Millionaire made himself homeless to see if he could make $1,000,000 in one year
For most people, especially these days, the idea of becoming a millionaire in their entire lifetime is laughable.
I mean, with house prices so out of reach for the majority of young people today that even the hope of owning your own home seems impossible, nevermind having seven figures in the bank.
But back in 2020, when the Covid pandemic dominated the world, YouTuber Mike Black set out to see just how difficult it would be to go completely broke, homeless even, and not only get back on his feet but become a millionaire... within a year.
With just the clothes on his back and a phone in hand, what followed was 12 months of hardship in pursuit of the 'Million Dollar Comeback.'
Why did Mike Black become homeless?
To become homeless at any point in your life is unimaginable for some, but to actively rid yourself of any wealth you've accumulated over the years and put yourself out on the street in the middle of a global pandemic? Madness, right?
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Well, Black felt he needed to do it to show people what they can achieve if they put their mind to it, even if his own parents thought it was not a good idea.
Writing on his YouTube channel at the time, the entrepreneur explained why he took the decision to 'drain his bank account' and 'cut off' his entire network to see how he'd cope.
"Why am I doing this?" he asked.
"I witnessed first hand the effects coronavirus has had on many of my friends and local business owners. I saw the depression and anxiety people are experiencing and the feeling of lack of self worth it people are going through. Millions of people across the world are experiencing this and after trying to help my friends by giving advice and being there for them I felt like I could do more.
"So I started thinking how I could really help my friends and the many people like my friends that are struggling to get back on their feet. I thought about it and realised the best way to really help would be to put myself in the shoes of someone starting from scratch so we could do this together."
What happened to Mike Black during his experiment?
Black's immediate concern was finding water and somewhere to kip for the night, telling his followers that he would work for it.
"I'm willing to sleep on a floor, couch, doesn't matter," he said in one video.
But with it being a bold experiment and Black giving up his previous life, he struggled to set up a new identity, so people didn't realise he was actually - until very recently - very wealthy. And some just didn't trust him.
Luckily enough, though, the YouTuber was eventually able to find someone on the popular - if not very creepy - website Craigslist, who was willing to let him sleep in their van completely free.
This allowed Black to make a base, where he could stay while setting up work here and there - selling furniture from Craigslist on Facebook.
Black explained in a video: "One of the best things to sell are tables. I started taking ads on Craigslist in the free section, putting it on Facebook Marketplace and selling it for a profit.
"I acted as the middleman, handling all the logistics between the buyer and the seller."
And it all added up, in a few of days he'd made over $200 (£147) - eating basic rations of beans and dry pasta to get by - which he used to get himself some fresh clothes from Goodwill.
By the end of the second week, he'd made over $400 (£294) from his furniture flipping side hustle, eventually bagging himself an office space for $40 (£29) a month.
As the weeks progressed, Black made serious moves, securing his own place to rent while he cracked on with his team to shoot content for the 'Comeback' mission, as well as creating his own coffee brand that donated money to animal rescues.
Overjoyed, he said in one update: "Look at where we're at right now. We're not making millions of dollars, but look at this - going to be living potentially in a mansion rent free.
"I'm getting on calls with big tech companies pitching them on running their social media. I'm starting a coffee brand I have a coffee dude in Austin now.
"I mean everything's going in the right direction. Three months ago I was homeless!"
Mike Black falls on hard times
Mike was doing incredibly well in the business world with his coffee brand and was on the way to his million dollar target, but sadly, he suffered a number of setbacks during his project.
Firstly, his dad was diagnosed with stage four cancer. The businessman also began to suffer his own health problems, including two autoimmune diseases and a tumour on his hip, which left him in agony.
At one point he was about to quit but was spurred on when a stranger messaged him, explaining that his project had stopped him from taking his own life.
This gave him a new impetuous and he dived back into his work in order to reach his goal.
Did Mike Black make $1,000,000 in a year?
In short, no. After about 10 months of begging, borrowing and working himself to the bone, Black decided to call it a day.
In the end, he was some way off his $1m (£735k) goal, but still managed to make $64k (£47), which is still pretty impressive, considering where he started from.
He explained: "A lot of what's come to light for me is what truly matters, health and gratitude," he said, admitting he had been 'neglecting [his pain] because of the project.'
And despite ending it early, Black said he was happy with what he had achieved and urged others to give people a chance.
"We should always remember to help those in need because it could be the opportunity that they need," he said.
So, the lesson in all of this? You should definitely back yourself when the going gets tough, but maybe don't ditch everything you own in order to prove it.
Topics: Coronavirus, US News, Viral, YouTube, Money
Dominic Smithers