As a teenager I helped my father build houses and I picked up a few skills along the way as a result of his teachings. This past weekend I did finish "project fireplace" in my bedroom. It wasn't the simplest task, but then again it wasn't the hardest either. It was kind of nice to have my Dad there with me to help out. Sure I got yelled at plenty and heard the occasional "what the hell is wrong with you" - his favorite saying. We all know a Dad is always right and the "kid" is always wrong. So even though I'm all grownup, I still mess up enough to where he shows me my place in line with the dearing "what the hell is wrong with you" phrase. Now don't think my father is a mean man, he's not. It's just his way of showing he cares? I don't know, but I am use to it so it doesn't really bother me. After all, sometimes I hear myself saying "what the hell is wrong with you" to myself. I've gone off on a ramble now, so let me get this post back on track and make my point.
Thru the years of helping my Dad, it eventually turned to going into business with him as I became a co-owner in an apartment/condo complex. I wasn't into taking over his business or going into the same line of work. In fact I made that clear to him when I was around 17. I knew I wanted to go to college and my dream then was to turn into a professional basketball player. Now that might sound silly especially considering I'm only 6'1 and white, but I actually had a good chance at it. I went to college on an athletic scholarship and during that time I was looked at by various NBA scouts. I even got called to tryout which I did go to, but obviously didn't make the team. That's ok though. I know the chances of turning pro in any sport are very slim so I was aware that I needed other things in my life to fall back on if a life in the NBA wasn't in the cards for me. Somewhere along the way I got heavily into technology and discovered that my life may be best suited for a career in that field. So the question of "what do I want to be when I grow up" may of been answered in that sense, but to me I am not done growing. I tend to feel that your talents should not always stay focused in one area, that you should branch out or at least attempt to. It never hurts to see what is out there and to try your hand at new things. With that said, it brings me to my latest investment.
For the last few years I've been helping my Dad remodel these apartments and rent them out. It's been a learning experience and at times it's been difficult after a long day working at my normal job to then go there in the evenings to knock walls out, paint, hang doors, all that fun stuff. At times it was also a struggle to juggle my own house mortgage with the ever mounting expenses the apartments called for. A couple months back I bought out my Dad on the apartments becoming the sole landlord. However, for various personal and financial reasons, I found that it was time to sell the entire place. So that is what I did this morning when I met with my lawyer to help me close out the deal. It's a bittersweet end to the whole experience. However, with this latest chapter in my life now closed, it has open yet a new page for me. I've recently bought 17 acres of commercial property in Auckland, New Zealand. Why there? Well I have an uncle who lives there and had mentioned a few things to me. I've decided to go with it and now I'm thinking a long 22 hour flight out there might be something I need to do in the near future. I know written out here it sounds a little crazy to invest in a chunk of land on the other side of the world without even visiting, but it's really not that crazy if I would go into detail explaining. Don't worry, I won't bore you with all that. The point is...
The chubby cheeks have long since vanished, but the question of what I want to be when I grow up still seems to linger in a sense. It's not that I don't have direction in my life. In fact I probably have more things accomplished, goals set and direction than most 20 something year-olds my age. The thing is that I'm not satisfied. I think that's a good thing because when you are satisfied in life, you stop pushing yourself to achieve more and be a better person. I'm still young and there is much I want to do and accomplish in my life. Maybe I am growing up, but I know to people like my Mom, when she looks at me she will still see that kid with the chubby cheeks who's reply one time to "what do you want to be when you grow up" was simply..."a boy". Everyone still laughs and teases me that I wanted to "grow up to be a boy". Looking back, I see that maybe that wasn't a bad dream to aspire to because you could never fail with a goal like that. In life, failure will come. It's inevitable that sometimes we all fail. However a life without challenges, goals, dreams and uncharted water is a life that is not worth living. To me that would be failure not to try my hand at new things.
If someone was to ask me now "what do you want to be when you grow up", my answer would simply be "happy". Being happy to me means I won't settle for less, I won't be afraid to take on new things and I will push forward no matter how crazy my dreams may seem to the outside world. Could I be a baby Trump in the making? Not likely, but learning to deal with success and failure is something even The Donald faces in life. Hmm, I wonder what he wanted to be when he grew up?
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