I used to be “too cool for school.”
Not in the classroom sense, though.
I mean something totally different.
Let me explain.
I had a chip on my shoulder.
I went from being broke as a joke to making more money than I could ever dream of very quickly.
It got to me.
I went from a nobody to someone people started to “want to be like.”
It got to me.
I went from not being able to land a date to save my life to having more girls chase me than I could ever dream of. It got to me.
Private jets, Lambos, new Rolexes every week, fancy cars, bottle service, expensive clothes, big houses—you name it, I bought it.
Twice.
One day, I woke up and didn’t like who I had become.
I wasn’t buying those things for myself.
I was buying those things for them.
Who is them?
Exactly.
Why do I care if they are impressed?
I don’t.
I guess growing up the way I did put that chip on my shoulder.
Kids are cruel.
The absolute most hated time of my life growing up was the first day back to school after Christmas vacation.
All the kids had all these nice things: new clothes, cool electronics, cool stuff.
What does every kid ask everyone when they get back to school? “So, what did you get for Christmas?”
I used to lie.
“I got money from my parents.”
I didn’t get any money.
Not a dime.
But I didn’t have anything else to show for it.
I hated getting free lunches at school.
I hated having crappy cars.
I hated wearing used clothes.
I hated living in a crappy house.
Kids are cruel, and I was pissed off.
Then my girlfriend broke up with me.
“Because she wanted to date someone with status. Someone that made money.”
I snapped.
Something inside of me snapped.
I was pissed off, and most people didn't want to be around me.
One night, I saw an infomercial.
“This is it. This is my chance.”
“I’m going to get rich and prove everyone wrong.”
And I did.
But I took it too far.
The “pissed off” part didn’t go away.
I had the money, the cars, the houses, the lifestyle, but I was still pissed off.
I was mad at the world for what I dealt with.
Then one day, I had a million dollars stolen from me overnight.
That changed me.
Somehow, somehow, I was different.
I went from “too cool for school” to... grateful.
Grateful for life.
Grateful for my friends.
Grateful for what I had.
Grateful for the weather.
Grateful for my favorite shirt.
Grateful for the color blue.
Grateful for my dogs.
I found gratitude.
Gratitude is the most powerful force on the planet.
Now, every morning, I start out the day with gratitude.
You can take it all away—the houses, cars, money—but you can’t take my gratitude.
By the way, I love nice things, but I don’t buy them because I think you will like me better.
I buy them for me.
And I don’t talk about them because I want you to like me for me.
And if you don’t like me, I’m okay with that.
I like me.
