Where do I belong

Hello,

This is my first time on this site, and so far I have been impressed with the various information here. Anyway, I am a senior in college living in north NJ. I am doing a 'Wall Street Semester' at school, where we go to the city twice a week for classes, and we visit various firms and meet with alumni working on Wall St. It has been a great experience so far, and I have a good feeling I want to get into investment banking.

I am currently 21, and started my first business in 1999. I was basically a 'picker' and was selling things on eBay. I had information on getting various video game products for dirt cheap, and would sell at a profit.

I continued to do this, and incorporated in 2008. Since I incorporated, I've done over $500k in revenue. I opened a retail location, and have my own products out that are video game related. I am also involved with cell phones, and printing. The specific details are not very important, but I have proven entrepreneurial success under my belt.

I guess my question is how to best apply this to Wall Street. After looking at some websites with salaries posted, as well as talking to some people, it seems that there is much argument over how much people in investment banking really make. A lot of the sites show $50k, where others show figures much closer to 100k. I've been told that I would be best suited at a small firm since my individual skills will be shown better.

Can anyone provide some advice? I figure it can't hurt to get some more opinions. I work hard, and have not had any quality of life in YEARS so working for another firm for 100+ hours a week is nothing that I am not used to. Running 3 businesses on my own plus going to school full time has taken a toll on me and I want some change. I feel that I should be able to use the business and management experience I have to hopefully get a job in which I would be starting at more than a typical college grad, but I am not certain if anyone will really care about my past or not. What are your thoughts?

Also, I am sure that this question has been beat to death, but I am looking for a good path to go far in my career. A few friends have told me that they know people in their mid 20s making between $500k-1million a year already. How do these people do that? What kind of a path are they on as far as what they start at and various promotions they get? Is the structure different for large firms compared to small firms?

Thank you, Tim