Former Professional Boxer steps back into the ring with new book! Dynamo! Overused, a cliche even, I hesitate to use the word when describing him, but it is indeed one of a few choice superlatives that honestly describes entrepreneur and businessman Elliott Forman. Driven, strategic, and caring could rightly be added to the list. With relentless energy, Forman is a force to be reckoned with in the business world.

Dynamo! Overused, a cliche even, I hesitate to use the word when describing him, but it is indeed one of a few choice superlatives that honestly describes entrepreneur and businessman Elliott Forman. Driven, strategic, and caring could rightly be added to the list. With relentless energy, Forman is a force to be reckoned with in the business world. And his willingness to share what he knows with others makes him all the more special. For proof, sample a few pages of his new book, Business is War. A virtual 'how to' guide for small businesses, Business is War draws on Forman's extensive experience as he breaks down the 12 crucial battles every business must face to succeed. Perfecting your craft, mastering your numbers, and developing a scalable model are a few other common-sense topics he tackles. An easy but informative read at 101 pages, Business is War is a teaching guide business owners will want to come back to again and again.

Elliott Forman is a rapid-fire conversationalist. A talk with him might seem to address multiple themes, but in reality, his one theme is always near the surface—Take your life seriously! Take your idea and run with it! Don't be afraid! As founder and CEO of Bonita Payments since 2015, it's a subject Forman knows well, and it's even more impressive when you factor in that so few African Americans are in his line of work. Forman estimates there are probably only five other African American-owned payment processing companies in the U.S., and while he has found his place among this elite group, his career path hasn't always been so well defined. The road to now has been circuitous, taking him through a four-year tour in the navy, time spent butting heads in the ring as a professional boxer, working as a shoe salesman, and on the streets of New York in the document reproduction business. But the 49-year-old CEO will tell you every stop helped shape who he is and put a chip on his shoulder that suits him just fine.

Forman was born in New Orleans. His mother was a single parent until she remarried when Forman was ten years old. His stepfather was career U.S. Navy so the family moved around every few years. After seven years away from New Orleans, he would return to graduate High School. Graduation, however, was a rude awakening for the popular 17-year-old when he realized he didn't have a plan for what was next. "I had no direction after high school," Forman said. College was not a realistic option, so with no real rudder, Forman followed his stepdad's example and joined the Navy. His tour of duty as an Operations Specialist went by quickly, and upon discharge, Forman found himself back at square one, unsure what to do next. He sold shoes at a local mall, then supplements at a neighborhood GNC. But in 2002, Forman had a chance encounter that sent him down a completely different path and introduced him to a new

culture and brotherhood that he would ultimately embrace for the rest of his life. A cousin of Forman's introduced him to professional boxer Clifford Etienne. At the time, Etienne, a heavyweight, was at the height of his career. Naive but still impressionable, Forman was enamored with Etienne's lifestyle—the media attention, the money, the cars. Forman was a natural athlete, and he saw something he thought he could do in boxing. So, he decided to answer the bell and began training as a professional boxer in the Junior Middleweight Division. Forman was 25 years old.

Forman fought once a year and established a winning streak. On the advice of his promoter and with promises of bigger fights and better paydays, Forman moved to New York in late 2005.

Hurricane Katrina had devastated New Orleans months earlier, and with the city in the midst of a long and difficult recovery, the timing seemed right. However, his promoter proved less than honest, and neither the fights nor the paydays materialized. "My promoter never answered the phone again after I stepped off the plane in New York," Forman said. Forman eventually signed with another promoter but, in the meantime, found a job in New York in the document reproduction business.

"If the Navy was my undergrad, New York City was my graduate studies," Forman said. Life was good. He was successful, making money and still boxing. He traveled between New York and New Orleans every month to see his fiancée, Porsche and help plan their wedding. By now, it was 2006. With another New York winter looming and his wedding date drawing near Forman decided to quit his job and move back to New Orleans. As fate would have it, his supervisor at the time was working on his own plan to leave and start an HR and headhunter service. Forman became one of his first clients. Within a few weeks, he landed a position for Forman in New Orleans, selling credit card machines for First Data, a subsidiary of American Express. By February 2007, Forman was back in New Orleans on the job in a new career.

Forman Internalized every bit of information and training available to him. He learned the business inside out. It wasn't long before he was on track to become one of the company's most successful sales reps. Fast forward seven years and Forman is at the top of his game, but he was growing restless. First Data had been a great opportunity and training ground, but Forman felt he needed room to grow, so he began to plan his exit. Forman left First Data in 2014, but unlike other pivotal moments in his life, this time, he had a plan.

The budding entrepreneur had finally found his niche. With the same energy and determination that brought him success in the ring in 2015, Forman opened his own payment processing business, Bonita Payments. He started small, working out of his car with just a couple of ethernet cables and machines. "I started looking for pieces in Bonita that would help me do things differently than I had seen in a corporation setting," Forman says. He found those pieces and the company began not only to grow but thrive. "One reason we did not fail is because we did not start the meter too soon. How many companies start the meter before they actually have revenues," Forman says. "And many people start businesses without ever mastering their craft. I stepped into the same market and the same career setting. I basically just plugged and played." Now ready to celebrate ten years in business, Bonita Payments maintains 39 partnerships, millions in revenue, company vehicles, a luxurious high-rise office space, and millions in payroll each year. Still, Forman is concerned that he is not doing enough.