*record scratch*

*freeze frame*

It was Fall of the year 1999 when I finally unboxed my Sega Dreamcast. It took me 6+ months of dragging a newspaper cart up hills, through rain and snow just to save up enough money for it.

Little did I know that this charming little grey console would completely change the trajectory of my life, saving me from a path of destruction in my formative years.

Coming from a low income and broken home, I had no idea what the internet was in 1999/2000.

It was by chance that I purchased a Dreamcast magazine, mostly to get the included disc of demo games, because I couldn’t afford to pay our family’s late fees at Blockbuster in order to rent a game.

In that magazine, there was an article about connecting to the "internet" using its 56K modem and making a website using something called “HTML”.

I was so intrigued by the concept of creating something that people around the world could see, that I saved more paper route money and got a dial-up connection, and the keyboard + mouse accessories. I started learning to code.

From there, I discovered web designers such as @zeldman, @vpieters, @meyerweb, @Hicksdesign, @jina and many others who became the role models that I desperately needed. Without them knowing it, they inspired and guided me onto a better path in life.

The first payment that I received via @PayPal when I was 15, for web design work (coding a CSS nav menu), cemented the idea that I didn’t have to repeat the pattern. The internet gave me other options in life.

My wife and I now have a child on the way . About to be a Dad, I’ve been thinking a lot about my childhood and adolescent years.

I don't have wisdom to share on this yet. Only what helped–and what didn't–in my own life. I'm working to distil it down to guiding principles.

The internet, and technology in general, is vastly different than it was in '99/'00 with my Sega Dreamcast. But maybe more than ever, it still provides options and opportunity for people around the world to get inspired, learn new skills and start businesses.

I’m so incredibly grateful that @LemonStand I get to work with people who are starting and growing businesses every day, while continuing to do the same myself.

I hope to keep doing that for a long time.

Since this tweet, I’ve joined @Mailchimp, where we empower the underdog by helping millions of small businesses sell more stuff.