Looking for feedback on my book...

[AndrewNC]

Finishing up a book I've been writing for years now... Any honest feedback is appreciated

The thing I'm looking for is if you're able to see a part of yourself in the character in the story - and it's not just me getting to heavy into my personal stories...going for relate-ability here.

Main purpose of book - to help people who are depressed and stuck in life get the belief, tools, and training to be able to live the life they dream of living.



Preface
I used to feel stuck in life.

On March 16, 2012, I woke up one morning, got in my car, and drove 2,000 miles across the country on a journey to learn what it takes to become successful.

On that journey, I worked my way inside the inner circles of some of the most successful people on this planet:

· Millionaire Entrepreneurs

· Famous Celebrities

· Singers

· World-Changing Visionaries

· All-Star Athletes

I learned their ways.

This book will teach you everything I learned, so you can live the life of your dreams too, whatever your dreams are.

Where this journey will lead you; you’ll never believe…


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Four Years Later – The Journey Ends

It’s 4:30 pm on a Friday afternoon, and while most of the country is counting down the minutes until the weekend, I’m hightailing my Honda CR-V out of the wilderness of Northern Montana franticly searching for the nearest emergency room.

“Next town, 96 miles” the sign reads.

Dialing 911 on my cellphone only left me with the message: “No Service”

I press on the accelerator.

My heart palpitations could be felt through my chest over the rumbles of the engine as the speedometer just passed 120 miles per hour.

Please let there be a cop hiding just out of sight for this one time in my life.

Unfortunately, there’s nothing but the snow-capped mountains of Glacier National Park fading into the distance of my rearview mirror and endless fields of wild horses running through the countryside.

On any other day, I would pull over to the side of the road and run after them, camera in hand, ready for the perfect shot. But I have other things on my mind today.

Looking at my reflection in the rearview mirror, my face just turned to a dark shade of red and I began feeling a burning sensation throughout my body.

Panic sets in.

My fingers are turning blue and breathing is getting difficult.

I slam on the brakes.

Stopped in the middle of the road, the car door flies open.

What thoughts will go through your mind when you are breathing in your final breaths?

I stumble out of the car and my body collapses on the side of the road.

This can’t be happening today…no, I have millions of people counting on me…I have to finish what I started.

I use every last bit of willpower to sit up and take in a deep breath.

The only thing I could see outside of this mental fog is a crystal clear picture of wild horses running through the open fields.

They just looked so… free. The dirt’s kicking up behind them as they run into the distance.

With the car still running, I hear the music from the only radio station playing in the background.

The song was “One Day/ Reckoning Song” by The Mojos.

“One day baby, we’ll be old…

Oh baby, we’ll be old.

And think of all the stories that we could have told”

They say when you die, your life flashes before your eyes.

Not for me.

Instead, my mind filled with the regrets of things I could have done and those stories I could have told:

· I would never finish this book that I wanted to write.

· I would never build that big business that helps change the world.

· I would never fall in love, get married, or raise a family.

· I would never be able to live out my dreams of backpacking across the world next year.

The thought that is plaguing me the most is that all these things I dreamed of doing were things I could have already done.

Those are just a few of the dreams that I still wanted to chase. But today they are nothing but dreams. Dreams that never unfolded.

What are your dreams in life? What would you be doing now if you could do anything?

I always told myself I would do those things “someday”.

What if that “someday” never comes?

The wild horses are covered by a shadow casted from the thousands of birds flying in formation over the open fields, living their life without a thought of tomorrow. To them, there is only the moments of today, and today is all there is.

No regrets from the past, or concerns for the future.

There is only…right now.

In these moments, I felt connected to the birds, the horses, and the world around me. For one of the rare moments in my life, I felt completely free.

Free from those doubts, fears, and excuses that always hold us back from chasing our dreams.

Those “rules” of the way we’re supposed to live our life have long since melted away.

Now, in the end, none of those excuses ever got me closer to living the life that made me happy. Only the things we do with our lives actually matter.

After you are gone, does any of it even matter?

What can you start doing today to make this a life worth living?

Most of my life I was too busy trying to please others, play by the rules, and do all the things I was supposed to do. But that never made me happy.

Today, all that changes.

One day you’re going to die, and when you face those final moments, you realize how free you really are. Free from the rules you were told to live by. Free from your fears. Free from your doubts.

They aren’t real.

And on this day, today, you begin to realize that once you ignore all those irrational fears and self-imposed limitations, they no longer exist, you are truly free to do anything and accomplish anything in this life, now…

In these moments on the side of the road, a final thought crossed my mind: If I never embarked on this journey four years ago, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

I have no regrets that I chose to take control of my life and step into the unknown…

That first step is all it took to change everything, and I had no clue where it would lead me at the time. I had no clue what amazing experiences and transformations I would have on this journey.

No matter where I wind up, I have no regrets. I am where I am and I choose to enjoy this experience.

I wouldn’t be sitting here in the high country of Montana, thousands of miles away from my friends and family, completely free of those mental constraints, and appreciative of the life I am clinging onto.

It’s not the number of years we live, but what we do with those years that really matter.

· What if I grow old and never chased lived my dreams?

· What if I let my fears get the best of me?

· What if I never decided to do the things that make me happy?

· What if I chose to settle for less and live a life of mediocrity?

Now, as I take in a deep breath in, I close my eyes and clear my mind.

Night begins to fall…with those lyrics playing over and over in my head:

“One day baby, we’ll be old…

Oh baby, we’ll be old.

And think of all the stories that we could have told”

 

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

[AndrewNC]

A Billionaire’s First Principles of Success
Breaking Free From the Mainstream Reality

“Before you are ready to learn, you must first unlearn.” The billionaire said to me.

“But I came here to learn! Why do you want me to forget everything I’ve already been taught!?” I thought to myself.

A lot of the things he was saying contradicted everything I was told to be true growing up, but one thing is for certain: This guy is already living the type of life I want to live, so I should listen to what he says without question.

First Principles Thinking

The first lesson on my journey came not from that millionaire I was driving to meet for lunch in Scottsdale. Instead, I heard the guiding principles of billionaire entrepreneur and investor, Elon Musk, when he began speaking about a rule in physics called First Principles.

