Twitter Bird Says:

Retire At 21 founder Michael Dunlop has shown that being young, dyslexic and a college drop out is not the end of the world. Whilst many youngsters faced with these obstacles would have turned to drugs or crime, Michael merely saw them as challenges, and his drug of choice became Online Business.

Michael's story is a fascinating and inspirational example of what we are all capable of, and the early signs of something special were there for all to see. At age 5 Michael was asked by his mother "what do you want to do when you grow up?", his reply ... "I want to own a shop". Shocked by this answer, his mother replied "Like a toy shop?", and was amazed when Michael proclaimed that in fact, he wanted a large superstore like Tesco (UK) or Walmart (America).

Like so many other entrepreneurs, it was online marketplace eBay that gave Michael his first taste of the high life. Despite being in his early teens, he was selling everything and anything he could get his hands on, whilst his peers were struggling to make 5 pounds per week from paper rounds and odd jobs around the home, Michael was making tens of thousands of pounds from his eBay adventures.

At aged only 16, Michael decided that he wanted to create a website of his very own, it was a decision that would shape his life for ever.

Retireat21.com was eventually born, and it is now a leading showcase for other young entrepreneurs to show their talents and share their stories. It has become a haven and in many ways a refuge for youngsters to turn to online business instead of crime, drugs and a life without purpose.

When history is written it seems almost certain that from a business point of view, the first decade of the 21st Century will be remembered best as the Era of The Young Entrepreneur:

Think Chad Hurley and Steven Chen of YouTube