Early Financial Freedom: My Real - Life Story, an Entrepreneur’s Formula for Success

By Steven Pergolizzi

Steven Pergolizzi, one of the most successful business leaders in the professional recruitment services industry, hopes his own story will embolden you to:

develop the techniques and traits exhibited by successful entrepreneurs;
avoid the pitfalls and behaviors of aspiring entrepreneurs who have failed;
become an effective planner, negotiator, and influencer;
start, operate, and sell successful businesses; and
invest to accumulate and preserve wealth.

This book contains invaluable information that every aspiring entrepreneur, existing business owner, or business leader should know in order to be successful. The lessons offered will also benefit the ambitious student or parent seeking to support an entrepreneurial child.

Pergolizzi highlights how hard work, careful planning, prudent decision-making, and smart investing can translate into financial freedom at an early age.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu Publishing Services
• Release date: Mar 7, 2017
• ISBN: 9781483465005

Book preview

Early Financial

FREEDOM

My Real-Life Story, An Entrepreneur’s Formula for Success

STEVEN PERGOLIZZI

Copyright © 2017 Steven Pergolizzi.

www.earlyfinancialfreedombook.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission of both publisher and author, except in the case of brief excerpts used in critical articles and reviews. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

ISBN: 978-1-4834-6501-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4834-6500-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017901366

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Lulu Publishing Services rev. date: 02/22/2017

Contents

Acknowledgements

About the Author

What Inspired Me to Write This Book

Chapter One

Entrepreneurship: Is It for Me?

Chapter Two

Traits of a Successful Entrepreneur

Chapter Three

Pitfalls or Reasons for Failure

Chapter Four

Pillar 1—Planning

Chapter Five

Pillar 2—Leadership

Chapter Six

Pillar 3—Communication & Business Etiquette

Chapter Seven

Pillar 4—Company Financial Awareness

Chapter Eight

Pillar 5—Effective Staffing

Chapter Nine

Personal Investing, Investing Wisely

Chapter Ten

The Early Years

Chapter Eleven

The Real World

Chapter Twelve

Brainstorming

Chapter Thirteen

Taking the Leap

Chapter Fourteen

First Year in Business

Chapter Fifteen

The Building Stage

Chapter Sixteen

Overcoming Challenges

Chapter Seventeen

Finding a Balance

Chapter Eighteen

Turning Point

Chapter Nineteen

Get Real Sammy

Chapter Twenty

The One

Chapter Twenty-One

Freedom or Not, What Was Next?

Highlights

Bibliography

I

dedicate this book to my beautiful Mom who I think about every day.

My memory of you is everlasting and has guided me through every step of my life.

You are in my heart and soul, and you will never be forgotten.

Acknowledgements

I would like to offer my special thanks and appreciation to the following individuals who assisted me in writing this book.

To my godmother, Bess Cunningham, who has graciously spent countless hours offering her valuable opinions, ideas, and editing advice. Her love, support, and overall collaboration were important to me in more ways than just advising on my book. I want to thank her from the bottom of my heart.

To one of my best friends, Chris Materasso, for spending many hours of his time reviewing my book and offering his valuable advice and suggestions.

To my business partners and financial advisor, who offered their general opinions on some of the content and overall delivery of my story.

To my wife Stacey, who graciously left me alone for many hours to be deep in thought while supporting my desire to write this book.

To my family, who always supports me in my newest endeavor, knowing that I always try to keep things interesting.

About the Author

Steven Pergolizzi is a highly successful entrepreneur, business owner, investor, and sales leader. With an education and career in accounting and finance, Steve was able to leverage his initial experience as a controller in corporate America to become one of the most successful business leaders in the professional recruitment services industry. By spending years in the trenches, Steve learned the art of the deal, how to influence, negotiate, and effectively lead.

Steve was awarded and recognized as one of the top ten recruiters worldwide in his discipline seven years straight while working at one of the largest staffing agencies in the world. Driven by a tremendous entrepreneurial spirit, Steve was able to utilize his sales and overall business mindset to effectively open and develop several highly successful start-up businesses. As president and managing partner, Steve built, operated, and sold highly profitable businesses while managing to invest his money wisely throughout the years.

With over 23 years of sales and business ownership experience, Steve is uniquely qualified to offer a broad business perspective and a proven approach to all things important to becoming a successful entrepreneur. Steve is a highly driven planner who is passionate about enabling the average person to pursue their dreams realistically, by approaching their goals strategically. Steve is a husband and a father of two boys and currently resides in the suburbs of New York City.

What Inspired Me to Write This Book

There are many books out there that attempt to illustrate what an entrepreneur is or how to become successful. In my experience, those books were often a bit too clinical or mechanical in nature. I felt something was missing from them, something tangible, something that would make the hungry, motivated person go out and actually pursue their passion as opposed to just saying, I should have started a business, I always wanted to do that. Essentially, something that would make the true entrepreneur unafraid to pull the trigger.

