Why can't I get ahead when all these other slobs are making it???

For years I was mystified.

I worked my tail off but couldn't get The American Dream while I watched people around me who seemed lazy, stupid, and/or just plain evil get cars, houses, awesome toys, etc.

I felt despair. I felt like a failure. I felt like there was no justice in the world.

And some times at 2:30 in the morning I couldn't sleep, wondering what horrible things would happen if I lost my job, or got sick, or needed a car repair I couldn't afford.

It sucked. Oh, how it sucked.

I eventually came to learn that things weren't as they seemed.

A lot of these people really weren't living the dream after all. They were flat broke, and doomed to stay that way.

They had borrowed and borrowed and borrowed to get these things until there was no realistic hope of ever shaking off the burden of debt. They were lying awake at night worrying, too!

By contrast, my best friend had taken a different route from all the broke people, including me.

He did have some luck on his side here and there, but he had also gotten some good advice early in life and had made some good (and tough) decisions early on. Although he had a great time in his youth, he also did some of "the right things" to invest in a better future.

By the time he hit his mid-twenties, he was making more money than I am even today, and has continued to enjoy a great quality of life.

He learned a lot of hard lessons along the way, and has shared them with me. And I want to share not only my hard-earned advice with you, but some of his, as well.

Because there isn't really one single solution for everybody. I hope you'll find some value for your own situation in what I'll be sharing here.