Chapter 2
Determine Your Purpose

So what's your secret?”

I had just ordered a foaming cup of hot coffee at the bakery and seated myself opposite my mentor.

“What secret?” he asked, not expecting my question.

“What's your secret to getting so rich?” I asked, holding my warm cup, leaning into the conversation, in an effort not to miss a single word that my mentor would say.

Enter my millionaire mentor:

• He grew up without a father.
• He grew up speaking Spanish.
• He is an immigrant from Cuba.
• He worked his way through a small state school for college.
• He came from the toughest, poorest, and most crime‐ridden part of town.

Most would argue that, given his background, my mentor would have virtually NO chance at succeeding in life.

Yet, he proved every single person wrong.

• At 13, he had to start working to help his mother put food on the family table.
• At 24, he was fired from his first real job after working there for just two years.
• At 26, he started his first business, and went bankrupt after just four years.
• At 29, he started his second business, selling business health insurance.
• At 50, he sold his second business, netting $75 million in the process.
• At 51, he founded three new start‐ups, specializing in health insurance.
• At 62, after growing his start‐ups, he sold them at $50 million each.
• At 79, he continues his business ventures, running seven new start‐ups.

Let's be real …

Based on how – and where – my mentor grew up, the odds of becoming somewhat successful, let alone a deca‐millionaire and beyond were tiny.

Pretty much nonexistent.

But my mentor did not let a single doubter get in the way of starting his journey.

And what's even more crazy is that at almost age 80, he loves his work.

And work he does.

Every single day.

It's hard to tell that he is almost 80 years old because he continues to have a passion for what he does.

“My secret to getting rich?” He asked again, surprised by my direct question.

He sits back in the squeaky, wooden bakery chair and pushes his thin metal glasses up his nose, squinting at me as if he didn't know how to start answering my question.

After a long pause, he finally said, “It's not a secret, Fi,” referring to my nickname (pronounced “fee”), which is short for my full name, Fiona.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

My mentor smiled and said, “I don't have a secret formula that will help you get rich. The only reason why I am where I am today is because of my purpose.”

“Your purpose?” I was a little confused.

“I started my very first full‐time job out of college at 24. I was a used car salesman. I hated every second of that job. I was paid decent money, but I hated my job.”

My mentor took a sip of his hot tea.

“Why did you hate it so much?” I questioned.

“The truth, Fiona, is that I didn't have a purpose in that job.

All I did was sell used, overpriced cars to customers for a fat bonus check. That's it. There was no other reason for me to be in this job other than the money.”

Slowly my mentor's words started making sense.

He continued, “Because I had no purpose in my job, I felt lost. I worked for the weekend. I dreaded Mondays. And I felt like I was in a prison. Those were the most boring, dullest years of my life.”

Let me pause the story here.

Do you ever feel like:

• Your tie is your chain?
• Your cubicle is your prison cell?
• Your business suit is your prison jumpsuit?

If you said yes, then this book – and especially this chapter – is for you.

“So, what happened?” I asked.

“I got fired!” He chuckled, which was not the reaction I was expecting.

“My boss could tell how much I dreaded the job. So, he fired me. And honestly, I cannot thank my boss enough today. He did me a favor because if he didn't fire me back then, I don't think I would have been where I am today.”

This part of our discussion had so much significance to me. Let me share why.

If you are worried about:

• Losing your job.
• Losing your friends.
• Losing your relationship.

… then remember this lesson:

Rejection is just another form of redirection in your life.

When you are rejected, try to understand why.

Learn from the rejection, and move on to bigger and better things.

“So what changed between the time you were fired and the time that you started your own business?” I had already finished my first cup of coffee at this point and had just ordered another one.

My mentor sat back into the old, wooden bakery chair and thought for a moment.

“I took some time off of work. I actually moved back with my mom. I had lost myself completely. Instead of focusing on my family, I focused on partying. Instead of caring for my mental health, I focused on the money. It was time I went back to my roots, and going back to where it all started was really where I found myself again.”

And my mentor is right … sometimes you just have to go back to the basics if you feel like you're getting too far down the rabbit hole.

“At my mom's place, I finally had time to really take some time to think again for once. And that's where I found my purpose.”

If I got a quarter for every time my mentor said the word purpose, I may have had a few dollars by now to pay for my coffees!

“Why do you place so much importance on finding your purpose?” I asked, almost done with my second cup of coffee.

“My purpose is the very reason why I do what I do. My purpose is the reason why I am so successful today.”

I nodded, asking, “So what is your purpose?”

“Well, Fiona, it took me 26 years to figure that out. After my terrible experience working in corporate America, I went back home, to my roots, to have some time to think.”

My mentor continued, “I knew that if I wanted to get anywhere in life, I needed to figure out the key that would unlock a burning desire and passion within me to succeed. And at 26, I was a very unmotivated fellow.”

He laughed while he finished eating his croissant.

“One day, while I was caring for my aging mother at home, my purpose hit me like a baseball in the forehead,” his eyes were distant, as if he was looking into his past so many decades ago.

“She had a bad fall. Hit her head on the wooden kitchen table and went unconscious. I didn't know what to do other than call 911. I have never felt so helpless and so scared in my life.”

Sighing, he continued, “We couldn't afford the hospital bills because we couldn't afford insurance. We had no money. That fall destroyed my mom financially.”

My mentor shook his head, crossed his arms, and sat up in his chair.

“That was when I realized I could not let another family go through what we were about to go through – financially, physically, emotionally, and mentally. That was when I knew my purpose.”

He looked straight into my eyes, saying “My purpose is to help protect families from suffering financial ruin caused by medical bills.”

And it's true.

The healthcare system in the United States is so expensive.

I once had a friend of mine break her arm through a random fall (while walking to the bathroom!) and without having health insurance, my friend had to pay $20,000 in medical bills!

Healthcare is very expensive in the United States.

Now my mentor had built his first business at 26, specializing as a door‐to‐door private health insurance agent.

He didn't study finance in school, either, and he didn't know what health insurance was before his mom had that tragic fall.

All he knew was that he wanted to help prevent people from facing financial ruin from medical injuries like his mother had.

“I stayed up late every night, studying to become a licensed health insurance agent. Every morning, I woke up at 4 a.m. to continue studying. I didn't do it because of the money – like my car sales job. I did it because I knew firsthand that one trip to the hospital can cost you everything you've ever worked for if you don't have the right health insurance.”

My mentor's mom was in debt by over $150,000 after she was discharged from the hospital. She was healthy, but she had lost her life savings – and then some.

“But your first business wasn't successful … ? So maybe your purpose wasn't that strong?” I was looking for some guidance.

I really wanted to get a clear answer as to why my mentor became so successful.

“You're right, I completely failed at my first business. It was a disaster. I went knocking on our neighbors' doors, and received one yes for every 200 nos. Apparently everyone thought I was a dishonest insurance salesman and they had enough of me.”

“But,” he continued, “my first business...