RocketMan99
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Its funny how at different points in our lives we feel like we've "figured" it out, only to look back years later and cringe when realizing how off base we were. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but rather it serves as a reminder that life isn't about the mistakes you make but rather about having the courage to make those mistakes and learning from them. The only way to live a meaningful life is through experiencing it firsthand. I'm 29 and thought I'd "figured" it out more than a few times in my life but only now have I really begun to define for myself what "happiness" truly means. This intro is a little long and will undoubtedly be erratic at times so I apologize in advance.
Background
I come from very humble beginnings. I was raised by a single mother and grew up on welfare. My mom did her best to put food on the table, working three jobs, but as a result I was often left to my own devices and grew up in the "streets." Luckily, I inherited the accompanying street smarts while never getting caught up in drugs or serious crimes. For better or for worse (as ignorance is bliss, especially when it comes to the innocence of a child), I was highly cognizant at a young age that I was poor and that my family would never be able to provide me with material things the other kids had. This made me feel ashamed, angry, envious but it also made me disciplined, motivated, and entrepreneurial. My family couldn't afford to buy me these things, the world wasn't going to hand it to me so I'd better stop bitching and earn it for myself. From the age of 10 I've been self-sufficient and haven't asked my parents for a dime. For example, in primary school, I used to buy school supplies wholesale and sell them to classmates at incredible markups. This allowed me to afford the nice things that the "cool" kids had. I hustled like this all through high school and had nice clothes, a car and money for other vices.
Money vs. Status (a false dichotomy)
Although I was making more money than my peers, I felt unfulfilled. I felt like I may be making money but I still didn't have any status in society, I wanted to be a "somebody." My solution was to become a lawyer. What a glamorous lifestyle! Make lots of money, work in a fancy downtown office, wear expensive suits and people call you "Sir." This was the life I wanted.
I spent 4 years of my undergrad basically preparing for law school. I graduated with a prestigious and highly practical political science degree. For you undergrad kids out there, a word of caution: a political science degree effectively destroys all your hopes and dreams and leaves law school as your only option (I kid...but only sort of). It worked out for me though because my plan was always to go to law school. I got good grades, did well on the LSAT and got into the law school of my choice. Everyone was so proud, I was going to be a lawyer.
Law School
Law school was a great experience but a bad investment, both financially and more importantly time wise. It was 3 years of mental masturbation where we congratulated each other for our "superior" intellect and being masters of the universe (the profession attracts a certain type of individual and most lawyers are pretentious ego maniacs). For the most part, law school was interesting with brilliant and entertaining professors posing inquiries to us young eager minds such as "It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer..." As a side note, there was more boozing and debauchery in law school than in undergrad. I say law school was a bad investment because the most important skill it taught you was critical thinking. This is an invaluable skill and every successful individual needs to think critically but you don't need 3 years and essentially a mortgage to learn it.
Anyway, I did well in law school and got hired for one of the coveted corporate jobs with a big law firm downtown. I got the fancy office, I wore expensive suits, I made "good" money and many people called me "Sir" (while many more called me "a**hole"). I had made it...
Real Life
Some people think the life of an associate is exciting and glamorous. Don't let the movies and t.v. shows fool you, being an associate in a big law firm is one of the most demeaning and soul eroding professions on earth. You sit in front of a computer all day long and read thousands of pages of mind-numbing documents. You work 14-16 hour days 6 to 7 days a week. You work your a$$ off to "please" the partners but you are completely and utterly dispensable and the partners never pass up an opportunity to remind you of that. Here I was, a grown man, a lawyer, getting yelled at like a priest does to a little school boy (minus the "spankings"). But the worst part of all is that you have no control over your life. You're at the beck and call of the partners. Your life and dreams are secondary to the partner's golf outing. This saying has never been more true: "If you don't build your own dream, someone else will hire you to help build theirs."
At least I was making a lot of money right...WRONG! Although I had a good salary, when factoring in all the hours I worked it came out to $26 an hour, which puts it on par with a Costco employee (nothing wrong with working for Costco if that floats your boat). Furthermore, in 7 years of school I accumulated almost $100,000 in student loan debt. After rent, student loan payments, groceries, etc... I was saving absolutely nothing every month. I had a fancy corporate job, the fancy title of lawyer but my net worth was -$100,000, I wasn't happy and I had no control over my life.
Epiphany
After 4 years of corporate slavery I finally left my job a few months ago. I realized that I had been searching for the wrong things in life. Its great to have money and to have status but its never worth your freedom. Happiness to me is freedom. The freedom to take a two month vacation to Europe, the freedom to go to the gym at 10 a.m. on a Tuesday, the freedom to walk into the office in shorts and sandals. Yes, money is a necessary means to your freedom. But you'll never be free chasing money while chained to the greed and self-interest of others. I've never felt more alive than in these past few months after leaving my job. I recently started my own law practice (slowlane but awesome as it pays the bills and I have complete control) and have laid the groundwork to build a truly scalable business. When I think about my businesses and my future, I go through bouts of extreme anxiety but also experience moments of absolute euphoria and I wouldn't have it any other way. There are many things to be afraid of in this life but failure should never be one of them.
