Hello everybody! I came to this forum as a result of reading The Millionaire Fastlane, and I'd like to say thank you creating this forum as well as writing such a great book!

I went to college for the sole purpose of playing professional sports, and after an injury ended that dream, I’ve since struggled to find a new one. I’ve been employed by three companies since 2002, and was promoted within six months of my first day at each company. When it comes to working, I honestly feel like I can do any job better than anyone already doing it, given the right training and the desire to do so. I’m not cocky by any means of the word, I’ve just done it over and over and I’ve come to expect it from myself.

My desire to "climb the corporate ladder" has disappeared based on my most recent experience. Long story short - the company that I was working for was bought out by another company. Promises were made and not kept, and very quickly became a nightmare. My pay was reduced by 78% over six months, and the new company was based on ethics that made me feel very uncomfortable. I resigned when they told me to lie to my employees, and make them quit rather than firing them so they didn't qualify for unemployment. Two months later I would have been promoted to District Manager, along with a 900% raise.

I’ve started a few businesses in the past, but I haven’t profited from any of them. I built a couple different retail websites back in the late 90’s, a couple service-based websites (one of which my dad/business partner pitched to General Motors), and I spent about one year and thousands of dollars marketing to buy real estate. That may sound nice, but I would say that someone with experience in these particular fields could have made a lot of money.

The difference between my success in the work force and my lack of success on my own, I believe, comes from the hands-on training you get as an employee. The only hands-on training I’ve received from my business ventures came from a real estate mentor, who was teaching me to buy real estate when he wasn’t currently doing the same. I really learn by watching others do, and then make adjustments to make it work for me.

My big goal is to work with someone that is a successful entrepreneur; someone that I can learn from while providing them with a huge benefit as well. A mentor if you will, but not one that I can have for just four monthly payments of $2,500 so we can talk on the phone for 15 minutes a week. While I don’t feel qualified to teach anyone on how to be successful in business, I can probably chime in here and there with what not to do. Or if you have questions about a job, I may be able to input a little. Cheers!