Timothy Armoo sold his influencer marketing company Fanbytes in 2022.
Tim Armor.
Timothy Armoo became a multimillionaire at the age of 27 when he sold his influencer marketing company for eight figures, but he says becoming extraordinary is no easy task.
Armoo, co-founder and former CEO of Fanbytes, grew up in a public housing development in a deprived area of south London. He says his extraordinary success has come with sacrifices, such as giving up what he considers a healthy work-life balance.
“I believe in working extremely hard…I definitely don't agree with the idea of work-life balance,” Amo told CNBC Make It.
“I don't think anyone who has achieved anything significant has done it through balance. That's just a myth.”
Amo explains that “everything has a season,” saying it's a time when you have to work extremely hard. These periods can vary for different people, he said, and could be three months, three years or even 10 years in length.
“There comes a season where you say, 'I want to achieve this, I want to get results that are different from everyone else. I want to get extraordinary results.'” The way to achieve these extraordinary results is to do extraordinary things, It actually means doing extraordinary things,” he said.
This means that instead of maintaining balance, you put in extra effort to “increase your odds of success.”
“season”
Amo reiterated his point about “seasons,” which he said could mean focusing on work during busy times and then prioritizing family, health, and personal life during other seasons.
“When you're in family season, you shouldn't have a work-life balance either. You should be focusing on creating the best family possible,” he says.
Armoo founded his first company at the age of 14, a tutoring company that connected students in need with other students who were good at a particular subject. He charged a fee.
At the age of 17, he sold his second company, an online blog called Entrepreneur Express, for £110,000 (approximately $145,000).
He follows in the footsteps of many CEOs and billionaires such as Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have both dedicated much of their lives to building their own companies.
Microsoft co-founder Gates recently told CNBC Make It that he didn't believe in vacations and weekends in his 20s, but now at 68, he's advising those around him to take some breaks when they can.
Meanwhile, Buffett, the 94-year-old chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway, still works six days a week, going to the office on Saturdays.