Catherine Cook: The brainwave that made me $10m by age 18

Three years ago, Catherine Cook – then 15 - and her brother – then 16 - had an idea for an online school yearbook. With help from their dotcom-entrepreneur brother, their company myyearbook.com is now reaping $10m a year in ad sales.

Founded in March 2005 by Catherine and David Cook, Myyearbook.com has taken the social networking world by storm. In just three years, it has risen to third place in the sector, behind Facebook and MySpace. It's a feat all the more remarkable when you consider its two creators are only 18 and 19 respectively.

Three years ago, Catherine and David were flicking through their school yearbook the annual compendium of photos and memories that is a feature of most American high schools when they came across a picture of a girl they both knew. "This looks nothing like her," said David. Catherine agreed. It was clear, as she puts it, that "the picture stank". Wouldn't it, they wondered, be much better to do the yearbook online, and let people post their own photos?

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Jody Clarke

Jody studied at the University of Limerick and was a senior writer for MoneyWeek. Jody is experienced in interviewing, for example digging into the lives of an ex-M15 agent and quirky business owners who have made millions. Jody’s other areas of expertise include advice on funds, stocks and house prices.