated, pissed off, and thinking my parents were morons for wanting me to read such crap—it was not anything like the Nancy Drew books I was accustomed to.

I had no idea what this business Author was trying to say to me. It was 1994 when I was twelve-years-old, and I did not even know what a business logo was, let alone what an LLC, Sole Proprietor, C Corp, Incorporated, or a Nonprofit was. This book was merely speaking all types of jibberish.

Having had enough, I went to dad (who sat reading the best of Robert Kiyosaki) with a cockeyed head, a knee bent, annoyance on my face, and a predictable preteen mouth. He needed to understand that I had no clue what this all means and that this is all a waste of time. Couldn’t he just give me $20 like he always had before?

Of course, dad was not going to force me to read the book, but he sure-as-heck was not going to give me the $20 unless I did. Think about this, in 1994 $20 was more like $50 in today’s age. This book was about 75 pages in length, divide that by $20, that is more than twenty-five cents per page—that is a lot to a twelve-year-old in 1994. I could buy an entire outfit for that—jeans, a shirt, and earrings.

Well, that one book was the beginning of my entrepreneurial training. From that one book, I went on to read (or listen to) hundreds of books. Joyce Meyer’s books became my favorite; and at about thirteen years of age, I knew that someday I would be just like her. I would write books and speak to motivate, educate, and inspire.

Throughout my adolescence, my parents were both entrepreneurs, along with my aunts and uncles, and older brothers. It was at the same time my dad began paying me to read books that he and my mom ventured outside their brick and mortar corporation and joined Amway—yes, that is correct, good old Amway! Of course, my dad being a man who can sell ketchup popsicles to a man wearing white gloves, and my mom who had an eye for detail and business intelligence, they were extremely successful in every-thing they touched.

Having spent my teen years traveling with them to conferences throughout the nation, I was naively being impacted by the lives and words of millionaires. I was a typical child who watched and mimicked those around me. (I sure am happy that those around me were Empire Creators!)

Although I was to stay back in the hotel room and pool area with the other kids attending the conferences with their parents, I could not help but sneak into the massive conference center to see the excitement. There were tons of people, fun music and dancing, and world-class speakers teaching and motivating 10,000-20,000 people. Mom and dad always saved me a seat because they knew I would be in and out, as I could not stay away for too long.

By the time I was eighteen, business is all I knew— entrepreneurship was in my blood. So, I did what I knew to do—join the network marketing company of the era—Mona Vie. Surely enough, I did okay at it and was earning a couple of thousand dollars a week. Over the years, moving onto the next popular network marketing company, I became the number one earner and found myself traveling the nation as one of the speakers on the stage.

So, you see, being an entrepreneur just seemed to happen for me. I never really sat back and thought too much about it. I did not turn to entrepreneurship because I was burned out from a nine-to-five job.

It was during the days of network marketing when I was reaching my thirties and sitting at the number three earner of the company when I realized I had been building someone else’s Empire. Sure, I was get-ting paid great residuals and had an amazing life-style, but imagine what I could do with my own Empire?

Well, my friend, that is why I am here now. Over the span of six years, I have built an Empire that continues to flourish. Knowing all that I was taught, and seeing the results of my wisdom, I would not dream about keeping it all to myself, as that would be selfish. Instead, I share my knowledge and wisdom with anyone who cares as much about their dream as I do about their dream.

I bid you fair warning, being an Empire Creator is not easy. You will more than likely cry, hate yourself at times, doubt yourself almost daily, consider believing the naysayers, feel foolish, and desire to quit. In fact, many do quit, because Empires are not for the weak minded, and they are certainly not for those who want a quick and easy ride.

In today’s society, it is a fact that there are more people who are weak minded than there are strong-minded—those whom I call and consider Warriors. Knowing the cold, hard truth about Empire Creators, if you believe you have what it takes to make it, then let’s move forward and get you started on the right track of transforming your business into the Empire you genuinely want to have.

In the next section, you will see that I have created a chart for you as a quick reference guide to some of the main contrast between a Business Owner and an Empire Creator. This will help you become more aware of what we do here at Transform International to help entrepreneurs, and what this book is about to do for you!