When Elon Musk speaks, people listen.

Not only is he the cofounder of Paypal, Tesla Motors, Solar City, and SpaceX, but he is also the man who is saving the planet, and turning humans into an interplanetary species by colonizing Mars.

Yes, he is actually doing that.

First Principlesstates that instead of basing what you do off of the way most people do things and the way things have always been in the past, you must first unlearn (what you thought to be true), begin from the most fundamental truths of the universe, and then work your way up from there.

Thinking like a Successful Billionaire

“It’s important to reason from first principles, rather than by analogy.” Elon began, “The normal way we conduct our lives is we reason by analogy. We are doing this because... it’s like something else that was (already) done. Or it’s like... what other people are doing.”

In the late 1800’s, if you asked anybody how to travel faster, they would reason by analogy and tell you to find a faster horse.

Before the automobile was invented, people lived in a reality where they couldn’t believe the future would be that much different than the way things have always been in their past.

They accepted the way things are now as the way things will always be, and this kind of thinking has done nothing except limit what their future holds for them and it holds them stuck in the reality they’ve been living in.

When most people try to move forward in their lives, they make slight adjustments from the way things have always been done, and mimic the way most other people do things.

But what if they applied first principles thinking to their life?

What if they stopped doing things the way they’ve been doing them in the past and started walking a new path? Doing so might seem harder at first, but it’s the only way to reach uncharted territory, and begin to live a life they once couldn’t believe to be possible.

Actually living a life like most people could only dream of.

Would that kind of life be worth it?

Elon accredited first principles thinking for some of his most profound accomplishments in life.

For his space company SpaceX, the Russians quoted him in the tens of millions of dollars for old cold-war era rockets which he would then turn into spaceships. When the finances of the deal didn’t work out for his business, he used first principles thinkingto break the rockets down to its most fundamental building blocks (cost of raw materials, assembly, etc.) and began determining the cost of each rocket from the ground up.

After he realized that he could build a rocket for only 2% of the price that any rocket cost to be built in the past, he was awarded a $2 Billion contract from NASA to resupply the space station.

$2 Billion was a nice payday after he put 100% of his $165 million fortune into his new companies, and was forced to borrow money for rent and sleep on his friends’ couches just a couple years earlier.

This is what happens when you break free from the normal way that most people do things, and re-learn the “rules of life” from the most fundamental truths of the universe.

When people were screaming for a more fuel efficient car, he didn’t try to improve upon existing gasoline engines. Instead, he ignored the way everyone else believed to be the only way, and he invested in a company to build a 100% electric engine from the ground up.

This formed the basis for the multi-billion dollar company, Tesla motors.

But first principles thinking doesn’t only apply to large companies and innovations. It applies to the making a breakthrough in your life so you can transform from who you are into who you want to be.

First Principles for Success

Just like most people, I fell into the trap of building a faster horse.

I used to think that my past equals my future, and that I should do things simply because it’s the way most people do them:

• “You’re a ______ and therefore you’ll always be a ________.”
• “Money doesn’t grow on trees.”
• “Nobody does that! You’re crazy if you do that! Everybody else does it like THIS…”
• “Eating the typical American diet of hamburgers and French fries is healthy!”
• “Successful people came from some type of privilege, or they just got lucky.”
• “If you want to make more money, go back to school and take out another $30,000 student loan.”

It was that last one that finally woke me up.

When I graduated college into a recession and couldn’t get a job, the only way I thought I could make more money was to get my Master’s degree, because that is what everyone else was doing at the time (this was me arguing from analogy, not first principles).

When I finally was awarded my advanced degree, the jobs I once was under-qualified for, I’m now “overqualified” for.

Quite paradoxical, isn’t it?

Translation: I was left unemployed and broke, single, overweight, and alone, when I did things the way I was supposed to do things.

Reasoning by analogy does not create major breakthroughs in your life. First principles thinking does.

The best part about first principles thinking is that your starting point on your journey doesn’t matter. In fact, I would argue that the worse off you have it in the beginning, the greater the breakthrough you will experience on your journey. And those people who started from the bottom are the very ones who have what it takes to make it back up again if they fail.

Do you ever notice that those rock bottoms in life, where things seem like they can’t get any worse, are the very moments that propel you in search for a new way of doing things? Things get so bad that you have to find another way. This is where your journey begins.

Now, when I meet people on my journey and they tell me how bad they have it, I let them know how excited I am for them!

I say to them “This emotion you’re feeling right now, whether it is rock bottom or simply feeling stuck and wanting more...is the very thing that is pushing you to search for a change in your life. One day you’ll look back and realize that this may have very well been one of the best things that has ever happened to you.”

It’s a lot to digest when you’re going through the struggles (I know because I’ve been there), but it’s true.

Now is the timeto apply first principles to your life, today.

You are here today because you’re now ready to start walking the path to the life you could only dream of. You are reading this now because you’re ready to realize that your future will soon be drastically different than your past, and that means you now know the way you’ve been taught to do things in the past will only get you the results you’ve gotten up until this point.

You don’t want a faster horse. You want to step on the accelerator to success.

This first principles approach to doing things differently than the mainstream way of thinking is where your self-made success begins. Just because everybody else does things a certain way, your parents do things a certain way, society, the media, the government tell you that things should be done a certain way…there is always another way.

And this other way is where your journey begins.

What if you let go of the old and begin this journey with a clean slate?

When most people try to learn what it takes to become successful, they skip the unlearning process and begin their journey trying to learn something new.

You can’t grab hold of the new, without first letting go of the old.

The next step is to apply the guiding principles of multi-billionaire, Elon Musk, to your journey, let go of the old life and the way you’ve been taught to live your life up until now, and begin from the ground up with the first principles of success.

 

[AndrewNC]

Chapter 1 - How Do They Do It?

The Journey Begins – March 2012

How do they do it? You know, the people who seem to have all the things we want in life: millionaires, celebrities, famous singers, world-changing visionaries, leaders of society, all-star athletes? The fame, the fortune, the freedom, the happiness?

