Link Generation

How It All Started?

Honestly, it started in ’92 or maybe ’93. I can’t remember exactly. What I do remember is this: I was living in Tahi Terrace, New Lynn, West Auckland, with my oldest brother and his wife. Life was tough then. I’d just dropped out of Auckland University after a year that felt… like I was wearing someone else’s shoes. My body was there, sure, but my heart? My mind? My spirit? No, they were somewhere else entirely.

What does that even mean? Well, it’s hard to explain, but I think my inner consciousness – call it a gut feeling, intuition, whatever, was telling me that I wasn’t even there, even though I was. So the following year, I followed my gut and spent my days in the library. Not for classes, not for grades, but for me.

The library became my universe, my escape hatch. I’d plunged into soul-searching and an avalanche of books, business entrepreneurship magazines… I buried my head in them.

One random day, looking for something new, I picked up a business magazine. No idea why, maybe boredom, maybe fate or just curiosity. Cars, technology, flying cars (which we still don’t have), futuristic houses, … etc; I was into it all. But tucked inside the pages was this tiny advertisement, no bigger than a business card that said,

“Make Six Figures in Less Than a Year. No Experience Required!”

I was hooked. But I wish I’d saved it. All I remember is the price – $20 US (about $30 in NZ at the time). That’s for “postage”, it said. My hands hovered, hesitant, before I finally filled in my details, stuffed the cash into an envelope and mailed it. It was like throwing a bottle into the sea, half hoping someone would find it.

Weeks went by. Nothing came.

Every day I rushed home from the library to check the letterbox like a child waiting for Christmas. When nothing arrived, I shrugged it off, $30 wasn’t going to ruin me. I almost forgot about it. Almost. Until one afternoon, I walked up the driveway and there it was: a big yellow envelope stuffed in the letterbox.

I froze.

It was surreal, like discovering a treasure in the garden. The envelope promised secrets. My hands trembled as I carried it inside, clearing off the table like some sacred ritual. I tore it open and wow, …wow. Inside were brochures, glossy booklets, welcome letters, certificates, and more. It smelled of fresh ink and hope.

I spent hours reading them all. Every detail, every tip, every “secret” felt like a trail of breadcrumbs leading me to some golden promised land. And maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t. But I didn’t care. My gut told me this was it.

The programme wasn’t some fly-by-night scam either; it had been around for six years, run by this elite group of successful and wealthy entrepreneurs – serious heavyweights. I didn’t hesitate. I paid my way in and became a life member, and that decision (that one decision), changed everything.

Looking back, it seems almost cinematic. But believe me, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Over the years I’ve lost notes, misplaced research and lost files because I’ve moved around more than I care to admit. It’s maddening. But what I have learned has stayed with me.

That first day, opening that envelope, wasn’t just a start. it was the start. It taught me to trust that inner voice, to take the leap even when the safety net looks sketchy.

And now, three decades later, I look back and think, “Life is too short for secrets, why keep it all to myself?” So here it is, raw, messy, full of emotion, just like the day I pulled gold out of my mailbox.

Enjoy the read.