AWARDS

What’s his story? When he was a young boy, Kenny Troutt had only one dream: to be rich. Troutt’s father was an alcoholic bartender that kept telling young Kenny that he will always be a failure. Eventually Troutt’s parents got divorced and he had to move to a housing project with his mother and 2 brothers. That was the time that Troutt decided he was going to prove his father wrong.

His first “business” was charging friends 50 cents to enter bike races that he organized. The prizes were trophies that he made himself. Troutt’s mother was a school cook and a waitress and it was very important for her that Kenny will get proper education - “My mom was born poor, raised poor, and was going to die poor," says Troutt.

Troutt entered university in 1966, but failed his courses and had to leave by his second year. His mom convinced him to try again so he entered a different university and graduated with a C- average. Troutt was apparently a brilliant salesman. During his last year he had a job that earned him $75,000 a year selling insurance.

Troutt quickly got tired working for a big insurance company so he began selling home waterproofing. Eventually the job led him to Omaha in 1971, where he started his own construction business. At first the company did well, but later on collapsed due to rising interest rates and some bad investments. At 1982 Troutt left his company and his first wife behind.

With only $148, Troutt started selling oil leases over the phone and raising money for drilling deals. He made $200,000 but had to finally leave when there was no more oil at the area and prices dropped.

Troutt then created Excel, a communications company. He used independent reps who sold to friends and family and was reselling phone service on other companies’ networks. This saved him hundreds of millions of dollars.

In 1993, he married Lisa Copeland, who joined him at his company and helped a lot in the marketing department.

What about today?  Troutt is the CEO of Dallas-based Excel Communications Inc., is worth $1.5 billion and owns a 13,000 square foot mansion.

"I can remember living in the housing projects and being broke like it was yesterday," says Troutt. Indeed, he jokes that he is still so unaccustomed to wealth that he sometimes wakes up in his mansion thinking he needs to check out before he's charged for another night.