While anyone can ask the question and easily brush it off as coming from privilege, or luck, most people seem to ask the question and leave it at that. But what if, instead, we actually searched for the answer?

How do they do it?

I was sitting on the couch next to my mom, finishing up one of those millionaire TV shows. I think it was Million Dollar Listing. One of the millionaires just bought a $16 million Beverly Hills mansion, overlooking the city of Los Angeles and the Pacific Ocean in the background. The house just screamed “I made it”.

He drove an exotic sports car and owned millions more in real estate in New York. And that’s not even the most impressive part. What I was most amazed by is that he made the decision to buy the $16 million mansion with the same amount of thought it takes me to buy a Big Mac at McDonalds.

He paid cash.

“How do they do it?” my mom said as she got up for a commercial break to go to the kitchen. Her words were more of a statement than a question. The thoughts left her mind the moment the words left her mouth.

You see, we didn’t come from fame or fortune, and we sure as hell weren’t lucky. The pile of losing scratch offs snapped me back to the reality I am trapped in. The only way for people like us to become wealthy is through the lottery.

I grew up in an average American household. I was born into a life that was pretty much planned out for me. After high school, I worked my way through college as a pizza delivery driver and a waiter. I got OK grades in college, studying to be a police officer...but mostly partying with friends.

After college? Well, you know the drill: Get an entry level job, a wife, 1.5 kids, and the mortgage to pay for the white picket fence. If I’m still alive when I’m 70, I might be lucky enough to have a retirement. A simple life.

...an average life.

To me, I wasn’t left with many options to choose from. And at the age of 23, there was a kink in the chain. The job that was promised to me after graduation was replaced by “The Great Recession”.

The life that was promised for all too many others in my position was torn away at the worst possible time. The path that was planned out for me my whole life turned out to be nothing more than an illusion. By the time I turned 25, I was left in $30,000 of student loan debt, broke, unemployed, and stuck living in my parent’s retirement home 600 miles away from my friends in New York.

We’ll call this point in my life “rock bottom”.

As the days went on, life only got worse. Now, I can finally bring up enough courage to admit that I’ve been single for almost two years and I’m 40 pounds overweight from a fast food addiction. My entertainment for the week was eating junk food, and sitting on the couch watching reality TV with my mom.

I tried one of those 30-day weight loss challenges. It ended on the second day when I ate an entire bag of potato chips for breakfast.

So much for willpower.

I couldn’t get a job in rural North Carolina because the economy was terrible and quite frankly, I was an outsider in this small town. Dreading the next rejection letter, I eventually stopped applying for work all together. The only thing that could save me at this point of my life was waiting for that lucky break we hear about in the movies.

The lucky break never came.

In summary: Life sucks, and I wished there was another way.

Rock bottom sets you free.

“How do they do it?” I ask myself. This time, not so much as a statement, but with a curiosity to actually find the answer.

What if the fame and the fortune weren’t a form of privilege or luck? What if there was a different type of success? A type of success that would somehow be possible for someone like me?

I think they call this self-made success.

“How do they do it?”

The question burned in my mind for weeks now. I began reading books and searching the internet how to get rich quick. Then, out of nowhere, my breakthrough came. For all too long, I was walking down a path in life that I was supposed to live, but it didn’t make me happy. Then one day, I came across something that gave me a slight nudge in a new direction.

I found a book that showed me that there wasanother way.

While all my friends and family grew up an average life, a life that most of society is born into until they day they die, and while there certainly are those out there who got lucky, or were born into privilege, there is a third group.

There is already a group of people out there who are living the kind of life most of us dream of. Some have the fame. Some have the fortune. Some have it all. But the most interesting thing is not what they have. It’s how they got there. In this third group, there are people out there who started out with nothing.

...and they didn’t get lucky.

All of a sudden, I ignored all those thoughts in my mind telling me it wasn’t possible for me. I stopped focusing on the problems, and began searching for the solutions. I began searching for the answer to that one simple question…

The more I looked for the answers, the more answers I found.

The men and women who are already living this life of self-made success started exactly where I am today. Stuck, confused, depressed, and lost in a life that wasn’t working out for them. Then, when they reached a breaking point and decided they wanted something more, they embarked ona journey.

A journeythat most people never knew existed, but out of the eight billion people on this planet today, there are millions of others like you and I who are already walking that journey. A journey that has one destination: A life where you actually get to live your dreams.

A journey that doesn’t care about race, gender, age, education, past or current living circumstances. Yes, they all had their own unique set of circumstances and struggles to push through.But instead of crying about it, like most of us do, they did something a little bit different. They decided to take full control of the direction their life goes and they didn’t let their excuses hold them back from at least trying to live their dreams.

No longer were they dragged behind life as it pulled them in any which direction. They took that first step forward and wherever they go is nothing more than the direction they choose to travel.

They are the ones who wanted to learn how to take full control of their life.

And they found a way.

Is it possible for me?

After reading more and more self-made success stories, I finally began to realize that there is somethingmoreout there...but is it possible for me?

I don’t know.

At this point, the only thing I know is that there ispossibility.That yes, it is possible that there may be something more out there waiting for me, no longer making this a life that I am forever stuck in. Now that I know it may be possible to break free, that desire and drive to find the answer gets stronger by the day.

…but I still don’t believe in myself. I’ve never done anything like this before.

How do they do it?

I messaged a millionaire I found on the internet and asked him that question. I also asked him if it was possible for me.

Two days later, I got a response:

“Let me guess - You're probably reading this at a point in your life where you have no clue what you want to do.

Either you're at a tough point in your life where you're stuck with no escape. Every day feels like the last, and it’s as if you’re watching the worst movie on repeat day in and day out. Or you simply have dreams of a better future, and don’t know how to make them yours.

Either way, the thing you should realize now is that your past and your current living circumstances are not your future. While it may seem like you past matters, on this journey, it doesn’t. Only the things you do right now matter.

Think of somebody who is out of shape and wants to be healthy. The very first day they eat healthy and exercise, they are still fat. But what if they take that first step and don’t let their excuses get in the way? What if they keep pushing forward for months?

