Category: entrepreneur

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A Young Man With Autism Opened His Own Coffee Shop After No One Would Hire Him

This is a perfect example of persevering in life despite all the odds stacked against you.

Michael Coyne has struggled with many things in his life, including autism, ADHD, and bipolar disorder. Despite these challenges, Coyne has accomplished a lot, including competing in the Special Olympics. When he turned 21, he decided he wanted to join the workforce in the food service industry. But there was one major roadblock: no one was willing to hire Coyne because he is autistic.

He said, “I applied to multiple places. None of them would hire me.”

Come on by for muffins and coffees, Michael's here until 6! ☕

Posted by Red White & Brew Coffeehouse on Friday, November 22, 2019

So Coyne, ever the fighter, decided he would take his life into his own hands and opened up his own coffee shop in North Smithfield, Rhode Island, called Red, White & Brew. Coyne said he will hire people with and without special needs to help run his business because he wants to help people who are autistic to integrate into regular jobs.

Can the days get any better here at Red White and Brew?? I am honestly not sure they can! Not only was our day VERY…

Posted by Red White & Brew Coffeehouse on Monday, November 25, 2019

Red, White & Brew’s Facebook page spells out the coffee shop’s mission very clearly: “We are a family-owned coffee shop serving up more than a cup of coffee. We employ people with developmental disabilities, encourage community engagement, and change the way the world sees those with disabilities.”

What a weekend here at Red White and Brew!! Wow! You all brought it!! We are so humbled by the outpouring of support….

Posted by Red White & Brew Coffeehouse on Sunday, November 24, 2019

Coyne’s mother Sheila helped her son get his business off the ground. She said,  “As parents, we look at our kids and see the value,” Michael’s mother Sheila Coyne said. “We see what they are capable of, instead of the system that’s consistently labeling them and putting barriers.”

Congratulations, Michael!

And, reader, if you happen to be in the area, stop by and have a visit and a coffee.

The post A Young Man With Autism Opened His Own Coffee Shop After No One Would Hire Him appeared first on UberFacts.

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A Study Show That for Entrepreneurs, 45 Is the New 25

For some people, seeing a young entrepreneur like Mark Zuckerberg completely change the world at such a young age can be disheartening as the years creep by. But wait! This is good news for people who feel like they might’ve missed the boat in one way or another, professionally speaking.

A new study led by Pierre Azoulay of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology analyzed the relationship between age and high-growth entrepreneurship. According to the researchers,

“Our primary finding is that successful entrepreneurs are middle-aged, not young. We find no evidence to suggest that founders in their 20’s are especially likely to succeed. Rather, all evidence points to founders being especially successful when starting businesses in middle age or beyond, while young founders appear disadvantaged.”

Azoulay and his researchers studied data from many sources, including tax forms and the U.S. Census Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs. They pored over records from over 2.5 million entrepreneurs who have founded businesses (not including sole proprietorships) in the U.S. since the 1970s. The conclusion: they found the average age of these entrepreneurs was 42 years old.

They also studied entrepreneurs who were active in growth-oriented entrepreneurship and found that businesses that operated in the high-tech sector had founders that averaged 43 years of age, and that founders of venture-backed startups and businesses based in Silicon Valley were 42 years old, on average.

The researchers also discovered that more successful startup companies had slightly older founders.

The authors of the study continued,

“The 1,700 founders of the fastest growing new ventures (the top 0.1%) in our universe of U.S. firms had an average age at founding of 45.0 (compared to 43.7 for the top 1% and 42.1 for the top 5%). Regardless of the measure of technology-intensiveness chosen, we see older founders as we move toward upper-tail performance, especially for the top 1 in 100 or top 1 in 1,000 firms, as well as for founders with successful exits. This evidence is at odds with the conventional wisdom that successful founders skew younger.”

Okay all of you middle-aged folks, get out there and start a business! You can do it!

The post A Study Show That for Entrepreneurs, 45 Is the New 25 appeared first on UberFacts.

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A Baby Abandoned in a Dumpster Grew up to Be the Founder of a Multi-Million Dollar Company

This is an amazing success story! “Rags to Riches,” “the American Dream,” “self-made man.” Every single cliché you’ve heard about that classic story, Freddie Figgers is living proof that it is actually possible.

Figgers is only 30 years old, but he’s already a huge success as the CEO and President of Figgers Communication, a telecommunications company that is now valued at a whopping $62 million.

Them: I don’t think it will happen ?Me: There are three kinds of people in this world: people who make it happen,…

Posted by Freddie Figgers on Friday, July 5, 2019

But life didn’t start out very well for Figgers. He was abandoned in a dumpster by his mother shortly after she gave birth to him in Quincy, Florida, though luckily he was adopted when he was two days old by a couple named Nathan and Betty Figgers. The Figgers’ gave young Freddie all the love and support he needed, and he grew up to be a curious boy who loved to tinker around with computers.

Figgers got his first job as a computer technician at the age of 12, and at age 15 he started his own cloud computing service. His first job in this field came after he helped a car dealership back up their information on a remote server after they had previously lost all their files in a tornado. Figgers set up the server in his own backyard.

Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.

Posted by Freddie Figgers on Wednesday, June 26, 2019

The young entrepreneur invented his own creations as well, including a GPS tracking device that goes in someone’s shoe to help keep track of them. Figgers created this device specifically for his father, who was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. He sold that idea to a company for $2.2 million and started Figgers Communications, the extremely profitable company that he now runs, with his earnings.

His business is also the only African-American owned company of its kind in the United States.

Bravo, Mr. Figgers!

Let Freddie Figgers’ story remind you that no matter where you come from or where you are at the moment, you can always achieve your dreams if you work hard and aim high.

The post A Baby Abandoned in a Dumpster Grew up to Be the Founder of a Multi-Million Dollar Company appeared first on UberFacts.