Crash Test

Randy's voice hadn't been strong to begin with. It was ravaged during a teenage bout with cancer. To this day, Randy and his doctors have no idea what kind of cancer he had; they just know nobody would want it. Randy was just 12 years old when it invaded his body, and it took six operations, which included having his spleen and half of his lungs removed before the cancer was defeated. "I was home a lot, and that's when I started the businesses," he says.

Businesses? Yes. Randy was evidently destined to be an entrepreneur. At age 5, long before cancer or a plane crash would challenge his ambition, he was holding his own garage sales. "I had all kinds of businesses when I was a kid," he says.

Randy became more serious about entrepreneurship at age 15, when he started his own catering company. At age 16, a construction company he started with $500 had 20 full-time workers and plenty of projects. He later sold the company, shortly after graduating from high school--and he graduated on time, despite being sick throughout most of high school.

The fight with cancer and weakened vocal chords taught Randy the true meaning of efficiency. When you have cancer and homework to contend with, "you get tired so quickly, you tend not to waste time and do things that aren't productive," he says. "If you can only work an hour or two a day, you want to get everything done, and certainly in the long run, that's made a big difference."

Which might explain why he decided to start a second construction company (which he eventually sold) during a break from college, where the budding entrepreneur became interested in stocks and bonds. Says Randy, in his hoarse but happy voice: "I've always been interested in money."

This article was originally published in the October 1999 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Crash Test.