Bill Ackman’s investment career can be traced back to a surprisingly modest beginning: a college sales job that earned him $14,000. While studying at Harvard, Ackman sold advertising for the student-produced Let’s Go travel guides on commission, discovering that he had a knack for turning sales into serious money.

The Pershing Square Capital Management CEO Bill Ackman says he was inspired to become an investor after working at his dad’s real estate company.

Bill Ackman’s investment career can be traced back to a surprisingly modest beginning: a college sales job that earned him $14,000. While studying at Harvard, Ackman sold…