Well, here we are again. Another year has gone by and I take a moment to reflect on everything. I’ll start by saying that I am most impressed this year with the idea of using my money to make money. I have known a lot of the principles but over the last several years haven’t done a great job applying them. I tended to hold onto cash and just wait on the sidelines. I did this because of the fear of loss, which is a great human emotion that drives so much of our action.
But, I’ve made a vow to make this next year different. I will work as always to produce income for myself and my family – but I will also send my money out to work for me every day too. It’s time my dollars get a job!
As part of my newfound discovery, I am also working on a book (in my mind and in Evernote) on how I have accomplished what I have so far. At this point, I am 35 years old and if I can keep up the pace I should be doing pretty good in life. It’s been a crazy road of ups and downs, but I just have to keep my eyes focused on the future.
I have a lot bigger goals now, probably too big. But I’ve learned that big goals are what drive me. That’s been another big discovery for me this year – finding out that I’m an “Achiever” and that the pursuit of a worthwhile goal drives me just about more than anything. I always had a hard time placing why money was never a real strong driver to me. Sure – money is awesome, don’t get me wrong. But it never really excited me.
What excites me is coming up with a new idea, and working really hard to make that idea become a reality. The downside is that once the goal is achieved, I don’t really feel a strong sense of accomplishment. Instead, my mind looks for the next goal to complete, the next task to mark off the to-do list.
I am still working on that part of me. The part that needs to just enjoy accomplishment and have a little fun. Hopefully, I’ll continue to develop that.
Another big update for me is my weight. Which if you’ve followed this blog for any length of time, you’ll know has been an issue pretty much my whole life. I was even on a weight loss TV show where I lost 255 pounds in a year.
Then, I gained it all back in 3-4 years.
Then I got the Duodenal Switch surgery on December 10, 2015 (1 day before I turned 34). As of today, I weigh 208 pounds. It’s pretty remarkable because my highest weight of all time was 540 pounds. When I got approved for the surgery, I was 493. So, That’s a total loss of 283 pounds.
Because of my weight loss, I am going in on Tuesday, July 11th to get my next round of skin removal surgery. I am getting a Reverse J Torsoplasty. I have mixed feelings about it. I really want it because the extra skin around my chest and back is hard to deal with. But, I’m also leery of being “down” for a long time. My last surgery (abdominoplasty) had me out for nearly 6 months. I am just hoping and praying that this procedure is a lot easier to recover from.
Guess I’ll find out soon enough.
Another great update is that this year my wife Rebecca and I celebrated 3 years of marriage. Hard to believe how fast the time goes. I’m sure I’ll be saying that in 20 years and really mean it haha.
She has been awesome and is a real defender of people… not just me, but pretty much anyone she feels isn’t standing up for themselves (or can’t stand up for themselves). It’s just the way she’s wired… she’s a protector. And for me, someone who trusts everyone and basically bounces through life from one adventure to the next, it’s important to have her by my side.
I am working every day to be a better husband, and it can be challenging at times for sure (like late nights at the ER), but all I can do is keep working on myself and improving a little bit each day.
OH!
One final update!
I close tomorrow on my first flip property. I’m really excited. I get to finally achieve a goal I’ve had since I was 18. Buy, fix, and flip a house. It’s gonna be a learning experience for sure. I am partnering with my good friend (and business partner in other businesses) Mike Williams. I’ll try to post pictures and share the story here on the blog as I have time.
And as far as future blog posts – I am so busy actually running a business that I find it very hard to squeeze time in to write good posts. I can crank out fast posts (like this one), but the good, high-quality posts take a lot of time.
Maybe I’ll just write what I want as I can and see how that does. So, that’s my annual update.
Thanks for reading and I hope you have an amazing year!
Happy Independence Day!!