There is certainly a need to portray the clinical side of entrepreneurship, and I will detail that as well. I intend to share with the reader some of the core traits and attributes one must exhibit to be successful, as well as some of the pitfalls to avoid.

Then, I want to reinforce those ideas through their application in the form of my real-life portrayal of how I took the leap of faith from mechanical book knowledge to actually starting a company. I will show how I utilized the tools necessary to start, operate, and sell successful businesses. More specifically, I will periodically make reference to the specialized financial recruiting firm I founded.

I want the reader to earnestly observe their inner-self and see if they are truly an entrepreneur. If so, I want to exploit that behavior and provide the motivation and knowledge necessary for the reader to fulfill their dream.

I want to decrease the failure rate of small businesses and improve the percentage of start-up businesses that are successful.

I want to show the non-entrepreneur but highly dynamic business leader, how to effectively drive and manage their business (large or small), improve financial performance, and set their company up for financial and operational success.

Ultimately, I want to show how a regular person, a layman, if driven and focused on success, can put themselves in a position to reach early financial freedom.

Chapter One

Entrepreneurship: Is It for Me?

The definition of an Entrepreneur is someone who exercises initiative by organizing a venture to take benefit of an opportunity and, as the decision maker, decides what, how, and how much of a good or service will be produced. An entrepreneur supplies risk capital as a risk taker, and monitors and controls the business activities. The entrepreneur is usually a sole proprietor, a partner, or the one who owns the majority of shares in an incorporated venture. (1)

Entrepreneurship has traditionally been defined as the process of designing, launching and running a new business, such as a start-up company offering a product, process or service. It has been defined as the capacity and willingness to develop, organize, and manage a business venture along with any of its risks in order to make a profit. (2)

The above definitions are absolutely true but I define entrepreneurship a bit differently.

Entrepreneurship is having the ability to turn a business idea into a reality. It means being a risk taker, and most importantly, a planner who simply has guts and can work hard to strategically calculate every move. It is having the perseverance, passion, common sense, and instinct to influence, lead, and drive towards the ultimate goal of financial freedom.

All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them. —Walt Disney

An entrepreneur has the ability to have or acquire broad-based business acumen. An entrepreneur plans well and is on a mission to achieve great success. Finally, an entrepreneur has the ability to become a true decision-maker who understands that small failures will occur on the path towards the ultimate reward.

We live in America, the home of the free. We live in a free society, a society where we are privileged to have the opportunity to simply entertain the idea of being an entrepreneur. Whether you want to develop a product or a service, the only true limitation is yourself. We live in a society where competition is ever-present and promoted. We often take our liberties for granted because we simply know no differently.

The American dream truly is alive and well. —Mark Cuban, Business leader, entrepreneur, and philanthropist

The luxury of becoming an entrepreneur is yours for the taking, but is it you? If it is truly you, go and get it, but do it the right way. First, you need to make some honest assessments.

Do you have what it takes?

Answer these questions first:

Am I truly passionate about the prospect of being a business owner?

Am I fully prepared to challenge the status quo?

Do I understand that I will live, eat, and breathe whatever I plan on selling?

Do I have, or can I acquire, the power to negotiate and influence?

Do I have an I won’t be beat mentality?

Am I a thinker? A planner?

Do I have the stomach for the roller coaster ride I will be on, mentally, physically, and financially?

Am I a leader rather than a follower?

Do I have a hankering for success, or am I content with mediocrity?

Can I take constructive criticism and apply it?

There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing. —Aristotle

Finally, can I look directly in the mirror and ask myself; would I buy from me?

If you answered No to any of the above questions, you may want to think twice about being an entrepreneur. It is extremely important to understand that owning a business is not for everyone, and that’s okay. You need to honestly recognize whether you have the wherewithal to be a true entrepreneur.

If you answered Yes to some but not all of the above questions, you can still exhibit entrepreneurial behavior but you may be best served in corporate America, working for someone else. If you incorporate some of the core values and attributes you will read in this book, I feel that you will be equipped to be among the new business successes or the top 10% of the employees in the company you work for, which will still lead to success.

Chapter Two

Traits of a Successful Entrepreneur

The Ability to Plan:

Planning is one of the most important entrepreneurial and overall life components. So, I designate it as one of my 5 Pillars to Success, which I will discuss in further detail later in this book. I could dedicate a whole book to planning; that’s how strongly I feel about this topic. You must be a diligent and strategic planner.

A Gregarious Personality:

The outgoing, friendly, and respectful person will be best served in being the face of their new business (product or service). A quiet and reserved person will not be able to effectively market their company. Relationships, whether business or personal, start with being expressive and courteous. The ability to maintain a positive attitude is uplifting to all who come in contact with you.

For example, when I arrive at the office each day, I say, Good morning to the people on the elevator. Before I leave the elevator, I tell them, Have a nice day. When I pass an individual in the hallway, I say, Hello, how are you today? I’m being polite and courteous, but it also makes me genuinely feel good inside. People tend to gravitate to people who are polite, courteous, outgoing, and respectful. The successful entrepreneur or business leader needs to exhibit this behavior.

