Many people take the hand of cards they are dealt and play them. Unlike many people, JR Rivas took the hand he was dealt and used them to his advantage. JR is a serial entrepreneur who lived in New York with his sister and single mother for most of his life. JR was always in poverty throughout his life and states that as a waitress his mother never made more than $23,000 annually. One of his most impactful moments was when he was 13 and he went to turn on the sink but nothing came out. He was without water for six months so he had to take showers at friends house and wherever else he could. It was at this point that he was devoted to climbing out of poverty.
After graduating high school and realizing that college would be a waste of time and money, JR began selling life insurance. He quickly realized that he was not cut out to be a salesman so he reinvented his plan. He began saving up for his next business and signed up for a class at H&R Block so that he could learn to do taxes. The class was canceled because he was the only one signed up, but this is what led him to getting a job at a Liberty Tax firm. After working for the season he purchased the franchise from the owner, at age 18. He spent the months he had making the building look presentable and prepared for the upcoming season. Within the first year of ownership he grew the business 60 percent. Liberty tax was very impressed with his work and invited him to ring the closing bell at the Nasdaq live on CNBC in New York.
JR continued to grow his franchises by purchasing three more Brick and Mortars. He grew the businesses 17 percent over his year of ownership then sold them. Once he moved down south he purchased another office which is when he got offered a job as a seasonal sales person at the corporate office. JR enjoyed the experience but he knew his entrepreneurial spirit was not meant for a traditional job. At this point he knew that although his franchises were increasing their revenue, the future was online taxes and he would soon need to find a new business venture. He decided to sell his franchises and after some encouragement from the people around him he decided to start a podcast.
His podcast consisted of interviews with many different industry experts and eventually he decided he wanted to begin doing facebook ads for small businesses. Within 45 days he scaled to 10k and received amazing clients and client testimonials. Once he grew a reputation he decided to create a niche product to teach specific types of clients how to run ads which provided him with an income of $30,000 in the first month. JR had only known a life of poverty so this new income was very special to him. He was now able to travel and buy luxurious items and overall just do things that he never was able to before. JR made it his goal to escape poverty but he still believes that the most fulfilment comes from helping others and leaving the world a little better.
