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As the title says, I don't really like talking about myself but if I am going to make a proper introduction then I might as well do it right.
Aaron - The early years
I am the son of a military man, often called Army Brats, I traveled the world living in Thailand, Japan, all over America, wherever my dad was needed. Also being military family, we really never had very much. But I didn't know that. I am the eldest of 3, all boys, and well we grew up typically dysfunctional, typically happy.
One of the results of my moving a lot is that I never formed close relationships with anyone. I kept to myself mostly. Why bother getting to know someone when you are just going to leave soon anyway. Strangely this also was my relationship with my family. My brothers and I were clearly different people. My mom worked to help with the bills teaching English where we lived or other odd jobs. My dad, well he was deployed never home.
So I found myself reading a lot, and finding myself interested in taking things apart. This lead me very quickly to electronics and computing devices early on. Before long I found the information needed to start testing logic gates using relays, transistors, and whatever else I could make one from. Soon after it was a Heathkit computer, then early 8-bit devices and before long I found myself a full fledged programming fiend.
I loved programming and controlling these strange computing machines. When I had so little control over anything in my life, here was one area I had absolute control. Fortunately for me a few other people recognized that I had talent here and early on they gave me access to some terminal machines that connected to more powerful mini computers. This allowed me to do some programming work for them and earn a greater-than-paperboy income and the ability to buy my own computers.
Now I knew the value of programming, time traded for value vouchers, and the key to getting what I wanted. That key? Providing something of value for others. Value creation.
As hard as my early years were, and as broke as we were then, I would never have traded them for anything.
Moving On
When I turned 17, I moved out. I didn't get along with my parents as well as maybe I should have. I was strongly independent. My father was doing his best to keep me on the sidewalk of life, and to keep it scripted, but I knew that wasn't the way.
I forced my own FTE(F*** This Event) by leaving without a plan at that age. I knew I could always write some code and make a living, but I didn't have much else to go on. I made it barely doing scripted work, sometimes writing code for a little more value, sometimes just working a retail job.
I was in Florida at this time, and I saw the big homes, the big boats, the fast cars.. and I thought to myself, "How come I don't have those things? Why are those people different than me? What do they know?" So one day, I just asked the first perceived rich guy I knew.
He told me he was a local trader in Boca Raton for a then happening stock brokerage. He gave me his card and said if I wanted to make money give up the silly tech stuff and come be a stock broker. I was hooked. It looked so sexy to me at 19.
It didn't take long as I learned to cold call up to 300 people a day (much harder then than now since there was no auto-dialer in our "steam" room) pushing whatever the hot stock was. I ended up with several license to sell stock properly and a decent monthly income. Ethically though I started questioning what I was doing.
The money was good, but instead of providing value for others, I was stealing it! I decided then and there to give it all up. Another FTE! I ended up walking away from huge sum of money, but I felt really good about myself and in the end it was smart. Within a year that place got shut down, and many of the people there were marked criminals, in jail or at the very least looking for new work.
Where I am now
That was more than 20 years ago now and I have changed everything about my life. I ended up going back to my first passion, programming, and second passion, value creation and finding ways to make that work for me.
I was fortunate to have had a few really good successes in life. I have also had quite a few failures. But I don't count them as such. I learned something every time and each perceived failure was really a new opportunity to grow in a more fantastic way.
I look forward to sharing my knowledge in any way possible in the hopes of helping others, and in learning from all that people have gone through. I love my life. I do most of what I want these days. I alternate between working for others, and working for myself, but it is always because that is what I chose to do. Not because it is what I had to do.
I read MJ's books and found them compelling and an apt description for what I have gone through. A friend then recommended I join this forum, so today I did. I am not here for the next big thing, but I am here to share. Again in what some people would call "lucky" I found you all and I look forward to helping in your success.
Please if anyone has questions, thoughts, criticisms, or anything... don't be afraid to tell me. I am super happy to just be here with all of you wonderful Unscriptors and Fastlaners.
