Hello Everyone,
I would like to thank everyone that contributes to this forum. I’ve been browsing a reading the forum for about a week now. Some of the contributors here are top notch.
My story:
I’m a 28 year old currently living on $700 a month disability. I suffer from chronic pain and nerve damage in my legs. I have recently realized I can’t even dodge slowlaners when they occasionally drive up on the sidewalk I occupy.
I’ve pretty much been a side walking drifter my whole life. From the time I was born I have lived in extreme poverty. I’ve lived in houses that would make a third world shack look like 5 star resort. I was raised by a mostly unemployed drug intoxicated single mother along with 6 other siblings. I dropped out of school at the ripe age of 12. At the age of 17 I had to have an extremely risky back surgery that didn’t end well. I spent almost 2 years in a wheel chair trying to find out how to cope with the fact I might never walk again. Luckily today I can walk.
I realize none of the things I have experienced in life are an excuse from some of the bad stuff I’ve been into.
When I was about 24 I stumbled across $10,000 on a stroke of luck. Being a street savvy person I put the money to work. I essentially financed some activities that law enforcement would look down upon. Within a period of 6 months my net worth exploded to almost $100k. I then used the money to invest in legitimate enterprises my assets doubled to 200k in another 6 months. Going from extreme poverty to 200k so fast really did a number on me. I lost it all in less than a year in a half.
Naturally like most people who experience such a wild roller coaster ride, I had a nervous breakdown. I ended up losing my girlfriend of 7 years, had to move in with my older sister. I sat idle in my sister’s apartment for 9 months. She eventually hated having a couch potato at her house while she worked the 40 hour week. We got into a huge fight. And I literally left with $400 dollars and the clothes on my back to the greyhound station.
I wanted to go somewhere rich. I walked up to the ticket counter at the greyhound station. when the lady asked me where I wanted to go, ft Lauderdale popped in my head. I ended up spending a year in south Florida. My first night in FL I slept under a bridge on los olas blvd. within two weeks I was down in Miami sleeping on the beach. Within two weeks I had a job, in a 2 months I had an apartment. In a year I managed to save up a whopping $2500!!! I was so tired and in pain from working a shit job that my f*cked up back couldn’t handle, that I decided to come back to Cleveland.
Now I am in Cleveland on disability. I can’t even afford a bed right now. I’m sleeping on an air mattress.
I have no idea what I’m going to do to get off the sidewalk and directly into the fast lane. I’ve always considered myself some kind of survivor. I can survive anything! That’s just it though, I’m just surviving. I want to live! The only thing I can think of doing is read, read & read. I’ve probably read over 10 books in the past 2 weeks.
I’d like to make this some kind of mind post. Maybe one day I can look back at this and reflect ( where was I then, where am I now, where am I going?).
I would like to thank everyone that contributes to this forum. I’ve been browsing a reading the forum for about a week now. Some of the contributors here are top notch.
My story:
I’m a 28 year old currently living on $700 a month disability. I suffer from chronic pain and nerve damage in my legs. I have recently realized I can’t even dodge slowlaners when they occasionally drive up on the sidewalk I occupy.
I’ve pretty much been a side walking drifter my whole life. From the time I was born I have lived in extreme poverty. I’ve lived in houses that would make a third world shack look like 5 star resort. I was raised by a mostly unemployed drug intoxicated single mother along with 6 other siblings. I dropped out of school at the ripe age of 12. At the age of 17 I had to have an extremely risky back surgery that didn’t end well. I spent almost 2 years in a wheel chair trying to find out how to cope with the fact I might never walk again. Luckily today I can walk.
I realize none of the things I have experienced in life are an excuse from some of the bad stuff I’ve been into.
When I was about 24 I stumbled across $10,000 on a stroke of luck. Being a street savvy person I put the money to work. I essentially financed some activities that law enforcement would look down upon. Within a period of 6 months my net worth exploded to almost $100k. I then used the money to invest in legitimate enterprises my assets doubled to 200k in another 6 months. Going from extreme poverty to 200k so fast really did a number on me. I lost it all in less than a year in a half.
Naturally like most people who experience such a wild roller coaster ride, I had a nervous breakdown. I ended up losing my girlfriend of 7 years, had to move in with my older sister. I sat idle in my sister’s apartment for 9 months. She eventually hated having a couch potato at her house while she worked the 40 hour week. We got into a huge fight. And I literally left with $400 dollars and the clothes on my back to the greyhound station.
I wanted to go somewhere rich. I walked up to the ticket counter at the greyhound station. when the lady asked me where I wanted to go, ft Lauderdale popped in my head. I ended up spending a year in south Florida. My first night in FL I slept under a bridge on los olas blvd. within two weeks I was down in Miami sleeping on the beach. Within two weeks I had a job, in a 2 months I had an apartment. In a year I managed to save up a whopping $2500!!! I was so tired and in pain from working a shit job that my f*cked up back couldn’t handle, that I decided to come back to Cleveland.
Now I am in Cleveland on disability. I can’t even afford a bed right now. I’m sleeping on an air mattress.
I have no idea what I’m going to do to get off the sidewalk and directly into the fast lane. I’ve always considered myself some kind of survivor. I can survive anything! That’s just it though, I’m just surviving. I want to live! The only thing I can think of doing is read, read & read. I’ve probably read over 10 books in the past 2 weeks.
I’d like to make this some kind of mind post. Maybe one day I can look back at this and reflect ( where was I then, where am I now, where am I going?).
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