Arnold Schwarzenegger is quite famous for playing an emotionless robot who speaks in broken English in “more brawn than brains.” He is not like the way the general public recognizes him as an intelligent, shrewd, and calculating business person. Arnold, just with a lot of hard work and savvy business dealing, became a self-made millionaire quite before he entered into Hollywood. He achieved it all at quite an early age when generally the youth thinks about having fun and partying.
Early age
Arnold’s birthplace is a small village Thal in Austria, and he was born in the year of 1947. He belonged to a family that had nothing, neither hot water facility nor electricity. It is quite unbelievable, but it is his reality. Once, he told about his early life when his family had nothing, including refrigerator, flushing toilets, and television.
Famous past stories
Arnold likes to share one anecdote from his youth when his family bought a refrigerator. The kids stood in front of the open gate of the fridge to feel the cold air.
His interests and victory in sports
He has an uncanny interest in sports, which made him excel in many games like soccer, boxing, gymnastics, and swimming. At the age of 13, he was taken to the gym by his coach, who changed his life forever. He was quite intrigued by the power and the physique of the men working out in the gym.
He gained quite a popularity and success in bodybuilding and received the title of Junior Mr Europe in the year 1965. It was the result of his two years of hard work only. This achievement costed him an entire week in a military prison. It is because he left his mandatory military service in between to fight in the competition. Eventually, he secured a prestigious title of “Best-Built Athlete of Europe” in 1966. At an early age, he won the title of Mr Universe for four times and the title of Mr Olympia seven times, along with many other titles which he earned throughout his lifetime.
How he became a wealthy person?
His sports victories are partially responsible for making him rich, as, by the age of 21, he had $27,000 to his name. He invested some of his money in a gym in Munich. Because of his popularity in the bodybuilding world, he could attract masses towards his company that he built. Through this company, he sold a variety of exercise equipment, leaflets, and supplements to the public. He got inspired to start the mail-ordering business by his fans who asked for work out tips and products. He figured that the public is willing to spend money to learn about bodybuilding, so he began to deliver them useful details and products in exchange for money.
After arriving in the United States, he invested a modest amount of his money in setting up his mail-ordering business. He found that it is quite easy to get a permit in the U.S than in Europe. To make his business grow in the U.S, he kept his best physique and also worked in a brick-laying company along with a fellow bodybuilder Franco Columbo for an extra income. Later, after four years, they doubled their prices because of their demand. From all the above, he managed to live a decent living, but the question remains, how did he become a millionaire?
How Arnold became a millionaire in his 20’s?
The simple answer is real estate. After doing complete research, he paid the down payment for an apartment complex of the net worth of $214,000, which flipped in a year to $360,000. Then, he doubled his profit by reinvesting in other buildings. By buying and selling the estates, he achieved to become a millionaire in just his 20’s.
