There are as many definitions of what ‘success’ means as people striving to achieve it. Increasingly, however, success isn’t defined solely in terms of money and status. A recent GoDaddy survey, which examined how small business owners in the United States define the American Dream, showed that feelings of happiness in life and the freedom to follow their passion are more important than, for example, owning a house. And while having money was still the top answer, it wasn’t for the sake of material wealth as much as being able to live a comfortable lifestyle.
Comfort, freedom, and happiness are where success lies, especially for the younger generations. And while there’s no single blueprint to achieve these markers of success, an entrepreneurial path often seems more likely to lead to that kind of success than the daily grind.
That’s just the kind of mentality Paul Alex Espinoza knew he needed when he decided to finally leave the beaten path of having a job that offered a steady paycheck and go all in on his project. In the recently released book From Blue to Digital Gold: The New American Dream, the former police detective shared his unconventional career path, including his insistence on having multiple passive income streams and knowing one’s way around digital marketing and social media.
MerchantAutomation.com is Paul Alex’s latest venture in creating opportunities for people to invest their money into something that will earn them passive income. He’s running the company with Gedam Yonas, a former police sergeant.
“We want to reach as many people as possible and change not only their limiting beliefs but also their lives,” Paul Alex says. “What we’ve done is the new American dream. We’ve been able to leave our careers in law enforcement, and we’ve been able to create something wonderful that helps many people and changes their lives.”
With this exciting new business model, investors are offered entry into the merchant services space — the payment processing that happens when someone pays with a card instead of cash. With the POS devices provided by the program, the investor who placed the device gets a percentage off every purchase, and so does the payment processing company.
The small business owner doesn’t bear any costs — they get the product’s total price. The costs are passed onto the customer, who can pay using cash for a reduced price as part of a cash discount program the business owner enters. It’s a win-win situation that yields results, Paul Alex claims. Still, it has even broader implications on the nature of entrepreneurship as it is right now and the sheer volume of opportunities out there.
“A couple of guys like me and Gedam were able to figure this out. Among all those tech-savvy digital marketers, we were able to do this within a short amount of time,” he says. “And if we can do it, why can’t the average Joe, who is right now on their nine to five, trying to figure it out, and they’re trying to find that opportunity. So, I think this opportunity is the new American dream. It’s an untouched market.” And with some help from Paul Alex and his team at MerchantAutomation.com, everyone can try for their slice.
Published By: Aize Perez
