I said yes

Rags to riches, smartphones, Mother's Day, and 7 other things worth your time.

Her mom died when she was just five years old. Her father was nearly blind after a factory accident.

So at age 16, she dropped out of school and went to work in a factory, making lenses for watches.

“I worked from 8 a.m. to 12 a.m., and sometimes until 2 a.m.,” she later recalled. “There were no shifts, just a few dozen people, and we all polished glass. I didn't enjoy it.”

She needed the money, and there were many others lining up to replace her. But, she wanted something more out of life. So, the teen-aged girl went to her boss after only three months, thanked him for the opportunity, but said she planned to leave.

Instead of letting her go, her boss promoted her. And, this brave move turned out to be Step 1 on the girl’s long road to immense wealth.

Let me introduce you, if you don’t already know her, to Zhou Quenfei, the world’s wealthiest self-made woman, with a fortune hovering somewhere around $12.6 billion.

She’s the founder and chairwoman of Lens Technology Co., which is one of …