Do you think their future, just a couple of months from now, can look drastically different than where they are now when they commit to working out every day?

It's not about where you are now, but what you are doing right now that will get you to where you want to be in life.

Where do you want to be?

The very first thing you should do when you begin your journey is to think about what YOU really want in this life. All too often, society is preaching the money, they nice cars, the fame, the success...but what do you want?

What type of life will make you happy?

That's where it all begins, because one day you’ll be old, and you don’t want to look back on this life and say you lived a life that you regret. Regret is worse than failing.

From there - you'll have no clue what steps to take to get there, you won't believe in yourself, and it'll be as if you're standing in the darkness where you feel every step forward will lead you off of a steep cliff.

That's all normal.

The only step you need to take now is that first step. That first step, which you’ve never taken before. That first step that allows you to leave your old habits and was behind, so you can make room for the new.

It could be as simple as throwing away that box of donuts and eating a salad instead. Or if it’s a big change you want, you’re going to have to make a big change in your life, and the change you need to make will be the thing that fears you the most.

But that thing you fear the most, as long as your gut tells you that it might lead you to the better life, and it logically makes sense....you might as well just take that leap, because if you don't, you're life will look pretty much the same as it does today.

In order to make room for the new, you're going to have to be brave enough to let go of the old.

But you are reading this now, and you are here today, because you want something more, don’t you?

Yes, the life you dream of actually exists, and yes, it is possible for you. I’ve been in your shoes before and after going on this journey you are about to embark on, one thing holds true: It’s possible for anyone. But here is the thing:

If you do what most people do, you will live an average life. A mainstream life.

It’s a journey...but if you commit to it long enough and do all the things most people won’t, you will make it. There are obstacles and failures along the way, but the obstacles you face only make you stronger. For every hundred failures you strike out on, you’ll have one success, and that success is always a grand slam.

Most people give up before they even begin, but if you keep pushing through, you’ll get there. I guaranteed you can live a life like me too when you fully commit to it.

The destination makes every struggle you face 100% worth it. It is the struggle that makes the destination worth it.

Now to repeat the most important advice for this stage of your journey: The first step to being successful is to stop doing the things you’ve been doing up until this point. You must leave your old life behind in order to make room for the new. And that means letting go of a lot of the things you’ve been taught to believe growing up.

Your parents, teachers, media, and society have been feeding you this story about the one way the world works. But those are nothing more than stories in your mind, which you came to believe to be true, simply because you haven’t yet heard of another way.

I’m here to tell you, there is another way…but it’s a hard pill to swallow.

You have to commit to the journey through the hard times, and never give up.

You’ll have no clue what to do when you begin, but only after you take that leap into the darkness, things will begin to unfold in your life that will help you get closer to the life you want to live.

But it only begins whenyouchoose to change.

So you are left with two options:

1. Do what you’ve been doing so far, and live a life like you’ve been living up until now.

2. Take that leap through your fears and into the unknown own. I don’t know what will happen if you do this, but I can guarantee you one thing – Your life won’t continue to look like it does now.

After you take that leap, message me again and I’ll help guide you in the right direction. But only you can take that next step now because success is not going to magically land on your lap one day.

Nobody is going to do it for you...”

The conversation ended.

It’s not the answer I was hoping for. I wanted the secret. I wanted his step-by-step guide to get to where he is. But he is a Millionaire, and I am a Nobody. Instead of being frustrated, I am grateful for the little bit of advice he did share with me, and his offer to help me if I ever take that leap of faith.

The last part of his message rang so true to what I was expecting. I’ve been waiting for a change for years now, and it never came. I was waiting for the economy to improve. I’m waiting for the dream girl to come to me. I’m waiting for things to fall into my lap. I’ve been waiting for my health to improve itself.

From my years of experience in doing all this waiting, it didn’t work. Maybe it’s time to try something else?

According to this man, I must be the change I’ve been waiting for in my life...a scary thought.

I have no clue what I’m supposed to do...

I never met this man before, but he posted pictures of his exotic sports cars on Facebook. He lived in Scottsdale, AZ most of the year, made money in his sleep, and spent the summers escaping the Arizona heat by mountain biking through the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. The rest of his year was sprinkled with exotic vacations around the world. He is in great health, active, and always has an attractive woman in the pictures with him.

This man is living the life I want to live.

He has the videos to prove it.

He was so confident, successful, and...FREE. He could pack up his car and drive to a new city on a moment’s notice. His internet business made him money in his sleep.

By the looks of his pictures, he is in his early to mid-thirties.

That is the life I want to live.

How does he do it?

What would happen if I embark on this journey to chase my (un)realistic dreams in life and I fail? My fears instantly kicked in.

· What if I fail?

· What if I go broke?

· What if I lose it all?

· What if I get stranded in the middle of nowhere?

· What if people judge me?

But what if I never try? What if I don’t do it and my life stays the same?

I have no clue what this journey was or where it will lead me, but I do know one thing: If I kept doing what I’ve been doing and I don’t take that leap into the unknown soon, I can be certain that the rest of my life will look pretty much the same as it does today.

And that is a risk that I’m no longer willing to take.

Today is the day I decide to become the change I was waiting for in my life.

With the last $250 left in my bank account, I wake one morning, pack my car with my clothes, my laptop, and my journal.

Today, I decide to drive 2,000 miles across the country to get lunch with the only self-made successful person I’ve ever spoken to in my life, so I can ask him that one simple question that changes everything:

How do you do it?

 

[AndrewNC]

Chapter 2 - How Do You Do It?
“How do you do it?” Emily asks me.

We just sat down for lunch at an upscale Sushi restaurant overlooking the Seattle Waterfront. In front of us, we have open views of the ferries coming in and out of the harbor, Pikes Place Market, the original Starbucks coffee, with the boardwalk below, and nothing but open skies of a beautiful September day in the Pacific Northwest.

Emily just graduated high school and has dreams of moving to Arizona to become a fitness model. When her parents told her she was crazy and that she should get an office job or enroll in community college, I told her to pack her car and drive.

