Ferreira Stacey (editor) - 2 billion under 20 : how millennials are breaking down age barriers and changing the world

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To the 2 Billion Under 20: You all have a story to create and share.

They all laughed at Fulton and his steamboatHershey and his chocolate bar

Ford and his Lizzie kept the laughers busythats how people are.

GEORGE GERSHWIN, THEY ALL LAUGHED

History shows that innovators cant expect to be popularat least not at first, and often not ever. Thats the price of doing new things in a world in which so much of what people do is to repeat what has been done before. A certain class of innovatoryoung peoplemust be especially prepared to steel themselves against the scoffing and skepticism theyre sure to suffer as they try to do anything new. The world has given up expecting new things from kidswhy else would we lock them up in schools and prescribe to each one the same homogenous (and homogenizing) curriculum for years on end?

But sometimes the tracked path doesnt take. Now more than ever, young people are realizing that the future is theirs to create, not something that will simply happen to them. In 2 Billion Under 20 youll meet seventy-five remarkable individuals who have learned that its never too early to do something bold. These trailblazers have plenty in commoneach is self-taught in one way or another, and not one had yet celebrated a twenty-first birthday. But even more remarkable is just how diverse they are: from programmers, designers, and writers to race car drivers, Olympians, and EMTs, their achievements dazzlelike flying machines in a world used to bicycles and buggies.

If you type Millennials are into Googles search bar, the autocomplete feature suggests doomed. But the crowds got this one wrong. This book shows what ambitious young people can get done, if only we believe in them. Actually, scratch that: They dont need our faith. Perhaps all thats required is that we get out of their way.

BLAKE MASTERS, COAUTHOR OF ZERO TO ONE

Millennials are screwed.

At least thats what Google thinks. When we started 2 Billion Under 20, if you typed the words, Millennials are, into the worlds most popular search engine, screwed was the first suggestion that popped up. Rounding out the top four options were lazy, entitled, and the new hippies.

But we refuse to believe that those words define our generation.

At eighteen years old, Stacey cofounded MySocialCloud with her brother, Scott, and friend Shiv Prakash in an apartment they had rented for the summer in South Central Los Angeles. After hard work, dedication, and a whole lot of learning, they raised just over $1 million from Sir Richard Branson (founder of Virgin), Jerry Murdock (cofounder of Insight Venture Partners), and Alex Welch (cofounder of Photobucket). Just two years later, they made their first exit when they sold MySocialCloud to Reputation.com.

Meanwhile, on the East Coast in South Florida, Jared had been tinkering with startup ideas since he was fifteen. After starting (and failing) to launch both NowIGetIt.com, an edtech platform, and Synergist, a crowdsourcing site specifically for social entrepreneurs, he found his groove working remotely for two venture-backed Silicon Valley startups in 15Five and Learnist before consulting as a marketing specialist for some of the worlds top authors and entrepreneurs, including individuals like Keith Ferrazzi, number one New York Times best-selling author of Never Eat Alone , and Brian Smith, founder of UGG Australia.

The two of us met by accident in November 2012 at the Thiel Foundation Summit in New York City. Jareds flight back to Florida was delayed, giving him time to watch the events final keynote speech that sparked the idea for the book, and we soon realized in the months following that our combined experiences in entrepreneurial endeavors, network building, and overcoming various obstacles along our paths, coupled with our thirst to share the untold stories of our community, would allow us to be the necessary guides needed to share this book and its insights with you today.

Right now, there are more than two billion people in the world at or under the age of twenty. These Millennials represent almost one-third of the entire global population and, more importantly, their actions determine the worlds future, despite what Googles most skeptical searchers would hope for.

What these skeptics dont know is the type of young people we have met, befriended, and worked alongside over the past four years while working on our own endeavors. We are an ambitious melting pot of go-getters; members of a generation who are breaking down barriers in all walks of life and in all corners of the globe, working together to act on our passions and accomplish truly remarkable feats for anyone at any age.

Our contributors in this book are doing amazing things. Jack Andraka has found an 85 percent more effective way of detecting pancreatic, lung, and ovarian cancers. Daniel Brusilovsky started Teens in Tech to bring teens interested in technology to Silicon Valley each summer to immerse themselves in the atmosphere. After running Teens in Tech for five years, he created, pitched, and landed his own job to work as a technical guru for the Golden State Warriors. Brittany McMillan rallies tens of millions of people through the Internet each year to support the LGBT movement that continues to play a massive role in securing marriage equality for all. Kevin Breel travels the world speaking to teens about his battle with depression through a comedy skit that shows that things get better. Conrad Farnsworth became the first person in Wyoming to build and operate a nuclear fusion reactor, at just seventeen years old! And there are many more.

We have watched them begin their journeys and grow into successful teenage entrepreneurs, award-winning scientists, internationally recognized singers, Olympic and collegiate athletes, mission-driven nonprofit founders, renowned public speakers, multifaceted actors, and remarkable individuals who inspire us every day and show that the Millennial generation isnt screwed after all.

We are the ones who are going to change the world, and, in fact, we already have.

This book is sectioned into easily digestible chapters that you can read little by little before you go to bed every night. Each chapter is comprised of, on average, fifteen anecdotes that can be read in less than ten minutes each sitting. The anecdotes shared by the selected contributors leave readers with vast knowledge on various ways they can find their passions (START), take the required first steps in accomplishing their own personal goals (RISK), handle adversities that will come their way (JOURNEY), gain experience and expertise from everything they do (LEARN), and ultimately (SUCCEED).

Our contributors are on the cutting edge of their various industries and lines of endeavor. Their stories will offer valuable inspiration and practical takeaways, whether you are a young person looking to get ahead in life or an older reader who wishes to innovate in your chosen craft or better understand the Millennial generation.