Envious of a 20 year old who already owns a business

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I've explained before on previous threads about the fact that I've not been particularly interested in the jobs I see others doing but I seem to find myself feeling green when I've seen people younger than me looking like they are at the peak already a bit like Alexander the Great winning his first battle at 16, becoming king at 20 and conquering half the known world by 30. I remember seeing a guy on the Apprentice who was 20 and already a full fledged businessman and left me thinking to myself ''Why I wasn't at that stage he's at now?'' even though at the time I was just a college student. I remember my dad showing me a programme about Jeremy Clarkson's farm and working with a farmer who was 21 and appeared as though he was his own boss and owned all the land before Jeremy took it over. All it does is leave me feeling ''Why wasn't I doing that?'' even though as I mentioned they don't look like jobs or careers I'd personally want to do and yet I have the green eyed monster rearing its ugly head in my brain.

Why not turn that envy into motivation to better yourself?

Have you thought about starting a business?I drilled my first well with my dad before I was 20 but technically he owns the company but its still our partnership but hey I almost 32 and I dont consider myself a "full fledged businessman" because I dont have a employee or even get paid a living wage .So if you want be a full-fledged business owner maybe start reading Rich Dad Poor Dad and start thinking of the kind of businesses you could start.Granted the odds are stacked against you but its worth trying if its your dream.How long have you wanted to be a business owner?Good luck.

The young farmer might've learned his trade from his dad too.
The least risky path is to do a trade such as builder or electrician.

I dont know what I'd start a business in though. I'm trying to create and write my own book but I still haven't produced anything and I'm still the process of ideas and then sometimes I ended up changing my mind with ideas. I can't see really making a business out of that.

Last edited by chris1989 on 11 Jun 2022, 6:30 am, edited 1 time in total.

What is your skillset?  Have you earned any degrees after high school?  Are you taking classes now?

An electrician is self employed....has his own business

The thing is that type of job doesn't interest me. My dad is a self employed carpenter and I've not been interested in following his profession.

We have a saying in Spanish, "las comparaciones son odiosas". It literally translates to "all comparasions are hateful".
Some are lucky and inherit a business, others have a huge money advantage, others... What would have that person you are envious of done in your situation, with your tools, with the knowledge your situation would have allowed him to have?
If my family had some extra cash and someone into any car company, granted, I'd in a motorsports team, but that's not the case. Others at my age are right now at Le Mans. I'm jealous as well, but I understand, I do what I can with what I have. I fight my battle and try to do all I can to get where I want to be.

Don't compare yourself to others that is only gonna hurt you. Do get inspiration from these successful people and do try to figure out what are they doing that you are not and why, learn from them. Still, remember, your life, your battle is not like theirs, you have other circumstances, and that's fine, just make sure you get the most out of it. Hard work won't ensure anything, but the more you put in, the more chances you have of getting there.

This is good advice, unfortunately it's human nature to compare yourself to more successful peers. Worst is when parents rub it in when a school friend or colleague is doing better than you.

I spent many years in my 20s trying different avenues to be successful but hit walls. Yes, you need to motivation, translatable skills and some level of strategic thinking. But when you are young its difficult to not notice others earning big money, being self sufficient, living in a big house/apartment and being surrounded by pretty girls and having lots of friends. That does hurt.

Or worse, a sibling. My sister started working during high school, took a year off from studying after it, kept working at the same job when she did go back to school and now has a good career at the same place.

Meanwhile me, well, I couldn't work while I lived with my parents since there was no public transportation, so no summer work for me during studies. Moved away after graduating, resulting to unemployment, unpaid trainee work, short contracts and more unemployment and unpaid trainee work... now I've had the same job for a few years, but it's pretty much a dead end one. Yet, since it's a long time contract, I'm hesitant to leave even if I got a better offer, since I could end up unemployed afterwards if it wasn't a long time contract or if I didn't make it through the testing period.

Also working on a novel though, and my current plan is to stick to my dead end job (while trying to fish for more hours) and write my novel on my free time and hopefully have some real career in that field eventually. That would certainly be something I'd like to be doing.

Don't sweat it. You have a job so you are luckier than most. I have done a mix of work involving private and contract. I if my stars align I might become a salary man again. Either way, I'm getting closer to the finish line, Retirement.

8 billion people in the solar system

Only one of them is the best at each skill

And even that one , is only the best at that time

Jealousy and resentment are not taboo

Not everyone has the same potential, situation

Not everyone wired the same way

Nobody is perfect

Sometimes things are not the way they appear

@Chris1989: Are you not going to answer these questions?

I've been on this forum for > 10 years now and 99% of members run away when you ask personal questions.

I wouldn't sweat it since most businesses fail anyway, especially if it's just person starting from zero. The appearance now might be one of a successful young guy, but wait five years and see how he's doing. Chances are, not as good as he aspired to.

https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/1010/top-6-reasons-new-businesses-fail.aspx

I started a business when I was 22. It failed after 2 years, but at least I didn't lose a lot of money from it. Maybe I start a business again, who knows. Point is same as others have made, don't compare yourself to others but carve your own way and be prepared to fail a lot before you see success.

"Fall down seven times, stand up eight."