John D. Rockefeller the Self-Made Man

     John D. Rockefeller is know around the country as one of the richest or THE richest men in history.  John D. Rockefeller was born a son of a salesman in 1839.  His dad was a traveling medicine salesman who would be away for long periods of time then show up with the money he had amassed on his travels.  In his childhood his family moved around because of his fathers line of work. later they settled in Cleveland which is where John attended high school and got his first job as an assistant bookkeeper. He was taught many life lessons by his mother many of which he took to heart. Rockefeller learned at a young age to always help others when you could, to be honest with everyone, and to save your money whenever possible.  By the age of twelve he had accumulated fifty dollars (about $15,000 by todays standards) from working for neighbors. After being encouragment  by his mother, Rockefeller loaned his money to a local farmer with seven percent interest which could be payed over the course of one year.  Recounting this investment Rockefeller was quoted as saying "The impression was gaining ground with me that it was a good thing to let the money be my servant and not make myself a slave to the money..."  Kerosene was soon developed after partnering with another christian from his church to get into the business of crude oil.  One of the drawbacks he saw to the oil market was the fluctuating prices due to events such as masses flocking to oil deposits to get into the developing trade and the Civil War.
     After learning about his background and some of his earlier experiences, I found that John D. Rockefeller was almost a perfect generic role model for anyone in life.  He grew up with his mom and took to heart the lessons in life that she taught him then applied himself and through some luck and some willpower he amassed one of the largest fortunes in history.  Rockefeller was know for making large donations to various churches and charities. However these large donations could not come close to dent his funds.  I believe the largest contribution to John D Rockefeller's success was his ability to learn from people who were teaching him.

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