Over the last couple of days I've been reading the story of the Australian private school student who managed to convince not only fellow students of his own school but other private schools, to invest in his venture involving watch manufacturing, with the promise of big returns.
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| You look like you know what you're doing... |
You'd commend his business approach if you didn't read that one student reportedly lost $150,000 and quite a few others are out of pocket from this backfiring plan...
For me one of the most amusing parts of this story is the fact that the man in question (now an EX student) was in year 12. Casting my mind back to when I donned the school uniform at the same year level (not the same school though), I had but three goals and they were pretty simplistic in comparison:
1. Get attention from the girls. Or any girl really.
2. Get rid of my acne
3. Work out what I'd like to drink on a Saturday night when I caught up with my mates.
('Excel at school' was probably more at the bottom of the list which probably explains why I never gave becoming a venture maker like the guy I've been reading about.)
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| Roughly what my school life was like. |
Being a full time student I made $72 a week working at a newsagent on Saturdays. That was mostly spent on comics, rpgs and nights out. I'd be damned if I'd give anyone any of that hard earned in the hope that I'd make some kind of return. That's bourbon and coke money mate!
How anyone thought this would be a good idea is anyone's guess. (And how the one student who shelled out $150,000 was convinced to do so is mind boggling..)
Were there kids at my school attempting to make money at the back of the oval? Absolutely. But they were selling physical things, there were no investment plans and we're talking a little bit of profit here and there. (What were they selling? Use your imagination or cast your own mind back to the halcyon days of your last years at school.) However as smooth as some of the students were, I'd suggest that anyone walking around trying to convince other students to invest in a start-up business would have probably been laughed at, especially given it would be someone with no experience or proof that their idea would make us millionaires.
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| CEO of schoolyard business when I was in Year 12 |
But then fast forward to 2015 and apparently even the students at schools costing $30,000 in yearly tuition fees have the firm belief that throwing money at a smooth talker in their English class is a fast track to owning a Ferrari by the time they get their licenses. Under that guise there's plenty of Princes in Nigeria keen for your help to move millions of dollars out of the country. In a time when you hear of plenty of investment schemes going ass up with debts to the tune of thousands of dollars, plenty of our country's possible future superstars still dug deep in the hope for a fast doubling or tripling of their cash.
Mummy and daddy of teen tycoon must be thrilled - according to an article on news.com.au, they've had to shell out $200,000 to repay some angry investors back. Exactly how you bring a subject like that to the parentals over the dinner table is an interesting question but I'm guessing Mr Business might not be getting his yearly trip to Europe again for a while. (I'm picturing myself attempting to do this with my family...I think the old man would have chuckled before slapping some sense into me and wondering where I suddenly came up with such a plan..)
Look points for trying something different and I'm sure that this kid will have a bright future in the financial world...provided there's a team of people behind him who actually have the experience and a proven track record in investing. Until then have I told you about my new online investing opportunity? You send me thousands of dollars and when the cops rock up on my door, I pretend I have no idea what you're yabbering on about.
Foolproof!
WEEKEND EDIT: I've just read that he was hoping a big shipmeant of Obey Snapback hats from China was going to help pay back his investors, the same kind of hat Justin Beiber likes to sport. However quality problems meant he couldn't sell most of them. Lesson learnt kids: Never let Justin Beiber attempt to solve any of your own problems..
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| Not a solution to anything really. |
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