Dr. Farrah Gray became a self-made millionaire by the age of 14, after working for himself at age 6. Motivated to work toward wealth at a young age after seeing his mother struggling in dire financial circumstances, Gray went on to create a number of successful companies while in his teens. Not content with material wealth alone, Gray has put that same caring compassion he felt for his mom to use in service for others. Now 25 years old, Gray is not only a businessman, but also a community leader who contributes to many philanthropic organizations while leading his own foundation. The Farrah Gray Foundation helps young people learn the same skills that helped Gray achieve success through career coaching and granting scholarships. Gray also enjoys sharing his practical advice as a sought-after public speaker and through popular business books such as 'Get Real, Get Rich' and 'Reallionaire.'

Gray happily took time out of his busy schedule to talk to Black Voices about his ideas on wealth building, how to work best with your God-given talents and why Kwanzaa beats out Black History Month as the best time of year for celebrating African American identity.

Your books 'Get Real, Get Rich,' 'The Truth Shall Make You Rich' and 'Reallionaire' have been commercially successful and praised by the publishing industry. Do the books have a unifying theme of wealth building?

Look at someone like William Bud Post, who won the Pennsylvania lottery for $16 million and now lives off his social security. When you are not self-made and you don't understand what it takes to be a bona fide success, then you have a shallow success. That's pretty much the theme when I say "get real, get rich." Living up to your God-given potential. Finding your area of excellence.

I had a guy call me who was 75 years old. He cursed me out. He said, "Farrah, I've been working hard all my life. You say it's all about hard work. I want to know why do you have money and I'm broke? I've been working hard all my bleeping life!"


I said, "You've never heard me say it's all about hard work. I think it's about hard work, yes, but it's also about finding your area of excellence, what God put you here to do." I said, "The richest place in the world is the cemetery. It's not where you find the gold and the diamonds. It's where you find people who have died and taken their natural God-given talents with them. The two most important things I think that happen in a person's life are when we are born and when we find out why we were born. What did God put you here to do?" And he interrupted me and said, "I know what God put me here to do! I'm a singer." So I said, "Okay, then sing." So he started to sing. I listened. I said, "Sir, you ain't a singer. That is not what God put you here to do."

So I encouraged him. I said, "Ask yourself three questions. Then the marketplace will open up to you, your gifts and your talents. First question: What comes easy to me, but harder to other people? Second question: What would I do for work for years and years and never have to get paid for it? Third question: How can I be of service, and how can I give back? I said once you've been able to wrap those things around what you do and your life purpose, the world and the market will open up for you, your gifts and your talents." The guy called me later and told me that he became a painter and was selling his paintings for almost $5,000. So that's the general theme. Who are you? And what are you here to do?

And then take that journey. Be the next you, because everybody else is taken. Much of what you hear from me and many individuals is common sense. It's just not common practice. We have to start putting certain elements into practice.

What is the best piece of personal finance advice you have for middle-class families struggling in the current economy?

I think, at this time, looking at the conditions we are in, if you have a whole family unit, I think that someone hopefully needs to work if they can. And I think that someone needs to practically do the entrepreneurial thing. Have a balance in the house. I think that would be a perfect combination. That way, you know that certain bills are getting paid.

I tell people to find their area of excellence. Some people respond by saying, "I'm ready to quit my [day job] today!" And I say, "Well, no, don't quit today. You need to definitely find some kind of transition from your job." You can't just jump from one thing to another. One of the greats of our time has said it's like a Tarzan thing. He let go of one branch to go to another one, but he did not let go of the first one, until he had the other one.So I think that creating that balance, entrepreneurial and a paycheck, is not a bad combination for a middle-class family. I think that also with a family you have your own staff. You're not what I call the OOO, the "Only Operating Officer." There are people in your family who can help you develop an online business.

Put to good use whatever talents you have – if you can cook, do some catering, a cookbook, get a product into local stores. If you go into a Whole Foods, you see labels on food products that look like they were printed on a $50 printer. But they're out there, they're selling, and people are into the product because of the quality of the product. Taking a product from kitchen to market is not as expensive as people think. If you have a digital camera, get out there, take images, send them into Corbis, Getty Images. Begin to sell and look into multiple streams of income.

Now is the time -- I call it the third-world country entrepreneur way of thinking --when we're going to have to get back to basics. Be the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker. What do you do best? Do that as your side hustle. What is hustle? Most people look at the word hustle as a negative. I don't. Abraham Lincoln said it best: "There will be things that come to those who wait--but only what's left by those who hustle." You've got to do a little bit more than what you are doing, because as old the saying goes, we cannot do the same things and expect different results.

You have achieved so much in such a short time from business, to writing, to community activism. Do you still have greater mountains to climb in terms of your career and civic life? What are some of your goals for the next decade?

The sky is the limit. I always answer the question that way.

Please share your favorite piece of life wisdom with the Black Voices audience. What nugget of knowledge inspires you to your high level of excellence year in and year out?

Certainly. My advice would include a number of things. Definitely, to always put God first. And to remember that whatever you go through, you must grow through. And, as it says in the scripture, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for the, the evidence of things unseen." So have faith in all that you do, for with faith comes the courage to accomplish all.

It's Black History Month in a week. What are your thoughts on the holiday?

I don't recognize Black History Month. I think every day is for black history, 365 days a year, not the shortest and the coldest month in the year. Every day we must celebrate our history. You can't take a small amount of time to explore an infinity of time.

It's a very controversial topic. Black history is like Kwanzaa – we want people to explore it but not many people embrace it.

Kwanzaa is very beautiful. It's been said that it's roughly a $500 million industry. I celebrate it, and I am really honored to embody and live all seven principles. If we really follow that, it's a road map. It's a holiday, but if we were to incorporate unity, kujichagulia (self-determination), collective responsibility, creativity, faith, purpose &ndash, if we looked through all the seven principles, we would find that it's important for us to embody all of them, and live them day to day.

So you find Kwanzaa to be a more substantive and inspiring time than Black History Month?

Absolutely. It's almost like it gives us all seven of what our New Year's resolutions should be to live throughout the year.