Luisa Zhou, who by the age of 26 had already built a 7-figure business, started her self-employment journey the same way many entrepreneurs do: After having spent a few years in the corporate world and realizing that she wanted more than the traditional 9-to-5.
The daughter of Chinese immigrant parents, Zhou had been taught from childhood that a good education and steady income would be her golden ticket to the American Dream.
That’s why Zhou did what she thought she was “supposed” to do: After graduating from Princeton University with a degree in electrical engineering, Zhou tried her hand at being an engineer for the International Space Station, at co-founding a mobile payments start-up, and at being a well-respected manager at a top digital advertising firm.
However, despite what was arguably already a successful career, Zhou still didn’t feel satisfied. Eventually, she turned to starting her own business to be able to help more people and do work that felt more fulfilling. Her first online business taught people the digital advertising skills that she had acquired through her job experience. After she built that business to the point where she was able to leave her own 9-to-5, Zhou started teaching others how she’d been able to do what she did so that they could do the same for themselves.
According to Zhou, the most important quality that has contributed to her success is her willingness to bet on herself. Even when her friends and family didn’t support her, and she herself wasn’t sure if her dreams were possible, she chose to believe in herself.
“I kept my plans and goals to myself. I worked on my business alone. Because I knew no one around me believed in me. It wasn’t until I’d actually made progress and knew no one could discourage me that I shared with my friends and family what I’d done,” says Zhou.
Zhou’s plans for expansion are simple: Do more of what’s working. (Zhou doesn’t believe in overcomplicating.) Her goal however, is as ambitious as it is simple: She wants to share her knowledge with more and more people, and to help as many as possible realize their own dreams, increase their own impact, and build their own businesses.