22-year-old college dropout, Brandon Nguyen – known by many as Yengub – discovered his love for marketing during a low point in his life. Struggling with his GPA at university in 2018, he felt lost and unfulfilled. Fast forward to today, Nguyen has sold over $15 Million across his various eCommerce stores, hosts a successful YouTube Channel, and is here to show others that the highs and lows of entrepreneurship are all worth it in the end.
The Making of Yengub
Raised in a lower-class family, with parents who fled Vietnam during the war, Brandon Nguyen has always known the value of hard work. He has worked since the age of 12 in order to contribute to his family. Eventually, Nguyen attended university to continue his education and add to his earning potential, but as is common with many entrepreneurs, university was not a place where Brandon Nguyen thrived.
“The whole first year of university for me was like hell. I was constantly partying, drinking, just super distracted and sucked into social media and what people thought about me, and just – completely lost. I finished that year with a 1.2 GPA and it was so clear that everyone around me chalked me up as a failure and a clown. And I was angry as f*** at myself and didn’t know what to do.” He continues, “I spent the summer scrambling and figuring out what to do next. I was broke with $20K in student loans and no job. I didn’t even tell my parents yet. I searched ‘how to make money online’… and well, I fell into the eCommerce rabbit hole.”
That google search paid off. In 2019 at age 19, Nguyen cleared $1 Million in revenue in one year. He admits, “I know those are not normal results, but I am very grateful I was able to do that my first year since many can only dream of doing so.”
“Tactics, strategies, and tools are nothing if you don’t have the mindset.”
According to Nguyen, entrepreneurship is not for the weak of heart or mind. And, it is definitely not all upside. He shares, “I’ve been 100 to 0 multiples times throughout this journey and I’m unshakable. I will not stop until I have achieved every single one of my goals,” says Nguyen.
“You need extreme focus and discipline to make it in this industry. A lot of people come in thinking they can work less and make more – the reality is – you work more and make less.” Nguyen continues, “and if you’re bringing the exact habits you’re taking from your 9-to-5, or whatever put you there in the first place, and expect you’ll get massive results, you’re in for a rude awakening.”
What does Nguyen advise? “The easiest thing to do and improve quickly is just to remove all the BS out of your life before adding additional stress. Entrepreneurship is not easy. Tactics, strategies, and tools are nothing if you don’t have the mindset.”
Fluctuations and Uncertainty Guaranteed
Nguyen’s work has not gone unnoticed. He has won Zipify’s (Shopify’s Top Upsell App) award for $1+ Million in upsells multiple times, along with ClickFunnels Two Comma Club award. He accomplished this with zero background in business or marketing before 2019.
“Don’t listen to what other people say, especially if they haven’t done it themselves. There is tons of noise and people with limiting beliefs out there, and you can’t let it affect you,” says Nguyen.
The biggest lesson Brandon Nguyen learned in his three short years in business is that “there will always be massive fluctuations in business and massive uncertainty. You never know what’s going to happen, so it’s really important to stay focused and believe in the bigger picture.”
To see what is next for Brandon Nguyen, follow along with him on Instagram and YouTube:
