My First Job: Michel Alvarez, founder of WonderChess

January 22, 2006

My First Job: Michel Alvarez, founder of WonderChess

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Michel Alvarez

Current position: Founder of WonderChess, a Seattle company that creates learning kits for kids aimed at making chess fun.

First job: Selling eggs by the flat and 1 kilogram bags of sugar, door to door in my neighborhood at age 6 in San Diego. My mom would drive to the chicken farms on the outskirts of San Diego and load up our station wagon with flats of eggs. Then I would load them on to my Radio Flyer red wagon and sell them door to door around the neighborhood. The eggs were $1 per flat, and the sugar was 50 cents per bag. That was 33 years ago.

How I got the job: My mother is a serial entrepreneur — doing business in both the USA and Mexico — with products ranging from computers to commodities. As recent Mexican immigrants from Tijuana, this was her way to instill the importance of earning a living independently.

What I learned: Do not be afraid to knock on the door (or at least don't show you're scared) — as the worst outcome is someone saying no and closing the door, and the best outcome may lead to your dreams coming true.

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