Early on in life, Samy Bououchcha realized that he wanted certain things out of a career. In order to fit his desired lifestyle, he sought out a professional path that would enable him to be financially secure and provide him with a stable balance between work and his personal life. After some thought, he decided to try his hand at investing, specifically stock, commodity, and crypto speculation. At 17 years old, equipped with a $10,000 loan from his parents, he began researching how best to effectively trade assets online. After some trial and error, Samy quickly found a recipe for success, making enough money in the first few years of his career to pay off his parents’ house. Now, in his mid-20s, he has accrued more than enough capital to retire comfortably—although, he is not quite at the point of considering that as a viable option. While he still executes trades for a few hours every day, Samy Bououchcha now spends the majority of his time trying to better himself physically and mentally, as well as spending time with his friends and loved ones. Presently, he resides in Montreal, Quebec.
Why did you decide to create your own business?
I decided to create my own business because I wanted the freedom to enjoy life. I wanted to be able to experience the vast plethora of experiences that life has to offer in the short duration of time that I will be alive on Earth. I knew that in order to do this, I would need to create my own business to generate the necessary income to fund those enjoyable experiences.
What do you love most about the industry you are in?
What I like the most about trading is that I really don’t need to speak with anybody. I could be trading in a cave or in a forest. I could be on top of a mountain. I don’t need anything else besides a computer, access to the internet, and my own mind. Basically, I am responsible for my own decisions. If I lose money, it’s my own fault. If I make money, that’s my own doing, as well. I like that it’s a battle with myself.
What keeps you motivated?
I would say what keeps me motivated is looking back on the journey I’ve made; seeing exactly how far I’ve come. That always pushes me in everything I do. I think it’s the reason I always push forward and not take anything for granted. Another thing that keeps me motivated is the knowledge that I have many more enjoyable experiences to live through in the future. I have certain goals in mind for the future, and I want to be able to attain them. For example, one day I hope to purchase a trip to space. It could be to the International Space Station, or, if it were possible at the time, the moon. I want to have the means to easily be able to afford experiences like that.
How do you motivate others?
It depends if they’re close to me or not, but when it comes to motivating others, I always try to broaden their perspectives by making them understand certain aspects of life. For example, sometimes people need to be made aware that their actions have consequences, oftentimes not just for themselves but for the people around them, too, including their loved ones. I also try to motivate others by calling attention to their mindset. I think it’s important to always think positively. Sometimes without even really being aware of it, people can lapse into very negative, cynical, or nihilistic mindsets. When I see that happening, I try to intervene and tell them that it’s not healthy. Sometimes I share the story of my own journey with such people. I think that has served to reignite the motivational spark in others on more than one occasion.
How has your company grown from its early days to now?
It’s grown a lot. The business started when I went to see my parents to borrow some money. It was about $10,000. My parents gave me that money with the understanding that if I lost it, I would get a job to pay them back. Luckily, things went well for me. From there, it evolved a lot, to the point where, right now, I’m pretty well-situated for the rest of my life. However, that’s not to say that I’m considering early retirement—there are always new levels to be reached.
Who has been a role model to you and why?
I didn’t really have any role models when I was growing up. I always just wanted to become the best version of myself. I wouldn’t say I had a role model.
How do you maintain a solid work life balance?
I’ve organized my work so that I only need to stay on the computer for 3 – 4 hours per day. So, that allows me to have a lot of free time for my personal life. Basically, I start early in the morning and I do half of my daily work, and then I do the other half before going to bed. That gives me the rest of the day to live my life. It’s pretty easy for me to balance it all.
What suggestions do you have for someone starting in your industry?
My best suggestion would be to get to know someone who knows exactly what they’re doing and to learn from them. From experience—and I’ve done it alone—I can tell you that it’s very difficult, it’s a very long process, and it’s going to cost you a lot of money making mistakes if you try to make a go of trading by yourself. You’ll save a lot more money by approaching someone who has already been through it all and asking them for advice. I don’t like the term ‘mentorship’, but I would be remiss if I didn’t say that this type of situation can be quite helpful in order to learn the rules of the game as fast as you can and cut through the process. It will save you from making some costly mistakes.
What is your biggest accomplishment?
Being able to fund my parents’ retirement and help them out financially for the past few years was a really big deal for me. We’re immigrants from Morocco. I was born there. They came to Canada to give my sister and me a better education. My biggest accomplishment was making them proud and arranging things so that they never have to worry about money ever again.
What is the biggest life lesson you have learned?
One of the biggest life lessons that I’ve learned is that to be truly happy in life, sure, you need to be financially stable, and yes, you also need to have good relationships with others. But first you need to be happy with yourself mentally and physically, and you have to be proud of what you have accomplished. Additionally, you must have a great outlook on life and you must continually target new objectives that you strive to achieve. You have to keep reaching further. It’s not just about money.
Outside of work, what defines you as a person?
My friends call me a crazy scientist. I’m always asking questions and trying to understand what’s going on in every aspect of life. I’m always trying to improve myself and the lives of others around me. I try to optimize everything. I want to understand life. I’m curious.
Where do you see you and your company in 5 years?
In five years? That’s a long time! In five years, I think I will have reached my long-term trading targets and I’ll be able to stop. Maybe I’ll enter another line of business that will help humanity in some way.
Explain the proudest day of your professional life.
My proudest day was when I lived with my parents when I was younger, and I made my first six figure trade. I remember it was in the morning. I think it was 5:30 am, and I went to wake up my mother and father. They were sleeping upstairs and woke them up to show them my transaction. I was very excited, and they were, too. I told them, “this trade is for you guys, this will help you pay off the house.” Basically, it was my first big trading success.