Aaron - The early years
I am the son of a military man, often called Army Brats, I traveled the world living in Thailand, Japan, all over America, wherever my dad was needed. Also being military family, we really never had very much. But I didn't know that. I am the eldest of 3, all boys, and well we grew up typically dysfunctional, typically happy.
One of the results of my moving a lot is that I never formed close relationships with anyone. I kept to myself mostly. Why bother getting to know someone when you are just going to leave soon anyway. Strangely this also was my relationship with my family. My brothers and I were clearly different people. My mom worked to help with the bills teaching English where we lived or other odd jobs. My dad, well he was deployed never home.
So I found myself reading a lot, and finding myself interested in taking things apart. This lead me very quickly to electronics and computing devices early on. Before long I found the information needed to start testing logic gates using relays, transistors, and whatever else I could make one from. Soon after it was a Heathkit computer, then early 8-bit devices and before long I found myself a full fledged programming fiend.
I loved programming and controlling these strange computing machines. When I had so little control over anything in my life, here was one area I had absolute control. Fortunately for me a few other people recognized that I had talent here and early on they gave me access to some terminal machines that connected to more powerful mini computers. This allowed me to do some programming work for them and earn a greater-than-paperboy income and the ability to buy my own computers.
Now I knew the value of programming, time traded for value vouchers, and the key to getting what I wanted. That key? Providing something of value for others. Value creation.
As hard as my early years were, and as broke as we were then, I would never have traded them for anything.
Moving On
When I turned 17, I moved out. I didn't get along with my parents as well as maybe I should have. I was strongly independent. My father was doing his best to keep me on the sidewalk of life, and to keep it scripted, but I knew that wasn't the way.
I forced my own FTE(F*** This Event) by leaving without a plan at that age. I knew I could always write some code and make a living, but I didn't have much else to go on. I made it barely doing scripted work, sometimes writing code for a little more value, sometimes just working a retail job.
I was in Florida at this time, and I saw the big homes, the big boats, the fast cars.. and I thought to myself, "How come I don't have those things? Why are those people different than me? What do they know?" So one day, I just asked the first perceived rich guy I knew.
He told me he was a local trader in Boca Raton for a then happening stock brokerage. He gave me his card and said if I wanted to make money give up the silly tech stuff and come be a stock broker. I was hooked. It looked so sexy to me at 19.
It didn't take long as I learned to cold call up to 300 people a day (much harder then than now since there was no auto-dialer in our "steam" room) pushing whatever the hot stock was. I ended up with several license to sell stock properly and a decent monthly income. Ethically though I started questioning what I was doing.
The money was good, but instead of providing value for others, I was stealing it! I decided then and there to give it all up. Another FTE! I ended up walking away from huge sum of money, but I felt really good about myself and in the end it was smart. Within a year that place got shut down, and many of the people there were marked criminals, in jail or at the very least looking for new work.
Where I am now
That was more than 20 years ago now and I have changed everything about my life. I ended up going back to my first passion, programming, and second passion, value creation and finding ways to make that work for me.
I was fortunate to have had a few really good successes in life. I have also had quite a few failures. But I don't count them as such. I learned something every time and each perceived failure was really a new opportunity to grow in a more fantastic way.
I look forward to sharing my knowledge in any way possible in the hopes of helping others, and in learning from all that people have gone through. I love my life. I do most of what I want these days. I alternate between working for others, and working for myself, but it is always because that is what I chose to do. Not because it is what I had to do.
I read MJ's books and found them compelling and an apt description for what I have gone through. A friend then recommended I join this forum, so today I did. I am not here for the next big thing, but I am here to share. Again in what some people would call "lucky" I found you all and I look forward to helping in your success.
Please if anyone has questions, thoughts, criticisms, or anything... don't be afraid to tell me. I am super happy to just be here with all of you wonderful Unscriptors and Fastlaners.
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