The humble pound. There isn't much you can really buy with it now-a-days. It wouldn't even get you a cup of coffee. So how about using it as the full investment to start up a business? The One Pound Challenge is the inspiring story of Alan Radbourne, a Loughborough University graduate, who journeyed into the working world through an audacious year long business adventure to discover how much he could earn from only a 1 investment. Discover how he took his 1 investment to over 20,000 profit in a year, what drove him to succeed and ultimately gain inspiration to manage your business or personal finance better through the lessons he learnt along the way. About the book: This book isn't a self-help or how-to book. It does not give business theory or claim to have all the answers. It is not trying to reinvent the wheel or sell you a product. This book is a story. A real-life, stripped-down and honest story of a graduate's journey into the world of work through a year long adventure that challenges the perceptions of what it takes to start a business. Welcome to the One Pound Challenge: A Business Adventure from a 1 Investment I am Alan Radbourne. A Loughborough University graduate in Geography and Sport Science, which apparently qualifies me for running and colouring in at the same time Before we begin, I would like to make clear that this book isn't based on academic theory, because I have never studied business before. So I am, quite possibly like you, a complete business novice. Don't let that change your mind about this book. Give the story a chance. The lack of my formal business education or training, I think, only enriches the possibility of my story being your story. This journey relies upon the real life experience of stepping out and trying something new. Don't we all wonder what stepping out might look like in our own story? About the One Pound Challenge: The One Pound Challenge was a business adventure to see what could be achieved from only a 1 investment and in one year. It was a year for me to work full time to invest and reinvest in a variety of self-led projects. Could I turn a 1 investment into my first graduate salary? Throughout the year I chose to not take any money out of the challenge, but instead to continually find ways to reinvest every penny I'd made to accurately see what really could be achieved from something as little as a 1 coin. After a year of hard work, countless ups and downs and more project ideas than I could handle, my 1 investment had grown to a little over 20,000 gross profit with an income of around 38,000. Still, the purpose of the challenge was to do far more than tide me over in my graduate year and avoid the daily grind of finding what some might call a 'real job'. I wanted the story of my journey to inspire and encourage people from the initial idea of the challenge. I wanted people to know that there are always options to take hold of your finances; there are ways to earn extra cash, to stay out of debt and that no one needs a gigantic business investment to get their dream business off the ground. Having started from 1, it demonstrates that everyone can access their financial freedom and their business dreams. Everyone has the potential to do this. This could be your story."