📈 How I Built My Net Worth from $500 to $250,000

2015: First Job at ShopRite – Net Worth $500

At 15, I got my first job at ShopRite as a leveller. It was boring, repetitive work—organizing shelves for 4-6 hours at a time—but it was my first taste of earning my own money. I worked summers and weekends for minimum wage ($10/hr).

2017: Off to College– Net Worth $1,000

I made one of my best financial decisions:
 ✅ Chose the cheapest school where I got a full-tuition scholarship
 ✅ Kept working—first at ShopRite, then got a campus job & an internship

I started college working weekends at ShopRite, but by my second semester, I switched to on-campus jobs, which saved me time and helped me work more hours.

2018: Multiple Jobs & First Internship – Net Worth $3,000

This semester I doubled down on work and built skills that would pay off in the future

 ✅ Student Run Businesses—easy on campus job, I got paid while doing school work
 ✅ 1-800 Flowers Internship—started my career in marketing

These were all minimum wage jobs, but they were a step up from ShopRite. Working on campus cut my commute time and let me work more hours, while the internship gave me experience that eventually led to a full time job.

Summer 2018: First Full-Time Job – Net Worth $5,000

For the first time, I had a full-time summer job, continuing my internship at 1-800-Flowers. I was still making minimum wage, but by the end of the summer, I had saved around $5,000.

Just before school started, I got accepted as a Resident Assistant (RA)—this didn’t add to my income, but I could dorm for free, cutting a huge expense.

2018-2019: RA Life & Leadership – Net Worth $5,000

With free room & board from being an RA, I continued working at student-run businesses.

💼 Got promoted to Chief Personnel Officer, which let me:
 ✅ Maximize my work hours
 ✅ Get leadership experience managing other students

This helped me balance earning money while handling school.

Summer 2019: First Investment – Net Worth $10,000

I went back to 1-800-Flowers for another summer. This is when I first discovered Graham Stephan’s YouTube channel, which led me to:

📈 Open a Roth IRA
 🎯 Set a goal to max it out every year

This was the first real investing decision I made, and it put me on track to build wealth long-term.

2019-2020: CEO Role & Monster Energy Side Hustle – Net Worth $12,000

Returning to school as an RA, I became the CEO of my school’s student-run businesses.

💼 This meant I no longer worked in the store—I managed it.
💰 Started a 1099 job with Monster Energy ($200/month + 10 free cases of Monster to give out at events)

Unfortunately, COVID shut this down quickly, but before that, it was a fun and easy way to make extra cash.

My first stock market trade:

• Sold bond ETFs and shifted to Total Stock Market ETFs

• Almost went all-in on FAANG stocks but I wasn't confident in my investing yet (looking back, that would’ve been a great move)

Summer 2020: Gig Apps & Stock Mistakes – Net Worth $15,000

With everything shut down, I turned to gig apps like Instacart & DoorDash, making about $20/hr while listening to podcasts. My experience working a ShopRite when I was younger helped out here, since I knew how the stores were setup I could finish orders fast.

📈 Shifted from ETFs to single stocks
 ✅ Followed Jeremy (Financial Education) & Justin (A Couple of Cents)
 ❌ Bought Virgin Galactic & Tilray (big mistakes)
 🎯 Bought XRP, which turned into my best-performing asset

Big lesson: If you’re up enough to take a screenshot, you should probably sell. I’m still working on following this advice.

2020-2021: Finishing School & Graduating Early – Net Worth $17,000

I stayed home instead of being an RA this year. Since my classes were online, I finished my degree early.

📢 Got approved for unemployment since my school paused all student jobs
🎓 Graduated a semester early since college was not as fun when everything moved online

The week after I walked for graduation, I landed a full-time job at 1-800-Flowers as a Marketing Coordinator ($50K/year).

2022: Big Career Move – Net Worth $40,000

After a year at 1-800-Flowers, I made the jump to Upside, a startup I had wanted to work for:

💰 Salary jumped to $80K
 📈 Got Pre-IPO equity
 📉 Started trading options—bad timing, portfolio down 40%

I used the crash to sell weak stocks and concentrate into PLTR, which paid off later.

2023: Moving Out & Staying Invested – Net Worth $50,000

I moved out for the first time, paying $1,750/month in rent. Even with this, I invested $1,000/month and kept growing. This was a large expense, but it was worth every penny as I was able to learn how to be responsible for myself.

💼 Small raise to $83K
 📈 Consistent investing, no major portfolio moves

2024: First Six-Figure Net Worth – Net Worth $110,000

In 2023 the stock market flipped my portfolio from -40% to +40%, which pushed me over the 6 figure mark.

🏡 Considered buying a condo, but held off
🏡 Moved in with my grandma at the end of the year to save money
 💼 Promoted to Marketing Manager – New salary: $93K

2025: Quarter Million Dollar Net Worth – $250,000

🚀 PLTR & XRP skyrocketed, pushing my portfolio to $320K
 📉 Currently down to $270K as I write this

The biggest lesson? Investing is a long game. Don’t get too attached to the highs—or the lows.

What This Means for You

I started with minimum-wage jobs and zero investing experience, and now I’ve built a six-figure net worth before 30. So how did I get here”

 ✅ Stacked income streams early
 ✅ Minimized expenses & invested consistently
 ✅ Stayed patient through market swings

But here’s the truth: You don’t have to figure this out alone.

If you’re serious about building wealth, increasing your income, and making smarter financial decisions, I offer 1-on-1 financial coaching to help you:

💰 Create a personalized wealth-building plan
 📈 Maximize your income & investment strategy
 🚀 Stay accountable and on track to hit your financial goals

📥 Want my help?  Click here for 1-on-1 coaching and let’s build your path to financial freedom together!

Your Personal Finance Roadmap: Build Wealth. Take Control. Reach Financial Freedom