A Well-Rounded Business Background or the Desire to Acquire Equivalent Knowledge:

I think it is very important to have a foundation in business that stems from the proper schooling. Although I have met some highly successful business people who have limited education, a high school and college education with exposure to business and related courses (accounting, finance, small business management, marketing, organizational management, tax, communications, and information technology) will prove to be extremely helpful.

Tremendous Skills in Communication,

both Written and Verbal:

Communication, which I define as one of my 5 Pillars to Success, is monumentally important. This trait is necessary to build strong and deep relationships with clients, vendors, and your staff. Proper and effective communication will aid in differentiating you from others, and it’s a quality that is largely within your control.

Strong, Uncompromising Ethics and Morals:

When you start and then operate a new business, these traits will most certainly be tested. Maintaining the proper moral and ethical behavior is vital because your reputation as an honest business partner will make your customer want to work with you again and again. Your staff will respect you as a leader and learn to exhibit the same behavior. Remember: As you hire and train staff, they will emulate you. If you show that your ethics can be compromised at times, your staff will view this as allowable and customary behavior.

Persistence and Perseverance:

I can assure you that you will most definitely fail at things.

Surprised to hear that? Yes, you will fail. With the proper planning, your failures will be fewer and less costly. You need to learn from your failures and have the drive to say, That is simply not going to happen again. With the proper planning, you should be able to foresee most of the material issues your business could face and address them before or immediately after they occur in order to minimize the impact. Ideally, you need to fail at the small and less material things.

There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure. —Colin Powell, former Secretary of State of the United States of America

I knew that if I failed I wouldn’t regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not trying. —Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, Inc.

If You Lose, React Accordingly:

I mentioned you will fail and you will lose but it is important to recognize a loss; more importantly, take responsibility for it. True strength and learning come from admitting that you’ve failed and recognizing who won and why. Your reaction to dealing with such failure will show your resilience and true colors. Once you see those colors, you need to make a self-assessment of your reaction. Was the reaction one of anger or learning? Anger is a normal feeling we all experience; however, reacting from anger is clearly not the best answer. Learning from the experience instead, with a calculated determination to win the next time a similar situation occurs, will develop you into a true and successful business leader.

For example, early in my career as a recruiter, I was bested by my competition many times when trying to fill a position for one of my clients. I was in sales and was paid only when I successfully placed a qualified candidate with one of my clients. My close ratio or my overall ability to close deals and generate revenue for the company I worked for was not strong at the time. Of course, I was not happy about being beaten, but I needed to figure out why I was losing and what I needed to do in order to prevent it from happening again.

I needed to turn my area of opportunity into strength. After doing some fact finding, I found that the control I exhibited over the process was too loose and I needed to tighten it. I needed to perfect the art of control with my candidate and my client, in order to maximize my ability to close deals. Over the years, I was able to master the art of control, and it quickly became my competition’s turn to figure out how to be a good loser.

Don’t Stop at the Word No:

How many times have I heard the word, no? As a business owner, a leader, and a salesperson, if I stopped at the word no, I would be nowhere. No is a temporary setback and not finality. Working past this word takes perseverance, tact, and the right approach. Proper education and training can clearly help a leader, or one of their employees, with getting past this objection.

Negotiating and Influencing:

The ability to negotiate and influence is a true art. People go to seminars and take courses to better improve their strength in these areas. I am a big proponent of spending the money necessary for learning how to become a great negotiator and how to influence behavior. One strong negotiation can save you and your company millions of dollars. As a leader, a day will not go by without the need to influence someone or something, or to negotiate some form of agreement. An entrepreneur must become highly proficient in these areas.

Giving Something Up? Make Sure

You Get Something in Return:

As a component of negotiation, I would always try to get something in return for a consideration I made during a negotiation. The most appropriate time to ask for something is when you are giving something up. In many instances, you will most likely need to give that something up anyway, why not try to get something out of it?

A few examples:

If one of my clients asked me for a reduced or discounted fee for the service I was providing, I would ask them to work with me exclusively to increase my chances of filling the position. I would also ask that the next time they have a need, I am the first call they make to a recruiter.

If I was negotiating the lease for my office space, and the landlord insisted on a higher monthly rent, and I had no choice but to agree, I would ask for an extra amenity for my office or another month of free rent.

If a contractor came to my house and quoted me a price to perform a service on my air conditioning unit, I would say, Wow, that sounds high. I will agree to that but for that price, I need you to do me a favor and take a quick look at my furnace to make sure everything is working properly, does that sound fair?

Discipline:

Finding the appropriate level of discipline is crucial in business and in the home. When you use the appropriate amount of discipline, it enables you to hold yourself, your staff, or even your kids in balance. As it relates to your business, the proper discipline will help ensure the appropriate level of proactive planning that needs to exist in order to effectively navigate and operate your business. Showing discipline is contagious; it is noticed very quickly by your peers and is emulated,