From salesman to entrepreneur (infographic)

THISLOOKSGREAT on 99 designs Official Contests Won 2013 2012 2011 2010 $1,380 $1,080 $800 $600 $475 $0 Jan Feb Mar Apr Мay Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec date joined contest approach official winnings Oct 20, 2010 Burst Mode $30,055 Barin Cristian Doru thislooksgreat' 2 hours on average per design 24 $ $23,450 made in follow-up work years old years designing O $715 average prize won 2 $53,505 578 total entries submitted made with cars bought 99designs Ps 1154 PSD files created ROM 6. poon nepnesentation of myself Romania, Official Contest History years in the gym Bucharest Additional Information 333 中 中 * 中 、 me contests entered 12.6% winning ratio 42 This is a token of appreciation for 99designs.com and it's the contests won least I could do. It changed both my life and my businesses outcomes and even though l'm focusing on numbers, the impact far exceedes money. Thank you, 99designs! Statistics for Won Contests Before 99designs: I was a door-to-door sales agent, selling women's cosmetics. Pay was commission based. Average income: $200/month. :-( 19 I was living with my parents, my bigger brother & sister and 2 cats. I had O Photoshop knowledge, little experience with Joomla comments and things weren't looking up. Discovering 99designs: It was by chance. I saw it as a big opportunity and I was hoping to win at least one $475 contest per month. I began studying every tutorial I could find and sure enough my skill grew. In the same period I was heavily into self- development/self-help and I believe that gave me a big boost. After 1 month on 99, in late 2010, I won my first contest: $1240. Time Repartition per Contest An enormous sum of money for me. That gave me wings and from the beginning of 2011, I started designing like a mad man. I was usually in 15 to 25 contest simultaneously. Understanding the brief 10% With my earnings plus a loan, I started a bakery shop with a friend. That grew into another location. During the summer of 2011, sales were low, that's why I had to crank up my design work. In short, through 99designs I could support my business. Otherwise it would have gone down, no question. Finding inspiration 20% Grind work 40% We sold both shop and started a daily deal website. That needed financial support too so 99 was, again, the solution. Outsmarting the competition 25% Long story short, / worked in bursts. so when I needed money, I designed. A lot. The rest of the time I took care of my businesses. That's why I have big gaps in my contest winning history. 5% Composing a message for the client I couldn't have achieved these things without 99. Currently I: - have a life skill that I can depend on; Tips for Designers - moved out of my parents home into a nice apartment; - bought a Lexus GS450 hybrid & a Ford Focus for my girlfriend; - have over $10,000 saved up in the bank; - created a tutorial on Udemy.com called "Learn How To Make Money with Photoshop" where I teach others how they can do Even though l'm tempted to romanticize things, l'd like to share this single piece of advice: work harder than anybody! Nothing beats hard work. Thank you, 99designs! www.thislooksgreat.net y twitter.com/thislooksgreat Credit to designmodo.com for the calendar and wallet icons. Credit to neilorangepeel.com for the Twitter icon. Made on June, 06, 2013 35 other en ehtries