A little bit about me

or more like - this is the story of my life.

Born in Georgia, in the suburbs of Atlanta, but grew up in Alaska. I can't claim to be a lifelong Alaskan as I was 6 years old when my family came up here, however, I pride in this big state and I love adventure. I often go hiking, fishing, and occasionally go hunting. I grew up in Wasilla and moved into Anchorage in 2017. I graduated High School with a grade point average of 3.78 and was in the top 10% of the graduating class in 2014.

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My first job was at the GMC Buick dealership in Palmer where I started out working part time while finishing school, where I acquired lots of experience as well as some ASE certifications. After two years of working there for 9.50/hr, seeing no bright future, and having finished all he education I wanted, I took on a gig in residential construction where I learned about framing, roofing, safety in those work fields, and codes to which buildings are built. After a year of that, I was getting tired of the cold, I decided to look for a job that's indoors, doing something I love to do. This is when I broadened my horizons and found a job at Specialized Imports on international airport rd. I worked there for 3 years, putting my skills to the test, learning more every day about cars, fixing common problems on imports, and I became efficient at what I was doing because I loved the work. I had acquired all the tools a mechanic needs as my motto was "If I have to borrow a tool once, I'll definitely need it again so I'm buying one." My work ethic proved that I was not out to slack around, do the minimums required, and collect a paycheck. I was quite invested in this work, and I received all 8 ASE certifications making me Master Certified. I was quite proud of this achievement.

All this time, however, I was living with my parents and commuting 2-3 hours a day - that was getting old. I checked with Bill Foster at Residential Mortgage and he said that with my credit score of 768, I could qualify for a place for $180,000. "I'm not stupid" I thought, "I can find a way to get into a $240k place.."

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I had started looking around and found that if I bought a duplex, I could use the expected rent money as additional income to qualify for a bigger loan. SO I DID. Late in 2017, I moved into East Anchorage, owning a duplex, carrying the title of "Landlord", at only 23 years old. I was also very proud of myself at this moment. But, not everything we think is the best happens to be the best way we imagine it will be. Every year, I had rented out the place for $300/mo under market value (newbie landlord feeling guilty of taking the family's food money) and found myself sinking into debt with every passing month. In the summer, I was able to catch up a bit, but in the winter I would go deeper into debt than the previous winter because the bills were all on one meter - and my budgeting skills where non-existent. I decided to do what I can, be the man, and solve the issues as they come -  so I got a second job at the airport - just a job at the gift shop, but I figured that trading 5 hours a night there for some extra money would give me the few bucks to get ahead.

There came a time where the tenants had to be evicted after nonpayment of rent for two months in a row. By the time they got out, I was about 2.5 months rent + bills worth behind. These tenants - whose names I will not mention here - had tore up the place beyond belief. They moved out in April and I went to work remodeling the place right away. (It wasn't until the end of July that I was ready to move new tenants in.) Right when things couldn't get any worse, My boss, not happy with my performance at work, (I blame the onset of stress and overwork) let me go from a $2400 a month job. I was too stunned to comprehend the impact this would make in my life, but I'm employable, so I picked up a job at Fred Meyers. I started working for Fred Meyers a week before the COVID shutdown, I never took any days off, I never got COVID, and I made all the money! - two truths and a lie anyone? 

After all that accumulated debt and then the expenses of remodeling the place, I had more than $35k of credit card debt and a $1,746/mo mortgage payment hanging over my head. I was struggling to make that mortgage payment, my water utility was so past due they turned the water off, my electricity bills had added up to $1000 in delinquency and I was taking my trash out myself because I knew $48 for the service was something I couldn't afford. My friends would come over and there was no water - I hated to admit that this was my problem - they didn't know I owned the place, so referring to myself in third person, I'd explain that the retarded landlord couldn't get the freaking payment to go through on time... Looking back now, I admit I was very stubborn in admitting my mistakes. Had I acknowledged that I'm making stupid choices and realized that the fault is mine and mine alone, I would've been more diligent in sticking to a budget and delaying gratification which would not allow me to be in this spot in the first place.

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If someone wanted to offer me help at this time, however, I would not take handouts. I'm not one to go get foodstamps, welfare, or the like. The only handouts I take are the Permanent Fund Dividend - and I demand that one!

I was still working at Fred Meyers - not making all the money - behind in every loan or bill I had - yelling to myself inside my head "You never Win! It doesn't matter what you do, how hard you work, you just can't win!"

I wanted to win so bad! I was praying, I was crying, I was thinking hard, I was working overtime, but I couldn't get ahead. This is right about the time I was trying on the "look at the bright side" and "see the glass half full."

I was walking through the produce section and seeing how hard everyone was working, decided to uplift someone - maybe that would come back to me. Karma right? Put out good energy and it'll came back to you, or something...