“Before I give you the answer to your question, I have to clear a few things up.” I said to Emily, as I prepared to repeat the same words the millionaire said to me just over three years ago when my journey began.

“What do you know about me so far?” I ask her.

She takes a few seconds to gather her thoughts.

“Umm...Well I know that you lived with your parents when you were 25 because you couldn’t get a job. Then you drove to Arizona wanting to learn how to become a millionaire. After that, I saw your YouTube videos of traveling the country, having a few internet businesses, writing books, and helping others live the life of their dreams?” she said, almost as a question, hoping there wasn’t something she was missing.

“You’re missing the most important part.” I stated.

“Oh yeah, and I was reading the article on your blog about living life like a summer vacation!” Emily stated excitedly, as if that was somehow the missing piece of the puzzle.

The Summer Vacation That Never Ends

Remember that feeling you used to get on the last day of school as a kid?

It’s a long time ago, but when you remember it, those feelings will come back, now... Do you miss the days of exactly how this feels?

As you count down the hours on the clock, that feeling of freedom just ahead of you gets closer and closer.

That anticipation….the buildup…and then the final bell.

It’s here.

It was me waiting for that final bell on June 11th, 2014….in fact, I was moments away from graduation.

But not the kind you would expect.

My plan was to not get a job for the summer, but instead, spend my summer vacation traveling across the country, meeting new people, having new experiences, sleeping in on weekdays, and living a life free from any worries or constraints.

What is your ideal life like?

If you had the freedom like those days of summer vacation as a kid, money was no issue….if you could do anything, what would you do?

As September rolled around, and I was mountain biking through the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, all the kids were getting ready to go back to school.

Parents and adults have been forced to downgrade their freedom. 14 days spread throughout the year was the extent of their vacations, and then back to work.

This is no way to live your life.

I didn’t want my summer vacation to end. I was too busy living in this timeless reality with the others who took this journey alongside me.

So I stayed on my adventure throughout the fall, and into the winter.

After going home to see my family for the holidays, I continued on, traveling for six more months.

This year, I was in the southwest United States.

I got to explore the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Southern California, and more of Arizona this time.

What happens to us when we finally get a taste of complete freedom and happiness?

Naturally, we want more of it. This kind of life becomes the new norm.

By September of 2015, I decide to drive up the Pacific Coast Highway from southern California to Seattle. I ate local food in San Diego, spent the night on a beach with random surfer girls I met near San Francisco, and drank wine in Napa Valley.

For the past 15 months of my life, I had nowhere to be, nothing specific I was forced to do. It was just me, my notebook, and the open road.

I was making money in my sleep.

I was completely...free.

With no specific place to be next, I let my imagination guide me. I think I’m going to leave Seattle and explore Glacier National Park next month, as I drive back to the East Coast and then hop on a plane to backpack Southeast Asia for the winter.

Those feelings of freedom and happiness when summer vacation just began…what if they never ended?

What if you could live this kind of life until the day you die?

Back when I graduated in June 2014, it was a big moment for me.

It would be a big moment for any 27 year old.

But I didn’t graduate from school.

No.

Something bigger than that.

Graduating into a life where you create summer vacations whenever you want, regardless of your age, your past, or current life circumstances, and you also get to choose when these vacations end...if you ever want them to end.

And those big dreams you’ve always wished you could achieve? What are they?

• To make the money?
• To inspire others?
• To sing? To dance? To perform? To write?

Those feelings of having success in whatever you do...

You can experience those too.

Yes, it’s possible. For me. And you are reading this now because it’s possible for you as well.

I graduated into the life of actually living my dreams, and now it is your turn to do the same.

When you put your fears and doubts aside, you will realize that the life you want to live is already out there waiting for you…

All you have to do is reach out and grab it.

“That right there is The Destination.” I said to Emily.

It’s the destination that makes the headlines. It’s the destination that people dream of. But how does one get there? Those are the stories you never hear.

“How do I do it?” That’s a story in itself.

For all the people you see out there already living the life you want to live, you only get to see a small glimpse of where they are now. They make it seem...easy.

Years of freedom and travel? Sound’s so quick and easy the way I wrote the blog post, doesn’t it?

The media paints the illusion that the secret to getting all these things in life is by magically teleporting from where you are now to where you want to be, without putting in the work to get there.

Some make it sound easy to help motivate you to get started, because they already know that it is already possible for you. They do so because you probably don’t believe in yourself yet. You feel stuck. You feel depressed. You have those doubts and fears in your mind.

A little latter, I’ll show you the easy way to get rid of all those problems once and for all, rather quickly.

Others make it sound easy because they simply want to sell you something. They know that humans always like to take the easy, comfortable path in life, so they create advertisements promising:

• Get rich quick!
• Follow this step-by-step formula!
• Take this one little pill and lose that belly fat!
• Limited time offer!
• Positive affirmations!

“Positive affirmations are a bunch of bullshit.” I said frankly. “They are like taking a pile of dog shit, covering it in frosting, and calling it a cupcake. It makes you feel good! But when you really look at what you have, you are still biting into a big pile of dog shit.”

The waiter brings our Sushi lunch to the table.

They make it sound easy and quick because easy and quick is what makes them money. Easy and quick is what makes people feel good. But easy and quick is not what gets you the results you want.

Never.

Do you really want to know what it takes to be successful? It’s simple, it’s easy, but it’s hard…

This is the question you should really be paying attention to, now that you’re no longer distracted by the “feel good emotions” of big houses, six pack abs, and fancy cars.

What happens in between where you are and where you want to be?

It’s that in between part that is the answer to your question. And the answer is not what you’re expecting it to be.

You ask me how I do it. I’m sorry, but I don’t have the answer for you.

I can show you the way. I can do my best to hand you a magic formula. I can try to make you successful, but there is something more you need to do in order to actually get there.

You can read the books, watch the movies, hear the success stories, but in order to get the real answer to your question, it is something you’re going to have to experience for yourself.

When we all begin our journey, we expect that instant success, because that is what they preach to us all our lives. But it wasn’t until I learned this one thing that separates those who have it all from those who don’t, before I was able to experience that level of self-made success for myself.

