A million on the dot
I’ve had entrepreneurial aspirations since I can remember, and although I dreamt about it, I didn’t expect to become a millionaire so quickly. When I was seven, when the web didn’t exist and I was unaware it was going to make my fortune, I was already designing my first corporate logos and pictures of my office, all the time imagining one day running my own company.
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I started drawing and selling my own comics when I was nine. I photocopied the comic for 5p a copy and sold it for 30p at school. The first edition included a small chocolate bar, to catch the kids’ attention.
At my Somerset boarding school I initially dealt tuck and sweets, but soon began to see other opportunities. Once, our PE teacher was not happy because the class was mucking around. We were meant to play football on the top of a hill, where there was no water, and he forbade us to take any drinks as a punishment. I knew everybody would be thirsty after the game, so I filled two bottles with tap water and smuggled them to the pitch. When the match finished everybody was dying of thirst. I took the water out and said: “Does anybody want some?” With no competition, I charged 50 pence a swig. You might call that ruthless but it was a good business opportunity. I provided a product, they were thirsty, and it was sorted.
My life changed when the internet reached our school. In no time I set up my first site: bigfestivals.com. It had listings of music festivals around England and was the first of its kind. But soon came a competitor, and as it was richer it grabbed a bigger audience. I had ideas and drive, but no hard cash.
As that site died, I opened an online beatboxing forum, where people interested in vocal reproductions of drums and sounds met. I created the site with a ￡2,000 loan from the Prince’s Trust. I organised international conventions, performed at gigs, and even had a cameo appearance on EastEnders. It became my life, but I soon realised that business and passions don’t always work together. I sold the site for ￡1,000 and decided that the next step was a business degree.
I worked at Tesco to save some money and although I didn’t enjoy the job, it was a valuable experience. After six months I quit and began working on a business to help fund university. A bank lent me ￡1,500, which, with ￡1,000 I’d saved, was for an innovative new site that would offer “virtual relaxation” (I’ve been keen on meditation for years). Unfortunately I underestimated the workload and it was never launched. I needed a new idea. I didn’t want to end university with more than ￡30,000 debt like my brother.
I asked the question, “How can I become a millionaire?” I wrote down the attributes of the perfect idea: simple, catchy, cheap. Then this crazy idea came to me: sell a million pixels for a dollar. Yes! Open a one-page website, divide it into a million pixels (or dots) and sell the space as advertising. Easy. I named it milliondollarhomepage.com. I chose the dollar; it’s the international currency and I knew the Americans would love it.
Family and friends helped to buy the first pixels. With the first $1,000 I wrote a press release. When the media picked it up, it all went crazy. In no time I earned $100,000... ￡200,000... and more money led to more attention: a snowball effect. By the time university started I had enough money for three years and, I must admit, I spent a fair bit on partying and buying rounds. But I didn’t tell anybody I was the million dollar guy - it would have spoilt the fun.
An agent in the US contacted me and proposed I write a book, ready for the final pixel I sold. I declined but the same person organised a media tour in the States so that we could maximise sales. It was a great move, and experience. In the US I met crazy people, went on television and had a great time. End result? More pixels were sold. It all went so fast. Demand for pixels exceeded supply and I blocked everything when the last 1,000 pixels were left. I auctioned them on eBay and earned my dream: $1m.
Inevitably something had to go wrong. The moment I got the $1m, a hacker hijacked the site and demanded $50,000 to put it online again. I refused and didn’t reply to his blackmail. Instead I upgraded the security system and put the homepage back online. I never heard anything else from him again.
My adventure proved that it is possible to achieve a dream. It worked because the idea went “viral”, but it is a one-off business - a get-rich-quick scheme. I doubt it will happen again, but it shows that original ideas can succeed on the net. There are many others like me who are waiting for a chance and the internet is where everything will happen in the future. It takes determination and preparation. If you are ready for that, anyone can make a million dollars. Good luck!
As told to James Fontanella.
