The True Rags To Riches Success Story of Andrew Carnegie

“People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.”

-Andrew Carnegie

With a net worth of over $298.7 billion, Andrew Carnegie is certainly one of the richest men who has ever lived. This is by far no mediocre achievement for a man whose father could not find a job. In fact, by the time his father was on his deathbed, Carnegie was the only breadwinner for the family. He was by then 20 years old.

His rags-to-riches success story started after the family moved from Scotland in 1848. Shortly after settling in the country, he started working as a bobbin boy for a textile mill earning a meager $1.20 per week. His journey to success saw him tending to steam engines and boilers, becoming a messenger, personal telegrapher and working as a superintendent in a railroad company.

What is interesting about the Andrew Carnegie success story is that throughout the various stages in his early life, he continued to work despite the income from his investments bringing in more money than his salary. There was also nothing meteoric about his success story in that all along, he simply reinvested the money he earned.

By the time he formed Carnegie Steel, his wealth tube, Andrew Carnegie had invested in a sleeping car company, an oil company and various transportation companies among others. He later used his investments to form Carnegie Steel, a company which ended up making him the owner of the most extensive integrated iron and steel operations in the United States. He later sold his company for over $480 million.

The next stage of the Andrew Carnegie success story saw him devoting his life to philanthropy. He even wrote a book about it. Thanks to his determination, hard work and generous heart, we now have the Carnegie Hall, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Carnegie Institution for Science, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Carnegie Hero Fund, Carnegie Mellon University and the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh among many others.

His is a true rags-to-riches success story that shows that through sheer will and determination, any man or woman can rise to the top.

Andrew Carnegie Success Quotes:

“Concentrate your energies, your thoughts and your capital. The wise man puts all his eggs in one basket and watches the basket.”

"Anything in life worth having is worth working for.”

“The average person puts only 25% of his energy and ability into his work. The world takes off its hat to those who put in more than 50% of their capacity, and stands on its head for those few and far between souls who devote 100%.”

"Compromise is usually a sign of weakness, or an admission of defeat. Strong men don't compromise, it is said, and principles should never be compromised.”

“Immense power is acquired by assuring yourself in your secret reveries that you were born to control affairs.”

“There’s always room at the top in every pursuit.”