Thanks for allowing me to be a part of this amazing community and I hope I can bring some value to you as MJ's book and this forum has brought to me.
Background
I come from very humble beginnings. I was raised by a single mother and grew up on welfare. My mom did her best to put food on the table, working three jobs, but as a result I was often left to my own devices and grew up in the "streets." Luckily, I inherited the accompanying street smarts while never getting caught up in drugs or serious crimes. For better or for worse (as ignorance is bliss, especially when it comes to the innocence of a child), I was highly cognizant at a young age that I was poor and that my family would never be able to provide me with material things the other kids had. This made me feel ashamed, angry, envious but it also made me disciplined, motivated, and entrepreneurial. My family couldn't afford to buy me these things, the world wasn't going to hand it to me so I'd better stop bitching and earn it for myself. From the age of 10 I've been self-sufficient and haven't asked my parents for a dime. For example, in primary school, I used to buy school supplies wholesale and sell them to classmates at incredible markups. This allowed me to afford the nice things that the "cool" kids had. I hustled like this all through high school and had nice clothes, a car and money for other vices.
Money vs. Status (a false dichotomy)
Although I was making more money than my peers, I felt unfulfilled. I felt like I may be making money but I still didn't have any status in society, I wanted to be a "somebody." My solution was to become a lawyer. What a glamorous lifestyle! Make lots of money, work in a fancy downtown office, wear expensive suits and people call you "Sir." This was the life I wanted.
I spent 4 years of my undergrad basically preparing for law school. I graduated with a prestigious and highly practical political science degree. For you undergrad kids out there, a word of caution: a political science degree effectively destroys all your hopes and dreams and leaves law school as your only option (I kid...but only sort of). It worked out for me though because my plan was always to go to law school. I got good grades, did well on the LSAT and got into the law school of my choice. Everyone was so proud, I was going to be a lawyer.
Law School
Law school was a great experience but a bad investment, both financially and more importantly time wise. It was 3 years of mental masturbation where we congratulated each other for our "superior" intellect and being masters of the universe (the profession attracts a certain type of individual and most lawyers are pretentious ego maniacs). For the most part, law school was interesting with brilliant and entertaining professors posing inquiries to us young eager minds such as "It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer..." As a side note, there was more boozing and debauchery in law school than in undergrad. I say law school was a bad investment because the most important skill it taught you was critical thinking. This is an invaluable skill and every successful individual needs to think critically but you don't need 3 years and essentially a mortgage to learn it.
Anyway, I did well in law school and got hired for one of the coveted corporate jobs with a big law firm downtown. I got the fancy office, I wore expensive suits, I made "good" money and many people called me "Sir" (while many more called me "a**hole"). I had made it...
Real Life
Some people think the life of an associate is exciting and glamorous. Don't let the movies and t.v. shows fool you, being an associate in a big law firm is one of the most demeaning and soul eroding professions on earth. You sit in front of a computer all day long and read thousands of pages of mind-numbing documents. You work 14-16 hour days 6 to 7 days a week. You work your a$$ off to "please" the partners but you are completely and utterly dispensable and the partners never pass up an opportunity to remind you of that. Here I was, a grown man, a lawyer, getting yelled at like a priest does to a little school boy (minus the "spankings"). But the worst part of all is that you have no control over your life. You're at the beck and call of the partners. Your life and dreams are secondary to the partner's golf outing. This saying has never been more true: "If you don't build your own dream, someone else will hire you to help build theirs."
At least I was making a lot of money right...WRONG! Although I had a good salary, when factoring in all the hours I worked it came out to $26 an hour, which puts it on par with a Costco employee (nothing wrong with working for Costco if that floats your boat). Furthermore, in 7 years of school I accumulated almost $100,000 in student loan debt. After rent, student loan payments, groceries, etc... I was saving absolutely nothing every month. I had a fancy corporate job, the fancy title of lawyer but my net worth was -$100,000, I wasn't happy and I had no control over my life.
Epiphany
After 4 years of corporate slavery I finally left my job a few months ago. I realized that I had been searching for the wrong things in life. Its great to have money and to have status but its never worth your freedom. Happiness to me is freedom. The freedom to take a two month vacation to Europe, the freedom to go to the gym at 10 a.m. on a Tuesday, the freedom to walk into the office in shorts and sandals. Yes, money is a necessary means to your freedom. But you'll never be free chasing money while chained to the greed and self-interest of others. I've never felt more alive than in these past few months after leaving my job. I recently started my own law practice (slowlane but awesome as it pays the bills and I have complete control) and have laid the groundwork to build a truly scalable business. When I think about my businesses and my future, I go through bouts of extreme anxiety but also experience moments of absolute euphoria and I wouldn't have it any other way. There are many things to be afraid of in this life but failure should never be one of them.
Thanks for allowing me to be a part of this amazing community and I hope I can bring some value to you as MJ's book and this forum has brought to me.
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