Happy national pirate https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🏴‍☠️" title="Piraten-Flagge" aria-label="Emoji: Piraten-Flagge"> day!!

Throwback thread https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🧵" title="Thread" aria-label="Emoji: Thread"> from a pirate party I threw 14 years ago & a few lessons I’ve learned since then :)

I had a very crazy college experience https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🍾" title="Flasche mit knallendem Korken" aria-label="Emoji: Flasche mit knallendem Korken">

Sophomore year I discovered I had a natural talent at poker.
I put $60 on an online site https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👇" title="Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten" aria-label="Emoji: Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten">

2) Within a month I had won $500 & saw huge potential to make a lot of money https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="💰" title="Geldsack" aria-label="Emoji: Geldsack">

I hired a well known pro to coach me a couple hours & bought every book on odds/strategy.
I became obsessed.

I went from a 3.6 GPA to 1.3 after discovering poker https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="♠️" title="Pik-Blatt" aria-label="Emoji: Pik-Blatt">

My parents were not stoked :)

3) Within a year I had dropped out of school and wrote a 72k check to Uncle Sam https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🇺🇸" title="Flagge der Vereinigten Staaten" aria-label="Emoji: Flagge der Vereinigten Staaten"> for taxes on my winnings

I lived on campus & enrolled in walking & bowling https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🎳" title="Bowling" aria-label="Emoji: Bowling"> but real college was done

My ego got out of control.
I was making 20-30k every month at 22 & 23 & I had no boundaries

I denied myself nothing.
I flew my friends to Vegas & picked up tabs on thousand dollar nights all the time.
Anywhere I had ever wanted to travel I did.

I threw parties like this pirate party with Cristal & Dom P routinely.

I grew up lower middle class,
Now look who I was :)

But the thing was even with the money, big house, new sports car, vacations, status, & respect I had in the poker community
I ALWAYS felt empty when the parties ended.

It was never enough.
The more stuff I had the more I “needed”
I couldn’t fill this deep void.
I wasn’t happy.

6) I lived this way for a decade.
Chasing pleasure & buying endless toys & stuff to try to make myself happy.

I discovered the truth that

“The things you own end up owning you.”

It wasn’t until 6 years ago when I met my now wife Annie this consumerism lifestyle changed.

7) She runs a non-profit that focuses on orphan education

I took a trip with her to “help” the kids in Africa

They would end up teaching & helping me far more than I ever could them :)

Most of the kids slept in mud huts with no electricity & no running water. They had no toys.

But they had what had eluded me my entire life!!
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">joy
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">peace
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">contentment
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">gratitude
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">Jesus

They didn’t walk they ran!
They didn’t talk they sang!!
They didn’t complain they gave thanks!!

I recall crying so hard my first night there.
I knew my life would change forever.

9) I discovered in Africa hanging out with a bunch of awesome orphans
A couple huge truths in life

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">Your happiness is counterintuitive.
The more you focus on self the less happy you will be.
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">You can CHOOSE to be grateful or pitiful everyday. It’s up to you.
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen">GIVE GENEROUSLY

I know we all strive to level up, pursue nice things & set monetary goals on here.

I urge you tho, don’t lose sight of what truly matters.

What you give to the world is far more important than what you consume or have

Volunteer at home & abroad.
Be the change u wish to seehttps://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🙏" title="Folded hands" aria-label="Emoji: Folded hands">

@FitFounder had a tweet earlier

“No amount of success or money will ever fill the hole in your heart”

It’s so true.
I searched the ends of the earth to fill that hole & never could.

It wasn’t until I started asking what can I give instead of what can I get I found peacehttps://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🙏" title="Folded hands" aria-label="Emoji: Folded hands">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="❤️" title="Rotes Herz" aria-label="Emoji: Rotes Herz">