This Woman Built A Million Dollar Empire From Her Hobby As A Teenager

3 things you can adapt from her story

There are more opportunities to make an astounding amount of money than ever before in history.

The online world has made things possible that were unthinkable 15 years ago. You can start a lucrative business tomorrow if you want, without starting capital. All you need to do is put in the work.

Although everyone has the chance to make a fortune if they want, there are only a few people who are seeing and taking the opportunity.

I wanted to see some examples that would show that there are no limits and that it’s possible to get rich at a very young age.

Who says that you couldn’t earn millions while you’re still growing up or at least set the foundation of your later wealth? — Some people have done it.

I can’t think of any law forbidding anyone to build enormous wealth under the age of 20 if they are giving value to a lot of people. In some countries, I might not have access to it until the age of 18, but that’s not the point. It’s about using your potential and possibilities.

During my research, I found a young woman whom I had never heard of before. She is now 31 and still the CEO of her company that had its origin when she was 16.

I see people complaining and moaning about how small their opportunities are and that they could never get rich in their lives. And then I read stories like hers and think:

They’re all making excuses.

The multi-million-dollar hobby

Juliette Brindak was born in New York City and grew up as one of two children in Greenwich, Connecticut.

In 2005, she started her social-networking site “Miss O and Friends” at age 16.

First, it was a hobby for her, but young Juliette soon created a safe socialization site for tween and young teen girls which aims to empower and help them build self-esteem.

Its content is created by its users only and reminds a bit of Twitter, just to be from girls for girls. Every young woman who is signed up can share information, knowledge, or give tips.

According to Juliette, the Miss O & Friends brand is created and managed by girls who’ve outgrown Barbie but who are not ready for Beyonce.

Through www.missoandfriends.com, girls can socialize, play, create, learn, exchange ideas, get help, compare experiences, get published, and much more…all within a safe, bully-free environment.

In 2011, it was ranked as #3 girls-only website.

In 2012, the website’s value was 15 million dollars.

So what was it that made Juliette so successful?

A clear target group and problem to be solved

Juliette knew exactly what type of person she wanted to help:

Girls who were going through tough times while growing up and being in middle school.

Girls who needed advice.

Those who felt misunderstood by their surroundings in their teenage years and didn’t know where to find appropriate support.

She knew about the problems young women face, because she had been through it herself, and she wanted to help them by providing a platform of trust.

I’m sure she didn’t spend days on big research of her target audience, she simply knew who she wanted to help and started it as a hobby.

The value she gave with her website was so big that it could quickly be turned into a profitable business.

Additionally, you could ask yourself these 3 simple questions to find your business idea:

• What type of problems have you been through yourself?
• How did you solve them?
• Could others profit from the method you used to solve the same problem?

Don’t fall into the “I”-Trap

She wasn’t asking herself:

• “How can I get this to reach 5 Million people in one year? And then 10. And later 20.” — and so on.
• “How can I become the richest and youngest woman at the same time from this business?”
• “How will I get deals with big brands and investors?”

If Juliette had thought that way, she would not be where she is today.

Most business owners fail because of their inability to focus on what their target group wants. Instead, they focus a lot on what they want for themselves and on their egos. Also too much on the product itself how they’d like it to be, instead of asking and finding out what their target audience wants and needs.

There is nothing wrong with wanting a Lamborghini or wanting to become rich and working for it.

Material or status goals are great and they can motivate you. But if those are the only motivation you have, you better don’t start. They are only the cherry on top of the cake.

Juliette had an intrinsic motivation and I think, based on my research, she wasn’t aiming to become a millionaire at first.

The value for her target audience stood over everything. The money was a byproduct of the enormous value she added to the marketplace.

Simply taking action

Most importantly, Juliette started putting her ideas into practice.

She waited for nobody to permit her to start what she had in mind.

She simply did it. Without hesitation.

Countless business owners today will admit that the secret of their success did not lie in spending weeks of planning when this or that will happen in their company.

No. Many people in the past, like Juliette, have built multi-million dollar companies from scratch by starting to follow their passion and over time finding a way to monetize it. Some did that even by accident than intentional.

The question seems so ridiculous, because it’s written on every office wall calendar, yet it is so important:

What’s your passion?

What is it you love doing that others could profit from?

If you want to become a successful business owner, this might be the question you should answer for yourself.

Final Thoughts

More people than ever are trying to become entrepreneurs and building a business. It’s possible for everyone, yet so many are failing.

Hopefully, these gold nuggets of Juliette Brindak’s story help you gain more strategic foresight and put your business ideas into practice.

Defining your target audience, solving a problem that you might have known and solved for yourself, not letting your ego take overhand, and simply taking action are powerful boosters for your business.