So I have a question for you: Do you want me to sugarcoat things, set false expectations, and talk to you about the get rich quick and three-minute abs false promises?

Or do you want me to teach you how you can actually live the life you dream of living? And are you willing to put in the work to make it yours?

I can tell you, but I’ll be honest. I’m going to leave out the fluff. Most of the things I say will go against everything you were taught growing up, and your natural urge will be to resist them…but the things I say will actually get you there.

I do so with one warning, and one understanding.

The stories I share with you are from my experience. With great reward comes great risk. I personally feel the risk of my life staying the same, and continuing to feel stuck and depressed is a greater risk than anything else that could happen to us on this journey.

But you may feel different. The understanding I insist you take on before you begin your journey is this: You, and only you, are the only one responsible for the actions and the results you get in this life.

Not me. Not the other millionaires, celebrities, and visionaries that will appear to mentor you along the way. Your actions are the only thing that creates your results. You don’t have to listen to me. If you follow my advice and you end up sleeping next to a dumpster in the middle of the desert somewhere, it’s not on me.

I slept next to a dumpster in the middle of the desert, twice. But that got me to living the life of my dreams like I described in my article that you read earlier.

“Do you understand that only you are responsible for where you end up on this journey, and in life?” I said, insisting on an agreement before we go forward.

“Yes.” Emily says, understanding the seriousness of my tone.

What I am about to share with you is exactly how you do it...and it all begins with the journey.

This is how you do it…

 

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

[AndrewNC]

SECTION 1 - The Journey Begins









“Emptiness is the starting point. In order to taste my cup of water, you must first empty your cup. My friend, drop all of your preconceived and fixed ideas to neutral. Do you know why this cup is useful? Because it is empty.”

-Bruce Lee






Chapter 3 - The Point of No Return
“In the year 1519, Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes sailed his ships, with 600 men, to conquer the riches that were held in the Aztec empire. Undermanned, and under-armed, with all of his men on the shore, he spoke the words that changed the course of history forever: “Burn the boats”.

No matter how bad things got for his men, they were physically unable to retreat. With no option except to push forward, or die in the process, Hernan Cortes was the first man in over 600 years to successfully conquer Mexico.”

The Journey Begins – 2,000 miles away from home and I have nowhere to run, except forward.

I’m stranded on an Indian Reservation somewhere outside of Phoenix, Arizona and night begins to fall.

My car is about to run out of gas.

The only credit card I have is now maxed out at its $500 limit. Fortunately, the $250 cash I stashed in the glove compartment for emergencies still remains.

I think this mess I’ve gotten myself into qualifies as an emergency.

As the gas light in my dust-covered Nissan Sentra flickers, I pull into the nearest parking lot to figure out what I’m going to do next. When I get out of my car to stretch my legs, a strong gust of wind blows the car door wide open.

The dust storm rolls in on this hot, dry desert night.

Seeking refuge, I sprint through the parking lot towards the building, half blind from the dust as I shield my eyes from the storm. Out of breath, I finally make it to the entrance of the building and fall through the swinging doors, leading me into the flashing lights and ringing bells of an Indian Casino.

I cough out the dust that has filled my lungs and breathe in the fresh casino air, leaving me with a sense of calmness and excitement.

I get back up on my feet and walk around for a few minutes, trying to think what I’m going to do next. Reality just kicked in that I’m now lightyears away from the comfort and security of my family’s home back on the East Coast.

The more I try to think, the more my mind draws a blank. What have I gotten myself into? I’m at the point of my journey where I literally couldn’t go running back to my old way of life, even if I wanted to.

It wasn’t until I reach in my pocket and look up at what is standing in front of me until I found my solution...

The first step is always the hardest.

Reflecting back on the 2,000 miles of my journey up until this point, I must admit something.

Before I took the leap, I was terrified. We all are, and this is normal. But what you do in the moments you are faced with these decisions is the only thing that matters…

Will you choose to be a victim of your circumstances, or will you do what it takes to push forward?

The thoughts build up in my mind. The “what if’s” that have the tendency to paint the picture of every possible worst-case scenario scream louder than ever. My body was filled with a feeling of pressure and stress, all the way leading up until the moment I packed my car with whatever I could fit, gave my dog a big hug goodbye, and turned on the ignition.

My family told me not to leave. Who in their right mind would leave everything they have in life behind?

My parents warned me what was about to happen when I reached my destination. I might wind up stranded in the desert with no way to get back. They told me it was the wrong decision. I would have listened to them, but the words of the Millionaire, and the Billionaire’s first principles approach to success rang loud enough through my mind so I took that leap.

I decided to take control of my life and make my own decisions. Decisions leading me to where I want to be in life. First principles thinking led me to what was about to happen next.

I’ve never done anything like this before...

As I turn my car out of the driveway, I heard my mom yell out to me in the background, “If things don’t work out, think of this as a quick vacation before you come back!”

It’s almost as if my dog was the only one who knew I wasn’t coming back.

I could see it in his eyes as I drove away. I’m never coming back. Not until Christmas at least, to visit. I love my family, but there are too many bad memories that remain in that life I want to leave behind. Deep down, I knew my future belonged somewhere else.

Something in my gut was pulling me to Scottsdale, Arizona.

The moment I crossed into South Carolina, an amazing thing happened.

All those doubts, those worries, and those feelings I had before I actually made the leap of faith, simply melted away. I still have no clue what my plan was or how it would work out, but the pressure I was feeling was replaced by a new sense of freedom. I want to be free to live a life of new and exciting experiences.

I told myself in this moment, no matter how this journey pans out, I’ll at least have one amazing story to tell: “Remember that time I packed my car and drove across the country to try to chase my dreams...”

At the start of my journey, I was guided by fear. The weather forecast was predicting tornadoes in the middle of the country all week, so I decided to take the southern route.

Passing through the Deep South, I visited the city of Atlanta, Georgia. I could smell the tobacco fields of Alabama and Mississippi from the highway as some conservative Christian talk-radio host was preaching about how women nowadays show too much skin, and this is the work of The Devil.

Talk about a culture shock.

