Life Perspective

[SteveO]

@Formless made a comment in another post about my mindset/perspective being positive and (seemingly) unshakeable. There is no doubt that I have had major changes in my perspective during the past few years.

There was a time not too long ago that I was standing in my room shaking, gritting my teeth, and screaming at god about my victimhood. I was begging and pleading to understand what and why.

This victim mentality came on the heels of a strong perspective that I had of arrogance and feeling invincible.

My current perspective on life is that we are in charge of our world. There is no god that is placing obstacles and challenges in our path. We do all of this ourselves.

I have some fairly strong beliefs due to events that have occurred in the form of visions and happenings. I am not going to go into that here and I am not interested in debating god or religion.

It all started with a rapid rise in wealth. In a few short years, I had acquired a net worth of around 10M with money coming in faster than I could track it. In an even shorter time period, I lost it all. I went to a negative net worth.

There was a lot of soul searching and churning that came from that. I wanted to understand why this happened to me.

It was the realization that I had no reason to feel unhappy that changed my world. The realization that being unhappy was MY choice and not something that was being thrust upon me. I was just as happy when I was 18 years old and living in my car with no money as I was when I had all the money and lived in a large prestigious house.

It is not all about money either. My net worth is growing rapidly again. But that is not my focus on life. My focus is to do the things that I need to do and have fun with everything. Every little challenge that we present ourselves is an opportunity for us to learn. If we look at things as good and bad, we lose a lot of that opportunity.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[DeletedUser2]

It is not all about money either. My net worth is growing rapidly again. But that is not my focus on life. My focus is to do the things that I need to do and have fun with everything. Every little challenge that we present ourselves is an opportunity for us to learn. If we look at things as good and bad, we lose a lot of that opportunity.

This is where I am at also.
growing networth is fun, but it is not my focus.
making money is easy once you know how. keeping it, is just another lesson to learn, and once you get that, it can be even easier.

my focus is on helping others. finding the little things in other peoples way, that, with a simple perspective shift, can cause a cascade of events, that improves their lives forever.

@SteveO I totally get where you are at, and where you have been. I have had my day of shaking my fists at the sky as well. and am at a much better place because of that whole process.

For me. it was understanding that I control how I feel.
no one else.

God or not, I have CHOICE. and that, is the most powerful and beautiful thing.

Z

 

[Y.B.]

my focus is on helping others

Sounds like you're ready to take on some more mentees

 

[Runum]

@SteveO and @zen******* thank you both for sharing. It is a testament to you both that you have gone through your trials and have come out swinging with a smile on your face. It is an honor to know both of you guys.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[IceCreamKid]

For me. it was understanding that I control how I feel.
no one else.

God or not, I have CHOICE. and that, is the most powerful and beautiful thing.

THIS. This was the game changer for me and it hit me like a wall of bricks last year, and it is the primary reason why most of my posts are focused on mindset.

I used to give every excuse in the book for why I couldn't take action. "I'm tired, I have work in the morning, I'm low on cash, I can't". My mindset needed reprogramming. Then I took a few steps back to reflect on my life and realized so many years had been wasted. That's when I realized it was all me. There was something about hitting age 27 that made me feel like I needed to be more serious and make dedicated moves rather than jump from one idea to the next after the first sign of an obstacle.

Man is made or unmade by his own self. We are in charge of our mindset. Therefore, we are in charge of our results.

It all started with a rapid rise in wealth. In a few short years, I had acquired a net worth of around 10M with money coming in faster than I could track it.

Bro, I still have your success story from years ago printed and posted onto the wall in my bedroom. I tried finding it on the forum again, but MJ must have deleted the majority of the success stories.

It really resonated with me because you seemed like such a regular guy starting out as a landscaper, plumber, and mechanic. I started out as a carpet cleaner working weekends in high school. It was difficult for me to connect with guys like MJ because at the time I simply couldn't envision myself building a lead generation website that pulls in $200k a month passively(limiting belief), but real estate seemed so real because I could see it and feel it.

Thanks for posting your story man.

 

[Y.B.]

but MJ must have deleted the majority of the success stories

Why would he do that?

 

[IceCreamKid]

Why would he do that?

No idea. Perhaps to make room for the new generation of success stories?

I personally miss a lot of the old school guys on the forum because they were very focused on old school ways of making the cheese i.e. real estate, B&M business, etc. jScott and hakrjak were two of my favorites. I actually asked AroundTheWorld if MJ secretly contacted some of the original members because I noticed a few of them suddenly came back after years of silence lol. MJ didn't do it, it was just a coincidence.

The new generation of entrepreneur is more focused on e-commerce and SaaS business. I call them the t-shirt and sneakers generation because Mark Zuckerberg made it trendy to be the casual rebel on stage.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[HarryR]

I have CHOICE. and that, is the most powerful and beautiful thing.

