She has twice been named one of the 100 most influential people in the world, yet Suze never would have guessed that kind of recognition was on the way when she was living in a van. Or making $400 a month as a waitress at the Buttercup Cafe.

“I had $300 to my name, and my brother gave me $1,500 to buy a Ford Econoline van that I transformed. I could sleep in the back. I got a little portable toilet. And I ended up living on the streets in that van until I landed that dream job of mine as a waitress.

Two young boys used to come in, and I used to wait on them. Their names were Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs. At the time they had a 1-800-Dial-a-Joke as they were working on this funny little thing in their garage…known eventually as Apple Computer. And their parents were so upset that they were wasting their time on this.

My biggest mistake in life–as I was going down this path–somebody else would come along and they would say, ‘Hey Suze, I have this great idea…’ and I’d go off the path, and then I would eventually lose money and come back to the path.”

Suze Orman is a best-selling author, Emmy-winning TV personality, and has twice been named one of the Time 100, The World's Most Influential People. You can find her on Twitter at @suzeormanshow and on Instagram at @therealsuzeorman.