To him, the life he grew up in was probably all there is. Never left his small town, thinking the way of life he was born into is all that there is. He probably never had a chance to see what type of life is out there waiting for him, if he decided to go out searching more.

I switch the radio dial to my only other option when you are on a highway, hundreds of miles away from any major city: Country music. Being born on Long Island, New York, I must admit that I hate country music.

The next day I drive through New Orleans as I eat crawfish from a local restaurant overlooking the Gulf Coast, before swinging through Houston, San Antonio, and the 600 miles of open plains in west Texas, on my way to El Paso.

On this journey, I’m already racking up new and exciting experiences, and I haven’t even reached my destination yet. I just felt so alive, for the first time in a while.

I felt, free.

The smog that carried over the border from Mexico filled the city of El Paso, with every spec of the pollution turning the sun into a blinding spotlight, shining directly into my windshield.

I keep pushing forward…

It’s just me and the open road, and I’m loving every second of it, without a thought or worry on my mind. After staring in amazement at the dust-devils and tumbleweeds that are flying everywhere in West Texas, I make my way through a border patrol checkpoint in New Mexico and finally driving up to my destination in Arizona.

I’m glad the federal agents didn’t give me a hard time about the large pocket knife I had within reach for every moment of this trip. I’ve never driven across the country like this before.

I was told to fear the unknown.

I stop at a rest area to get some coffee, and when I go to pay, the machine reads: Credit Card Declined.

My credit card is already maxed out.

There’s no turning back now.

I’ve reached the point of no return.

All up until this point in my life, I was comfortable. I had a roof above my head, food on the table, and I was living in a life of comfort. I had no reason to work. I had no reason to push myself. What would happen if I didn’t work in the past?

Nothing.

And that was the problem all along.

Suddenly, thousands of miles outside of my comfort zone, for the first time in my life, I am now forced to find a way to make it work. I am forced to succeed. There is no other way.

But how do I do it? I still have no clue. Panic begins to set in. And when panic sets in, we tend to make stupid decisions.

The Excitement is Gone

Stepping up to the only solution that comes to my mind in the tiredness and exhaustion from the 16 hours of driving that day, I reach in my pocket, pull out my last $250 and say to the lady at the front desk at the casino, “I’d like to play some poker”.

If packing up my car and driving across the country wasn’t stupid enough, I’m going to raise the stakes and throw it all on the line once again, going all in with a game of No Limit Texas Hold’em.

She hands me the money back, almost as a sign from the universe that this decisions was going to end poorly.

“You can get your chips over there”, she points over to the cashier cages at the casino. She smiles, sensing my embarrassment.

What happens when you are forced to succeed?

You find a way to make it work, or you die trying.

After three hours of playing, being up and down all night, I’m left with $200 in front of me. My eyes begin to close on me as the clock strikes midnight. I’m now faced with a choice to take that $50 loss and call it quits...or do whatever it takes to get a stable roof above my head and some food in my stomach...and put it all on the line.

I decide to play one more hand.

The cards are dealt....

Another player raises $60 after the first round of cards come out. Looking down at my hand, I have two pair. A strong hand when it comes to small stakes, but is it strong enough to bet almost a third of my entire net worth?

Sick of playing defense and barely getting by, I finally decide to take the offense in my life and go after what I desire.

I’m sick of playing to ‘not lose’. It’s time to finally play to win.

With the last of my emergency funds on the line, I am all in.

Another player calls my raise, and puts all of his money all in as well, hinting at the signs of a stronger hand than mind.

...the four people after him go all in too.

With no money left for any of us to bet, all our cards are flipped over.

I’m losing.

Standing up, on the verge of defeat, the final community card gets dealt. One card, which holds my destiny and my future on it, and it alone. For the first, and hopefully the only time on my journey, I am turning my fate over to luck.

The thoughts race through my mind. Do you know that feeling you get when you know you already lost? My stomach fills up with that feeling. It’s sickening about how I could be so stupid.

What was I thinking? What can I do next? I don’t know. I’ll be stuck in the middle of the desert. With no money. No gas. No food. And no water.

My credit card is maxed out so I won’t even be able to drive back to my family’s house now.

My body begins to shake from the adrenaline....

I took the risk and I’m now one card away from losing it all...

Now standing, the final card is flipped over by the dealer.

My heart begins beating through my chest. I can’t even think anymore. I push out my chair and begin to walk away from the table...

What am I going to do now?

The day before I left, I made the only rational decision I’ve made in a while. I sent my resume to three jobs in the Scottsdale area. I’m just picturing it now: Putting on my suit in the parking lot of the Indian Casino, walking the remainder of the distance to Scottsdale, as I walk into the interview sunburnt, covered in sweat and dust, practically begging for the job.

To put it nicely, my resume was not strong.

I haven’t had a job in almost two years, so I decided to shine myself in the brightest light. After reading a book that woke me up to this journey, I decided to teach myself how to code a website for a friend who had a pretty cool business idea.

“Computer Programmer” was the only title I could think of, which was technically true since I taught myself some coding from the internet and helped him out with a website that was never fininshed.

Yeah, “Computer Programmer” is a better way to phrase it than “Unemployed Loser”, which is a more accurate job description.

The world around me disappeared as I am now caught up in my thoughts. All I can see are the images in my mind of how terrible that interview might go, if I even get one. The only thing that pulled me out of my trance was the word “sir”, the voice got louder, “sir!”..SIR!

I snapped back to reality.

It was the dealer calling my name. Out of the four possible cards that could have helped me from that 52 card deck...one of them managed to come out, leaving me with the winning hand.

I won.

After standing there in shock for a few minutes, I cash in my chips and exit the casino in the wee hours of the morning. I’m left brushing the dust off of the windshield as I get back to my car. The storm has subsided, leaving me with a feeling of peace and tranquility. I now have $1,900 in my pockets as I look up to the starry sky of Arizona with a wave of relief that washed over my body.

The stress and anxiety are gone.

The warm desert air blows peacefully through the palm trees that glow in the moonlight. I feel like I’m on a vacation that I never want to end.

I take a deep breath in, with a smile from ear to ear. Here I am, with the only lucky break I would ever have in my life. But a new question begins to ring through my mind.

