Background Check - A look into my past.

Ladies and Gentleman – Welcome back! Since my last post was more a spur of the moment entry, I actually have a little more of a game plan for this week. Thank you for continuing on the journey through my adventure into real estate investing; my goal for this is to inspire (myself and you!), provide actionable steps, and offer my insights so that others may benefit.

Before we continue down that path, the path to the future that holds nothing but success, I think it may be beneficial to look back. Understanding where I came from and my thought process will help provide perspective into why I do the things I do. I believe the best place to start would be with my family; I have two loving parents along with two annoying sisters (just kidding!). I am the oldest of the bunch and I try to be a role model for the both of my sisters; I have long been very responsible, driven, and hard working, which comes from my parents. My father and mother are the reason I am on this path; without their examples, support, and the traits they passed to me, I would not be where I am today. My dad used to be in real estate while I was younger, so the bug was planted early and has been in my mind for almost as long as I can remember. My mom saw a psychic and was told I was going to be the next Donald Trump... so watch out!

As for a little background on what shaped me, here are the highlights:

• My dad is the hardest working person I know. He has never held a traditional job, he has ran his own businesses, and he has never let failure stop him. From him, I became very hard working, persistent, and dedicated to success.
• My mom is the nicest and most caring person I know. I try to be like her when interacting with people and seeing the greater good. She shaped the way I look at the work and the way I interact with people.
• My sisters are great, but we used to not get along (go figure). I think they helped me grow a thick skin that doesn't get bothered that much. They are great now that we aren't all stuck in the same house, just prodding each other...
• I’m super cheap and frugal – not sure where that came from. My wife hates it (but she’s coming around…). I've always been good with money and thinking about the bigger picture when it comes to purchases.
• I was 3 time MVP on my high school varsity basketball team and played a year of college ball (school wasn't a right fit, so I transferred). This isn't to brag, playing basketball was instrumental to the man I am today. It taught me to lead, work hard, put in the time to get results, work with others, have a goal bigger than myself, and adapt on the fly. These traits are huge, in my opinion.
• I have been in sales since I graduated college. It’s not easy being in sales, but it allows more freedom than most jobs and can pay well if you hit goals. This has been like running my own “business” but with a safety net.

Hopefully that wasn't too brutal, but I think it helps set the stage for the rest of the posts I’ll be writing going forward, so you know who I am and why I do/think the way I do. I will be posting a more regular entry tomorrow, but I am still trying to figure out the exact format I want these to be in so they are beneficial, actionable, and inspiring.

“Know from whence you came. If you know whence you came, there are absolutely no limitations to where you can go” –James Baldwin