Four years ago, Paul Selman was “working every hour God sends and going nowhere fast” to earn £26,000 a year as a Maidstone plumber.

Now, aged 40, he is close to millionaire status and planning a comfortable retirement abroad within five years.

And he puts the turnaround in his fortunes down to a former winner of BBC hit show The Apprentice.

He enrolled at the Trade Mastermind Academy run by Joseph Valente. Valente had been hired by Lord Sugar after emerging triumphant in the 2015 season of the popular show. He used the investment he secured to pump into his own plumbing business.

The Italian eventually bought out Alan Sugar’s share of the business, before selling it. Then he opened up his academy.

Learning the skills to “turbocharge” his company, Paul sold his a year ago while it was running at ten times its original turnover and opted to join Valente as his head coach.

Father-of-two Paul Selman explains: “It gave me the entrepreneurial confidence to expand into two other commercial fields I was interested in, foreign currency trading and property, while also rebuilding my life.

“I was overweight, smoking and probably drinking too much, but I have stopped smoking, rarely drink and I’m in the gym by 4.30am.

“Only the long hours are unchanged: after the gym, I’m on the road from Maidstone at 5am to drive the 110 miles to Joseph’s academy in Peterborough.”

But, to take the sting out of it, he has now hired a driver.

“I’m buoyed by what I’ve achieved and, as academy head coach, I can demonstrate to others who want to do the same.”

He’d initially embarked on a career in the Royal Navy - leaving after seven years having reached the grade of senior weapons engineer - before working as a plumber.

He concludes: “The academy doesn’t provide a silver bullet to transformation, you have to work on it.

“Some don’t get basic rules, like the dress code for meeting potential new customers; when we suggest ‘a pressed long-sleeve shirt with dark trousers’ we don’t mean polo shirt and jeans.”

Adds Joseph Valente “Paul should be proud of his achievements and talents he has unlocked.”