xentric

After working 12 years at a dead-end job running operations and IT at a large video game distributor, I experienced my "F*ck this!" moment. I quit my job and started my own business in the IT services field with a partner, in pursuit of financial independence.

After several years of blood, sweat and tears working long hours and weekends, putting the customer first, and pushing our families' needs aside, we had a couple of dozen very satisfied customers. Unfortunately, though, our sales figures were stagnant and we found ourselves getting further and further into debt. Something didn't make sense. How can we be putting so much time and effort into the business and still not be seeing any growth? Apparently, a person can have multiple "F*ck this!" moments.

My relentless search for answers led me to The Millionaire Fastlane, followed by Unscripted. Just from the introduction alone, I knew I had struck gold. Unfortunately, the more I read, the more it filled me with regret. Where was this book in my 20's when I had those billion dollar ideas and when pursuing them felt like a pipe dream? Shackled by the mentality instilled in me by the Script, I gave up on them and moved on to the next, only to see each one come to fruition and make someone else rich.

I'm happy to say that the regret was short-lived and these books have made me find my purpose and have given meaning to my existence. I realized that although I owned my own business, I was worse off than an employee, as I took upon more risk and traded more of my time for money.

Since and while reading these books, we've shifted our core focus and are tirelessly working on building a more scalable and self-sustaining business model founded on the premise of creating more value for customers.

Thanks @MJ DeMarco for sharing your unbridled words and wisdom with the world!