I QUIT MY JOB.
I left New York.
I wanted to start an investment company.
I wanted to help people.
I had to bootstrap, so I moved into my little brother’s tiny apartment.
I felt like a failure. It was so embarrassing.
Money was tight, so we rented a room on Craigslist. During this time, I learned something incredible:
Both Success and happiness depend on how much value we add to the world.
It did not depend on how many videos I saw on YouTube, or how many books I read, or podcasts I listened to.
The Problem: No skills. No money.
Desperate and without any options, I read for many hours every day.
158 books total my first year.
To focus, I stopped…
- Talking to friends who didn’t add value.
- Going out to eat.
- Using Facebook and consuming social media.
- Paying attention to sports.
- Watching Hulu and Netflix.
First, I started publishing our views on investing.
The more clarity I got, the better I got at investing. That’s when I started contributing to major publications.
People began to recognize and respect my ability to create value.
I left LA to invest in Washington state and moved out of my brother’s apartment.
I acquired a five building portfolio of low income housing apartments, then eventually, I bought my first three hundred unit portfolio in the Midwest.
Now, I bought and sold over four hundred apartments around the nation while contributing to Forbes with a 13,500+ person community.
If you do not feel successful, ask yourself:
Are you the buyer or are you the seller?
