They say some people are born with a silver spoon. Me? I showed up with a calculator in one hand and a “Grand Opening” sign in the other.
My hustle didn’t start in some fancy boardroom. It started on a sweaty sidewalk with a pitcher of lemonade. Even back then, I wasn’t just selling drinks; I was already looking for an edge.
The Lemonade Loophole
While most kids blew their lemonade money on candy, I had other plans. I noticed my classmates were always forgetting pens, notebooks, or paper, and the school store prices were ridiculous.
So I took every dollar from the lemonade stand and bought bulk school supplies. Turned my backpack into a little mobile shop and sold them to kids who needed them right then and there; at a markup, of course.
That was my first taste of real arbitrage: buy low, sell high, and solve a problem people will actually pay for.
It’s in the Blood
At the time I just thought I was being clever. Later on I realized it runs way deeper than that. Once I started looking into my family history, it all clicked; this entrepreneurial streak is in our DNA. The “Royal Zap” energy didn’t start with me. It’s been there for generations.
Business wasn’t something I chose. It chose me.
Leveling Up
That early hustle eventually pushed me to get serious. I went and got my Bachelor’s in Business, not just for the degree, but to sharpen the instincts I already had. College took me from flipping physical stuff out of a backpack to understanding how to build and manage real assets.
The New Game
These days the “school store” looks a lot different. I’ve moved on to building a stock and asset portfolio, approaching every investment with the same eye I had for those bulk packs of pens.
I started Royal Zap to track all of it; the wins, the lessons, the next moves. It’s where I talk markets, side ventures, food ideas, and whatever else is keeping the engine running.
The scale is bigger now. The numbers have more zeros. The stand went digital. But the mindset? Still exactly the same.
If you’re grinding on your own portfolio or trying to get a side hustle off the ground, hit me up. I’m always down to talk strategy.
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