Im printing that out and putting it in all of the places I like to use to distract myself from what I need to be doing.

 

[GravyBoat]

I'd love to read your story @SteveO, are you guys talking about this or a different one?

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/one-trick-pony.523/

BTW, his threads created start way back in '07, not sure if it would have been deleted.

 

[SteveO]

I actually asked AroundTheWorld if MJ secretly contacted some of the original members because I noticed a few of them suddenly came back after years of silence lol. MJ didn't do it, it was just a coincidence.

@AroundTheWorld and I are kindred spirits. We just knew it was time to come back here.

I was gone from the forums but still hung out with a number of the people here. I have seen Biophase, MJ, RealOG frequently over the past few years and had talked to many others. Just didn't feel like posting for a while.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[ck4750]

I was gone from the forums but still hung out with a number of the people here. I have seen Biophase, MJ, RealOG frequently over the past few years and had talked to many others. Just didn't feel like posting for a while.

Well from a new guy like myself I'm grateful you returned!

 

[SteveO]

I have CHOICE. and that, is the most powerful and beautiful thing.

We graduated from the same school!

 

[Formless]

I was just as happy when I was 18 years old and living in my car with no money as I was when I had all the money and lived in a large prestigious house.

My current perspective on life is that we are in charge of our world. There is no god that is placing obstacles and challenges in our path. We do all of this ourselves.

God or not, I have CHOICE. and that, is the most powerful and beautiful thing.

Man is made or unmade by his own self. We are in charge of our mindset. Therefore, we are in charge of our results.

and am at a much better place because of that whole process.

Paradigm shifts that happen as a result of walking 'the road'. Good posts guys, thanks.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[cashis]

Great stuff! The posts here give me a lot to think about. I used to see the world through a somber filter, but I'm slowly wrapping my mind around the fact that it doesn't have to be. It's all in my head.

@SteveO your post made me realize I have to treat life more like a game, and have fun with everything I'm doing. Get rid of the fear, the regrets, forget the bad stuff that happened, move on. No more living life with clouds over my head, it can be so much more than that!

Rep for you, Z and ICK. Thank you guys, I owe you a success story!

 

[SteveO]

forget the bad stuff that happened

Thanks. Good and bad are all our own judgments. Change your definitions. They are all experiences and learning.

 

[PranayaG]

It's very interesting perspectives from both sides of the table. Those who have made it (despite whether they lost it again) - realize first hand that you can't find happiness in money.

Others are simply looking for an opportunity -
"All I ask for is an opportunity to prove that money doesn't buy happiness - Anonymous"

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[AroundTheWorld]

Funny to see this topic, because just last night I was in a small group, and there was a lot of discussion circling around the relationship between:

Despair and Love
Discomfort and Gratitude

Though you don't see it at the time, it is in these moments of despair or "shaking your fist" that you:

Learn about the depth of your resilience
Learn about the love and loyalty of those around you
Learn what you actually value

 

[AroundTheWorld]

@AroundTheWorld and I are kindred spirits. We just knew it was time to come back here.

Yes, I'm thinking that we are!

 

[PeeVee]

The beauty of this forum is that members like @SteveO and so many others that have achieved a significant level of success, give back so that those of us that are in the beginning of our fastlane can tune our radar along the way to avoid the same obstacles.

Thank you for sharing and leaving behind these golden nuggets of knowledge.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[SteveO]

I'd love to read your story @SteveO, are you guys talking about this or a different one?

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/one-trick-pony.523/

The One Trick Pony was a post that I put up a number of years ago to help some people gain focus but was not the success story. I had put a chronological post up of many the transactions and how they were accomplished.

 

[DeletedUser2]

Sounds like you're ready to take on some more mentees

if this is your passive aggressive way of asking me for help. you flunk

Z

 

[MJ DeMarco]

No idea. Perhaps to make room for the new generation of success stories?

I deleted them because they were from many moons ago, and many of those folks no longer participated in the forum. Additionally, I thought it may be misconstrued that they where "Fastlane success stories" (due to having read the book) when in fact the book was not even around, at least for several more years.

I actually asked AroundTheWorld if MJ secretly contacted some of the original members because I noticed a few of them suddenly came back after years of silence lol. MJ didn't do it, it was just a coincidence.

You really cant force someone to come around, join (or rejoin) a community, and contribute. The best I can do is send a periodic email and hope that some content interests them. People have to visit on their own and feel like the community is something that empowers them, as well as makes them feel like they are giving back. Some really great people come and go. You just have to respect that people have lives, people have real problems, real issues, and real businesses. Hanging out on a forum, especially if there is a lot of drama, just sometimes doesn't fit into the equation. I myself "check-out" once in awhile, I just don't have the luxury of doing it for a few months.

