Book Review: How I Got Ghetto Rich In The Streets
Ellis gives guidance to self-motivation and business success.
By Fehintola L. Opanubi, Sentinel Intern
The author Derrick Ellis, graduate of Texas Southern University, comedian and owner of his own successful clothing line “Funny Wear”, shows how he went from selling dollar tickets to launching a product line and “Got Ghetto Rich In The Hood”. (When Derrick moved to South Central Los Angeles from a middle class area in Houston, he knew that he had to put more effort into his comedy career to “stay above the water” and support his drinking and substance abuse problem. Throughout the problems Ellis faced, he persevered through his struggles and watched his “hustle” and dignity rise).
“How I Got Ghetto Rich In The Streets” focuses on overcoming obstacles and gives insight on how to manage a successful business and start your own clothing line. Ellis gives examples of how he learned from some of his business mistakes and instead of dwelling on them, he turned the negative into positive and made a very profitable living. After his drinking problem was “taken away” in 2006, his creativity and ambition elevated, inspiring him to begin his own production company “My Momma’s House Productions”. The event held at Starbucks was free to attend but Ellis’ profit was made by him selling raffle tickets for $1.00 that gave possibilities of winning coffee mugs, DVD’s, or a t-shirt. In Part 8, pg14, Ellis encourages inspiring entrepreneurs reading his book, to always try and create something that has long-term money coming in.
Ellis illustrates his book in parts rather than chapters. At the end of each part, there is a quote that encourages and inspires the reader. Part 10, pg 17, “The most successful businessman is the man who holds onto the old just as long as it is good, and grabs the new just as soon as it is better”. Ellis leads us from him starting off only making $15.00-$20.00 a show to how his clothing line grossed $100,000 in 2007. He describes having to sleep in his car in the Jefferson Park area and paying one woman $15.00 a night to sleep at her residence as being a different world for him and hurting him instead of helping him. Throughout the many obstacles Ellis went through, he never gave up or stopped striving for what he believed in. He saw those many obstacles that he went through as being his call from God and helping him “see the way”.
The motivational and business success book concludes with very beneficial business ethics, an article written by Shane Magee “Overcoming Obstacles In Life”, and his wishes to his reader(s) to go after their dreams.
