Name: Michael Slaughter
Year: Senior
Hometown: Wilton, CT
Major: Accounting and Finance (with a near 4.0 GPA!)
So apparently you have had a business since you were 10?! Tell us more about that.
I started an online business called “Tons of Cards and More.” It specializes in Pokémon cards. I kept growing my business by inquiring cards from friends and posting flyers around my town. I went worldwide when I was 13 years old. I officially built my own website when I was a sophomore in college. Originally, everything was done through eBay and Amazon. I have also expanded through ETSY, and I ship all around the world. I have been running it and managing it for 11 years now. It is a large time commitment, but I love it.
What are you doing with the business now, 11 years later?
I actually plan on selling my business during the spring. I really want to enter the hedge fund industries. For those who do not know, a hedge fund (according to Google dictionary) is “a limited partnership of investors that uses high risk methods, such as investing with borrowed money, in hopes of realizing large capital gains.” Over the summer, I interned with a hedge fund industry called Tudor Investment Corporation. I really want to dedicate all my time and effort into the industry. I also created a second company on top of that.
A second company?! How did you get the idea for this one?
Yes, just recently actually! It is called “Gold Lion Media,” and it specializes in iOS apps. I have a gaming app coming out in a week or two. I have always been interested in apps because I think it is a very lucrative business. I have always been looking for someone who knows how to code, and at my internship program there was another intern who was a wizard at computers. I reached out to him to see if he would be interested, and we created a partnership for that app. As far as the company itself, I run and manage it myself.
You’re a double major, you’re a D1 athlete, and you run two companies…how do you find time for all of this?
Learning how to manage your time very well is so important. I always keep track of what needs to get done in a day, and I ensure the proper amount of time is allocated to each task. I do sleep less, but I enjoy everything I do. So, the little sacrifices I have to make do not mean much.
Your attitude is extremely positive.
Yes, I am a very optimistic person. In my book, I discuss that positive mindset. Failure is something that is just temporary.
You wrote a book, too? What made you want to write this book?
I started writing the book in November 2014. Our lacrosse team went to a charity event in Bridgeport where we gave out turkeys for a turkey drive. As great as it was to help them during the holidays, I thought it would be beneficial for them to have something, like a book, to always have. After that moment, I started researching inspirational stories. I spent the next 9 months researching, writing, and editing. It’s called “From FAILURE to TRIUMPH: Inspiring Stories to Help You Overcome Challenges and Achieve Success.”
What were those initially inspiring stories?
I have a lot in my book, but there’s one I really like. It’s about the founder of Starbucks, Howard Schultz. He went to college on a football scholarship but got injured. He lost his spot on the team and his scholarship. After that, he could not afford tuition payments so he started to donate blood to help him pay for it. He then went to work at a coffee shop where he got the idea for Starbucks Coffee. So, he needed financing for it – 232 banks turned him down because they thought his idea was crazy. In the late 90’s, premier financial consultants told him that he would never make it global. Obviously, they were wrong! Now, he is a billionaire.
I really like that story because he was very persistent in order to achieve his dreams. He thought outside of the box, especially with donating blood to afford tuition. Most people think when you hit a tight end…that it is the end. But that is never the case.
Do you have any advice to for people that wish to follow in your footsteps?
Find what your passion is and pursue it with everything you have. Those challenges and setbacks along the way are only temporary. The end result of what you are going for is far more rewarding. Make those sacrifices that are required. Anyone who has been highly successfully in their field knew that pain is only temporary. Be willing to work you’re a** off!
Michael’s success has caught the attention of CNBC’s show “Mad Money” and Fox CT. He recently had a book signing at Barnes and Noble, and he was asked to speak about his book and success as a student as a part of Sacred Heart University’s Colloquia series.
To find more about his “Tons of Cards and More,” business, visit http://www.tonsofcardsandmore.com/
To find more about his book, or to purchase a copy, visit http://www.amazon.com/From-FAILURE-TRIUMPH-Inspiring-Challenges/dp/0996604901