It is indeed a welcome and pleasant surprise to see @SteveO and @AroundTheWorld back here -- these two folks were part of the spark that started this forum many years ago.

As for the thread on perspective (sorry for the hijack) this immediately came to mind:



Alice Walker, whomever she is, is correct.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[SteveO]

Yes, I'm thinking that we are!

I just put the fact together that your avatar matches the context of this post.

 

[stranger]

Yes, I agree doesn't buy happiness total, However, money bring some kind of freedom and help you in searching of your personal happiness..

Freedom to do things which you love to do.

Freedom to travel when and where you wish.

Freedom to be with your family, friends and erc.

Freedom to know you are able to purchase everything if you need this or that.

Freedom to live in a place where you want.
I could go on and go on this list.

Money doesn't buy belief in God for you.

Money cannot deliver you from your fear if you have it.

Money cannot deliver you from some dead ills.

Money doesn't buy true friends or true love.

Happiness is a very personal experience. Some people don't even know that they're happy really.
Well, just my not wised thoughts.

 

[SteveO]

Yes, I agree doesn't buy happiness total, However, money bring some kind of freedom and help you in searching of your personal happiness..

Agreed, but.... If you are not happy when you are poor, you will not be happy when you are rich. The fundamental changes that need to happen to make the transition will not be because you now have money.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Schmidty]

First of all, great post. Being relatively new to this forum and new to the COMMUNITY that it is, posts like these are great motivators to keep going.

This post really meant something to me because of the fact that I find myself being unhappy more often than not now; due to the stresses of work (restaurant), school, and at the same time, trying to push myself further and further into the Fastlane and forming myself into what I think is successful. I have the mentality where I just want to be successful NOW! I want to be rich NOW! Although I don’t think that it’s a bad trait to have to be motivated 24/7, I feel like its been causing me to pull my own hair out in a sense. I’m not happy at work anymore, It’s hard for me to go to class, I’m tired all of the time; all because I’m constantly stressing about taking the next step forward towards my ultimate goal.

I wanted to share an experience I had with a local entrepreneur that I recently interviewed for a class that I am taking. We met at one of his stores where I had the opportunity to sit down and talk for about an hour. I had mentioned that I was sick and tired of school and work and all I could think about was where I wanted to be and how I was going to get there. We talked a while longer and after we finished our meet, I immediately followed up with a thank you email and he responded shortly thereafter with this email:

Hey Neil,

No worries at all, I enjoy interviewing when the questions are interesting and well thought out. If you have any follow up q’s or anything you need, don’t hesitate to reach out.

If I can add one thing- be careful never to get caught in the trap of thinking “I’ll be happy once I achieve ______”. You can easily spend years that way, always looking to the future for a time when things will be better. Ambition and the pursuit of goals is extremely important, don’t get me wrong. But it’s most important to enjoy the journey. In retrospect some of my best times were had while working in restaurants, or putting around in college. Take the time to appreciate and enjoy what you have, whatever it may be.

Cheers,
Dan

What he said in that email changed the way I’m trying to think of my life. I was so caught up in trying to get to where I wanted to go, that I was forgetting to “stop and smell the roses”. To enjoy my life and take time to appreciate what I have. To realize that I live in an amazing place and am surrounded by great people. I'm going to try and make a conscious effort every day now to read this email (and browse this forum OF COURSE) to constantly remind me to stay happy.

Thanks all
-NS

 

[yveskleinsky]

One of my favorite quotes from Eckhart Tolle is, "Events are just threads in a tapestry we will never see complete." Meaning, events are neither bad nor good, they just are. However, we see events not for what they are, but through how we are.

 

[SteveO]

What he said in that email changed the way I’m trying to think of my life. I was so caught up in trying to get to where I wanted to go, that I was forgetting to “stop and smell the roses”. To enjoy my life and take time to appreciate what I have.

Our attitude really seems to depend on which color the lenses are on our glasses. Your acquaintance gave you some really sound advice.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[SteveO]

Meaning, events are neither bad nor good, they just are. However, we see events not for what they are, but through how we are.

I agree with your post Yves. Leave it to you to make a statement that I need to read five times to understand.

 

[stranger]

Agreed, but.... If you are not happy when you are poor, you will not be happy when you are rich. The fundamental changes that need to happen to make the transition will not be because you now have money.

Again, happiness is the very subject thing for everybody.
Sorry, but if you haven't money to buy, a breakfast for your own child, will you be happy?!
Another dude had/has tested, tasted, bought everything and he's unhappy but why?! He'll tell you a ton reasons why he isn't happy.
A man with 1000000 bucks has more chances to be happy vs a man with 100 bucks in his pocket.
Please keep aside religions.