Jeremy was stacking the apples and oranges and it just looked so good - (maybe because I was really hungry and couldn't afford food - only getting a free drip coffee from Starbucks as a Freddy's employee) but I said "hey Jeremy, your display looks great, man, keep up the good work." And kept walking.. Amber Alston was in that store by accident, she says she meant to go to a different one, but she was at my store and overheard my remark to Jeremy and asked me if I was open to options. Options? Yes please! I don't care what it is - if I can get money legally, I will do it!

She called me back the next day, and set up a time to grab coffee and chat. She explained that there's a way to make money by simply changing your point of purchase and by telling your friends about stuff you love. I was skeptical. If she's doing this thing that she's doing for a living, the money is obviously coming from somewhere. 

You know what they say "If something looks too good to be true, look for the financial interest."

I was determined to crack this open and find out some dirty, convoluted garbage.

"I'm not stupid, I know all rich people became rich by taking advantage of others, by making money off others. Jeff Besos, Elon Musk, Tim Cook and all the others like them got there by not paying a fair wage to the people that work for them - thus making themselves rich off of others efforts. This makes sense. I need to be the next Jeff Besos, or else I won't stay above water for long" I thought.

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Amber, however, was really transparent with me, very honest, and above all other things, she wasn't afraid to say it as it is - not beating around the bush.

Amber and her husband, Sam, quickly earned my respect and I was open to getting coached by them. After all, Sam and Amber were business owners, they had a construction business and could relate to my problems. I quickly realized that I needed to get mentored by someone who is ahead of me, someone that already has fruit on the tree. They where driving a nice newer black Benz and I was driving a 1995 Impreza that insurance companies totaled three times over - it had a triple salvaged title. They claimed to be "debt-free" and I was deep in the debts of despair.

They certainly had a better life with more freedom and more options and they offered to help me build my life.

Trusting my gut instincts, I trusted them to look at my monthly income and expenses, and asked for their advice on the situation.

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It was the end of July, the interest rates where at the lowest point in years, the housing market was hot, and yet after giving me an outside perspective, Amber didn't urge me to do anything. That felt great! I'm getting help/advice but no one is urging or pushing me to do anything in particular. Having the perspective she offered me, I decided that I was going to sell my duplex instead of renting it out again. The sale finally closed in October, I was able to pay off all the remodel costs, all the delinquent bills, and I had just enough money left to pay off the rest of my debt that I had accumulated by eating and being alive, but I was now at a "fresh start" point. 

I fully and completely leaned into my mentor, for a year straight I was communicating with her daily. That's not an exaggeration, If not a phone call, then a text or voicemail, but I leaned in, learned, and soaked in as much as I could.

Sam and Amber showed me a way to budget properly, live below my means, and at the same time expand the "means" to the point where now I can live very comfortably.

Roughly a year later, I was able to quit my job at Fred Meyers and just work a few hours a night at the airport. I then started driving for Lyft so that I have more opportunities to meet more people, and make a few extra bucks on my own schedule.

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Because I had this flexibility and some liquid assets due to proper money management, I was able to start a few businesses such as my commercial car rental and used car dealership. I want to help others start their own businesses because as long as you're working for someone, you're working to help someone get ahead sooner. There is quite a bit of controversy over how busy owners can get. While it's true that you are continually busy when you own a business, you also have the power to delegate as you're in the position to hire other people to help you. Once there are systems in place, everything runs smoother, and overlooking a few operations definitely feels better and the work is easier than being at the bottom of the food chain.

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It feels great to be able to have no debt, have no deadlines hanging over your head, sleep in without having to snooze an alarm clock, and not have to ask anyone for permission. No one to tell you where you can or can't go, or what you can or can't do. It feels great to have more options, to have the freedom to spend money guilt free, and to associate with winners. Sam and Amber helped me out so much, and are still continuing to help me. When I asked how can I ever repay them for their help - Amber just said "Turn around and help someone else. Pay it forward."

This is where the mission statement of my life came to be.

All throughout my teen years, I had some thing stuck in my head that if I started a band or musical group, it would be called "Free People something something" I would doodle different variations of that, and make logos.. Now I'm looking back and it's like it was all meant to be. I failed a lot, I learned a lot, and I want to help others.

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From tackling personal decisions, financial planning sessions, to helping you reach important milestones, my passion is to guide you onto the path of success. I’m fueled by my commitment to excellence and I go the extra mile to make sure you are achieving your biggest goals and dreams.
 

I believe in maintaining a positive mindset, creating partnerships with a purpose, mentoring with leaders that have achieved their goals, and always striving for significant outcomes.

Contact me today to set up a time and place to meet, I can't wait to introduce you to Sam, Amber, and a long list of their mentors, including John Maxwell.

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Freedom!

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Favorite verses: John 8:31,32

To the people who had believed Him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

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TLDR: Story of my life showing that I made a ton of choices, some better than others, but I was lucky enough to meet some people that helped me turn my life around for good. I want to turn around and help others.