我是如何成为百万富翁的？
从
我记事起，我就一直抱有创业的渴望。尽管我曾梦想过成为一名百万富翁，但我从未期待这么快就能美梦成真。7岁那年，我已经开始设计我首家公司的标识和办公室图片了，而且成天幻想有一天能够经营属于自己的公司。而在当时，还没有网络，我也没有想到有朝一日它将为我创造财富。
9岁时，我开始绘制并出售自己的连环画。我以每张5便士的价格影印这些漫画，然后在学校以每张30便士的价格出售。当时的第一版还附送一小条巧克力，以此来吸引孩子们的注意。
在萨默塞特（Somerset）寄宿学校上学时，我起初买卖些点心和糖果，但很快开始寻找其它机会。有一次，我们的体育老师因为班里学生胡闹而不太高兴。我们打算在山顶上踢足球，那里是没有水的。作为惩罚，他禁止我们携带任何饮料上山。我知道每个人赛后都会口渴，于是我灌了两瓶自来水，并将它们偷偷带到球场。当比赛结束时，人人渴得要命。我把水拿出来问道：“有人要喝水吗？”在毫无竞争的情况下，每喝一大口收费50便士。你可能会说我无情，但这是一个很好的商业机会。我提供一种产品，而他们口渴了，于是一拍即合。
当互联网进入我们学校时，我的生活因此改变。我立刻成立了自己的首个网站：bigfestivals.com。网站上列出了英国各地的音乐节名单，开辟了同类网站的先河。但很快出现一个竞争对手；由于它的财力更强，因此夺取了更多受众。我有想法和干劲，但没有资金。
随着该网站关闭，我又开设了一家关于人声打击乐的网络论坛（beatboxing forum），那里聚集了对人声模仿鼓点和乐声感兴趣的人。我向王子信托基金(Prince’s Trust) 贷款2000英镑创立了这个网站。我组织国际会议，在音乐会上演出，甚至在肥皂剧《东伦敦人》(Eastenders)中露过脸。这成为我的生活，但我很快意识到商业与激情无法永远和谐结合。我以1000英镑的价格卖掉了这个网站，决定下一步要攻读一个商业学位。
为了攒钱，我曾在特易购超市(Tesco)打工，尽管我不喜欢那份工作，但那是一个有价值的经历。6个月后，我辞了职，开始在一家企业打工，以筹集大学学费。一家银行贷给我1500英镑，再加上我之前积攒的1000英镑，够开一家提供“实质性消遣”（多年来我一直在考虑）的创新网站了。不幸的是，我错误地低估了工作负荷，于是，这家网站从未成立起来。我需要一个新想法。我不想像我哥哥那样，带着3万多英镑的债务结束大学生活。
我问自己：“如何才能变成一个百万富翁呢？”我将完美创意的要素写下来：简单、吸引人、成本低。然后我有了这个疯狂的念头：以每格1美元的价格出售100万个格子。对！开办一个单页网站，将其分割成100万格（或点），作为广告空间进行出售。简单！我将它命名为百万美元网站(milliondollarhomepage.com)。我选择了美元；它是国际货币，而且我知道美国人会喜欢。
我的家人和朋友们帮忙买下了第一批格子。赚了1000美元之后，我写了一篇新闻稿。随着媒体将此付诸报道，一切便疯狂地开始了。顷刻之间，我赚了10万美元……20万英镑……赚的钱越多，引起的关注就越多：这是一种滚雪球效应。在大学学业开始之前，我已经有足够的钱支付3年的费用，而且我必须承认，我将相当一部分钱花在了派对和请一大帮人喝酒上。但我从未告诉任何人，我就是那么百万美元男孩，那样就没意思了。
美国的一位代理商联系到我，提议让我写一本书，为我卖出最后一个格子作准备。我没有答应；但这个人在美国组织了一次媒体旅行，以便我们实现销售额最大化。这是一次很棒的举措，也是一次难忘的经历。在美国，我遇见了狂热的人群，上了电视，过得非常愉快。最终结果？我卖出了更多的格子。所有一切发生得如此之快。对格子的需求超过了供给。当只剩下最后1000个格子时，我封锁了所有销售渠道。我将它们在eBay上拍卖，并赚到了我梦寐以求的100万美元。
有些事不可避免会出问题。在我赚到100万美元时，一个黑客攻击了网站，并勒索5万美元。我拒绝了，没有回复他的勒索邮件。我反而升级了安全系统并恢复了网站。我再也没有得到他的任何消息。
我的冒险经历证明，实现梦想是可能的。我之所取得成功，是因为我的想法变成了“病毒”，但它是一次性买卖――一个迅速致富的方法。我怀疑这种事将来是否还会再次发生，但它表明，原创想法可以在网络上取得成功。有很多人像我一样期待一个机遇，而在互联网上，将来任何事情可都能发生。这需要决心和准备。如果你准备好了，任何人都能赚100万美元。祝你好运！
