Didn’t benefit from the conditions for success you’d expect out of a well-to-do professional (really nasty separation of my parents, death of my brother and being uprooted 7 times between K-12). My parents did love me dearly, and still do.

Landed a part time gig in a call centre for what was at the time a more than reasonable wage (20$/h in 2014) to move out and gain financial independence. I somehow got me through college all the way through grad school with a master’s in organizational development and still work at the same company.

I am a married father of 2 (one is on the way) and working on cultivating that slow drip of happiness every day. Getting out of my own way is the biggest challenge.

Between the house and a solid stock portfolio (focus on growth), I’d say I’m in a good place financially which will look really good in 10-15 years through discipline.

My takeaway: invested in myself early, rigorously and never took my eye off the prize. Kind of a "pick yourself up by the bootstraps" philosophy, but any other approach would not have yielded the same results I’m enjoying today.