Bookkeeper turned Richest Person

From a bookkeeper to the wealthiest American of all time, and the richest person in modern history

John D. Rockefeller was the head of the Standard Oil Company and one of the world's richest men. He used his fortune to fund ongoing philanthropic causes.

Rockefeller took a correspondence course on bookkeeping and 3 months later, with a completed course certification in hand, he knocked on the doors of businesses in Cleveland for 6 weeks until a company finally gave him a job.

Unafraid of hard work, he embarked on a number of small-business ventures as a teenager, landing his first real office job at age 16, as an assistant bookkeeper with Hewitt & Tuttle, commission merchants and produce shippers.

“Willful waste makes woeful want,” His mother told him. While Rockefeller’s father taught him dishonesty and ruthlessness in order to get ahead, Eliza instilled in John the sober habits of her Christian faith: thriftiness, hard work, and self control. Starting at a young age, Rockefeller earned money from his neighbors by raising turkeys and selling pieces of chocolate to his school mates.

By the time Rockefeller was 12 he had saved $50, about $1,400 in today’s money. Following his mother’s advice, he loaned his $50 to a local farmer at 7% interest, payable after one year.

It was around this time that Rockefeller learned the power of interest. “The impression was gaining ground with me that it was a good thing to let the money be my servant and not make myself a slave to the money,” he said of this time. As a kid, Rockefeller was known for being particularly serious and rarely smiled.

Because he had experience giving out loans and selling small items, Rockefeller was a skilled bookkeeper at a young age. To find a job, he went door to door for months, presenting a plan to business owners on how his book keeping services would save them money. On September 26, 1855, after months of searching, he signed on as a bookkeeper, making 50 cents a day at a produce brokerage firm called Hewitt & Tuttle.

Until the day he died, Rockefeller celebrated “job day” every September 26 to commemorate his entrance into the business world. “All my future seemed to hinge on that day,” he reminisced later in life. “I often tremble when I ask myself the question: ‘What if I had not got the job?’.”

To live frugally while he was a young professional, Rockefeller kept a journal of all his expenses, which he called Ledger A. He kept the habit of writing out all his expenses until the day he died.

He closely reviewed every bill and jumped on errors of even a few pennies. Rockefeller was amazed at the laxity and inefficiency of his much older peers, which distinguished him from an early age.

This thorough, systematic way that he did things was more recognized at this time than his brilliant, flashing intelligence. Even as a wealthy man, Rockefeller was known to go to extreme measures to pay back pennies that he owed.

Years later, when asked about his first ledger, Rockefeller said he wouldn’t try all his riches in the world if it meant giving up his ledger.

“I was trained in business affairs, and I was taught how to keep a ledger,” he said. “The practice of keeping a little personal ledger by young men just starting in business and earning money and requiring to learn its value is, I think, a good one. It is more than forty-two years since I wrote what it contains. I call it Ledger A, and now I place the greatest value upon it.”

It was around this time that Rockefeller started giving away 10% of his earnings to charity, another habit he started when he was young and practiced until he died.

After retiring from Standard Oil in his 50s, he hired Rev. Frederick Gates, a Baptist minister, to help him forge a new set of principles for philanthropy.

Frederick Gates pushed him, warning, “Mr. Rockefeller your fortune is rolling up like an avalanche! You must distribute it faster than it grows! If you do not, it will crush you and your children and your children’s children!”

Already strained by the demands of making money, Rockefeller now staggered under the new pressures of giving it away. “I investigated and worked myself almost to a nervous breakdown,” he said, “in groping my way through the ever-widening field of philanthropic endeavor.”

As a boy, Rockefeller often boasted that he would one day make over $100,000 and live until he was 100 years old. While he easily accomplished his first mission, Rockefeller died in his sleep at the age of 97 in 1937. At the time of his passing, John was jollier than ever.

The key lesson I am hoping you have picked from this compilation is that HE KEPT A LEDGER :), as wealthy as he was, Rockefeller kept a journal of all his expenses. Are you tracking your business and personal expenses?

More than 90% of SMEs in Africa die before their third year of operations. The funnel gets narrower over a span of 10 years with most of the remaining businesses dying pre-maturely along the way.

The main cause of SME deaths & stunted growth is lack of an understanding of how to manage finances at the critical growth stage of your business; as well as lack of knowledge & skills on when, how and where to raise external capital more efficiently in order to finance your business growth.

SME Finance Masterclass seeks to equip founders with businesses which have been operational between 1-7 years with knowledge and skills on; SME Financial Planning & Management as well as SME Investor Preparedness & Processes.

In the 2 days workshop, participants will learn through practical case studies and using their own business data to dive deep into how best to plan and manage their finances; as well as on how to effectively raise funding from external investors.

Join a team of 25 high growth entrepreneurs in Kampala for learning & business networking!

Venue: Golden Tulip Canaan Kampala Hotel - Kampala, Uganda

Dates: 7th - 8th June 2018

Rates: UGX 1,090,000 or USD 295

Morning & evening tea & snacks, lunch & stationery provided!

Contact us: +256 782305125 / 782758635 | [email protected]

Register directly to the SME Finance Advisors website: https://smefinanceadvisors.com/workshop_registration_form/

Or get your ticket on our eventbrite link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sme-finance-masterclass-ticket…

To your success!

Lilian Katiso