What the heck am I going to do next?

At this stage of the journey…

· Things got so bad in your life, that you are forced to change.

· You took that leap, past the point of no return, and gave yourself no option except to succeed and push forward towards your dreams.

· You stopped listening to the way you’re supposed to do things, and started stepping into the unknown.

· You decided to become the change you’ve been waiting for in your life.

And you’ll still have no clue what you’re going to do next, or how it will work out for you. But that’s ok, because the struggles you are pushing through now a normal part of the process, and something you can expect on this type of journey…

Keep pushing forward.

 

[InformationH]

I can see myself in the story to an extent. I've never been in circumstances very similair to yours but I still found it motivating. I've read your other posts and from what you've written here I would buy your book.

When do you think it will be finished?

 

[AndrewNC]

I can see myself in the story to an extent. I've never been in circumstances very similair to yours but I still found it motivating. I've read your other posts and from what you've written here I would buy your book.

When do you think it will be finished?

Thanks!

Follow-up question: If you didn't read any of my posts before and picked it up at barnes and noble or on amazon...would you still continue to read?

I know most people start their "journey" in entrepreneurship at a job they don't like - and I work into that in the next section. I just want to make sure people reach that hook-point so they continue reading to where the good information comes in.

Thanks again Rep transferred

I don't have a specific date yet! I'll post it here when it is!

 

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

[The-J]

I like your style of writing. The story itself reminds me of myself: the way I felt going to Albuquerque the first time (when we just happened to have met back in 2013) with the last money I had left.

Good stuff.

 

[InformationH]

Thanks!

Follow-up question: If you didn't read any of my posts before and picked it up at barnes and noble or on amazon...would you still continue to read?

I know most people start their "journey" in entrepreneurship at a job they don't like - and I work into that in the next section. I just want to make sure people reach that hook-point so they continue reading to where the good information comes in.

Thanks again Rep transferred

I don't have a specific date yet! I'll post it here when it is!

Possibly. For me it really depends on what's on the back, inside front cover, chapter titles or reviews that cover what the book teaches. I generally want to know exactly what i'm going to get out of a book before I take my time to read it. I don't read chapters to decide if I'll buy but instead look in the spots mentioned above.

However, this is because I've read a fair amount of entrepreneurial books and want to make sure I'm going to learn something new or something that will really motivate me. Time is important and I don't want to feel like I wasted it like I have before reading a book that didn't teach me anything new or help me become better.Now that I have a few entreprenueral books underneath my belt it all depends on what new Value the book offers.

If this was one of my first entrepreneurial books i'd be sold after skimming a bit of it without any other information.

 

[CPisHere]

You are a good writer and story teller.

This feels a bit choppy and long-winded at times. There's no clear path of where you are taking me, which you can make work if that's your goal. But I'd suggest laying the framework early on - I was poor, now I'm rich, it all started... etc.

You've done a good job sharing your experiences, but you haven't digged into the lessons enough or helped me apply it to my life.

Keep it up! With some professional editing this could be very good. I think it needs a "hook" though...

 

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

[AndrewNC]

You are a good writer and story teller.

This feels a bit choppy and long-winded at times. There's no clear path of where you are taking me, which you can make work if that's your goal. But I'd suggest laying the framework early on - I was poor, now I'm rich, it all started... etc.

You've done a good job sharing your experiences, but you haven't digged into the lessons enough or helped me apply it to my life.

Keep it up! With some professional editing this could be very good. I think it needs a "hook" though...

Thank you!

Perhaps I'll include an introduction/overview of the book right after the Glacier National Park story, talking more about the direct benefits of the book for the reader, so they know what is coming.

 

[HoneyBadger]

Andrew your writing is top notch. I would buy this book if you had some credibility (I don't know if you do/don't). I would definitely start out with why we should listen to you.

 

[LifeTransformer]

A Bit too much back story for me, but possibly only because I read your other book. Not entirely sure.
I do prefer less backstory in general, or a small/quickly delivered amount. That's why I've never finished a Tim Ferris book.

Maybe a more condensed version?

 

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

[devine]

I think it's rational to make it available for a pre-order right now.

 

[LifeTransformer]

Thank you!

Perhaps I'll include an introduction/overview of the book right after the Glacier National Park story, talking more about the direct benefits of the book for the reader, so they know what is coming.

That sounds like a great idea too.

 

[GMSI7D]

i don't want to read all your work online now so do you have a pdf version of that ?

so i can give you my feedback when i read it

yes, you can refuse obviously to do that but if you want to succeed , you 'd better do whatever it takes.

 

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

[nichiseven]

I'm not a professional writer (yet), so take what I say with a grain of salt. Hopefully it helps:

I like the energy that comes off of your writing. There's a sense of anticipation and urgency to it that propels me forward to read more. Who is Emily? How does she figure in this? How did you get to the middle of nowhere? What path(s) led you there? I'm sitting there thinking 'Okay, the prefacing is good, I don't know anything about you, this helps me connect to you'. Do I see myself as you? No, but I'm starting to feel like I could know you and that's more important to me as a reader than anything.

Would I pick up this book if I didn't know who you are? If I knew it existed and it was on a shelf in front of me or I came across it on Amazon, I would definitely pick it up and flip through. This would be enough to convince me to buy it because I'm hungry enough to want to know how someone becomes a success. I can't speak for someone who isn't interested in field yet though. Probably not unless you have a slick looking cover and tighter writing - be merciless with killing off 'fluff' filler words.

I look forward to seeing your progression and how much further the story develops.
In fact I'll buy the Kindle just because I hate reading stories part way that interest me and not finishing them.

 

[AndrewNC]

i don't want to read all your work online now so do you have a pdf version of that ?

so i can give you my feedback when i read it

yes, you can refuse obviously to do that but if you want to succeed , you 'd better do whatever it takes.

Not the whole book - but these chapters.

 

[Aqib.A]

I am new to this forum and actually made an account to be able to respond on this. You managed to get my attention and had me reading till the end. Would definitely buy the book when you release it

Anyway to stay updated regarding the release date?

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

 

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