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How I made my first million

How I Made My First Million, from Fortune Success: The inside scoop on how entrepreneurs, investors, and CEOs built their fortunes—and how you can too.
Bill Holland gesturing
Success
He went from working in a factory to being rich enough to retire at 32—but 3 decades later, this millionaire still works and takes public transport
By Preston ForeJuly 7, 2026
Chris Hulatt co-founder of Octopus Group
Success
A 2-year taste of the office was enough to make 3 grads quit. Now they run a $13.2 billion investment firm: ‘We didn’t want a traditional job again’
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 2, 2026
Content creator Logan Walter
Success
This Gen Zer dropped out of college to become an influencer—now he’s a millionaire from selling products like Medicube and Neutrogena on TikTok Shop
By Emma BurleighMay 11, 2026
Mark Zuckerberg once gave a Facebook engineer startup advice at 2 a.m. while ‘hanging out with all the interns’—she quit and raised millions after
Success
Mark Zuckerberg once gave a Facebook engineer startup advice at 2 a.m. while ‘hanging out with all the interns’—she quit and raised millions after
By Orianna Rosa RoyleMay 6, 2026
Suze Orman once said earning more than $800,000 would make her ‘sick to my stomach’—but that turning down Oprah Winfrey cured her self-doubt
Success
Suze Orman once said earning more than $800,000 would make her ‘sick to my stomach’—but that turning down Oprah Winfrey cured her self-doubt
By Orianna Rosa RoyleMay 2, 2026
Meet the founder who started over at 50 and worked 20-hour days to build a multimillion dollar cookie dough empire—and still won’t take a day off
Europe
Meet the founder who started over at 50 and worked 20-hour days to build a multimillion dollar cookie dough empire—and still won’t take a day off
By Orianna Rosa RoyleApril 26, 2026
Emma Grede—the self-made millionaire behind the $5 billion Skims empire—says it all began with an audacious cold call to Kris Jenner: ‘The difference between me and someone else is, I made it happen’
Success
Emma Grede—the self-made millionaire behind the $5 billion Skims empire—says it all began with an audacious cold call to Kris Jenner: ‘The difference between me and someone else is, I made it happen’
By Orianna Rosa RoyleApril 16, 2026
Philippines’ first male Olympic gold medalist in history was given a fully furnished $550,000 condo and a lifetime supply of ramen to go with his medals
Success
Philippines’ first male Olympic gold medalist in history was given a fully furnished $550,000 condo and a lifetime supply of ramen to go with his medals
By Orianna Rosa RoyleFebruary 4, 2026
Photo of Alexis Ohanian
Success
Alexis Ohanian walked out of the LSAT 20 minutes in, went to a Waffle House, and decided he was ‘gonna invent a career.’ He founded Reddit
By Preston ForeJanuary 31, 2026
Fitness mogul Kayla Itsines
Success
Kayla Itsines became a millionaire at 22 and sold her fitness app for $400 million—buying a gas station paid her rent
By Emma BurleighJanuary 30, 2026
Hinge CEO says he bribed students with Kit Kats to get the $550-million-a-year business off the ground: ‘I had to beg and borrow a lot‘
Success
Hinge CEO says he bribed students with Kit Kats to get the $550-million-a-year business off the ground: ‘I had to beg and borrow a lot‘
By Orianna Rosa RoyleDecember 12, 2025
Meet Luana Lopes Lara: The 29-year-old ex-ballerina spent college summers working for Ray Dalio and Ken Griffin—now she’s the youngest female self-made billionaire
Success
Meet Luana Lopes Lara: The 29-year-old ex-ballerina spent college summers working for Ray Dalio and Ken Griffin—now she’s the youngest female self-made billionaire
By Orianna Rosa RoyleDecember 4, 2025
Alex Bouaziz, Deel's CEO
Success
Deel’s CEO was told to sack his entire leadership team—he ignored other founders, kept the original $0 crew and is now running a $17 billion giant
By Orianna Rosa RoyleNovember 19, 2025
After selling his business for $532 million, this millennial says a life of leisure was surprisingly ‘boring’, so he’s choosing to go back to work
Arts & Entertainment
After selling his business for $532 million, this millennial says a life of leisure was surprisingly ‘boring’, so he’s choosing to go back to work
By Orianna Rosa RoyleNovember 9, 2025
Alexis Ohanian speaks holding a microphone
Success
Reddit cofounder once walked away with $10 million—He returned and helped lead the company to a $40 billion market cap today
By Preston ForeOctober 28, 2025
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Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stockplaceholder alt text
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
Success
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billionplaceholder alt text
By Sydney LakeJuly 20, 2026
AI
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimisticplaceholder alt text
By Jason MaJuly 18, 2026
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