How I came to Wealthy Affiliate

Hi everyone, my name is Hugh Huang.

I grew up in China and I came to US in 2010. Back in China I had a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and worked in urban planning and architectural design industry as an electrical engineer for 5 years. When I came to US, I had to find jobs that were not related to my education background. After a few temporary jobs, I found a job as a Quality Assurance Technician in a company. And I was promoted to a production supervisor position 10 months ago. Even being part of the management team, I still feel frustrated in the top-down, management-driven style company culture. After all these years, I found myself the biggest non-conforming existence in the corporate world. So I keep my job to support my growing family, and outside of work I try to learn how to start businesses by taking classes and doing research on my own.

Recently there are some lay-offs in my company. Among the people who were let go, 2 were from the management team in my location - one of them was a manager who served the company over 16 years, and the other was a supervisor who was brought in by the time I was promoted. I kept asking myself: what would I do if the same thing happens to me? Am I prepared if I'm one of them? I know for sure that I don't have much room to grow in my current position, but I didn't realize how risky it was for me to have the only income source from this dead-end job. I have to push myself forward on my entrepreneurial path, and now I have one more reason to motivate myself.

Why I want to start my own business? Well, I have to admit that a few years ago money was the main reason (to support my family). But now I see the entrepreneurial adventure differently. I still remember the first time I met my entrepreneurship class instructor, and I told him I wanted to start my own business to make more money. His answer was pretty straightforward, and a little surprising to me - "Go get a side job to avoid the risk of owning a business, as your business will not likely survive the first 3 years if money is the ONLY reason you want to start your own business." Now I know what I'm looking for in my business, is more of a lifestyle that I want - more control on my career, potential to reach financial freedom, more balanced work and family life. I don't expect to get rich quickly, but I do feel happy about every little progress I make along the way.

After looking at the ideas I came up with, I think some online business ideas, such as drop-shipping, affiliate marketing, or business coaching, to be the best fit for my situation. But no matter what option I choose, SEO and online marketing are essential skills for an online business to succeed. I have no prior experience in SEO and online marketing, and I need to learn. I searched and found a lot of good reviews on WA, which finally brought me here.