(MONEY Magazine) – JOE COLMERY HOME: Danville, Calif. AGE: 32 1986 COMPENSATION: $135,000 OCCUPATION: Bank president The directors of Danville's Diablo Bank offered Colmery the top job after he had spent only two weeks there as a management consultant from Arthur Andersen & Co. Since Colmery took charge three years ago, Diablo's assets have grown from $64 million to $115 million and profits have soared from $11,000 to $1.1 million. His lesson: ''Timing is everything.'' He adds, ''A lot of people work awfully hard but don't achieve the same level of success that I have because they're not in the right place at the right time.'' BRUCE A. BROWN HOME: Ryebrook, N.Y. AGE: 27 1986 COMPENSATION: $120,000 OCCUPATION: Lawyer Prowess on the football field helped Brown, the son of a Cleveland steelworker, win a scholarship to a suburban prep school. Later, good grades got him into Brown University and Columbia University Law School. He is now an associate at Finley Kumble Wagner Heine Underberg Manley Myerson & Casey, a New York City law firm that is one of the largest in the U.S. His lesson: pick the right role models. He says, ''I've been fortunate to attend educational institutions where I made a lot of contacts and met many successful people whom I could emulate.'' NANCY OWENS HOME: Houston AGE: 37 NET WORTH: $985,000 OCCUPATION: Real estate broker In 1981, Owens and a partner started a real estate agency dealing in expensive residential properties -- a still prosperous niche in the otherwise ailing Houston market. She now plans to branch out on her own. The hefty commissions she has earned -- 1985 was a record year -- let her build a substantial portfolio, with stocks, an annuity and real estate, including a ranch, where she indulges her passion for horseback riding. Her lesson: specialize. ''When I first started in real estate, no one in Houston focused on upscale properties,'' says Owens. ''When you have a unique service, you don't have to be cutthroat competitive to succeed.'' PEGGY SCHMELTZ HOME: Bowling Green, Ohio AGE: 59 AVERAGE ANNUAL INVESTMENT RETURN: 23% over 12 years OCCUPATION: Homemaker After inheriting $25,000 in 1974 and $50,000 in 1977, Schmeltz has built a stock portfolio worth more than $650,000. She currently teaches an investing workshop for an Ohio chapter of the National Association of Investment Clubs and belongs to three local clubs herself. Her lesson: don't follow the crowd. Schmeltz looks for shares trading at below- average price/earnings ratios and stocks that have dropped substantially in price. Says she: ''I hardly ever buy a stock on the way up.'' BRUCE YASGUR HOME: Philadelphia AGE: 43 AVERAGE ANNUAL INVESTMENT RETURN: 15% plus tax benefits over 14 years OCCUPATION: High school social studies teacher Yasgur buys houses in fringe neighborhoods of Philadelphia, fixes them up, rents them, and sells when the areas turn trendy. The home in which Yasgur and his wife Jan live was such a buy; purchased for $26,000 in 1978, it is now worth $160,000. He has equity of $235,000 in 15 other properties. His lesson: ''You find opportunities by getting out on the streets.'' TOM STICKEL HOME: Coronado, Calif. AGE: 37 NET WORTH: $7.5 million OCCUPATION: Founder and chairman of a financial- services company Stickel's rise to riches began in 1978 when he quit his job as a loan officer * for a West Coast savings and loan to form his own S&L -- the first in a string of successful business ventures. His latest is TCS Enterprises, a firm that does everything from make mortgages to sell insurance. His most valuable asset is 1 million shares of TCS stock, which recently traded over-the-counter for $6 a share. His lesson: bet on yourself. ''The real reward of success is derived from the process of going for it, rather than the ultimate achievement itself,'' Stickel believes. ''For some people, fear of failure is so great that they don't take a chance for success.'' JIM BOTTIN HOME: Little Rock AGE: 36 NET WORTH: $2.8 million OCCUPATION: Health and fitness entrepreneur Bottin launched his first business venture in 1975, when he started a martial arts school. In addition to the school, his business empire now includes 12 fitness centers, nine tanning boutiques and a bill- collection service for health centers. His lesson: make the most of a good thing. ''Instead of splurging my first profits on fancy cruises or jewelry,'' says Bottin, ''I reinvested in new equipment or opened another center.'' DANTE BRAMBLETT HOME: Atlanta AGE: 24 AVERAGE ANNUAL INVESTMENT RETURN: 28% over five years OCCUPATION: Electronic-parts salesman Bramblett turned $10,000 inherited in 1981 into $35,000. He chooses stocks by trying to spot market trends early. In two years, Bramblett tripled his money in Hasbro, the toymaker, because he liked their Muppets. And believing that terrorism would keep vacationers in the U.S., Bramblett earned 50% on Disney and Winnebago in six months. His lesson: ''Watch industry groups, not just stocks.'' JEFF LONG HOME: Boulder AGE: 35 1986 EARNINGS: $125,000 OCCUPATION: Writer Long's freelance writing career took off after he wrote Outlaw: The True Story of Claude Dallas, a book about a mountain man who murdered two game wardens. It was turned into a TV movie that aired in October. His hobby inspired the novel about mountain climbing that he is working on now. ''When you're making only $3,000 to $5,000 a year writing, you begin to wonder if you really have talent,'' says Long, who used to support his writing by working summers as a stonemason. His lesson: Hang in there. ''I remained true to my goal,'' he says, ''despite the fact that my income barely kept me in beans for a while.''