Synopses & Reviews
Gurbaksh Chahal's family emigrated from India to San Jose, California when he was six. He started the internet advertising company ClickAgents from his bedroom at the age of 16, and sold it two years later for $40 million, turning his sibling employees into millionaires and saving his family's dream house. Facing family pressures and discrimination due to his Sikh background, Gurbaksh moved away from home and worked at the ValueClick for two years, becoming the youngest executive of the multi-billion dollar NASDAQ-listed company. Chahal then went on to found his second company, BlueLithium, which he sold in 2007 to Yahoo! for $300 million. Encouraging people to effectively harness risk and discipline for their own gain, Chahal shares his daring personal vision and his extraordinary experiences to reveal that success is much closer than most aspiring entrepreneurs realize.
Review
"While success like his is often attributed to luck, Chahal's story, like that of many immigrants, is more one of sacrifice ... it was years of hard work, persistence and faith, along with the support of his family, that brought his financial rewards--not chance."--San Francisco Chronicle
"Chahal is a prodigy, a successful entrepreneur, and a writer. His story is remarkable and we think it is a prime example of what can be accomplished with a little motivation and ingenuity. Young Hollywood wants to know what this young man cant do!"--Young Hollywood
Synopsis
One of America's most successful young internet entrepreneurs tells his unique and inspiring story, and reveals the risks and rewards behind the sky's-the-limit possibilities of internet entrepreneurship.
Gurbaksh Chahal started the Internet advertising company ClickAgents from his bedroom at the age of 16, having emigrated to the United States with his Sikh family from the small town of Tarn Taran, India. He dropped out of high school to pursue the venture full-time, and two years later sold ClickAgents for $40 million, making him one of the youngest self-made millionaires in history and allowing him and his entire family to realize their dreams. Chahal went on to become the youngest executive of a multi-billion dollar NASDAQ-listed company, and then sold his second company, BlueLithium, to Yahoo for $300 million, turning many of his employees into multi-millionaires as well.
In The Dream, Chahal's refreshing advice for entrepreneurs encourages them to embrace risk and to carve out new niches in the marketplace. He emphasizes the value of good business timing: how to execute an idea and get it to the marketplace, how to create and maintain solid business relationships, how to stay grounded, and -- most importantly -- how to teach yourself that failure is not an option.
Chahal's story not only shows how a 16-year-old immigrant overcame discrimination and adversity to fulfill his highest ambitions, but also provides aspiring entrepreneurs with valuable hands-on advice on how to achieve success.
Synopsis
The sky's-the-limit story of one of America's most successful young internet entrepreneurs
About the Author
Gurbaksh Chahal is a self-made multi-millionaire and internet business entrepreneur who started his first company from his bedroom at the age of 16. Now 27, Chahal sold his second company, BlueLithium, in 2007 for $300 million to Yahoo!, turning many of his employees into multi-millionaires as well. He has recently launched a new business venture, gWallet, and is building a non-profit called the Chahal Foundation. In addition to his appearance on The Secret Millionaire, he has been interviewed on The Oprah Winfrey Show, FOX Business Network's "Cavuto," The Bonnie Hunt Show, The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, CW11 Morning News, FOX & Friends, ABC's Young Hollywood, and NBC's TechNow. He has been featured in the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Entrepreneur, Business 2.0, and Men's Fitness, among others. He lives in San Francisco.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Prologue
An Immigrant Family
A New CEO
The First $40 Million
From Bollywood to BlueLithium
The Art of War
The Secret Millionaire
The Lessons of Entrepreneurship
Index