After coming to America in 1968, Arnold Schwarzenegger began from scratch. With the help of his mentor and the father of the Mr. Olympia contest, Joe Weider, Schwarzenegger started earning money and competing. Soon, the Austrian Oak realized his potential after coming under the wing of some of the best bodybuilders in the world. By 1975, Arnie had won six Mr. Olympia titles and filmed the docudrama Pumping Iron (1977). While Arnie’s early bodybuilding success might seem like the foundation of his $450 million net worth, there’s more at play than meets the eye.

In the latest edition of Arnold’s Pump Club, the bodybuilding legend opened up about something he did as a teen. Before coming to America, when Schwarzenegger was fifteen, he joined an apprenticeship. According to Arnold Schwarzenegger, it changed his life.

Arnold Schwarzenegger learned things that weightlifting couldn’t teach him

In his fitness newsletter, Arnold Schwarzenegger focuses on wholesome wellness. The 75-year-old keeps his readers hooked, going beyond simply providing tips based on scientific studies. One way the fitness icon likes to advise on various aspects of wellness is by highlighting selected questions from his Q&A sessions.

In his latest one, Arnie highlighted a fan question regarding his success. “I feel like you’ve really been in the spotlight your entire life,” hypothesized one fan. The fan thought so since the Austrian Oaks father was the police chief of his hometown. The fan then asked if his childhood experience prepared him for future stardom.

However, the seven-time Mr. Olympia said he wasn’t in the spotlight as a kid. Despite his father’s position as the police chief, Arnie’s family struggled with finances. It wasn’t until Schwarzenegger started succeeding in weightlifting that he came under the spotlight. “What really prepared me was my apprenticeship in sales. Learning to be a salesman gave me the lessons I didn’t learn in the gym,” the bodybuilding icon wrote in his newsletter. In fact, it was the apprenticeship that gave him his first taste of success.

The apprenticeship helped the bodybuilding icon fulfill a goal

When Arnold Schwarzenegger was 14, he came across a music store in Graz. The then-young bodybuilder heard loud rock-n-roll music blaring from the store and entered. A fan of rock-n-roll music, he asked the owner where the music was coming from. The owner then pointed to a transistor radio, and Arnie asked how much it cost. He learned it cost 500 shillings and couldn’t afford it.

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However, Schwarzenegger wasn’t one to give up so easily. He told the owner that once he turned 15, he would come back for the radio. The following year, Arnie joined the sales apprenticeship. The job paid him 350 shillings an hour, and after a few months, Schwarzenegger returned to the store. A 15-year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger got his first taste of success when he bought the radio he wanted a year ago on credit.

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Most people think the five-time Mr. Universe became successful through bodybuilding. However, Arnold Schwarzenegger made a large part of his fortune through his business and investments.